BOOK REVIEW: The Last Gypsy Queen by Linda Paul

The Last Gypsy Queen by Linda Paul is a poignant story of star-crossed lovers set in WWII Ohio. Marisol Mazaria is an eighteen-year-old Romani woman who longs to follow in her grandfather’s footsteps and become a physician, but who is constrained by traditional cultural roles. She is working as a tarot card reader at a summertime lakeside amusement park when she meets Will Worthington, a college student who comes to have his fortune told. Will also struggles to defy family expectations. Rather than take over his father’s business, he hopes to be a pilot and join the war effort. Over the course of one too-short summer, a romance blooms, one they must hide because of deep-rooted prejudice in both of their communities. This beautifully written novel is perfect for book clubs with its prime-for-debate mix of love against the odds, a strong female protagonist, the fascinating weaving in of tarot card reading, and themes of identity and cultural bias.