The New York Times and USA Today bestseller The riveting novel of iron-willed Alva Vanderbilt and her illustrious family as they rule Gilded-Age New York, written by Therese Anne Fowler, a New York Times bestselling author of Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald. Alva Smith, her southern family destitute after the Civil War, married into one of America’s great Gilded Age dynasties: the newly wealthy … War, married into one of America’s great Gilded Age dynasties: the newly wealthy but socially shunned Vanderbilts. Ignored by New York’s old-money circles and determined to win respect, she designed and built nine mansions, hosted grand balls, and arranged for her daughter to marry a duke. But Alva also defied convention for women of her time, asserting power within her marriage and becoming a leader in the women’s suffrage movement.
With a nod to Jane Austen and Edith Wharton, in A Well-Behaved Woman Therese Anne Fowler paints a glittering world of enormous wealth contrasted against desperate poverty, of social ambition and social scorn, of friendship and betrayal, and an unforgettable story of a remarkable woman. Meet Alva Smith Vanderbilt Belmont, living proof that history is made by those who know the rules–and how to break them.
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History comes alive in this immensely readable novel. Therese Anne Fowler takes us behind the velvet drapes of the Vanderbilt mansions in the late 19th century, exposing a world of passions and betrayal in which all is not as it seems. A Well-Behaved Woman is an extraordinary portrait of a strong, fascinating woman who rose above societal convention and even her own expectations to become so much more than anyone might have predicted.
In this captivating novel about the indomitable Alva Vanderbilt, Therese Fowler plunges us with wonderful energy into New York’s Gilded Age. Alva provides a fascinating prism for the challenges and pleasures of era, and is endlessly engrossing as a character, full of action and vision and will―just the sort of woman I love knowing more about. I dare you not to dive right in.
Oh how I loved every instant I spent in the world Fowler has recreated here. The story of Alva Vanderbilt is elegantly and empathetically told. Prepare to be enthralled!
Activist, egalitarian, philanthropist, trailblazer―these are the qualities of a historic leader. In A Well-Behaved Woman, Therese Fowler illuminates the leading legacy of American heiress Alva Vanderbilt. Alva’s gumption and glamour will resonate with modern women and remind all that history belongs to those who courageously persevere. A sparkling, powerful story that needs to be heard now more than ever.
A Well-Behaved Woman is a gem: a fascinating tale of Gilded Age manners and mores, and one remarkable woman’s attempts to transcend them. Therese Anne Fowler, the immensely gifted writer who gave us all new insights into Zelda Fitzgerald in her novel, Z, has done it again for Alva Vanderbilt Belmont
As she did with the better-known Zelda Fitzgerald in Z, Therese Fowler has woven historical fact into riveting fiction with the life of Alva Vanderbilt. When she marries W.K. Vanderbilt, Alva rockets from genteel poverty into the rarified circles of the super-rich, but finds that money causes just as many problems as it solves. A read to be savored, page by delicious, beautifully written page.
A colorful, informative portrayal of Gilded Age society! Powerful and influential women are typically judged harshly by history, but here we see deeper into Alva Vanderbilt’s motives as well as her vulnerabilities. She emerges as a strong, fair-mind woman every bit as intelligent and deserving of respect as the men she stood up against.
I’m a big fan of historical fiction and A WELL BEHAVED WOMAN gave me everything i look for in a great read. In Therese Anne Fowler’s hands Alva Vanderbilt is a vibrant character, a woman who reshapes social history during a turbulent time in American gender politics. I thoroughly enjoyed this book.
The best biographical novels reveal a life we never expected to know, and here, in Fowler’s jaw-droppingly brilliant A Well-Behaved Woman, she uncovers Alva Smith, who was supposed to be proper and conventional, but instead she not only launched the Vanderbilt’s Guilded Age dynasty, but dug in her heels to defy her times in ways that were nothing short of revolutionary. Not just breathtakingly alive, but dazzlingly and profoundly timely. A must-read masterpiece.
To step into Therese Anne Fowler’s stunning novel is to step into Alva Vanderbilt’s rarefied world of sprawling homes, delicious society intrigue, and incomparable Gilded Age luxury. But there’s so much more to this world than appearances would indicate―as Alva and the reader both learn. Fowler’s heroine is drawn with care and complexity, a woman of exquisite taste and depth, and one who dares to dream beyond the stifling role which society has assigned her.
I don’t know what it is about the Vanderbilts that is so fascinating to me but I can’t get enough. I couldn’t put this book down. It was so unexpected and although it tries to be a rags to riches tale it’s more about the longing that I imagine many women of the era felt when they married men who suited or elevated their status but locked them in a passionless life. Oh, the longing… it’s so good. If you love historical fiction with strong female leads… this is for you.
