Fortune's Children
The Fall of the House of Vanderbilt
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Fortune's Children
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Narrated by:
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Patrick Lawlor
About this listen
Vanderbilt: The very name is synonymous with the Gilded Age. The family patriarch, "the Commodore," built a fortune that made him the world's richest man by 1877. Yet less than fifty years after his death, no Vanderbilt was counted among the world's richest people. Written by descendant Arthur T. Vanderbilt II, Fortune's Children traces the dramatic and amazingly colorful history of this great American family, from the rise of industrialist and philanthropist Cornelius Vanderbilt to the fall of his progeny - wild spendthrifts whose profligacy bankrupted a vast inheritance.
©1989 Arthur T. Vanderbilt II (P)2014 TantorListeners also enjoyed...
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- Narrated by: Kate Reading
- Length: 9 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 427
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 383
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 384
From the Gilded Age until 1914, more than 100 American heiresses invaded Britannia and swapped dollars for titles - just like Cora Crawley, Countess of Grantham, the first of the Downton Abbey characters Julian Fellowes was inspired to create after reading To Marry An English Lord. Filled with vivid personalities, gossipy anecdotes, grand houses, and a wealth of period details-plus quotes and the finer points of Victorian and Edwardian etiquette - To Marry An English Lord is social history at its liveliest and most accessible.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Not Great on Audio
- By Lynne on 03-10-16
By: Gail MacColl, and others
-
Royal Sisters
- Queen Elizabeth II and Princess Margaret
- By: Anne Edwards
- Narrated by: Corrie James
- Length: 12 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 145
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 126
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 126
In Royal Sisters, Anne Edwards, author of the best-selling Vivien Leigh: A Biography and Matriarch: Queen Mary and the House of Windsor, has written the first dual biography of Elizabeth, the princess who was to become Queen, and her younger sister, Margaret, who was to be her subject. From birth to maturity, they were the stuff of which dreams are made.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Where's The Rest?
- By Simone on 12-19-17
By: Anne Edwards
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The Last Castle
- The Epic Story of Love, Loss, and American Royalty in the Nation’s Largest Home
- By: Denise Kiernan
- Narrated by: Denise Kiernan
- Length: 10 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 988
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 880
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 876
Orphaned at a young age, Edith Stuyvesant Dresser claimed lineage from one of New York's best known families. She grew up in Newport and Paris, and her engagement and marriage to George Vanderbilt was one of the most watched events of Gilded Age society. But none of this prepared her to be mistress of Biltmore House. Before their marriage, the wealthy and bookish Vanderbilt had dedicated his life to creating a spectacular European-style estate on 125,000 acres of North Carolina wilderness.
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2 out of 5 stars
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Very factual
- By Jennifer on 11-28-17
By: Denise Kiernan
-
Those Wild Wyndhams
- Three Sisters at the Heart of Power
- By: Claudia Renton
- Narrated by: Claudia Renton
- Length: 15 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 120
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 105
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 105
They were confidantes to British prime ministers, poets, writers, and artists, their lives entwined with the most celebrated and scandalous figures of the day, from Oscar Wilde to Henry James. They were the lovers of great men - or men of great prominence... They lived in a world of luxurious excess, a world of splendor at 44 Belgrave Square and later at the even more vast Clouds, the exquisite Wiltshire house on 4,000 acres, the "house of the age", designed in 1876 by the visionary architect Philip Webb - the model for Henry James' The Spoils of Poynton.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
SLOW START BUT STICK WITH THIS ONE
- By The Louligan on 01-22-19
By: Claudia Renton
-
The Riviera Set
- Glitz, Glamour, and the Hidden World of High Society
- By: Mary S. Lovell
- Narrated by: Jill Rolls
- Length: 10 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 112
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 97
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 96
The Riviera Set reveals the story of the group of people who lived, partied, bed-hopped, and politicked at the Château de l'Horizon near Cannes, over the course of 40 years from the time when Coco Chanel made southern French tans fashionable in the twenties to the death of the playboy Prince Aly Khan in 1960. At the heart of dynamic group was the amazing Maxine Elliott, the daughter of a fisherman from Connecticut, who built the beautiful art deco Château.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Riviera Set
- By Lois Kelly on 05-04-18
By: Mary S. Lovell
-
Empty Mansions
- The Mysterious Life of Huguette Clark and the Spending of a Great American Fortune
- By: Bill Dedman, Paul Clark Newell Jr.
