Customer Reviews

Last Waltz

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(0)
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Set against the glittering Boston of the 1880s and the opulent society of turn-of-the-century Newport, this is the story of Isabel January-a debutante of wealth, breeding, and rare beauty, whose poised smile and cool eyes hid the wild yearning of her heart. And this is the story of Marian Childs-plain, impoverished, without prospects, yet destined to blossom into a woman of style and substance. Of different worlds, these two indomitable women are inextricably linked through fortune and fate, through tragedy and triumph, through the one man whose ruthless passion will forever alter the course of both their lives.

Author of "A Woman of Independent Means" and "Life Sentences".

Romance? There is not much of it in this historical novel.

This is a good book, but definitely not as romantically inclined as the title, back cover description and sensual sketch suggests. It is about the life saga of two girls from the teenage years through the twilight years of affluent beautiful Isabel and plain impoverished Marian. They are forever linked together by the death of Marian's brother and their story is told through the eyes of Marian. This lengthy and well detailed saga describes the trials, tribulations and little happiness of these women and the people closely associated with them. The storyline is good and easy to follow but I feel it's rather bleak and generally unhappy, if not outright depressing in some of the scenarios. If I had realized this book is not as romantically inclined and mostly cheery as I prefer to read, I would not have chosen it. Though it is not what I anticipated, it is a five star read.

I love this book and have re-read it many times. A good book to curl up with.

Long, and absorbing all the way! Told by Marian Child, suddenly moved from poverty to riches when her employer dies and leaves her his estate, this historical novel shows in vast detail the complicated lives of the rich in Boston from 1870 to 1900. Men worked. Women did all the rest, from raising the children and overseeing the servants to building status in the upper crust by calling on each other and arranging immense balls--and, sometimes, carrying on love affairs with artists, actors, all sorts of men of their own and lower classes. The central character, Isabelle January, disappointed in an undying love, shows herself determined to outdo all others in becoming the leading lady in society. Dozens of other characters of all sorts populate the pages, and the action moves swiftly throughout. I had only one caveat--we are never told how Marian manages to avoid the financial disasters that leave many of those millionaires destitute. Nonetheless, few novels have caught me the this one did, from the start. I waded through the 398 pages of the first edition as fast as I could, and recommend it highly.

This book is a great historical saga not a romance. The book is a very good fast paced read with more than 700 pages of love, hate, love lost and pain. It is by far more of a saga than a romance. There is romance in the story but it is more a story of the trying and sometimes very depressing lives wealthy women were expected to live in the late 19th century. A VERY GOOD READ that will keep you up a night. I highly recommend it!!