Rebecca Rosenberg’s, The Secret Life of Mrs. London, starts out with one of the most intriguing opening scenes ever. Charmaine London challenges her husband, the famous author Jack London, to a boxing match to cure his hangover and malaise. On the surface, delightfully quirky, but as we get to know the characters’ unrest better, they move from mildly disturbing, to downright sad.

I was fascinated to learn of the lengths with which Charmaine London went to ensure her husband’s success. She continually rescued him from himself, as he frittered away his time and talents with drinking, dalliances, and playing court jester among his followers. Charmain kept him on task, and psychologically “propped up.” Her methods were clever, compassionate, quirky … and altogether undervalued. Their writing process was intriguing, and the extent of her power as both a muse and an editor left me wondering just how much of Jack London’s work was his.

The relationship between the London’s and the Houdini’s was also interesting, as were the exploration of free love within the marriage. As the story unfolded, Charmain grew desperate for the kind of love Jack was incapable of bestowing upon her, and their relationship became quite sad.

I only knew of Jack London and Harry Houdini by reputation, and I knew nothing of their spouses before reading The Secret Life of Mrs. London. This book will be a great hit among the historical fictionistas and provides plenty of discussion points for bookclubs.

Thank you to Rebecca Rosenberg, Lake Union Publishing, and NetGalley for providing an ARC of this interesting story in exchange for an honest review. Four Stars!

The Secret Life of Mrs. London was downright entertaining and properly placed me in the adventurous lives of the Londons. If all of Rebecca Rosenberg's books are going to be this great, sign me up as a permanent fan. Cover to end, I loved this book!

This book was a bit hit and miss for me.

What I Liked: The parts of the novel that included Houdini and his wife, Bessie, were by far my favorite parts of the novel. The descriptions of his risky escapes and his magic shows, along with the personification of someone I only know as a masterful magician, kept me intrigued. I loved those parts of the novel.

What I Didn't Like: The relationship between Charmian and her husband, Jack London. While I recognize that this is the main plot point of the novel, their relationship felt as if it was a constant battle to keep each other interested. Each one struggled with fidelity, and Jack's constant illness made Charmian often seem more like a caretaker than a wife. I just wasn't very invested in their relationship and found myself constantly wondering why they stayed married and how I was supposed to believe that they loved each other.

That being said, this in no way affects my feelings about the author. Rosenberg used real parts of the Londons' lives in order to write the novel, so I'm sure that a lot of the relationship aspects I didn't enjoy are down to the truth of the relationship. As an author, Rosenberg did a great job of opening the window into the lives of the Londons, and she did well with fleshing out characters whose names I knew but that was it.

Overall, I mostly enjoyed this book. I do recommend it to those who enjoy historically based novels or who might be interested in seeing real people be fictionalized.

This is an interesting book. I wanted to read it because of the Jack London connection. There were times (many!) that the lifestyle of these two was very difficult for me to relate to and they were just unlikeable people now and then.
The author did seem to put a lot of research in it and, quite frankly, it's one of the most captivating covers I've ever seen on a book. That was what drew me to the book initially. The Jack London connection clinched it.
I received an Advance Review Copy from netgalley. All opinions are my own.

This is a wonderful book of historical fiction written of the time period of WWI in San Francisco. This is a fascinating view of the marriage of Jack London and his wife Charmian. She was the force of nature behind his success and a writer herself. Not knowing her story before I was completely enthralled by how ahead of her time she was, how outspoken and what a great advocate for women's rights she was.
Rebecca Rosenberg brings Charmian London fully to life . She believes in equality and free love. rides horses and enjoys sports. She does not sit by his side in life but carves her own path as a independent women. I didn't care for the narcissistic Jack at all and after reading his works in college have not been a fan of him . I liked Charmian and her independent spirit, The life of Charmian takes another turn when she meets the attractive Houdini and considers the lackluster of her marriage. I loved the glimpse into the lives of the eccentric Houdini and his wife, Bess. A fascinating read!
Thank you for the ARC which does not influence my review

Review being posted on my blog on 3/30/18
Thank you to the author and Netgalley for an e-arc of this book in exchange for my honest review.