- Narrated by: Kimberly Farr
- Length: 13 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 1,447
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,250
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 1,253
When Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Bill Dedman noticed in 2009 a grand home for sale, unoccupied for nearly 60 years, he stumbled through a surprising portal into American history. Empty Mansions is a rich mystery of wealth and loss, connecting the Gilded Age opulence of the 19th century with a 21st-century battle over a $300 million inheritance. At its heart is a reclusive heiress named Huguette Clark, a woman so secretive that, at the time of her death at age 104, no new photograph of her had been seen in decades.
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4 out of 5 stars
-
Fascinating, But Know This...
- By Karen K on 04-08-15
By: Bill Dedman, and others
-
The Glitter and the Gold
- The American Duchess - In Her Own Words
- By: Consuelo Vanderbilt Balsan
- Narrated by: Coleen Marlo
- Length: 9 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 162
-
Performance3.5 out of 5 stars 144
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 145
Consuelo Vanderbilt was young, beautiful and the heir to a vast family fortune. She was also deeply in love with an American suitor when her mother chose instead for her to fulfill her social ambitions and marry an English Duke. Leaving her life in America, she came to England as the Duchess of Marlborough in 1895 and took up residence in her new home: Blenheim Palace. The ninth Duchess gives unique first-hand insight into life at the very pinnacle of English society in the Edwardian era.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Facinating Story- Terrible reading
- By Ashley D on 03-27-14
-
Bunny Mellon
- The Life of an American Style Legend
- By: Meryl Gordon
- Narrated by: Vanessa Cortland
- Length: 17 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 440
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 387
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 387
A new biography of Bunny Mellon, the style icon and American aristocrat who designed the White House Rose Garden for her friend JFK and served as a living witness to 20th century American history, operating in the high-level arenas of politics, diplomacy, art, and fashion.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
Well written bio.
- By Minda Leah Kahn on 09-01-18
By: Meryl Gordon
-
Matriarch
- Queen Mary and the House of Windsor
- By: Anne Edwards
- Narrated by: Corrie James
- Length: 16 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 2,366
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 2,122
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 2,119
The life of Princess May of Teck is one of the great Cinderella stories in history. From a family of impoverished nobility, she was chosen by Queen Victoria as the bride for her eldest grandson, the scandalous Duke of Clarence, heir to the throne, who died mysteriously before their marriage. Despite this setback, she became queen, mother of two kings, grandmother of the current queen, and a lasting symbol of the majesty of the British throne.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Wow! Did not want this to end!
- By Susan Nall Sheehan on 07-16-17
By: Anne Edwards
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World’s End
- The Lanny Budd Novels, Book 1
- By: Upton Sinclair
- Narrated by: Bronson Pinchot
- Length: 26 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 103
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 94
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 94
Lanning “Lanny” Budd spends his first 13 years in Europe, living at the center of his mother’s glamourous circle of friends on the French Riviera. In 1913, he enters a prestigious Swiss boarding school and befriends Rick, an English boy, and Kurt, a German. The three schoolmates are privileged, happy, and precocious - but their world is about to come to an abrupt and violent end. When the gathering storm clouds of war finally burst, raining chaos and death over the continent, Lanny must put the innocence of youth behind him.
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3 out of 5 stars
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didn't finish
- By Bird Miller on 05-08-22
By: Upton Sinclair
-
Wait for Me!
