A general's daughter . . . Coming of age on the perilous frontier of revolutionary New York, Elizabeth Schuyler champions the fight for independence. And when she meets Alexander Hamilton, General George Washington's penniless but passionate aide-de-camp, she's captivated by the young officer's charisma and brilliance. They fall in love, despite Hamilton's bastard birth and the uncertainties of war.
A Founding Father's wife . . . But the union they create- in their marriage and the new nation- is far from perfect. From glittering inaugural balls to bloody street riots, the Hamiltons are at the center of it all- including the political treachery of America's first sex scandal, which forces Eliza to struggle through heartbreak and betrayal to find forgiveness.
The last surviving light of the Revolution . . . When a duel destroys Eliza's hard-won peace, the grieving widow fights her husband's enemies to preserve Alexander's legacy. But long-buried secrets threaten everything Eliza believes about her marriage and her own legacy. Questioning her tireless devotion to the man and country that have broken her heart she's left with one last battle- to understand the flawed man she married and the imperfect union he never could have created without her . . .
Loved
- Eliza. Eliza Hamilton is my new historical hero. From other things I've read (and watched) about Eliza, I've always believed her to be a little passive and very sweet. However, this Eliza is fearless, adventurous and pragmatic, while being compassionate, empathetic, and forgiving. Eliza grew up going with her father to conventions with the Native American tribes, hunting, and taking care of wounded soldiers in the war. This is not the naive girl we see singing "Helpless" on Broadway. Eliza is strong, smart, and bold. She helped Alexander in his work, held her own in her political opinions, and can hold a grudge when it benefits her. My favorite thing about Eliza is her ability to love those around her even when they have hurt her. She does not love them ignorantly, instead she chooses to love Alexander and others in her life for the good they've done instead of the pain they've caused. Over and over again we see Eliza choose to love and forgive, not out of a place of naivety, but out of wisdom and strength of character.
- The historical figures! One of my favorite aspects of this story was getting to spend time with so many historical men and women. Through Eliza's eyes we experience having a crush on James Monroe, being intimidated by Thomas Jefferson, dancing a waltz with George Washington, and even having a literature-battle with Abraham Lincoln. Eliza was at the center of the Revolution and the founding of the nation, and she personally knew every one of the Founding Fathers. My favorite example of this is the period of Alexander and James Madison feverishly writing the Federalist, when James Madison unexpectedly had a magic touch with little Phillip Hamilton that charmed the little toddler into falling asleep every night. These small moments with each character helped me appreciate that these were real people with emotions, fears, and quirks- not just names in a textbook.
- Lafayette. Now, if you've seen Hamilton, it's a little hard to take Lafayette seriously at first because you find yourself picturing Daveed Diggs and his hilarious French accent. But, besides Eliza, Lafayette is definitely the best character in this story and I really enjoyed his friendship with Eliza. Whereas nearly every one of Hamilton's friends eventually betrayed him and became his enemy, Lafayette was constantly loyal, wise, and understanding to the Hamiltons. In this story, and it appears so in real life as well, Lafayette is instrumental in helping Eliza to understand and forgive her husband after years of bitterness toward him after his death. Lafayette is definitely an under-appreciated Revolution hero and I am so happy to know more about him.
- The historical accuracy. I chose to read this story of Eliza Hamilton because I had read these authors' debut, America's First Daughter, which is about Patsy Jefferson. I love these authors because they use as many primary sources as possible while writing their narrative, and they jam-pack every chapter with facts. I love their note at the back of the book that explains where they speculated and took literary liberties. I love historical fiction, but it's so disappointing to fall in love with historical characters and periods, and then find out everything you read was inaccurate. I don't worry about that with these authors because they stay as close to fact as possible and use primary sources throughout the story, which makes it as close to the truth as we can come with the little we have surviving from Eliza.
- The theme of forgiveness. Throughout this story, Eliza is betrayed and hurt by her husband, her family, and her country over and over. While Eliza does spend a decade in bitterness and resentment toward Alexander, she is eventually able to forgive him. As I said above, she does not forgive out of ignorance or desperation to be loved- she chooses to love him for all the things he did right, and do her best to reconcile all the ways he hurt her. After reading this story I felt inspired and moved to not only forgive those around me, but also see the best in our country and recognize the sacrifices of those who have given and are currently giving everything to serving their country.
Didn't Love
- I wouldn't change anything about this book. Obviously I wish Eliza's life had not been fraught with tragedy, but for the actual book I felt it was perfect in capturing Eliza's life and legacy.
Content
Content
- Language:
- Many uses of "bastard."
