Best Historical Fiction

  Fifth Avenue Glamour Girl reimagines the story of Estee Lauder. Her story is related through a friend Gloria. Both young women supposedly come from families well off, but lost the fortunes. Both women are forced to forge their own paths. The only difference is that Estee knows clearly what she wants, Gloria doesn’t. NYC, 1938. We meet Estee when she is already married with a five-year-old son. The women meet at a beauty parlor where Estee rents a space, selling cold creams and lotions. She makes her beauty products at her tiny apartment, which she shares with her family. The character of Estee comes alive with her stubborn determination, hard work, and hustling to sell her products. She pushes her way up with each step. As Gloria relates Estee’s story, she also reveals a lot about herself. Thus, big part of the story is about Gloria. Personally, I’d prefer the story to be concentrated on Estee. The fascinating figure of Helena Rubinstein is interestingly woven into this story. Th...

  An American Beauty is inspired by the true story of Arabella Huntington, who became the wealthiest self-made woman in America. 1867, Richmond, Virginia. Arabella Duvall Yarrington (Belle in short), at seventeen, works at gambling parlor. With her personality and charm, she catches an eye of Collins Huntington, railroad baron. After they get acquainted, arrangements are made for her to live in NYC. And those are quite peculiar arrangements. She is a savvy woman and knows that she can’t rely just on those arrangements. Thus, she makes her own measures. She sees an opportunity in location and pieces of land. Belle’s story in small pieces is intertwined with the story of her mother and young Clara, daughter of Collins Huntington. With marvelous prose, their backstories are smoothly woven in. This story lightly weaves Belle’s own story of investing. It’s more about her mysterious backstory and how she navigated in high society, where it strongly paints a picture of a woman who forged ...