- Memoirs
- By: Deborah Mitford Duchess of Devonshire
- Narrated by: Anne Flosnik
- Length: 14 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 125
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 90
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 92
Deborah Mitford, Duchess of Devonshire, is the youngest of the famously witty brood that includes the writers Jessica and Nancy, who wrote when Deborah was born, "How disgusting of the poor darling to go and be a girl." Deborah's effervescent memoir chronicles her remarkable life, from an eccentric but happy childhood in the Oxfordshire countryside, to tea with Adolf Hitler and her controversially political sister Unity in 1937, to her marriage to the second son of the Duke of Devonshire.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
The last of the Mitford Sisters
- By Irene on 01-11-11
-
Lady Bird
- A Biography of Mrs. Johnson
- By: Jan Jarboe Russell
- Narrated by: Andrea Gallo
- Length: 16 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 29
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 28
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 28
A revealing biography of Lady Bird Johnson with startling new insights into her marriage to Lyndon Baines Johnson and her unexpectedly strong impact on his presidency. Long obscured by her husband's shadow, Claudia "Lady Bird" Johnson emerges in this first comprehensive biography as a figure of surprising influence and the centering force for LBJ, a man who suffered from extreme mood swings and desperately needed someone to help control his darker impulses.
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1 out of 5 stars
-
Do not waste an audible credit
- By Sandra B. on 10-15-23
-
Black Diamonds
- The Downfall of an Aristocratic Dynasty and the Fifty Years That Changed England
- By: Catherine Bailey
- Narrated by: Gareth Armstrong
- Length: 15 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 69
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 63
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 64
When the sixth Earl Fitzwilliam died in 1902, he left behind the second largest estate in 20th-century England, valued at more than three billion dollars in today's money - a lifeline to the tens of thousands of people who worked either in the family's coal mines or on their expansive estate. The earl also left behind four sons, and the family line seemed assured. But was it?
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3 out of 5 stars
-
Could use a good editor...
- By Phyllis on 04-30-18
By: Catherine Bailey
-
America's Queen
- The Life of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis
- By: Sarah Bradford
- Narrated by: Sandra Burr
- Length: 8 hrs and 55 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 75
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 60
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 59
Using remarkable new sources, Sarah Bradford has written a timely celebration of a life that was more private than commonly supposed. Revealing new testimony from many of the couple's friends shows the complexities of this apparently very public relationship and of her controversial marriage to Aristotle Onassis. Here is the private Jackie - neglected wife, vigilant mother, and working widow - whose contradictory and fascinating nature is illuminated by all that Bradford has discovered.
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4 out of 5 stars
-
American Royalty
- By Kindle Customer on 06-10-16
By: Sarah Bradford
-
Franklin and Lucy
- President Roosevelt, Mrs. Rutherfurd, and the Other Remarkable Women in His Life
- By: Joseph E. Persico
- Narrated by: Ted Barker
- Length: 17 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 64
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 52
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 54
Franklin Delano Roosevelt was arguably the greatest figure of the 20th century. While FDR's official circle was predominantly male, it was his relationships with women - particularly with Lucy Mercer Rutherfurd - that most vividly bring to light the human being beneath this towering statesman.
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4 out of 5 stars
-
Franklin and Lucy
- By Connie's on 03-06-09
-
Wallis in Love
- The Untold Life of the Duchess of Windsor, the Woman Who Changed the Monarchy
- By: Andrew Morton
- Narrated by: Molly Parker Myers
- Length: 12 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 155
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 132
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 132
For fans of the Netflix series The Crown and from the author of the New York Times best seller 17 Carnations comes a captivating biography of Wallis Simpson, the notorious woman for whom Edward VIII gave up the throne.
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1 out of 5 stars
-
This one is being returned
- By Rita T on 02-15-18
By: Andrew Morton
-
The Royals
- By: Kitty Kelley
- Narrated by: Jennifer Van Dyck
- Length: 20 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 491
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 416
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 421
They are the most chronicled family on the face of the globe. Their every move attracts headlines. Scores of books have tried and failed to penetrate the royal facade. Now Kitty Kelley has gone behind palace walls to provide the first three-dimensional, comprehensive, and evenhanded portrait of the men and women who make up the British Royal family.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
A titillating and delightful insight....
