I’ve read a few historical fictions involving Lincoln. Despite that I was interested in this book as it gives a new angle of seeing Lincoln family. It’s through the eyes of a young émigré, who with her family, was forced to leave Madeira, Portugal.

1851, Springfield, IL. Fourteen-year-old Ana with her family had to flee their island due to the religious intolerance and hardship they experienced there. In this new land, they quickly saw that with hard work they could achieve a decent living, not possible in Madeira.

Ana gets hired as help to clean and help with little Lincoln boys. She witnesses the rise of Abraham Lincoln to presidency, and his fight for equality.

With her African American friend Cal, Ana witnesses the underground railroad in Springfield. It’s a horrifying experience to leave the abuse of her island, only to witness how her adopted country is torn by slavery.

The narration is through three characters: Ana, Spencer Donnegan, a free black man, minister and barber. With his brother William, they help runaway slaves through the Underground Railroad. And Mary Todd Lincoln.

The story is steeped in historical facts, many I wasn’t familiar with. It was interesting to learn the backstory of Madeira Island and why people were fleeing it, and the little-known Springfield race riot of 1908.

Some of the storytelling is through telling, which I wished was through characters actually experiencing what was being told. We learn a lot of history and what was happening, but we don’t experience much of characters experiencing their stories.

Thanks @netgalley for the Advanced Reader Copy! This is a history of Abraham Lincoln and his family, told from the perspective of Ana, who works in his home. Ana's family has fled bad conditions in Portugal, and if figuring out life in the United States. it is a very volatile time politically, and obviously Lincoln and his family are right in the middle of it. There is a lot of coverage of the racism that was rampant even in Illinois at this time, showing it wasn't only the south. You learn about Lincoln and his family, especially Mary Todd Lincoln, and the imagined marital relationship. I enjoyed this historical fiction, and the different perspective. #thehouseoflincoln #nancyhoran #historicalfiction #abrahamlincoln #netgalley #bookstagram #booklover #reader #bookblog #lovetoread #fictionreader #bookreview #bookrecommendation #readersofinstagram #bookloversofinstagram #takeapagefrommybook #readallthebooks #booksbooksbooks

Good read, but maybe a bit too much of the political stuff for me. It is very evident author did an amazing amount of research for this book.

Thank you to #Sourcebooks and #NetGalley for providing this #ARC Advance Reading Copy. Expected publication date is June 6, 2023.

THE HOUSE OF LINCOLN is an engrossing historical fiction novel that delves into the complex and tumultuous life of Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States. The novel follows Lincoln's life from his humble beginnings in rural Kentucky to his rise to prominence as a politician and leader during the American Civil War. The book explores both his triumphs and struggles as he navigates the challenges of his time.

A very interesting book in which we learn about Abraham and Mary Todd Lincoln through the eyes of a young immigrant girl.
Through this story told by Ana, over the course of her life, we learn things about the Lincolns and various townspeople, how it was to live through this time of the Civil War,
the effects of the war, the lives lost and the lives forever changed.
I thoroughly enjoyed it and would highly recommend it. Happy reading!

Absolutely fascinating, extremely compelling, and destined to be a classic of the genre. This isn't even a genre I tend towards, but I feel confident in saying we'll be returning over and over again to this book.

Really great portrayal of Lincoln and Mary Todd. First book I've read by Horan and I interested in going back and reading her earlier books. Her writing really gave you a good feel for the evolution of Lincoln's thinking and was a great portrayal of life in Springfield. Great read.

11-year-old Ana Ferreira and her family arrived in Springfield, IL in 1851 from Portugal with the same dreams of most immigrants to live free and happy lives. In The House of Lincoln, author Nancy Horan uses Ana to frame the pivotal years of U.S. history surrounding the Civil War. Following Ana and her relationships throughout her life enables Horan to explore many themes and events including racism, war, and reconstruction. The narrative also includes sections focused on Mary Todd Lincoln who Ana works for, and a black family Ana grew up with who were active in the underground railroad. Readers who enjoy historical fiction will find The House of Lincoln an engaging story about the Civil War period with interesting details about the Lincolns and Springfield.

I am somewhat conflicted with this story. While I enjoyed getting to “know” Abraham and Mary Lincoln as real persons through their interactions with Ana and the other characters, the last twenty percent or so of the book was largely unnecessary. After the death of Lincoln the novel could have been wrapped up in three to five more chapters. Instead it dragged on for about fifteen more. And most of those last fifteen felt more like an info dump and did not advance the story at all. While I think the aftermath of emancipation and the Springfield riots are important topics to learn about, I feel this part would have been much better handled in an author note at the end. Or perhaps as a series of short newspaper articles. As presented it felt didactic and like I was being preached at with an agenda to blame everything on white supremacy. While it is true that many, particularly Southern Democrats did everything in their power to keep the “Negro” race down, this was not a universal phenomenon. Plenty of whites supported emancipation. And to label all whites as supremacists is just as racist as labeling all persons of color as inferior. Because of how the last 20% dragged on, I am giving this story four stars out of five. Thanks to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for giving me an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

While not OMG amazing piece of historical fiction, I truly have not experienced much in this time period, so it's absolutely a priority purchase for libraries.

I chose this book due to interest in Abraham Lincoln since I was a child, I know this is historical fiction but some truths are within.

I wasn't sure at the beginning as it didn't involve Lincoln but all came to be further into the story. The story is set in Springfield, IL where we meet Anna, whose story we follow throughout. And, we meet her childhood friend Cal. They are learning to navigate life with Cal being at the disadvantage due to being black. They witness underground railroad activities, men hunting slaves and the ugly side of that life. It is a lot to take in but well told and terrifying in parts.

