I had a hard time getting through this story. I thought that the storyline was very intriguing and thought the characters were great in the beginning, but I felt like it started to drag on and it loses the reader pretty quickly. I did learn a lot about New Orleans history and that of Mardi Gras, so for that, I really enjoyed it.

Great book with a beautiful story. Love the way that the author weaves a compelling story and keeps you wanting more.

I love historical fiction, especially ones with mysteries tied into them. This book was a slower story but I enjoyed seeing New Orleans in a different time period.

An interesting story of two women, both abandoned (in different ways) by their husbands, who find each other, build a friendship, and create their own sort of family.. Not exactly the story I was expecting when I picked this one to read. But in the end it was a very emotionally touching book. That was well written.

The Seamstress of New Orleans is set against the backdrop of the first all-female Mardi Gras krewe at the turn-of-the-century. For those who don’t know what a krewe is (I had no clue), it is a private organization that stages events during Mardi Gras. Here, the event is the leap year ball of Les Mysterieuses, during which women could make advances toward men that would be taboo at other times.

The novel brings together two women from unique backgrounds. Upon the sudden disappearance of her husband, pregnant Alice Butterworth leaves Chicago for the more hospitable climes of Louisiana to make a living by providing sewing lessons at an orphanage. At the other end of the economic scale is Constance Halstead, a young widow who carries a heavy burden. Her husband, Benton, whose death remains a mystery, was deep in debt to the Black Hand, the vicious gangsters who controlled New Orleans’ notorious Storyville district.

The two become acquainted at the orphanage where Constance does charity work. In exchange for room and board, Alice sews Constance a gown for the ball. As a friendship blossoms between the women, a secret emerges that will upend their lives.

While some of the history was interesting, I didn’t care for the book at all. I’m tiring of books about deep dark family secrets; it is so overdone. The Seamstress of New Orleans had an amazing twist at the end, but overall the book wasn’t my thing. A word to audiobook lovers. The audiobook’s narrator was abysmal, so stick with the book. 3 stars.


** Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a review copy of this book. The opinions are my own.

Mardi Gras, New Orleans, 1900, is the sultry setting for Diane C. McPhail’s novel, The Seamstress of New Orleans. Howard, a Chicago cotton broker has mysteriously disappeared, and Benton, a New Orleans gambler has fallen to his death from a train trestle. The deaths of these two men and their widowed wives, Alice, and Constance, are intertwined like the moss hanging from the sprawling oak trees, and as murky as the Mississippi River delta. Unraveling the details of these mysteries is complicated by the social demands and politicizing of Mardi Gras balls and accounts of clandestine visits to Storyville, notorious for prostitution and crime. McPhail bases her mystery around the first all-female Mardi Gras Krewe and the gangsters known as the Black Hand. The Mardi Gras revelers and the gangsters are participants in the grand affair of death and disappearance that only Alice and Constance can unmask. A Mardi Gras ball gown is slowly pieced together and as it nears completion, symbolizes the growing independence of Alice and Constance. Bonds of friendship and secrets of the heart are tested as the Mardi Gras festivities begin. This is a delectable, intriguing jaunt behind the beaded curtains and the iron gates of the famous New Orleans Garden District. For a turn of the century peek at the “Big Easy” read The Seamstress of New Orleans.

I am a member of the American Library Association Reading List Award Committee. This title was suggested for the 2023 list. It was not nominated for the award. The complete list of winners and shortlisted titles is at <a href="https://rusaupdate.org/2023/01/2023-reading-list-announced-years-best-in-genre-fiction-for-adult-readers/">

New Orleans is such an interesting place for a story! It was unique and I loved it. I enjoy historical fiction that takes place in places I don't know much about or times that I don't know much about. New Orleans is mysterious and was the perfect setting for this story.. Thanks NEtGalley for the ARC.

This one just never did catch me. There isn't a thing i could point to as wrong or even annoying, it simply didn't speak to me at all. I do think the various women, for all their cleverness, took a pinch too long to figure themselves out, there would have been an interesting tonal change if anyone had put things together a bit sooner.

Pretty disappointed by this one. I wanted more atmosphere especially with a NOLA setting. Plus, the author tried to cram a lot of things in here and at the end of the day it was just too much.

This book is great! Would definitely recommend. Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I very much enjoyed this one. I really liked the historical New Orleans setting in the late 1800s/early 1900s. The link between Alice and Constance was something that I did not see coming either. I expected the book to be more about the struggles of working as a seamstress in the industry rather than the disappearance of the man that links Alice and Constance together. I would recommend this one to lovers of historical fiction and mysteries.

I want tot hank Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for providing me an e-arc of this book, I ended up listening to this book as n audiobook. This was an okay historical novel; I thought I would like it alot more than I did. I figured out what connected the two women pretty much right away. I did not feel that invested with the book nor with the characters. This book will not stick with me.

