this was a good escapist read for me. there were some things that niggled at me a bit, but i was fairly transported by the era, characters, and settings to still really enjoy this story. ( )

The Fifth Avenue Artists Society is an enthralling glimpse into New York City literary and artistic society in the 1890’s. Virginia Loftin, an aspiring writer, is one of five children whose family has been struggling financially ever since their father died several years before. The family resides in the Bronx, and all but one of the siblings are artistic - a musician, two writers, and a milliner who designs outlandish creations for her many clients, including the Astors and the Vanderbilts. As the book opens, Virginia is jilted by the love of her life. As she struggles to overcome her grief and anger, she pours out her soul into her writing. To help distract her, her brother Franklin introduces her to a group of artists, musicians, and writers that meet frequently at the fictional John Hopper’s house on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan. As she becomes more involved with this group and its founder, she realizes that everything is not always as it seems.

Joy Callaway does a wonderful job depicting the female role in society in the 1890’s. Both Virginia and her sister Alevia struggle to succeed in their respective fields because women were not yet viewed as anything but homemakers and in the wealthy set as the keeper of the social calendar and obligations. As they both begin to break through this barrier, they are then barred by society’s failure to look past a family scandal completely outside of their control. I never fail to be amazed at what earlier women endured to provide us with the freedom and choice we have today as females in the U.S.

Some of my favorite parts of the novel were the appearances of Edith Wharton and Oscar Wilde at Hopper’s Fifth Avenue mansion. I also loved the descriptions of the early days of the great publishing houses like Henry Holt and G.P. Putnam’s Sons. The author clearly did her research which added tremendously to the novel. She also details at the end of the novel her inspiration for the story – her own ancestors. I felt that contributed a lot to the book also.

My one complaint was that I felt that Virginia should have been a little less wishy-washy regarding her suitor situation. She vacillated too much for me. I also felt that her view towards her brother as later events unfold was not very realistic (I do not want to spoil part of the story by saying more).

Thanks to HarperCollins for providing me this ARC in exchange for an honest review. I enjoyed reading it and recommend it as a fascinating view of New York City society and the arts in the 1890’s. ( )

I can't summon much enthusiasm for this historical novel about a family with various artistic talents struggling to make their way in late nineteenth-century New York City. I struggled to get into this book and while I liked the main character Virginia and her struggles to get her novel published, I found the drug plot that Franklin becomes entangled in a little far-fetched. The best part of the book was the author's note at the end explaining the novel as a fictionalization of a few of her own ancestors. ( )