Take a trip back in time to visit the spectacle of the 1933 Chicago World's Fair, courtesy of Anika Scott.

In her latest novel, SINNERS OF STARLIGHT CITY, we experience the sights, sounds and smells of the fair through the eyes of Rosa Mancuso, who performs as the mysterious and sultry Madame Mystique. We also meet 18-year-old Mina Gallo, who is imprisoned in a house in Cicero, waiting for the birth of her baby. Mina’s mafioso family is embarrassed by her unwed state and wants to have the child taken to an orphanage, Mina returned to the family, and life to continue as it was before she made what in their eyes is an unsavory alliance with someone of color.

"Revenge is a central theme of the story. But Scott also cleverly juxtaposes ideas about race alongside the rise of fascism in Italy."

It turns out that these two women are cousins. And while they only knew each other for a short time in their early childhood, the connection is enough for Rosa to help Mina escape from the house, and for Mina to repay that favor later. Both are determined to accomplish their goals. Mina's seems innocent enough. She wants to keep her baby. But when her child is born too early, Mina also knows that the only way the infant might survive is if she's taken to the World's Fair. There, a new invention --- an incubator --- will keep her warm and oxygenated. The problem then becomes how to get her back after she survives.

Rosa, on the other hand, is looking for revenge. When she was just a teenager, her family was brutally murdered in their home in Sicily by someone she thought was a friend. Rosa barely escaped with her life and has survived since then, but only with the constant thought of getting revenge for her loved ones.

Revenge is a central theme of the story. But Scott also cleverly juxtaposes ideas about race alongside the rise of fascism in Italy. We see from actual quotes how many in America shockingly and openly supported and cheered fascism. Examples of racism in Chicago are rampant in the story, as are "noble" thoughts about honor and family pride. Rosa's Italian family was horrified when her mother married a Black man with whom she had fallen in love. When he was killed in race riots, she went home with her child looking for support. But she and Rosa eventually went to live in Sicily.

Mina studied to become a nurse and fell in love with a Black surgeon. But he was killed before they could be married, leaving Mina pregnant and alone. Remembering their sister (Rosa's mother), Mina’s father and his brother decide that the best thing for her is to take away her child so she can return to her previous life. What Mina wants is not part of the equation.

One issue that Scott forces us to consider is if revenge is really worthwhile in the end. Will Rosa be better off once she gets the revenge she has sought for so long? Does her family's adherence to the Italian code of revenge help them or harm them? There are also characters who must forgive those who abused them, and some who have to atone for the harm they have perpetrated on others. Are there ever circumstances that make violence acceptable, even moral? Have our feelings about race in this country changed as much as might be expected over the past 90 years?

We think about these questions as we contemplate the decisions both women make in this gripping novel.