- By SIGHLE on 02-12-16
By: Kitty Kelley
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The Glitter and the Gold
- The American Duchess - In Her Own Words
- By: Consuelo Vanderbilt Balsan
- Narrated by: Coleen Marlo
- Length: 9 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 162
-
Performance3.5 out of 5 stars 144
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 145
Consuelo Vanderbilt was young, beautiful and the heir to a vast family fortune. She was also deeply in love with an American suitor when her mother chose instead for her to fulfill her social ambitions and marry an English Duke. Leaving her life in America, she came to England as the Duchess of Marlborough in 1895 and took up residence in her new home: Blenheim Palace. The ninth Duchess gives unique first-hand insight into life at the very pinnacle of English society in the Edwardian era.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Facinating Story- Terrible reading
- By Ashley D on 03-27-14
-
The Vanderbilts
- By: Jerry E. Patterson
- Narrated by: Ray Childs
- Length: 6 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 524
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 451
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 448
Cornelius Vanderbilt parlayed a $100.00 investment into the largest private transportation company in the world while creating an American Dynasty in New York, Newport, Vermont, and Asheville, North Carolina. This history of his family and their lush, opulent lifestyle is filled with juicy stories and fun tidbits about their lives in the Gilded Era.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
It only brushes the cold marble surface
- By Tracy on 12-03-13
-
Diamonds and Deadlines
- A Tale of Greed, Deceit, and a Female Tycoon in the Gilded Age
- By: Betsy Prioleau
- Narrated by: Beth Hicks
- Length: 9 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 35
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 34
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 34
Among the fabled tycoons of the Gilded Age—Carnegie, Rockefeller, Vanderbilt—is a forgotten figure: Mrs. Frank Leslie. For twenty years she ran the country’s largest publishing company, Frank Leslie Publishing, which chronicled postbellum America in dozens of weeklies and monthlies. A pioneer in an all-male industry, she made a fortune and became a national celebrity and tastemaker in the process. Diamonds and Deadlines reveals the unknown, sensational life of the brilliant and brazen “empress of journalism”.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Wonderful biography of forgotten gilded age publishing icon
- By Amazon Customer on 03-24-24
By: Betsy Prioleau
-
Rose
- My Life in Service to Lady Astor
- By: Rosina Harrison
- Narrated by: Wanda McCaddon
- Length: 8 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 340
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 292
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 288
In 1928, Rosina Harrison arrived at the illustrious household of the Astor family to take up her new position as personal maid to the infamously temperamental Lady Nancy Astor, who sat in Parliament, entertained royalty, and traveled the world. "She's not a lady as you would understand a lady" was the butler's ominous warning. But what no one expected was that the iron-willed Lady Astor was about to meet her match in the no-nonsense, whip-smart girl from the country.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
AWFUL!! I was very disappointed.
- By The Louligan on 08-12-13
By: Rosina Harrison
-
Madness Under the Royal Palms
- Love and Death Behind the Gates of Palm Beach
- By: Laurence Leamer
- Narrated by: Todd McLaren
- Length: 11 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall3.5 out of 5 stars 122
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 72
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 73
In March 1999, a Palm Beach matron and her socially ambitious husband invited the elite of the island for a dinner dance honoring Prince Edward. Among those dancing to the string orchestra that evening would be those accused of murder and spousal abuse, and others who would suffer fates both unseemly and unspeakable. Among the outer circle there would be murders, suicides, and fatal fires.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Just what I've been waiting for
- By kk on 09-29-09
By: Laurence Leamer
-
Lady on the Hill
- How Biltmore Estate Became an American Icon
- By: Howard E. Covington
- Narrated by: Mirron Willis
- Length: 8 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 61
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 49
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 48
Lady on the Hill tells the inspiring story of the 35-year effort to restore a fading beauty, the Biltmore Estate, to her former glory - all without a penny of government funding or outside foundation grants. Central to this true-life tale of rebirth against the odds is George Vanderbilt's grandson William A. V. Cecil, a well-mannered, highly educated man who, when caught up in an idea, becomes a whirling dervish, generating enough energy and enthusiasm to motivate everyone around him.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
The fact that it has remained as a privately owned enterprise.