In the Secret Life of Mrs.London follows Charmian London and her husband Jack London from 1915-1917.


Charmian is someone I found myself loving in one instant and then being completely annoyed with in the next. She's Jack's wife and muse and because of this has lost herself throughout there marriage. She's fully focused on him and making sure he stays successful, but she also has dreams of her own to become a writer. Charmian is also a boxer, horseback rider, and an excellent piano player.



Jack is, of course, the world-famous writer and now a farm owner as well.



Overall I did enjoy this book, but I also could have done without a lot of the things in this book. First I think we need to say that I've never read either of there books before. I had only ever heard of Jack London as well and didn't even know he had a wife until this book.

So many times throughout this book I found myself being absolutely annoyed/disgusted with Jack. The way he treats so many of the people around him was so frustrating to me, especially when it came to his children and how he just acted like they didn't matter. Which if that's the case then don't be around them.

As for Charmian, I found myself being frustrated with her as well because one moment she was all Jack is everything to me, and then the next she was lusting after someone else. Besides that though I really did enjoy seeing things through her eyes. All the adventures that she and Jack went on and how she was working on multiple different things at once and dealing with Jack's mood swings was fascinating to me. I also really loved how she treated the help kindly, and was grateful for them and all that they did for her and Jack.



The author does an amazing job of transporting us back to early 1900's and I couldn't get enough of it. I could have done without a lot of the content. I'm just not someone who likes when people have affairs so casually, especially when they are also upset when there spouse is doing the same thing. Either admit that you have an open relationship which is completely okay as long as both people are on board with it, or you can confront each other and fix what's happening, or finally break-up!



Because of a lot of the cheating at first I did really like the Houdini's parts and seeing Harry outside of just his amazing talent. I loved learning about Bess and now I want to find a book about her learn more about her becaus I don't know much about her either sadly.



I also loved seeing so many things like Listerine and State Fairs mentioned in this book. So many celebrity-based stories don't mention things like the State Fair even though they were very popular things during the 1900's for everyone no matter your status.



I do think a lot of people will really like this book. Just be aware that a lot of the book is about Charmians Libido and affairs.

A fun historical fiction novel about Jack London's assistant/wife Charmaine. Engaging, charming and well worth the read.

I greatly enjoyed this book..It is a fictional story of Jack London wife..It is very realistic and the characters are very believable. Jack London was a favorite author of mine and he is portrayed very true to live which makes the story so interesting. Harry and Bessie Houdini are also in the story and there is a lot about their lives as well.If you enjoy historical fiction don't miss this one, it is one of the best.

(3.5 stars) I have a weakness for novels about history’s famous wives, whether that’s Zelda Fitzgerald, the multiple Mrs. Hemingways, or the First Ladies of the U.S. presidents. A valuable addition to that delightful sub-genre of fiction is The Secret Life of Mrs. London, the recent debut novel by California lavender farmer Rebecca Rosenberg. I’m pleased to be closing out the blog tour today with a mini review. So many thorough reviews have already appeared that I won’t attempt to compete with them, but will just share a few reasons why I found this a worthwhile read.

Set in 1915 to 1917, this is the story of the last couple of years of Jack London’s life, narrated by his second wife, Charmian, who was five years his senior. The novel opens in California at the Londons’ Beauty Ranch and Wolf House complex and also travels to Hawaii and New York City. Events are condensed and fictionalized, but true to life – thanks to the biography Charmian wrote of Jack and the author’s access to her journals and their letters.

Here are a few things I particularly liked about the novel:

A fantastic opening scene: September 1915: Charmian decides to fix Jack’s hangover with strong coffee and a boxing match – with her! – while their Japanese servant, Nakata, and their house guests look on with bemusement. “Nothing breathes vigor into a marriage like a boxing match.”

A glimpse into Jack London’s lesser-known writings: I’ve only ever read White Fang and The Call of the Wild, as a child. But in addition to his adventure stories he also wrote realist/sociopolitical novels and science fiction. At the time when the novel opens, he’s working on The Star Rover. This has inspired me to look into some of his more obscure work.