- Fairly frequent uses of "damn" and "hell."
- Sexual content:
- There are rumors of Alexander having a rakish reputation- leading milk maids to haystacks and other scandalous flirtations.
- Before Eliza's marriage, her sisters joke about "the marriage bed." Nothing graphic described.
- On Alexander and Eliza's wedding night she describes him taking off her clothes and leading her to bed. She describes his hands touching her and his being "relentless" in bed.
- Eliza talks about her intimacy with Alexander frequently throughout the story. She talks about him leading her to bed or "making love," but no descriptions or details.
- A lot talk of Alexander's affair with Maria Reynolds- mostly talked about as her "having led him to her bed" or "shared their bed." No details.
- After Alexander's death, Eliza reads Angelica and Alexander's exchanged letters, which are very affectionate and flirtatious. She speculates for years whether they had an affair. She wonders about his loving her in bed and whether he enjoyed Angelica more than Eliza.
- Again, after his death, Eliza discovers Alexander's correspondence with John Laurens, which allude to their likely having been lovers. In the notes to the authors (not in the actual novel), they share a few lines of a very lewd letter written from Alexander to John.
- Violence:
- Eliza works as a nurse in the war and sees many graphic injuries, such as amputations, stabbing wounds, and corpses. She watches a man die from the pain of an amputation.
- Eliza sees a man hanging from a fence as punishment for deserting, and she is very disturbed by this.
- Eliza experiences a variety of riots and attacks- one of which was in her own home. She witnesses a lot of violence from mobs and rioters, mostly fist fights, threats, and rocks thrown.
- Many mentions of wartime violence- wounds, deaths, and hangings.
- Duels are a major theme in the story, and Eliza loses family members to duels. Gun shot wounds are described with blood and infection.
- Other themes:
- LGBTQ themes: After his death, Eliza discovers Alexander's letters to John Laurens and she suspects they had a sexual relationship and that they were lovers.
- There is a lot of death in this story. Eliza outlives many of the people she loves most, and she is present for some of their deaths- some of which are heartbreaking and disturbing.
- During the yellow fever that hit during one hot summer, Eliza describes seeing carts of bodies in the streets since so many died from this.
- Slavery is a theme throughout this story as Eliza reconciles her disdain for the practice. The Schuyler plantation had quite a few slaves, and some of them are characters in the story.
- Many uses of "bastard."
- Fairly frequent uses of "damn" and "hell."
- There are rumors of Alexander having a rakish reputation- leading milk maids to haystacks and other scandalous flirtations.
- Before Eliza's marriage, her sisters joke about "the marriage bed." Nothing graphic described.
- On Alexander and Eliza's wedding night she describes him taking off her clothes and leading her to bed. She describes his hands touching her and his being "relentless" in bed.
- Eliza talks about her intimacy with Alexander frequently throughout the story. She talks about him leading her to bed or "making love," but no descriptions or details.
- A lot talk of Alexander's affair with Maria Reynolds- mostly talked about as her "having led him to her bed" or "shared their bed." No details.
- After Alexander's death, Eliza reads Angelica and Alexander's exchanged letters, which are very affectionate and flirtatious. She speculates for years whether they had an affair. She wonders about his loving her in bed and whether he enjoyed Angelica more than Eliza.
- Again, after his death, Eliza discovers Alexander's correspondence with John Laurens, which allude to their likely having been lovers. In the notes to the authors (not in the actual novel), they share a few lines of a very lewd letter written from Alexander to John.
- Eliza works as a nurse in the war and sees many graphic injuries, such as amputations, stabbing wounds, and corpses. She watches a man die from the pain of an amputation.
- Eliza sees a man hanging from a fence as punishment for deserting, and she is very disturbed by this.
- Eliza experiences a variety of riots and attacks- one of which was in her own home. She witnesses a lot of violence from mobs and rioters, mostly fist fights, threats, and rocks thrown.
- Many mentions of wartime violence- wounds, deaths, and hangings.
- Duels are a major theme in the story, and Eliza loses family members to duels. Gun shot wounds are described with blood and infection.
- LGBTQ themes: After his death, Eliza discovers Alexander's letters to John Laurens and she suspects they had a sexual relationship and that they were lovers.
- There is a lot of death in this story. Eliza outlives many of the people she loves most, and she is present for some of their deaths- some of which are heartbreaking and disturbing.
- During the yellow fever that hit during one hot summer, Eliza describes seeing carts of bodies in the streets since so many died from this.
- Slavery is a theme throughout this story as Eliza reconciles her disdain for the practice. The Schuyler plantation had quite a few slaves, and some of them are characters in the story.
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