Reviewed by Grant Leishman for Readers' Favorite

Phoenix (Intertwined Souls Series Book 9) by Mary Dee is a historical romance that explores the difficulties of living a life outside of accepted societal norms. Eva and Zoe Lambros live a life of privilege and extreme luxury due to their business empire, as well as Zoe being a revered and celebrated artist. Set in 1958 Australia, Eva and Zoe are immigrants from Greece, where both played a major role in the partisan fighters who struggled to eject the Nazi and fascist Italian troops during World War II. Eva's and Zoe’s lives, though incredibly happy and fulfilling, are marred by one broken social convention that they must hide from the world. In ultra-conservative 1950s Australia, two women in love, living as a couple, were considered a great sin, and they had to work extremely hard to keep their relationship private and secret. When their business empire comes under threat and Zoe is publicly denounced on the radio for her “supposed” war heroism and the quality of her artwork, the pair realizes that someone must be deliberately targeting them. They find themselves in a race against time to save their business, their union, and perhaps even their sanity.

Phoenix is a wonderfully refreshing historical romance adventure. In a world where same-sex relationships are genuinely celebrated, not decried, it does not hurt us to consider the dilemma faced by people throughout history who defied societal norms and often did so at their peril. Author Mary Dee has created two wonderful characters in Eva and Zoe who can live the life they choose, perhaps not openly, but at least within the confines of their home, because they have the financial resources to do so without intrusion. However, the paradox here is that it is their very fame and wealth that actually attract extra attention and scrutiny. Being Book 9 of the series, this is clearly a topic that resonates deeply with this author, and having read the book, I can easily understand why. LGBTQ+ literature fascinates me for several reasons, but adding the historical context and the consequent societal disapproval to this particular story gives it a depth and breadth that lifts it above other books in the genre. I particularly enjoyed the portrayal of the Australian “war hero” who was essentially the archetypal “Aussie bloke” and couldn’t comprehend the idea that women have the attributes to take on men, lead men, and outperform them on both the battlefield and the sports field. This is a new author for me, and I have no doubt it will not be her last book that I read or of other authors in this growing genre. I thoroughly enjoyed this story and highly recommend it.