- By Mary Kovacs on 07-04-24
-
The Glitter and the Gold
- The American Duchess - In Her Own Words
- By: Consuelo Vanderbilt Balsan
- Narrated by: Coleen Marlo
- Length: 9 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 162
-
Performance3.5 out of 5 stars 144
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 145
Consuelo Vanderbilt was young, beautiful and the heir to a vast family fortune. She was also deeply in love with an American suitor when her mother chose instead for her to fulfill her social ambitions and marry an English Duke. Leaving her life in America, she came to England as the Duchess of Marlborough in 1895 and took up residence in her new home: Blenheim Palace. The ninth Duchess gives unique first-hand insight into life at the very pinnacle of English society in the Edwardian era.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Facinating Story- Terrible reading
- By Ashley D on 03-27-14
-
The Vanderbilts
- By: Jerry E. Patterson
- Narrated by: Ray Childs
- Length: 6 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 524
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 451
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 448
Cornelius Vanderbilt parlayed a $100.00 investment into the largest private transportation company in the world while creating an American Dynasty in New York, Newport, Vermont, and Asheville, North Carolina. This history of his family and their lush, opulent lifestyle is filled with juicy stories and fun tidbits about their lives in the Gilded Era.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
It only brushes the cold marble surface
- By Tracy on 12-03-13
-
Diamonds and Deadlines
- A Tale of Greed, Deceit, and a Female Tycoon in the Gilded Age
- By: Betsy Prioleau
- Narrated by: Beth Hicks
- Length: 9 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 35
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 34
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 34
Among the fabled tycoons of the Gilded Age—Carnegie, Rockefeller, Vanderbilt—is a forgotten figure: Mrs. Frank Leslie. For twenty years she ran the country’s largest publishing company, Frank Leslie Publishing, which chronicled postbellum America in dozens of weeklies and monthlies. A pioneer in an all-male industry, she made a fortune and became a national celebrity and tastemaker in the process. Diamonds and Deadlines reveals the unknown, sensational life of the brilliant and brazen “empress of journalism”.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Wonderful biography of forgotten gilded age publishing icon
- By Amazon Customer on 03-24-24
By: Betsy Prioleau
-
Rose
- My Life in Service to Lady Astor
- By: Rosina Harrison
- Narrated by: Wanda McCaddon
- Length: 8 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 340
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 292
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 288
In 1928, Rosina Harrison arrived at the illustrious household of the Astor family to take up her new position as personal maid to the infamously temperamental Lady Nancy Astor, who sat in Parliament, entertained royalty, and traveled the world. "She's not a lady as you would understand a lady" was the butler's ominous warning. But what no one expected was that the iron-willed Lady Astor was about to meet her match in the no-nonsense, whip-smart girl from the country.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
AWFUL!! I was very disappointed.
- By The Louligan on 08-12-13
By: Rosina Harrison
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Madness Under the Royal Palms
- Love and Death Behind the Gates of Palm Beach
- By: Laurence Leamer
- Narrated by: Todd McLaren
- Length: 11 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall3.5 out of 5 stars 122
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 72
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 73
In March 1999, a Palm Beach matron and her socially ambitious husband invited the elite of the island for a dinner dance honoring Prince Edward. Among those dancing to the string orchestra that evening would be those accused of murder and spousal abuse, and others who would suffer fates both unseemly and unspeakable. Among the outer circle there would be murders, suicides, and fatal fires.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Just what I've been waiting for
- By kk on 09-29-09
By: Laurence Leamer
-
Lady on the Hill
- How Biltmore Estate Became an American Icon
- By: Howard E. Covington
- Narrated by: Mirron Willis
- Length: 8 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 61
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 49
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 48
Lady on the Hill tells the inspiring story of the 35-year effort to restore a fading beauty, the Biltmore Estate, to her former glory - all without a penny of government funding or outside foundation grants. Central to this true-life tale of rebirth against the odds is George Vanderbilt's grandson William A. V. Cecil, a well-mannered, highly educated man who, when caught up in an idea, becomes a whirling dervish, generating enough energy and enthusiasm to motivate everyone around him.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
The fact that it has remained as a privately owned enterprise.
