THE SECOND MRS ASTOR is a definite winner for fans of historical fiction. The setting of the Titanic means a suspenseful ticking clock, a delicious and anxious sense of time running out. Abe's writing feels assured and measured. Not a word is wasted.

I was slightly worried that I wouldn't be drawn in to the love story because of the characters' age difference. However, the second Mrs. Astor demonstrates a maturity beyond her years, which enables the reader to become invested in their fates.

I also enjoyed reading about the public scrutiny they endured, which wasn't something I'd thought about it prior to reading the book.

Nicely done.

A lyrical, well-researched novel about the heartbreaking love story of Madeleine and JJ Astor. Review to come on www.thetitanicgirl.com!

This historical fiction romance was refreshingly wonderful. Jack and Madeline persevered through badgering by paparazzi to prove their love was solid and real.

A very well written story that peaked my interest to read any information I could find on this ill fated couple.

Thank you Kensington Books and Net gallery for this ARC.

This was an extremely well-written novel about the meeting, relationship, and marriage of Madeleine Force 18 and John Jacob Astor, 46, the richest man in America. Believe it or not, this was a wonderful love story, and the age difference was not as big of a deal back then as it would be today.

This a heart-wrenching account of what Madeleine had to put p with both during her relationship and consequent marriage and then the loss of her husband on her honeymoon.

I do wish that this book had gone on a little longer to see how she and her child's life developed.

For those of you with Kindle Unlimited, may I suggest you look into reading A Night to Remember: The Sinking of the Titanic. For an earlier look at the types of families you would find in this book, may I recommend A Night to Remember: The Sinking of the Titanic

For those of you that like a lot of truth in your romance, I suggest highly that you read this book. I really couldn't put it down and wish it hadn't ended. I will be searching for other books like this one.

The hounding of celebrities by paparazzi and fickleness of the press seem like modern issues but not so. In the early twentieth century the celebrities were the Astors and their like. This is the story of the love between a recently divorced John Jacob Astor and a much younger woman. The love story is touching and genuine but is overshadowed by the intrusion of public scrutiny and opinion. I found myself wondering if their relationship would last if the impending Titanic voyage hadn’t intervened. There was much more to her life post Titanic and I would love to see a book that addresses those following years.

THE SECOND MRS. ASTOR
BY SHANA ABE

While this historical novel was at times heartbreaking and sad, it left me with more questions than answers. It starts out with Madeleine Astor in the Prologue as what I construed was a journal entry to her infant son she calls Jackey. Telling him that she named him after his father whose eyes and swirl of fair hair that he was born with resembles his father. I was a bit taken aback that she looks down on her four month old infant and writes that basically this beautiful, healthy son can not live up to his father's image. I understand that she was grieving but how can you say to your cherubic angel that he will not ever be the towering image of his father. I had two son's and I fell in love with them from the moment that I first laid eyes on them. I never compared my love for their father with either of them. Then again, I wasn't recently widowed like she was. I would have thought that her baby would have given her hope and that she was lucky to have been blessed with a part of her dearly departed larger than life husband who was John Jacob Astor IV.

I thought that it was sort of creepy how the author sets the scene that John Jacob Astor IV noticed Madeleine Force when she was only thirteen years old with his mother in Newport Beach, Rhode Island. His mother Caroline Astor gave Ava Vanderbilt so much trouble because the Vanderbilt's were known as newly rich and weren't considered old money. Caroline Astor would have never approved of Madeleine who was just three year's later seventeen when she starts dating JJAIV. There was a 29 year age difference and Madeleine wasn't in the same stratosphere economically speaking that Jack was raised to socialize with. I thought that Madeleine's parents were loving but I don't think too many father's of seventeen year old daughter's would approve of a forty-six year old man courting their youngest daughter. Unless Madeleine's parents were smitten with John Jacob Astor's money. However, in this writing her parents never seemed to mind or be concerned???

Not only were there three decades of age difference but he had a son named Vincent that was Madeleine's age from his first marriage who lived with him. He was divorced and it was stipulated that he could never remarry while his first wife was alive. Somehow Madeleine must have been more mature for her age or maybe it was different back then. If these details weren't facts I would have a very hard time believing that in fact these two were passionately in love and were married four months after they got engaged. Somehow they got around the clause that he couldn't remarry.

