I have no problem with the writing in this book. The three mothers are representative of many women of color in history. My heart broke for the humans these mothers were. Their sons are three men in American History that are not well known enough as individuals BEFORE they became famous or infamous. I felt I was reading a text book rather a biography. The book was more of a general sociology textbook that a biography and I feel unfulfilled.

I was familiar with Thelma Morgan's story before, so, I was surprised to find there was more depth to it than I had thought there would be. But she was a woman of her times.

She was a far more caring step-mother to the two children of her second husband, Marmaduke Furness, than I would have supposed. Her only child with Lord Furness was Anthony and he was largely raised by nursery servants in the tradition of the day.

She was fiercely loyal to her twin sister, Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt, Anderson Cooper's grandmother. It was this loyalty that contributed to her failed relationship with "David." She became the mistress to the Prince of Wales while married to Lord Furness but only after her husband had taken a mistress indiscreetly before this. He left her emotionally before she left him. The same thing happened with the Prince and this left the door open to Wallis.

For years, I have wondered what women saw in the Prince of Wales. He often comes across as a needy, self-centered, childish immature man with too much money. His parents didn't fill the hole in his emotions that his married mistresses did. In the end, it was a good thing he did not become King. There might not have been a kingdom for anyone to inherit

I really enjoyed this book! Ms. Norris has written to a niche audience I think but I am one of the ones she's written this for. I am a lover of words, their origins, and their roots. I also am a devotee of history and travel (although I am glad to get home). I used to be an editor and am still a writer albeit for my own descendants. Still, to learn about myth and history and to expand your world, read this interesting tome.

I chose this book because some of our family members are Cuban and Cuban Americans. I've been told about life in Cuba before, during, and after the Revolution and read non-fiction about the land. This book tells the story quite well for a first-time author with the lagniappe of believable love stories.

This book had a lot of ingredients to make me happy to read it--the era, romance, jewelry, travel, royalty, castles, the supernatural, and magick. Too much plot without more details that could have enhanced the story. Too bad. I could have loved this book.

I love reading books that take place in the rural UK at any time period. Our heroine, Laura, is a gifted award winning artist who yearns to find inspiration on a Welsh mountain while living on it in a remodeled cottage. Her husband Dan visits on weekends from London. There's the requisite artistic local guy and she dreams of Merlin the Magician, and his Times because he is a local legend.

There's too much plot but not enough development. Everything is too pat and made me wonder how we got to where we were. There are reminiscences of Anya Seton' s Green Darkness and Mary Stewart's Merlin trilogy and Daphne DuMaurier' s Rebecca but the magic in this book never takes full shape.

I chose to review this book because I enjoy reading books about food--cookbooks, chef's confessions, Martha Stewart, Paula Deen, Ina Garten, Anthony Bourdain, and the like. This isn't like that. It's fiction, but it filled me with memories of my mother who was British, and a baker just like the characters in this good book. Enjoy!

I really enjoy reading biographies and social histories above all in non-fiction. That said, I can't say I disliked reading this book but I was left as unsatisfied as if I had been served a slice of sugar free pie while expecting a slice of the real deal. Tasty but not fulfilling.

Linda Castillo has got to be one of the best writers in the country--she mixes believable crime, culture (Amish) in small town America (rural Ohio), and mystery into her Police Chief Kate Burkholder books--her other writings are great, too, but Kate has held my interest throughout all five books, so far. This latest venture into the Holmes County sheriff's world does not disappoint. Her writing of the Amish culture doesn't ring false and the entire plot and solution comes to a satisfying conclusion.

I found this book to have been very difficult to get into. Once I DID get into it, I found the changes in characters and in time periods disconcerting. The Irish folks' speeches were confusing now, weren't they? (:)) I found the Americans fathers to be awful men and the Irish relatives to be just as bad because they wouldn't share vital information to the 2 main American characters (and, therefore, to us the readers) in the different time periods. It was a very hard read for me. I didn't hate the book, it COULD have been a better one than it was.

I wanted to but didn't enjoy this book. The title promises something it doesn't deliver. The book is a mix of history--the Titanic and the consequences of its sinking--and confusing, unrealistic, shallow relationships between characters. Did Sir Cosmo Duff Gordon and his wife, Lucile, prevent access to their lifeboat? How can Elinor Glyn (Lucile's sister) promise Tess Collins, the heroine of the story, assistance if she comes to Hollywood or an introduction to Coco Chanel. Pinky Wade, Jack Bremerton, Jim Bonney, and Prescott Wade... all one-dimensional characters. The only one who rises up from the page is, of course, Molly Brown, whose character is given more. :)

Poor Katharine Weber! Despite her life in an uber-dysfunctional family, she has grown up into a responsible, grounded human being. The "hook" in the book is her grandmother's long love affair with George Gershwin, which is very interesting to read about. Kay Swift Warburg was a gifted composer in her own right but never had true success after having collaborated in some capacity with him on Porgy and Bess and writing Fine and Dandy with her then-husband, James Paul Warburg. Katharine Weber's mother, Andrea's, upbringing did not prepare her for a life of stress and non-privilege with Sidney Kaufman.

There are interesting historical and family moments in this book. Read further to find them!