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melbie 's review for:
The Davenports
by Krystal Marquis
Set in the Gilded Age Chicago and based on real life families of the time, this novel is a sweet Bridgerton style romance of class struggles and coming of age stories. The four young women - sisters Olivia and Helen, their maid Amy-Rose, and their friend Ruby - are all seeking their purpose in life, starting to look beyond their societal norms and expectations, reaching for new opportunities in the changing modern world. Of course, part of their journey involves the patriarchal expectation that the girls will marry within their circle, and perhaps for money rather than love. However, for Olivia, Helen, Ruby and Amy-Rose, the course of true love never does run smooth! Each of the women are about to take their chances and embrace their own opportunities for the lives they dream of living. This is a sound novel, I'd probably give it 3.5 stars as it was a bit long, the pacing was off until about half way through when it kicked into gear, and I felt that it all could have been resolved in one book rather than waiting for a sequel. It was well researched and there was some good discussion about the time period and the historical implications for women during the 1910s. There was some excellent discourse around race and it was interesting to read about people of colour in a historical setting that is traditionally Eurocentric.