The occasional clash of the spouses’ ambitions: Charmian considers it her duty to hold Jack to his promise of writing 1,000 words a day. However, she is an aspiring writer herself, and she often needles Jack to talk to his publisher about accepting her books. (She eventually published two travel books, The Log of the Snark (1915), about their years sailing the Pacific, and Our Hawaii (1917), as well as her biography of her late husband, The Book of Jack London, in 1921.)

Charmian’s longing for motherhood: Jack London had an ex-wife and two daughters, Joan and Becky. In 1910 Charmian gave birth to a daughter, Joy, who soon died. Even though she is 43 by the time the book opens, she still wants to try again for a baby. Her hopes and disappointments are a poignant part of the story.

Cameos from other historical figures: Harry Houdini and his wife, especially, have a large part to play in the novel, particularly in the last quarter.

I wasn’t so keen on the sex scenes, which are fairly frequent. However, I can recommend this to fans of Nancy Horan’s work.

I was lucky enough to read an ARC of this book, now it is available! This is a fabulous Historical Fiction read! I couldn't believe it is the author's debut! I enjoyed this book very much. I highly recommend it and I look forward to reading more from this author!

3 stars Thank you to the author Rebecca Rosenberg and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this book.

To start with, I really don't care for romances, this book was a romance, but yet much more. Sadly to say I did not like any of the characters in this book. Each and every one of them seemed to have a selfish ulterior motive. But with that said, for me to have this reaction to the characters implicates good development and a well written story by the author.

This was a fictionalized account of Jack London, the author, and his second wife Charmian. I believe that this author, Rosenberg, did some extensive research on their lives, along with the lives of Harry and Bessie Houdini, who are also featured in the book. So having done this research, and then bringing these characters to life, based on that research, makes me dislike them even more due to the fact that they are even remotely based in reality. Both couples marriages were a sham. Morality was not a factor.. Their infidelity was rampant.

I appreciated the story itself due to it's historical content. In the early 1900's a woman was still a second class citizen and there were a number of instances in the story reflecting that. The fate of wealth during that era showed how immoral that population could easily be.

I think the author did relate a good story, regardless of the characters. Reading this book did make me want to revisit some of Jack Londons' novels. This being a debut novel for Rosenberg, I can see reading her next book upon it's publication, hoping it again will be a historical novel, but one with likable characters.

I started reading THE SECRET LIFE OF MRS. LONDON with no knowledge of the real-life characters other than Jack London wrote THE CALL OF THE WILD and Harry Houdini performed magic. One of my favorite English literature teachers taught me to love learning about the authors behind their great works and so I was obviously very excited to learn more about Jack London. Even better, I was looking forward to learning about his second wife and her influence on him as an author.

However, I didn't expect him to be such a jerk! Rebecca Rosenberg does a marvelous job of portraying Jack London as a brilliant but highly erratic and extremely selfish author. His interactions with his valet, Nakata, infuriated me even more so than his highly volatile relationship with Charmain. His sense of superiority and entitlement ooze through the pages and I developed an intense dislike for him.

It was easy to understand why Charmain turned to other men, including Houdini. Rebecca Rosenberg makes Houdini the person seem as magical as Houdini the entertainer. I could almost forget he was cheating on his sweet wife, Bess. However, I still struggled with Charmain's character as I wanted to appreciate her determination to be an author in a time when men dominated the scene. I wanted to appreciate the strength of character that had her push Jack to write when he'd fall into drunkenness and despair. Unfortunately, I just couldn't as her destructive and volatile relationship with Jack made me cringe on more than one occasion.

Historical fiction is tricky, particularly if the characters portrayed are temperamental. THE SECRET LIFE OF MRS. LONDON wasn't my cup of tea but I'm sure others will appreciate it, particularly considering the backdrop for the storyline. Rebecca Rosenberg does a great job evoking an emotional response from her readers in THE SECRET LIFE OF MRS. LONDON and some book clubs may find the discussions surrounding the events portrayed to be quite lively.

