The Only Woman in the Room: A Novel
Hedy Lamarr was a famous beauty and screen actress in the golden age of Hollywood, but few knew about her passion for science and invention--and what drove her to innovate. Ending a promising stage career in Vienna to marry a munitions dealers and protect her family as anti-Semitism and fascism closed in on Austria, Lamarr found herself imprisoned--and privy to insider conversations of the Third Reich. Upon her escape to Hollywood, she becomes a star but is plagued by a sense of duty to use her knowledge. And so begins a quest to assist the Allies with an invention that could change the course of the war--if they'll listen to a woman.
The Only Woman in the Room is a riveting fictional account of woman previously only known for her beauty and acting. Benedict makes real the life of a charismatic woman who refuses to be one dimensional and whose innovations contributed to the technologies we now use every day. Read my full review.
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She possessed a stunning beauty. She also possessed a stunning mind. Could the world handle both?
Her beauty almost certainly saved her from the rising Nazi party and led to marriage with an Austrian arms dealer. Underestimated in everything else, she overheard the Third Reich’s plans while at her husband’s side, understanding more than anyone would guess. She devised a plan to flee in disguise from their castle, and the whirlwind escape landed her in Hollywood. She became Hedy Lamarr, screen star.
But she kept a secret more shocking than her heritage or her marriage: she was a scientist. And she knew a few secrets about the enemy. She had an idea that might help the country fight the Nazis…if anyone would listen to her.
A powerful novel based on the incredible true story of the glamour icon and scientist whose groundbreaking invention revolutionized modern communication, The Only Woman in the Room is a masterpiece.