This book brings us to the 1900s where we meet two women, one widowed, the other her husband disappeared.. We follow them as they help each other heal and become friends. Neither of them know where they are to go from here. WIth the help of a high society woman, they design a dress from orecycled dresses. THis story shows the strength of women when they were not meant to be strong. It was a great read

I was intrigued by the synopsis, but unfortunately the book just didn't do it for me. I struggled to get through the chapters. The pace was very slow, the writing repetitive and the big mystery/twist was obvious from the beginning.

An engaging story about the resilience, fortitude, and grit of women.
Constance is a mother of two young girls living in New Orleans at the turn of the 20th century. While away on business, her husband is killed in a tragic accident aboard a train. Now left alone to carry the emotional and financial burden of the household, Constance is also confronted by her husband’s secret life and his adversary who has come to collect.
Alice is a young wife living in Chicago. She grew up on a farm in the Midwest, but moved to the big city at the insistence of her mother who dreamed of a better life for Alice. Soon she meets and marries a man and settles into a less than ideal situation as a homemaker. Alice’s husband travels often for work and when he fails to return from a recent business trip, Alice is left alone in an increasingly precarious financial situation as she has just discovered she is pregnant. After surviving as long as she can on her own with limited means, Alice decides to go in search of her husband and arrives in New Orleans where she believes his business to be headquartered.
Through a charity organization, Constance and Alice meet and Alice moves in to assist in creating a gown for Constance to wear at the upcoming Mardi Gras ball. The two women begin to form a friendship that grows into what can only be described as a sisterhood as they support each other through life’s challenges as well as blessings and as shared experiences bring them closer than they ever could have imagined.
The Seamstress of New Orleans is a compelling historical fiction novel with a little bit of mystery and suspense thrown in. It draws you in from the first page and keeps you hooked until the very end.

In 1900, the world is not an easy place for women. When Alice Butterworth's husband suddenly doesn't return to their home in Chicago, she starts struggling to make it on her own, while the rent is initially prepaid on their apartment. As winter hits, she knows Chicago is no place for a single pregnant woman to try and make it on her own. She leaves, at first in search of the mother-in-law she's never met.

Fate instead takes her clear down to New Orleans, where her sewing skills are in demand, and she's connected with another young assumed widow. But while Alice has only what she carries, Constance Halstead is relatively secure with her two young children, a trusted housekeeper, and trust money from her grandfather.

The women's connection, along with the housekeeper and a society matron with power and money to spare, was wonderful. Their relationships are beneficial to them all, and strengthen daily alongside the backdrop of a leap-year mardi gras ball exerting the growing power of women.

I enjoyed this historical fiction, set mostly in my favorite city, very much! The ending was especially charming and inspiring, and I'd love to see a follow-up. I gave this 4 out of 5 stars and would recommend it to those who like women's stories and historical fiction.

I was really looking forward to reading this. The cover is beautiful and the description sounded wonderful! The book was just okay for me. Constance Halstead is suspicious of her husband. She follows him in a train in disguise and watches him fall to his death. Alice Butterworth lives in Chicago with her husband. He disappears and she has to make it on her own. She travels down south and winds up meeting Constance. Their friendship is beautiful.
The backdrop of Marci Gras in New Orleans is amazing! As the two women get to know each other secrets are kept and revealed. I would have given this book five stars but I didn’t like how the story ended. The author did her research of the time period and I enjoyed learning about this part of history. I want to thank the author, Kensington Books and NetGalley for a complimentary copy of the book. The opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own. #TheSeamstressofNewOrleans #NetGalley.

Constance Halstead is suspicious of what her husband is up to. She’s about to have an unexpected train trip that will change her life forever. Constance just may become the woman she always thought to be. Alice Maguire Butterworth lives in Chicago with her husband. When he disappeared she’s determined to find out what happened? Alice finds her way to the south where she’ll become The Seamstress of New Orleans.

The Seamstress of New Orleans is the second book by author Diane McPhail. A story of two different women looking to the future that just may reveal their secrets. A common circumstance brings two women together while they get to know each other while getting ready for Mardi Gras in New Orleans. At the turn of the century where women are starting to show more independence. The Seamstress of New Orleans has danger, secrets and mystery that keeps the story heading toward the end. Fear is a big part of these women’s lives as they try to move on from their relationships that just might be connected to each other. These women will find out secrets about their husbands that just might make them family. Diane McPhail’s The Seamstress of New Orleans is a historical story around the festive Mardi Gras and how a group of women who take charge of the turn of the century as one woman comes out of her shell, and another becomes the talk of the town with her sewing skills. The second story by an upcoming author who puts historical details that just take the reader back in time. It was the first time I’ve read this author that I found interesting and engaging. Unfortunately, I figured out the secret between the two main characters early on in the story. It is well worth the read. I was a little disappointed that the dangerous situation seemed to not materialize itself like I thought it would. A good story to get into from a new author.

I was looking forward to reading about the history and setting of the Mardi Gras Carnival in New Orleans, and that was the best part of this book. The plot driving twist that was revealed towards the end was not a surprise, and I thought the coincidences that brought Constance and Alice together were contrived.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.