Another fascinating book by author Marie Benedict! I love this author and hope she continues to write for a long time. She has the ability to write about historical figures and then ask "What if?" This is the story of Andrew Carnegie and a maid named Clara Kelly. Ms. Kelly is a fictional character, but Marie Benedict asks what if Clara had existed and had a profound and lasting influence on Andrew Carnegie. Loved it!

Marie Benedict really evokes the period and class differences. A joy to read.

I liked this story. Characters are well developed. Story is well researched.

I'm a fan of historical fiction, and I really enjoyed this book. This is a fascinating peek at one of America's most wealthy families, and of the Irish immigrant experience in the late 1800s. It's told from Clara's point of view, and to experience her inner dialogue as she lives among the wealthy Carnegies and their friends is fascinating.

Clara Kelly is sent by her family in Ireland to the United States to get a job so she can get away from the poverty that afflicts them and hopefully send money back home. Her family are tenant farmers who are slowly losing their land, and her father is involved in the Irish independence movement against the English.

When Clara gets off the boat in Philadelphia, she is mistaken for another Clara Kelly, who died at sea and who was intended to be a lady's maid. She decides to take the job, and she relies on her father's education and her knowledge of the manners of the Irish landowners back home.

Clara becomes the lady's maid to Mrs. Carnegie, who immigrated from Scotland with her family. Her eldest son Andrew worked hard and studied the ways of his employers and founded the family fortune. Clara and Andrew meet and find kindred souls in one another. They are both intelligent hard workers who want to get ahead, and Clara influences Andrew's thinking and his actions.

The character development is very good, and the budding romance between Clara and Andrew isn't the focus of the book. The writing is solid and the book moves along quickly and held my interest.

I definitely recommend this book, especially for lovers of historical fiction.

Thanks to Sourcebooks Landmark and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Who was Andrew Carnegie? He came from humble beginnings in Scotland. In America, he became an iron magnate and the richest man in the world. He used his wealth to improve society, creating free libraries. He sparked philanthropy with pouring money into education and scientific research.

Nevertheless, some accused him of being ruthless. And that’s what this story explores, his character.

Usually, I’m not a fan of a fictional character taking center stage in historical fiction, but Clara Kelley is a very moral, likeable and interesting character. She comes from humble beginnings like Carnegies, but from Ireland. Her father encouraged women education when it was unseen for family of her status to do so. She is observant of Andrew’s character. She likes his equal treatment of all men, but she is bothered by his determination of success. She questions, does the end justify the means? She witnesses family conversations and is allowed access to their library, where she puts pieces together of a 28 year old ambitious Andrew Carnegie.

The story is set between 1863-1867, during a time when opportunities for women were very limited; either in household or marriage. Serving as a nurse (which was limited to religious women) or working as telegraph operator was something new and rare.

It is set mostly in industrial Pittsburgh of Pennsylvania, but it also touches upon the Knickerbockers of NYC – a very tight society of Dutch settlers, who amassed fortunes in trade, railroad and stocks. They had no status in Europe, so to make themselves very important; they invented rules of society and didn’t want to let any outsider in, especially immigrant, no matter how rich.

The story is very grasping, progressing in action (not words), which makes it a page-turner.

Did not fully work for me. The dialogue felt too modern - especially how Clara and her sister communicated through letter - but the thought experiment was delightful. Why Carnegie changed himself so radically is a mystery worth exploring and I adore the idea it was an Irish immigrant who did it.

A grand idea, executed not nearly as grandly.

I must have requested this in error. I don't think I would enjoy it and therefore wouldn't want to give it a low rating. Thanks for the opportunity.

Marie Benedict has woven a tale, circa 1860, around the flight of Clara Kelly from Ireland to the United States. The family’s land holdings in Ireland have become tenuous due to her father’s political position and therefore the family’s financial security is in jeopardy. Ireland is in deep depression with famine rampant and jobs elusive. The fare has been saved to send Clara to the United States where it is hoped she will secure employment and earn the funds necessary to help support her family.

The story revolves around Clara Kelly, Andrew Carnegie, his mother and the social condition of Pittsburgh. Carnegie is drawn in equal parts as likeable, disagreeable, generous, moody, socially aware, and successful with his business superiors willing to take the risks that walk the line of “not quite illegal”. His mother is painted as socially insecure, over protective and controlling, all qualities that drive the reader to embrace Clara’s dilemma. A hint of the ultimate consequence was set forth clearly at the onset and while acknowledging that Clara is in an untenable position it is unfortunate that the author became so repetitive. The cook’s warning to Clara that servants never come out on top was the “tell” of what was in the offing. The social commentary regarding the day-to-day life of the mill and steel workers in Pittsburgh and those in house service was informative and important.

The story was reminiscent of Susan Meissner’s style although not as impressively written. A solid 3-1/2 stars. Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for an ARC.

Carnegie's Maid: A Novel by [Benedict, Marie]

I normally love books that can be described as "like reading Downton Abbey," but I think the genre of "we're going to focus on a woman peripheral to a famous person and show how she changed history" has been overdone.

Review copy provided by publisher.

Excellent!!! I enjoyed this book immensely. It's a period of time many find fascinating, and I felt as though Ms. Benedict was true to the era and to the social and economic mores of the time. It always thrills me to read a novel steeped in reality as this one was, especially one as well researched as this obviously was. And then written with a great deal of heart so that it never felt too dry to give enjoyment.

Thanks SOURCEBOOKS Landmark and netgalley for this ARC.

From the viewpoints of Carnegie and Clara, we get a full picture of the times they lived in and their hearts. Clara will endear herself to you in no time, and you'll either agree with her decisions or lament them.