A book about the domestic lives of great writers or artists, albeit fictionalised, is fast becoming my idea of historical fiction heaven. So, when the opportunity arose to read The Secret Life of Mrs. London, I simply couldn’t resist. I’m pleased to say I was not disappointed.

The book of is a portrait of a passionate, tempestuous marriage between two unconventional people. In Charmian’s mind ‘Jack is the tornado, and I am the vortex that keeps him swirling. The empty eye of the storm. Nothing without Jack.’ At one point she reflects that he is ‘A dashing, unfathomable mixture of men, my Jack: adventurer, farmer, aristocrat, Bohemian, land baron, Socialist, warrior.’

The more I read of The Secret Life of Mrs. London, the more I found myself thinking: How on earth did Jack London think he deserved a woman like Charmian? As well as being his sparring partner (quite literally) and sharing many of his adventures, Charmian was the source of ideas for a lot of his novels, she was his editor - honing his dictated prose into the final polished article (‘The analogy sounds weak to me. I’ll rework it later.’) - and, at times, even his nursemaid.

Clearly, I can see why a woman would be attracted to Jack - for his genius as a writer, the way he had raised himself up from humble beginnings, his dashing looks and his adventurous spirit. As Charmian admits, ‘His brilliance and bravado mesmerized me, and I’ve been captive ever since.’ But, come on, he had affairs with other women, surrounded himself with a crowd of assorted hangers-on who drank and ate them out of house and home, got into debt and was often dismissive about Charmian’s contribution to his success. ‘He snorts. “I’m the writer. You’re the typist.”’ Furthermore he even stopped giving her enough ‘grand lolly’!

On the subject of ‘grand lolly’ (and you’re going to have to read the book or be a good guesser because I’m not going to tell you what that denotes), I really enjoyed how the author created a distinctive style of speech for Jack and Charmian, such as their nicknames for each other. I also loved the period atmosphere, the parties, the grand hotels, the cocktails, the celebrities of the age, the exotic locations.

When Jack and Charmian meet Harry Houdini and his wife, Bessie, the reader witnesses a new aspect to the Londons' relationship and things get a whole lot more complicated. It’s revealing to see the two men through Charmian’s eyes: ‘The two of them emanate masculinity in such different ways. Jack’s street tough and adventuring, ever the underdog and fighter. Houdini radiates knowledge of things beyond knowing, a steely mastermind who influences people by controlling their thoughts.’

Incidentally, I absolutely fell in love with Houdini's wife, Bessie, as imagined by the author. What a wonderfully funny, sympathetic and engaging character with her idiosyncratic style of speech and her sparkly exterior that disguises the sadness within. And Houdini? Well, he comes across as clever, perceptive, caring, self-confident and loyal. Do you know, I think perhaps a combination of Houdini and Jack might make the perfect man? (Leaving aside my husband, of course.)

Events take a tragic turn in the final third of the book and I found this part moving, heartbreaking but uplifting as well as the reader sees Charmian exert her independence.

I really loved The Secret Life of Mrs. London and found it a most assured and impressive debut. The author’s passion for her subject, and the extent of her research, shines through but this is also a very skilful piece of historical fiction writing. It’s made me want to read other books by Jack London. (Like a lot of people, I suspect, I’ve only ever read The Call of the Wild and White Fang – and both of those when I was at school, a few [ahem] years ago now.) It’s made me want to read Charmian’s biography of her husband and some of her own writing. Most of all, it’s made we want to read whatever Rebecca Rosenberg writes next.

I received a review copy courtesy of the author and Lake Union Publishing in return for an honest and unbiased review.

Charmaine London is the wife of the Jack London, the famous writer of adventure stories. Charmaine has been essential to Jack’s success providing edits and motivating him to keep to a schedule. She has put her writing career on hold to help him succeed but has received little acknowledgment from the literary community or her husband. She struggles to balance her love for Jack and her own desire for achievement.