As Anna gets older, she begins working for Mary Lincoln and gets to know all her family. Lincoln comes across well while with Mary, we begin to understand her struggles. Her life was not easy and she paid for that later in life.

Part of the story does follow the Lincolns to the White House and the turmoil of war. The war stories are told but not too many or in great depth. After his death, the story goes back to Springfield and all the changes there with slavery, freedom and those who do not accept it.

An interesting and serious read worth reading.

My thanks to Net Galley and Source Books for allowing me to review this arc.

Very interesting insight into Lincolns life told from the perspective of a servant that came to work for the Lincolns at 14. Terrific research about the historical content.

Book was ok. Sort of dragged for me but not terrible.

This was such a powerful book. Abraham Lincoln lurks at the periphery of this novel, and Mary Todd Lincoln plays a supporting role. But this book is about race and what is right vs what is wrong. The novel explores the role skin color plays among when the free people in Springfield, IL. Ana and Cal are two characters who are best friends as children but later live lives that are very separate and different but whose paths periodically cross. Surrounding these two girls/women are a community of Portuguese immigrants, white employees, freed blacks, the Underground Railroad, and deeply held secrets of monumental importance. The book spans over 50 years of American history whole following Ana throughout her life. I think this book is one most people should read.

I thought this was a historical fiction book but it was too dry and i couldnt get into the story. Sadly i couldnt finish this book.

How many different ways can we examine the life of one of America's most remarkable men? Well....The House of Lincoln has given us a new one.

Told from the perspective of a young Ana, we are given a new story about Abe and Mary. It's a wonderfully written historical fiction, so well written that you almost hope it's true history. While this book does incorporate actual events (the Springfield Race Riot, the Underground Railroad), it will provide new insight into a complicated man and woman.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Thank you to Net Galley for providing me with this Advanced Copy.
I love reading about Lincoln. This story is told from the point of view of a young immigrant girl who is Portuguese. She lives in Springfield, Illinois, and works in the Lincoln home there. The story also involves some free blacks who are working for emancipation. I enjoyed this book a great deal and want to get a copy for my Lincoln collection.

In The House of Lincoln, Nancy Horan gives us a different viewpoint of what went on inside of Lincoln’s family. Ana, a recent immigrant from Portugal, saw the working of the Underground Railroad. She was educated with the help of an older widow. Then she was hired to help Mary Todd Lincoln watch her sons and help host political parties. She was there to see the evolution of Abe Lincoln’s thoughts on slavery.

This is also the story of Springfield, Illinois, home to Lincoln. People’s feelings about Lincoln and his policies varied depending upon the current political climate. Race issues were not solved by the civil war. They came to a head during the race riots of 1908. Ana was there to witness it all.

Many of the feelings, explored in the book, about race are still alive today. This book will cause one to think. It is worth reading. I was able to read an ARC on #NetGalley.

The foundational story of Nancy Horan’s <i>The House of Lincoln</i> is the conversion of Madeirans to Presbyterianism, then their persecution, and then their flight initially to Trinidad and ultimately to the unlikely home of Springfield, Illinois. Horan builds her novel around the struggles and triumphs of the Ferreiras and especially of Ana, their middle child, as the family accustoms itself, with mixed success, to life in mid-nineteenth century Springfield. Ana’s recognized as an especially clever and responsible girl, finds a patron for her education, and works weekends in Abraham and Mary Lincoln’s home.

Horan structures Ana’s story around the Lincoln homestead and Mr. Lincoln’s growing political prominence and eventual election to the presidency, the resulting Civil War, emancipation struggles, and the Ferrieras’ varying paths to assimilation into Springfield society and culture. There’s romance, there’s heartbreak, there’s disappointment, and there’s a family finding its way to stability.

Blink once when reading <i>The House of Lincoln</i> and a reader might only see a saccharine tale of immigrant success. Blink twice and a reader might find that Nancy Horan confronts the sadness, the loss, and the disappointments inherent in Ana’s life and the lives of her family. Death is death, even if for a worthy cause like the Civil War. Loss is loss, even if the Madeira left behind was a Madeira eager to rid itself of Presbyterians. One of the small rewards of <i>The House of Lincoln</i> is Horan’s portrayal of the limits of Ana’s childhood friendship with Cal, an African American girl, and Ana’s ongoing guilt and confusion about Cal’s rejection of her.

Nancy Horan suffuses <i>The House of Lincoln</i> with warmth and humanity. Even characters who make cameo appearances are well drawn. President Lincoln’s path to the presidency and his fraught family life may be well tread ground, but Horan gives us a new and affecting frame through which to view it.

I would like to thank NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for providing me with an Advanced Readers Copy.

Thanks to Netgalley for a digital advanced reader copy of The House of Lincoln. Being a Kentucky girl, historical novels regarding Abraham Lincoln is something that I enjoy being able to read. Told through the eyes of Ana Ferreira from the time she arrives in Springfield from Madeira, as a bright young girl of 14. Young Ana goes to work for the Lincolns and this story tells of major events in our Nations history and what is going on in and around the household of the Lincolns and part of their innermost thoughts. Interestingly enough, I find that the Lincoln family is not the centerpiece of this book. This book will leave you wanting to learn more about significant events that happened during Lincoln's Presidency. It is a well researched and beautifully written novel that I would highly recommend to anyone who enjoys historical fiction.

The protagonist of The House of Lincoln is a young woman who works for Abraham and Mary Lincoln as the former rises through the political ranks. This novel tells two stories, the one of Abraham Lincoln's rise and his evolving views on slavery and the story of racism in Illinois in the late 1800s. The second story, is the more interesting and less well known and is the reason to pick up this novel.