- By Mary Kovacs on 07-04-24
-
The Mountbattens
- The Lives and Loves of Dickie and Edwina Mountbatten
- By: Andrew Lownie
- Narrated by: Shaun Grindell
- Length: 10 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 56
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 47
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 46
The intimate story of a unique marriage spanning the heights of British glamour and power that descends into infidelity, manipulation, and disaster through the heart of the 20th century.
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3 out of 5 stars
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He oughta be ashamed!
- By Just Penelope on 04-17-22
By: Andrew Lownie
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Jennie
- The Life of the American Beauty Who Became the Toast—and Scandal—of Two Continents, Ruled an Age and Raised a Son—Winston Churchill—Who Shaped History
- By: Ralph G. Martin
- Narrated by: Pearl Hewitt
- Length: 26 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 16
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 13
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 13
Sourcebooks is bringing the internationally acclaimed New York Times bestseller back for a new generation of listeners. Jennie Churchill was not merely Winston’s mother. She was the most captivating and desired woman of her age. Originally from Brooklyn, Jennie became the reigning queen of British society. Beautiful and defiant, she lived with an honesty that made her the talk of two continents.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Excellent
- By appreciative reader on 02-13-23
By: Ralph G. Martin
-
Gilded Lives, Fatal Voyage
- The Titanic's First-Class Passengers and Their World
- By: Hugh Brewster
- Narrated by: Paul Boehmer
- Length: 10 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 79
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 72
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 71
The Titanic has often been called "An exquisite microcosm of the Edwardian era", but until now, her story has not been presented as such. In Gilded Lives, Fatal Voyage, historian Hugh Brewster seamlessly interweaves personal narratives of the lost liner's most fascinating people with a haunting account of the fateful maiden crossing. Employing scrupulous research, he accurately depicts the ship's brief life and tragic denouement and presents compelling, memorable portraits of her most notable passengers.
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3 out of 5 stars
-
Lots of interesting details
- By Rachel on 10-16-18
By: Hugh Brewster
-
Wait for Me!
- Memoirs
- By: Deborah Mitford Duchess of Devonshire
- Narrated by: Anne Flosnik
- Length: 14 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 125
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 90
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 92
Deborah Mitford, Duchess of Devonshire, is the youngest of the famously witty brood that includes the writers Jessica and Nancy, who wrote when Deborah was born, "How disgusting of the poor darling to go and be a girl." Deborah's effervescent memoir chronicles her remarkable life, from an eccentric but happy childhood in the Oxfordshire countryside, to tea with Adolf Hitler and her controversially political sister Unity in 1937, to her marriage to the second son of the Duke of Devonshire.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
The last of the Mitford Sisters
- By Irene on 01-11-11
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Women of Means
- The Fascinating Biographies of Royals, Heiresses, Eccentrics and Other Poor Little Rich Girls
- By: Marlene Wagman-Geller
- Narrated by: Susan Ericksen
- Length: 8 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 749
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 675
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 674
The grass isn't greener on the other side: Heiresses have always been viewed with eyes of envy. They were the ones for whom the cornucopia had been upended, showering them with unimaginable wealth and opportunity. However, through intimate historical biographies, Women of Means shows us that oftentimes the weaving sisters saved their most heart-wrenching tapestries for the destinies of wealthy women. Women of Means is bound to be a non-fiction best seller, full of the best biographies of all time.
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2 out of 5 stars
-
Did an editor read this?
- By jzm on 09-02-20
-
Sinatra and the Jack Pack
- The Extraordinary Friendship Between Frank Sinatra and John F. Kennedy - Why They Bonded and What Went Wrong
- By: Michael Sheridan, David Harvey
- Narrated by: Sean Runnette
- Length: 9 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 49
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 46
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 45
Frank Sinatra desperately wanted to be part of John F. Kennedy, Jr.'s gang. He had his own famed "Rat Pack", made up of hard drinking, womanizing individuals like himself - guys like Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr., and Peter Lawford - but the guy "Ol' Blue Eyes" really wanted to hang with was Lawford's brother-in-law, the real chairman of the board, John F. Kennedy. In Sinatra and the Jack Pack, Michael Sheridan delves deep into the acclaimed singer's relationship with the former president.