I gave this four stars because Shana Abe fills in the blanks and I was convinced that the love that these two shared seemed real and deep. I unlike most of the other reviewer's was unaware that Jack died on their honeymoon on their voyage home on the Titanic. I had a lump in my stomach and felt like crying when Jack put Madeleine in life boat four and him and their loyal dog Kitty perished. It takes some pretty incredible writing and talent to recreate such a touching love story considering my preconceived disbelief that I mentioned earlier in this review. The research was taken from newspaper articles mostly but despite my misgivings I was drawn into this story and I would like to know more about what happened to Madeleine Astor and her son after the tragic loss of her husband. I thought that the writing was wordy at times but I am grateful for the opportunity to have learned about this tragic story.

Publication Date: August 31, 2021

Thank you to Net Galley, Shana Abe and Kensington Books for generously providing me with my ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

#TheSecondMrsAstor #ShanaAbe #KensingtonBooks #NetGalley

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC to review!
Rating (on a scale of 1 to 5, 5 being excellent)
Quality of writing: 5
Pace: 3
Plot development: 4
Characters: 4
Enjoyability: 4
Ease of Reading: 4

Overall rating: 4 out of 5

Historical fiction based on the real Mrs. Astor. Well written, descriptive, and kept my attention. A great read for someone who likes reading fictioin about that time period. (I can also see it being a good read for a book club).

The Second Mrs. Astor is one of the most morose books I've ever read. In spite of some happy moments (few and far between), the overarching part plot of the novel is Jack Astor's death. Everything leads up to his death, everything revolves around his death, everything points to his death and everything is consumed by his death.

There is one thing that made me smile while reading this book and that is that Jack named his dog, "Kitty." I have always said I wanted a big dog to name Kitty just to scare away door-to-door sales.

While the book is historically accurate to the characters and events, it makes for depressing reading. Shana Abe has done well with her research into the people and times. She switches back and forth between first person and third person narration, which can be confusing at times, if the reader doesn't catch who is speaking at the time. Madeleine Force Astor is telling her baby son about his father who died before he was born, but she also tells about their courtship, her lack of acceptance with the Society, the few women who befriended her, and the horrible Titanic shipwreck.

The writing is dark and far too cumbersome to my tastes. A Two Star book.

Kensington Books and NetGalley.com provided the copy I read for this review. All opinions expressed are solely my own.

Book Review for The Second Mrs. Astor
Full feature for this title will be posted at: @cattleboobooks on Instagram!

Ms Edith Wharton would have probably approved of Ms Shana Abe's magnificent novel centred around the second marriage of the powerful but recently divorced New York billionaire John Astor IV and the supercilious and downright obnoxious attitudes of the city's upper crust towards his younger bride, the socialite Madeleine Talmage Force. A haunting tale about a short but frowned upon courtship, and a love match that was unfortunately and prematurely cut short by the Titanic's tragedy on April 15, 1912. It is also a captivating but merciless tapestry of the famous knickerbrocker aristocracy on the eve of WWI and a ferocious portrait of the press and its ruthless and sleazy behavior at the time. To be quite honest I wouldn't usually read this kind of novels but I took a chance and I was simply hooked from the start. Beautifully written and so achingly sad, this fictional journey based on a true story should definitely linger on some readers' mind well after its last page. A incredible treat to be enjoyed without moderation and a box of Kleenex somewhere around...😉👍

Many thanks to Netgalley and Kensington Books for giving me the opportunity to read this wonderful novel prior to its release date

I read this in the hotel at night when I was on a recent road trip, looking forward during the day to this book at night. I absolutely love old glamour and stories that take place in New York City in the early and mid-1900s.

The Second Mrs. Astor by Shana Abe takes us back to the early 1900s and introduces us to divorced New York billionaire John Astor IV, and his young bride (29 years younger!) Madeleine Talmage Force. What a scandal!

Here’s the synopsis:

Madeleine Talmage Force is just seventeen when she attracts the attention of John Jacob “Jack” Astor. Madeleine is beautiful, intelligent, and solidly upper-class, but the Astors are in a league apart. Jack’s mother was the Mrs. Astor, American royalty and New York’s most formidable socialite. Jack is dashing and industrious—a hero of the Spanish-American war, an inventor, and a canny businessman. Despite their twenty-nine-year age difference and the scandal of Jack’s recent divorce, Madeleine falls headlong into love—and becomes the press’s favorite target.