One evening, the Londons see Harry Houdini perform onstage. Charmaine is pulled out of the audience as a volunteer which was a typical ploy with attractive women. A bond forms while she is introduced to Bessie Houdini, and details about their complicated marriage are revealed. Harry Houdini showers her with affection and she starts to realize what's been missing from her own relationship.

This is a historical look at the life of Jack London as seen through the eyes of his wife. We get to witness the highs and lows of his career and gather some understanding of their complicated marriage. This is well-researched debut novel by Rebecca Rosenberg.

I was attracted by the cover and the description sounded interesting so I put in a request for this book. I am so grateful I was given an ARC. I found this book to so interesting and well written. I was very impressed by the author and really enjoyed her writing. The book was obviously well researched and then written with enough fiction to fill the holes and make it an enjoyable story to read. I felt like I really got to know the characters and their personal feelings and motivations. I have not read any of Jack London's work and really enjoyed the quotes at the start of each chapter. The author did a great job using quotes that related to the chapter and set the tone for it. He has a beautiful writing style. It was sad to see his life end early from alcohol and morphine. Another waste of a good life and a great talent to addiction. I liked how Charmain and Jack supported each other in unconditional ways- great partners in every aspect, but I did not like their views on free love and the constant affairs. Really interesting read about interesting people in an interesting time of history.

Behind every great man stands a great woman. Rebecca Rosenberg brings Charmian London to life in this story. Charmian is a woman ahead of her times. She believes in equality and free love which is surprising considering the times. I feel that Jack London may not have become as well known without her help and influence. Although I didn't care for selfish and narcissistic Jack, I rooted for his relationship with Charmian, I loved the glimpse into the lives of the eccentric Houdini and his wife, Bess. I would love to read a sequel of the next chapter in Charmian's life!

Historical fiction on the life of Jack London and his wife, Charmain. They were interesting people--very risqué for their time.

I received a copy of this from NetGalley for my honest review.

I enjoyed the book very much. Learned a few things that I sure didn’t know. It kept my interest all the way through. I had never read anything by this author before but sure will now. Very well written. Loved it.

Sometimes I have a feeling about a book and where it might fall on my own reviewer scale, even before I pick it up and start reading.

This was one of those books. I thought it would be a book that was good but not great. Sometimes fictionalized accounts of historical figures lives can go very right or very wrong. I am not a big Jack London fan or a Harry Houdini fan….so I was ready to put this book firmly in the three star category before I even started the first page.

San Francisco, 1915. As America teeters on the brink of world war, Charmian and her husband, famed novelist Jack London, wrestle with genius and desire, politics and marital competitiveness.

Charmian longs to be viewed as an equal partner who put her own career on hold to support her husband, but Jack doesn’t see it that way…until Charmian is pulled from the audience during a magic show by escape artist Harry Houdini, a man enmeshed in his own complicated marriage. Suddenly, charmed by the attention Houdini pays her and entranced by his sexual magnetism, Charmian’s eyes open to a world of possibilities that could be her escape.

As Charmian grapples with her urge to explore the forbidden, Jack’s increasingly reckless behavior threatens her dedication. Now torn between two of history’s most mysterious and charismatic figures, she must find the courage to forge her own path, even as she fears the loss of everything she holds dear (summary from Goodreads).

Sometimes we are just primed to love or hate a book based on a cover, a review or even publicity flooding. There has been a lot of buzz about this book and the cover is lovely to look at but for me I just wasn’t sure I was going to love it, which is completely unfair I know but sometimes it just happens.

That said, I felt like I owed it to the author to give it a fair shot and try to not place it firmly in the category of ‘ok’. After a few chapters, I realized I was reading something more than just ok. I don’t know much–ok anything–about Jack London and his personal life. i haven’t read his novels and frankly have zero desire to read them, so this novel was a little hard to get into especially if you don’t have any background on the famous couple.

Once I got my bearings of their lives and some background, I was able to really get lost in the romance story. Jack London was a complicated character and I liked seeing how Rosenberg depicted him in the novel. Charmian is so wrapped up in Jack that I often felt that she didn’t even know who she was without him. Talk about codependent. But as we got to know her in the story, it was clear that she had this unrealistic ideal of what romance was or was supposed to be especially when it came to Jack.