A very well researched and well written book about a woman that I had not known about previously. I did not know much about the Vanderbilt family until reading this book and found it fascinating. I loved how Alva evolved over the course of the story into such an independent woman, who fought for what she believed in regardless of if it was what others thought was right. She was loyal to a fault and was determined to help better the circumstances of those less fortunate, which not all the women in her social circle aspired too. I did check some of the story as I was reading it and found that they were accurate to Alva’s real life. This was a great read and I would highly recommend it.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
An intriguing glimpse into the life of the Vanderbilt family that reads like a fast-paced novel. Fowler had done a great job in bringing the family to life in a very relatable way. The story focuses on Alva, who married into the family to give them “acceptability” with the “old money” crowd. She proved to be a dynamo who led the Vanderbilts to the heights of power in the right social circles. But when push comes to shove, she had the courage to break rigid norms and do the right thing — for herself and to help the less fortunate.
Blurb:
Alva Smith, her southern family destitute after the Civil War, married into one of America’s great Gilded Age dynasties: the newly wealthy but socially shunned Vanderbilts. Ignored by New York’s old-money circles and determined to win respect, she designed and built nine mansions, hosted grand balls, and arranged for her daughter to marry a duke. But Alva also defied convention for women of her time, asserting power within her marriage and becoming a leader in the women’s suffrage movement.
With a nod to Jane Austen and Edith Wharton, in A Well-Behaved Woman Therese Anne Fowler paints a glittering world of enormous wealth contrasted against desperate poverty, of social ambition and social scorn, of friendship and betrayal, and an unforgettable story of a remarkable woman. Meet Alva Smith Vanderbilt Belmont, living proof that history is made by those who know the rules—and how to break them.
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I could not put this book down! It’s impeccably written and effortlessly transports you into the Gilded Age in New York. One can only dream of such an opulent lifestyle. The Vanderbilts led such fascinating lives, especially Alva, whom the Vanderbilts had to thank for their acceptance into high society.
Therese Anne Fowler has a gift for taking us back in time to experience misunderstood women, first with the story of Zelda Fitzgerald in Z, and now with Alva Vanderbilt in A Well-Behaved Woman. I was fascinated by Fowler’s descriptions of the Vanderbilt lifestyle and imaginings of how Alva fit into this picture, using her intellect and passions to elevate this new moneyed family into New York old money society, while then risking all that she had accomplished to maintain her dignity. I had the benefit of going to a reading when the book launched and Fowler described the words male reporters used to depict Alva Vanderbilt at the time and how, when writing, she had to flip the script in a way on that research, and find the positive words that would have described a man’s similar actions to find Alva’s voice and motivations – after all, strong women were not lauded in that time and specifically place. If you enjoy historical fiction, particularly about unsung women, you will love A Well-Behaved Woman.
I enjoyed Fowler’s writing very much, and felt that the attitudes of the characters were spot-on for the era and milieu. Which may not make the novel popular with some readers, as times have definitely changed!
I really liked Z, the author’s first book. I found it to be a nice blend of history and fiction, an entertaining and informative read that also felt paced as a novel. I had high hopes for this new one as a result – the Vanderbilts are a fascinating family who literally went from rags to riches, and Gilded Age New York is such an intriguing time period… Robber barons, the suffrage movement, the growth of Manhattan – the era, and this story, offered all that and more. Yet somehow, despite my overwhelming interest, my previous experience with the author, and the presence of a powerful female protagonist who isn’t very well known, this one just fell flat for me.
There is a ton of description here, primarily about things: houses, items, property, clothing. I felt a little overwhelmed by the descriptions of stuff and underwhelmed by the descriptions of interpersonal relationships…
Alva is a complex character, or at least should have been. Yet she felt a little over simplified (or at least under- described) in parts of the story, particularly those that should have been the most interesting like her subtle manipulations of the older Vanderbilts, her relationship with her ridiculous husband, and her later life and involvement in social and political causes. I enjoyed the descriptions of her family, particularly her interactions with her sisters, but even they did not feel as fleshed-out as I would have liked to see them, particularly given the incredible detail given to things like furnishings and clothing. And eek, I must admit I found it a fair bit steamier than the other, and that felt unnecessary somehow…
Still, Fowler’s writing style is easy to read and the book was interesting (particularly as a historical snapshot). But I must admit it felt like her areas of emphasis were skewed toward the material and away from the interpersonal in this one, and that made it a less engaging read for me overall.
My review copy was provided by NetGalley.
American Downton Abbey. Alva climbs to the highest rung of the Guilded Age society with determination and originality, dragging the Vanderbilts with her. Unfortunately she had a brain and was not content to follow “the rules”. Breaking “the rules” brings her condemnation and a whole new life. A women before her time. Story told from a women’s point of view.
Enjoyed reading this historical account.
Well-written story of Alva Vanderbilt. I would have enjoyed reading more about her suffragist activities in the story, rather than in the Author Notes.