On their extended honeymoon in Egypt, the newlyweds finally find a measure of peace away from photographers and journalists. Madeleine feels truly alive for the first time—and is happily pregnant. The couple plans to return home in the spring of 1912, aboard an opulent new ocean liner. When the ship hits an iceberg close to midnight on April 14th, there is no immediate panic. The swift, state-of-the-art RMS Titanic seems unsinkable. As Jack helps Madeleine into a lifeboat, he assures her that he’ll see her soon in New York…

Four months later, at the Astors’ Fifth Avenue mansion, a widowed Madeleine gives birth to their son. In the wake of the disaster, the press has elevated her to the status of virtuous, tragic heroine. But Madeleine’s most important decision still lies ahead: whether to accept the role assigned to her or carve out her own remarkable path…



Another wonderful historical fiction novel that fans of historical fiction will want to read immediately! The Second Mrs. Astor will be published on August 31, be sure to pre-order now.

As a huge historical fiction fan, I really enjoyed this story. The historical aspect of this book was compelling; the plot was well structured, the writing was strong, and I really enjoyed the character development of the story. DEfinitely worth picking this one up if the subject interested you.

Very well written book. I love historical fiction, and learning about people and events in history through the creative tellings of authors.

The Second Mrs. Astor follows the love story of John Jacob Astor and Madeleine Force. Although their love and marriage was a short one, it was strong and full of passion. This book was written from Madeleine's pov as a journal to her son. It followed their love story from start, to tragic end aboard the Titanic.

Before reading this, I had no idea who Jack or Madeleine Astor were, and even decided to watch the scene from Titanic where they were mentioned. Other characters aboard the ship came into the picture as well, and it brought the story to life. There are many Titanic stories out there, but this one focuses on their love and relationship before the Titanic

Excellent!! The Second Mrs. Astor by Shana Abe is all I had hoped for. Well researched, beautifully written, informative and interesting. Loved every page.

She was 17 years old, he was 46 years when they met. She spent summers at her family's cottage in Bar Harbor, Maine, he spent summers in Newport, Rhode Island and often times Bar Harbor. However, their social life was distant from one another. He was John Jacob Astor, the richest man at the time (1910) and she was Madeline Force, her family would be considered "comfortable" yet certainly did not qualify to be among the "400" level of society.

Recently divorced and having a son the same age as Madeline, he was not searching for a new love, or for that matter marriage. That summer of 1910 was a turning point in both their lives. Having seen her in a play one evening, I think you could say he was "mesmerized." As was the ritual among the wealthy in 1910, he started sending her flowers...sending them daily as each bouquet of flowers stood for something in their ongoing relationship. He fascinated her, yet as a teenager on the cusp of womanhood, she fantasized, she dreamt of him until such time she fell completely in love with him and he with her. The conventions at that time made for a very scandalous courtship.

Married in 1911 when Madeline turned 18, she had much to learn. How to live in a mansion, how to handle the press who were at her door 24/7, but most of all how to be the wife of a man not only that much older than her, but so very wealthy. Shunned by the society around them, they decided to go with their friend Margret Brown on a trip to both France and Egypt. Madeline was 5 months pregnant when the couple decided to return home to Manhattan. Fate intervened, as they stepped onto the Titanic in 1912...a ship that was never supposed to sink!! Madeline survived, but John Jacob Astor went down with the ship. She was young and had her whole life a head of her. As a survivor and a young mother their son being born 4 months later, this story, as tragic as it is, gives us a glimpse of her life as a survivor.

The disaster of the Titanic left many lives shattered. None more so than Madeline Astor, a widow at the age of 18, a young mother at the age of 19. She lived in a mansion, alone with servants. She survived by sheer willingness and strength, still wounded by the society that she married into, still hunted by the press.

This book was well researched and well written, devoured by me in a little less than 2 days. It is amazing to read about the life and times of these people, and while we mostly know the history of the Titanic, it still draws us close to its tragedy, its mystery...rich or poor disaster such as this strikes at every level of society and what is left are the stories of those that survived.

My thanks to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I’ve been looking forward to this book since I first heard about it a few months ago. I’ve always been interested the Edwardian/Gilded Age era and so I’ve learned a lot of the Titanic over the years. So kudos to Shana Abe for doing her research and writing a pretty accurate account of some of the less well known details ( like how lifeboat 4 really did rescue survivors from the water).

Madeleine Astor has always been an interesting figure to me, how she grew up on the fringe of The 400 but yet ended up being married to John Jacob Astor. I thought she was a sympathetic character and her story came across as realistic, with the good and the bad that came with courtship and marriage to JJA. I enjoyed seeing the Astor’s friendship with Margaret Brown in this book too.

I liked the format of this book, in the form of a letter to her son starting off key parts of Madeleine’s story. I thought the book ended at a good place, especially since Madeleine’s story after Titanic is not a particularly happy one.

After reading and enjoying this one, I’m trying to figure out why I’ve never read Shana Abe’s Drakon series and I’m off to read that now!

Thanks to Netgalley for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.