Complicated marriage is such a basic way to describe their marriage but yet if I try to describe it any other way, it takes on a life of it’s own so lets just leave it as ‘it’s complicated’. I loved how honest that part was.

The ‘friendship’ Charmian had with Harry and his wife was dramatic. When I say dramatic what I really mean is superficial. I couldn’t help but feel that Charmian was clearly NOT a friend to Harry’s wife and I don’t think she was meant to be a real friend to her even from the beginning. I enjoyed seeing how different the relationship was between all the characters. This book was so clearly about moral ambiguity and how easy those lines can be blurred and how easy it is to idealized people and their situations.

I thought about this book a long time after I read it and often I found myself wondering what would I do if I were in Charmian’s place. For me the fact that I kept coming back to this story was a sign of a great read. While I sometimes didn’t always like Charmian and her choices, I liked the complexity of the novel and it was so much more than a three star book. Lovely writing and engaging story that will leave readers questioning and wondering about the real lives of some of America’s most well known figures.

Challenge/Book Summary:

Book: The Secret Life of Mrs London by Rebecca Rosenberg

Kindle Edition, 348 pages
Published January 30th 2018 by Lake Union Publishing
ASIN B072KRP7MN
Review copy provided by: Author/Publisher in exchange for an honest review
This book counts toward: NA

Hosted by: NA
Books for Challenge Completed: NA
Recommendation: 4 out of 5

Genre: Historical fiction

Memorable lines/quotes: NA

Historical fiction readers know it’s no picnic being a famous author’s wife. These admirable women have endured their husbands’ egos, partying, and infidelity, supported them through illness, and sacrificed their own writing ambitions in their favor.

All of these were true of Jack London’s second wife, Charmian Kittredge London, yet she may be the least known of these heroines today. As such, biographical articles revealing the true history of her life and the couple’s partnership come as a surprise. A well-educated heiress and travel writer who personified the early 20th-century “New Woman,” she was hardly a shrinking violet. And still her importance in his life is overlooked because, as London’s muse, spouse, and editor, she held roles that were kept in his shadow.

Rosenberg’s strong debut, the first novel to focus on this deserving subject, presents Charmian in her element. An unapologetically bold and sexually liberated woman, Charmian loves her adventurous husband but chafes at settling for less than she deserves.

It opens at their extensive ranch home among the redwoods in Sonoma Valley, California, in 1915. President Wilson is weighing his options for entering WWI, and against this politically troubled historical backdrop, Charmian is doing her best to support her husband’s career: “Jack’s golden rule: write a thousand words a day. And my job is to keep him to it.” And if she can work in a “grand lolly” afterwards that will satisfy them both, and hopefully give her a child, so much the better.

However, their sex life is stalling, their new home’s construction is a money pit, and he discourages her writing efforts. Despite being a dedicated Socialist, he also gets upset when she points out the contradiction between his longtime beliefs and his desires to expand their land.


author Rebecca Rosenberg
While Jack encourages her flirtations, she quickly gets in over her head after she participates in an on-stage magic show by the charismatic Great Houdini – and forms an unlikely friendship with his wife, Bess, whose quirkiness and childlike looks belie a deeper wisdom. Depictions of Charmian’s complicated relationships with both Houdinis are a highlight of the book. The "Magic Man" himself has an electrifying presence, one to which Charmian isn’t immune.

Her passionate quest for love and purpose unfolds against the stirrings of war, Houdini’s death-defying escapes, and the surprising intersection between them (Houdini’s unique contributions to the war effort are fascinating, yet little-known).

Through her dynamic narrative, Charmian is presented as a flawed and fascinating character whose eventful life holds our attention. Her phrasings are occasionally clichéd (“…shatters my heart into a million tiny pieces”), but she comes across as a force of nature with an original outlook on her world.

From the sun-drenched waters of Hawaii to the skyscrapers of the nation’s capital, the novel explores the risks and secret joys of following one’s heart.

(published at Reading the Past)