New York City’s Gilded Age shines as bright as the power-wielding men of the Knickerbocker Club. And one pragmatic industrialist is about to learn that a man may make his own destiny, but love is a matter of fortune . . . Born into one of New York’s most respected families, William Sloane is a railroad baron who has all the right friends in all the right places. But no matter how much … But no matter how much success he achieves, he always wants more. Having secured his place atop the city’s highest echelons of society, he’s now setting his sights on a political run. Nothing can distract him from his next pursuit—except, perhaps, the enchanting con artist he never saw coming . . .
Ava Jones has eked out a living the only way she knows how. As “Madame Zolikoff,” she hoodwinks gullible audiences into believing she can communicate with the spirit world. But her carefully crafted persona is nearly destroyed when Will Sloane walks into her life—and lays bare her latest scheme. The charlatan is certain she can seduce the handsome millionaire into keeping her secret and using her skills for his campaign—unless he’s the one who’s already put a spell on her . . .
Raves for Magnate
“Original and captivating . . . Complex and layered.” —Publishers Weekly, Starred
“An engaging romance.” — Library Journal, Starred
“A sexually charged, intense, poignant and powerfully written love story.” —RT Book Reviews
“A beautiful romance . . . Sexy and clever.” —The Washington Post
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Joanna Shupe does it again. She creates a vivid world of the New York Gilded Age and draws the reader in. Baron portrays the social differences between Will and Ava in a believable and surmountable way. Both the characters have deep goals about bettering their lives, Ava through moving her siblings out of New York City and Will by entering politics. However, as their relationship grows, they are faced with the realities that perhaps their goals aren’t the best things for them. The chemistry between Will and Ava is steamy but even more satisfying was how their relationship overcome social status. Another excellent book by Joanna Shupe that I can’t recommend enough!
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Engaging, well-rounded characters with historical sensibilities but a modern day edge. A strong heroine in charge of her own destiny and a hero who understands and supports her. Lots of nice twists and turns. I’ll certainly be reading the rest of the books in this series.
My favorite of the series! I loved seeing Sloane become human in the most interesting, but natural way. I completely fell in love with him.
Will first meets Ava as “Madam Zolikoff”, a medium performing in small theaters and doing private seances. He wants her to back away from one of her clients, who happens to be his running mate on the election ticket. But Ava is the only person he’s ever met willing to stand up to him, and to tell him “no” at every turn. Naturally, Will can’t resist a challenge and Ava challenges him constantly. Ava has worked hard all of her life to create better opportunities for her younger brothers and sister, wanting to make sure they don’t have to work dangerous factory jobs or steal just to put food on the table. She’s close to having enough money saved up for them to leave New York for a country life when Will charges in and complicates her already complicated life.
I was skeptical of both Will and Ava before I started reading. The only redeeming quality I saw in Will from Magnate was that he loved his sister. How was he going to make a likable male lead? What reasons could Ava have for her cons that would make what she was doing ‘ok’? I ended up really liking Ava from the very beginning. She was strong and never backed down from all the challenges life threw at her. Everything she did was to try and give her younger siblings a better life. She recognized that her work was morally questionable, but kept to her own code- providing entertainment in the theater, recognizing that usually private seance participants wanted more to be listened to than find where grandma hid the silver, and when she had to give advice she made sure it was as common sense and as close to her client’s leanings as possible. Will was a bit tougher for me. He was so used to getting his own way through money, forceful personality, and blackmail that he railroaded anyone who got in his way. Qualities that will make you rich and powerful, but not good romantic material. Through a good portion of the book I kept debating whether I thought Will actually loved Ava and just hadn’t figured it out yet, or she was just another case of him selfishly getting his own way. It was definitely a mix for awhile. By the end I was convinced that he had changed enough that he was capable of loving her, putting aside some of the driving forces that just made him want ‘more’ and instead wanting to be happy. His grand gesture for Ava at the end was a great, very Will-like way, of proving it.
Baron is an excellent addition to this lovely new series. Well-written, well-researched, fast-paced, and detailed, the characters were fully three-dimensional, the challenges were real and nothing was easily overcome. Even those who know nothing of New York politics during this time will come away with a pretty good idea of what Will was up against. I very much look forward to Mogul, coming out in the spring!