A beautifully written well researched book that is a pleasure to read. It is well put together and tells the story of Andrew Carnegie and Clara really well.

This is a wonderful story of the immigrant experience in America in the 1860s. Several characters are immigrants and I appreciated that one minor characters was also a freed slave, so some insight is given into that terrible part of our history. The author did a wonderful job exploring the complex person of Andrew Carnegie. All fans of historical fiction will enjoy this book, but as a Pittsburgher I was especially fascinated to step into my city and see how different it was all those years ago.

I was thrilled when I got the chance to read this book long before it was released. I mean as I write this review is it more than half a year left before the book is released. But, I just had to read it!

So, by the two stars rating have you probably figured that I did not truly love this book. Now, before I start to explain what worked and what did not work for me will I just tell you that I'm sure many will love this book. It's not badly written or anything. It's just that I'm pretty picky when it comes to romance, and that what in the end made this book fail for me.

Now, the book had potentials. The beginning was intriguing and I was eager to see how the story would develop. Now, I did know that this was a romance story. The blurb clearly stated it, but, despite not being a fan of romance books, do like to read romance in a historical setting. Clara is imagined characters, but that I didn't mind that even though I prefer reading historical romance stories between real-life characters. I did enjoy reading and learning more about Andrew Carnegie. Such a fascinating man. And, here is the problem, I would have loved the story to have been more about Andrew Carnegie's life and career and less about Clara, her tribulations and the romance between them. It just didn't work for me, I felt no sparks between them. To put it bluntly, Clara was not an interesting character and that made the romance pretty uninteresting.

And, the ending. I can't give it away of course. But, it felt very unbelievable. The beginning of the book clearly shows how it all would end. But, for my life can't I fathom that ending. It just doesn't make sense for me. Love always finds a way, and that ending was such a let-down to a story that already felt like a letdown.

I'm sorry to say, but this book was just not for me...

I requested Carnegie's Maid because as someone who has always wanted to be a librarian, his area of philanthropy really sparked my interest. What I discovered was one of the best historical fiction novels you're going to run into anywhere. The character of Clara Kelley was written so well it brought her fiesty determination right off the page and formed a picture in my imagination. When I am able too, I will be recommending Carnegie's Maid to my local library and any reading friends with even the remotest interest in the historical fiction genre. I gave it 5 stars for Marie Benedict's artistry in constructing a book that transporters the reader along with Clara Kelley. Thank you for the opportunity to read a galley copy of the eBook. I honestly loved it.

I loved the characters of Clara and Andrew! I love how Clara reminds Andrew of where he started and she constantly tests him and pushes him. I loved the ending even though I felt it was a little abrupt. I also felt like the plot could've been pumped up a bit. Overall good book! Thank you Netgalley!

In the industrial 1860s at the dawn of the Carnegie empire, Irish immigrant Clara Kelly finds herself in desperate circumstances. Looking for a way out, she seeks employment as a lady's maid in the home of the prominent businessman Andrew Carnegie. Soon, the bond between Clara and her employer deepens into love. But when Clara goes missing, Carnegie's search for her unearths secrets and revelations that lay the foundation for his lasting legacy. With captivating insight and stunning heart, Carnegie's Maid tells the story of one lost woman who may have spurred Andrew Carnegie's transformation from ruthless industrialist into the world's first true philanthropist.

I love historical fiction and this did not disappoint. The author did a great job introducing us to Clara Kelly and how she ended up being employed as a ladies' maid by the Carnegie family, her meeting of Andrew Carnegie and the two falling in forbidden love. I love the premise that Carnegie taught Clara about his business dealings, while Clara taught Andrew that giving back to society and helping those less fortunate is more honorable than climbing the social ladder. A feel-good story even though the romance did not survive.

I wish the story would have lasted longer - I felt the author could have delved just a little into Clara's life after the left the employ of the Carnegie household, and into Carnegie's life as he fulfilled his promise to Clara.

Thanks to NetGalley for the copy!

I received this book from NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Landmark in exchange for my honest review.

This book is a quick and easy read. I read it in one day because I did not want to put it down. It reminded me a lot of Downton Abbey.

Clara Kelly came to the US from Ireland and by mistaken identity she found herself in the position of a Lady's maid. Although she had never been a Lady's Maid, she was a very intelligent woman and picked up on what her duties were. When Andrew Carnegie finds out that she has a brilliant mind things change.

I would recommend this book anyone that like Historic Fiction. I loved it.

I was very keen to get my hands on Carnegie's Maid after reading the amazing The Other Einstein last year. You can read my review of that one here: https://lifehasafunnywayofsneakinguponyou.wordpress.com/2016/10/14/einstein-marie-benedict-review/

Marie Benedict does not disappoint. She states that the idea came to her after reading about Andrew Carnegie who founded the Carnegie Libraries and of course the famous Carnegie Medal book award for children's fiction was named after him. Marie noticed that there was a puzzle around why the multi millionaire named the richest man in the world and intent on industrial business, would venture out into founding charitable libraries for the lower classes.

Marie, as with her work on The Other Einstein combines history with fiction to plot a story. In Carnegie's Maid, Cara Kelley is sent to America by her poor Irish family hoping to find her fortune. By a stroke of luck she is mistaken for another Cara Kelley who unfortunately passed away on the ship. She finds herself in the other Cara Kelley's job as a ladies maid to Mrs Carnegie.

The novel tells the story of Cara's deception as she tries to make her way in a job she has no idea how to do and also support her family back home who are depending on her financially.

The book is interesting and well written and a nice thought, that a lost woman in history could have influenced Carnegie's change of heart. Marie writes as if it is true and it is wholly believable. A love story like no other, a hidden past and a fear of deception being revealed. Marie is the one to watch in a genre she has claimed as her own.