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5 out of 5 stars
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I'm blown away by my naïvety.
- By barbara crowell on 09-06-17
By: Michael Sheridan, and others
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The Little Princesses
- The Story of the Queen's Childhood by Her Nanny, Marion Crawford
- By: Marion Crawford, Jennie Bond - foreword
- Narrated by: Sophie Roberts
- Length: 8 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 70
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 59
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Story5 out of 5 stars 59
Originally published in 1950, The Little Princesses was the first account of British Royal life inside Buckingham Palace as revealed by Marion Crawford, who served as governess to princesses Elizabeth and Margaret.
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5 out of 5 stars
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The Beginnig of My Interest on the Royal Family
- By A. Bauza Higuera on 12-30-22
By: Marion Crawford, and others
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The Gilded Age
- By: Mark Twain
- Narrated by: Robin Field
- Length: 19 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 62
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 57
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 58
First published in 1873, The Gilded Age is both a biting satire and a revealing portrait of post-Civil War America - an age of corruption when crooked land speculators, ruthless bankers, and dishonest politicians voraciously took advantage of the nation's peacetime optimism. With his characteristic wit and perception, Mark Twain and his collaborator, Charles Dudley Warner, attack the greed, lust, and naiveté of their own time in a work that endures as a valuable social document and one of America's most important satirical novels.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Great Story, but Audio Quality Not Always Good
- By BethGA on 02-27-24
By: Mark Twain
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Possessed
- The Life of Joan Crawford
- By: Donald Spoto
- Narrated by: Christina Delaine
- Length: 12 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 66
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 58
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 58
New York Times best-selling author Donald Spoto has brilliantly explored the lives and careers of numerous Hollywood stars and entertainment icons. In Possessed, his subject is the inimitable Joan Crawford, one of the most electrifying divas of the Golden Age of American film. A more thorough, revealing, and sympathetic portrait of the often maligned movie star - most notably lambasted, perhaps, in the scandalous best seller, Mommie Dearest - Possessed is a fascinating study of the real Joan Crawford, a remarkable actress, businesswoman, mother, and lover.
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4 out of 5 stars
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An concise assessment of Joan's life
- By Walter Solley on 10-17-20
By: Donald Spoto
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Serving Victoria
- Life in the Royal Household
- By: Kate Hubbard
- Narrated by: Kate Hubbard
- Length: 14 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 18
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 14
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 13
During her 63-year reign, Queen Victoria gathered around herself a household dedicated to her service. For some, royal employment was the defining experience of their lives; for others it came as an unwelcome duty or as a prelude to greater things. Serving Victoria follows the lives of six members of her household, from the governess to the royal children, from her maid of honor to her chaplain and her personal physician.
By: Kate Hubbard
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Traitor King
- The Scandalous Exile of the Duke & Duchess of Windsor
- By: Andrew Lownie
- Narrated by: Andrew Lownie
- Length: 8 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 287
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 229
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 228
December 11, 1936. The King of England, Edward VIII, has given up his crown, foregoing his duty for the love of Wallis Simpson, an American divorcee. Their courtship has been dogged by controversy and scandal, but with Edward's abdication, they can live happily ever after.
