What do readers think of Signed Mata Hari by Yannick Murphy? Write your own review.

While reading this book, I was struck by the simple yet lush language. Though the language isn't complex, its direct and confidential tone suggest the intimacy of Mata Hari's confessions. Yannick Murphy does a good job at making the reader see Mata Hari's motivations, and one ends up feeling that this woman could be any of us, struggling against the oppression of her times. I would recommend this book to readers of historical fiction or anyone who would like to get a realistic picture of Mata Hari.

Murphy, in her lyrical language, short chapters, and changing points of view, spins multiple stories and introduces the reader to a fascinating array of characters -- foremost, the complex and complicated Mata Hari. I enjoyed the book and loved the mythical stories Mata Hari told and wrote to her children.

I enjoyed reading this book with it's many descriptive and interesting portrayal's of the main character, Mata Hari. She was an intriguing person with a lot of baggage which formed the person she became. I was surprised at some of the revelations that came out toward the end. I'm not sure I would recommend it to my book club because of the graphic sexual content throughout the book.

There are passages in this book that sound a gong and remind us why we read books in the first place: to encourage us to look at our world and see it in all its grotesque and magical lucidity. Murphy does it. Her language is precise. There's an occasional hiccup in plot, a missed rung on the ladder, though it's easy to forget once the next step's been met. This book is worth the time for those who love a seamless intersection of story and language, history and poetry.

In this creative book the life of Mata Hari comes alive as we've never known it before. Murphy has filled the gaps that exist in the research available on this intriguing character from WWI. In this story Mata Hari comes to life and one finds sympathy for her despite her life choices.

There are some deliciously erotic sex scenes in the book that might make it a questionable choice for some readers and some group discussions. I found it all to be well written and a quick enjoyable reading experience. It made me go to the web to see what I could learn about Mata Hari and to verify some of the author's conclusions as either fact or fiction.

This book raises the question of Mata Hari's guilt as a spy or a victim of circumstance. Yannick Murphy captures the essence of this woman from her early life with an abusive cold husband to the loss of her children and writes in a poetic fashion that makes you want to believe what Mata Hari tells us. The book richly introduces characters who make an imprint on Mata Hari's life and lead her away from the life she loved and into a sad desperate struggle for survival.

I enjoyed this book. The time-jumping, vignette chapters gave this book a crisp pace. The lush and exotic prose provided a stark contrast to Mata Hari's despair while bringing to life her sensuality and sexuality. Disappointedly, the focus on Mata Hari's despair left little exploration of her success as a dancer throughout Europe. My first literary exposure to Mata Hari and I found myself wanting more. Fans of historical fiction would enjoy this book.

With short chapters and a flowing writing style, Murphy's newest novel is an easy read. I found myself instantly engaged with the life of Mata Hari, the German spy during World War II. It was interesting to read about Mata Hari's life before she became a spy. However, the novel becomes confusing because during the switch of chapters, the author changes the point of view from Mata Hari's first person, to third person and finally to "You," putting the reader into the story. I found this hard to follow at times during the beginning of the novel. Although, the end was a wonderful wrap-up to the story, showing stories from Anna Lintjens, Mata Hari's maid, her daughter, and one of the guards at the prison. Over all, it was definitely worth the read and I'd recommend it to anyone who is interested in a fictional biography.