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4 out of 5 stars
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All That is Glamour can be Rotten
- By Joe France on 08-26-22
By: Andrew Lownie
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To Marry an English Lord
- By: Gail MacColl, Carol McD. Wallace
- Narrated by: Kate Reading
- Length: 9 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 427
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 383
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Story4 out of 5 stars 384
From the Gilded Age until 1914, more than 100 American heiresses invaded Britannia and swapped dollars for titles - just like Cora Crawley, Countess of Grantham, the first of the Downton Abbey characters Julian Fellowes was inspired to create after reading To Marry An English Lord. Filled with vivid personalities, gossipy anecdotes, grand houses, and a wealth of period details-plus quotes and the finer points of Victorian and Edwardian etiquette - To Marry An English Lord is social history at its liveliest and most accessible.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Not Great on Audio
- By Lynne on 03-10-16
By: Gail MacColl, and others
What listeners say about Fortune's Children
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Admiralu
- 03-08-20
How Fortune’s Children Failed
This was a fascinating account of the lives of Commodore Vanderbilt 's family and how they spent the fortune till nothing hardly was left. Fudes, drama and many larger than life personalities (both male and female, don't underestimate the women) set the bar for an age of wealth some royal families couldn't match. Only a few men were able to handle the family business, the rest spent beyond their means. Tragedy often upset the best laid plans. One of the grandsons never held a job, deserted his wife and child and did nothing but gamble and spend his fortune away. The lavish excess were ridiculous at times and few knew how to save. All the hard work and sage advice the Commodore have was essentially ignored. In less than 100 years, no member of the family was a millionaire. This book was written by a relative and stops before the success of Gloria Vanderbilt, the famed designer and her son newsman Anderson Cooper. I would've loved to read her story. Heartbreaking and at times difficult to listen to, this book pulls no punches.
I read this book using immersion reading while listening to the audiobook. Patrick Lawlor's narration fit the material. An excellent read and a lesson in greed and excess.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Gypsi
- 10-31-23
Very Interesting
This is a nonfiction account of the rise and decline of the famous Vanderbilt family. In 1887, Cornelius Vanderbilt had made himself the richest man in the world. Within fifty years of his death, however, his fortune no longer remained. The author, a descendant of Cornelius, follows the Vanderbilt family from Cornelius' humble start, through the family's heyday, and finishes by showing how the Vanderbilts lived by the time of publication.
This is a generally well-written and completely engaging family biography, full of anecdotes, information on corresponding historical events, and even brief biographies of some of the society people who influenced the Vanderbilts. The biographies of some of the family members are not as detailed as I would have liked, but overall, it was enlightening, interesting, and a fascinating read for those who are interested in America's Gilded Age.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- G
- 10-18-15
If you are interested in family money?
Really interesting to see how this family made money. And one observation. "It is easy to make money. But not easy to hang o to money". The family managed to squander a fortune ...
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- IamKatie
- 05-30-18
A vast amount of information
Loved it. A sad ending of an era of history. It would have been exciting in some aspects to witness.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Joe Culley
- 01-29-23
Excellent.
A really well written, entertaining ,and informative read!! I find so many books on this time period and subject can get a bit boring-not this one!! And, it really covers the family generations.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- D. Lancaster
- 10-21-22
Narrator needs to learn how to pronounce...
...Blenheim Palace! Since a Vanderbilt marries a Duke of Marlborough, and goes to live in Blenheim Palace, it is mentioned many many times. Dear Narrator: It is pronounced BLEN-um. That's all. Blen...um. Not Blen-HYME. ACK! Other than that, the story was very interesting - far more interesting than I already thought it would be.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Margot
- 11-02-16
Great listen for a road trip.
Wish Patrick Lawlor would study pronunciation before narrating. "Blen-hyme"?? Like fingernails on a chalkboard! Otherwise an interesting story about the Gilded Age and what followed.
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14 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Marckush
- 07-04-17
Beautifully read fascinating topic
In less skilled hands the multitude of voices and accents Mr. Lawlor assumes would come off as embarrassing- after all, he reads the words of everything from a robber Barron misanthrope to a 10 year old heiress, and her nanny to boot! Lawlor does a fine job and his beautiful consistency lends a new dimension to a sense topic.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Cecilia Barther
- 03-20-18
So sad
Would you listen to Fortune's Children again? Why?
Yes, so interesting listening to how they made, and lost, their money.
What was one of the most memorable moments of Fortune's Children?
Commodore Vanderbilt seemed an awful person yet a brilliant business man
Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?
I found it interesting the Vanderbilts seemed to enjoy their money when they had it but somehow knew it wasn't going to last forever, yet, they were never conservative!
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Courtney C.
- 10-13-20
A wonderful book with somewhat painful narrator
I absolutely loved the book so I chugged along through somewhat clumsy narration at times. A lot of French words were mispronounced and other words here and there but overall, he did a wonderful job on Commodore Vanderbilt in the beginning and the Gilded Age characters.
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