We’ve come a long way, baby! What a perfect line to describe The Colony Club by Shelley Noble. In 1902 Daisy Harriman is planning a trip from her Washington, DC home to New York for a few days of shopping. She is both surprised and angered when the Waldorf refuses to reserve a room for her because the hotel does not allow unaccompanied women. Daisy then decides that it is time for the ladies to have a “club” of their own. She enlisted the aid of her good friends, Elsie de Wolfe and Bessie Marbury, together with many high society ladies. There is also the story of Nora Bromly. Nora is helping to support her family after the death of her father and brother. She is also going to school to become architect. When she wins a major competition, her work comes to the attention of Sanford White, the best-known architect of the time. He gives Nora an opportunity to do some work at his firm, one of which is to help design the Colony Club. All of these ladies were ahead of their time, and they all contributed to the advance of women.

From this book, I was expecting more female friendship bonding, more murder mystery, and less misogynistic bullying. I usually love Shelley Noble’s books. This one isn’t for me. I’m sure others will enjoy it.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

If you're looking for a historical fiction that is female-character driven, this is for you. Set in the early 1900's in New York City, we follow three women in this fictionalized version of the founding of The Colony Club, the first private women's club. Daisy Harriman is the socialite who comes up with the idea and the execution. Elsie de Wolfe, an actress turned to one of the first woman interior decorator in the US. And Nora Bromley, a young architecture student who gets to assist on the design of the Colony Club's building. These women are all from different walks of life, but are thrown into each other's orbits as they work to make the club become a reality.
I really enjoyed this! Based on the real events surrounding the creation of the Colony Club, this story had me intrigued and invested all the way through. I will definitely be doing a deep dive into the real life characters, and will be reading more from this author. A must read for historical fiction fans!

When young Gilded Age society matron Daisy Harriman is refused a room at the Waldorf because they don’t cater to unaccompanied females, she takes matters into her own hands. She establishes the Colony Club, the first women’s club in Manhattan, where visiting women can stay overnight and dine with their friends; where they can discuss new ideas, take on social issues, and make their voices heard. She hires the most sought-after architect in New York, Stanford White, to design the clubhouse. As “the best dressed actress on the Rialto” Elsie de Wolfe has an eye for décor, but her career is stagnating. So when White asks her to design the clubhouse interiors, she jumps at the chance and the opportunity to add a woman’s touch. He promises to send her an assistant, a young woman he’s hired as a draftsman. Raised in the Lower East Side tenements, Nora Bromely is determined to become an architect in spite of hostility and sabotage from her male colleagues. She is disappointed and angry when White “foists” her off on this new women’s club project. But when White is murdered and the ensuing Trial of the Century discloses the architect’s scandalous personal life, fearful backers begin to withdraw their support. It’s questionable whether the club will survive long enough to open. Daisy, Elsie, and Nora have nothing in common but their determination to carry on. But to do so, they must overcome not only society’s mores but their own prejudices about women, wealth, and each other. Together they strive to transform Daisy’s dream of the Colony Club into a reality, a place that will nurture social justice and ensure the work of the women who earned the nickname “Mink Brigade” far into the future

I had never heard of the Colony Club prior to reading this book, and found this story fascinating. This came at a time when women had so little agency over their lives - they were finally able open bank accounts, but had a separate "women's" section, they weren't allowed to take a room at a hotel without a husband present, women weren't allowed to vote. When Daisy Harriman made the bold decision to start a women's club, so that they could be afforded some of the same basic rights as men, it created chaos. Pastors railed against it in their sermons, men forbade their wives from getting involved. However, Daisy & the rest of the women persevered, and even though it took years, they managed to get it done, and it was successful. Even though Nora's character was fictional, the other characters in the story were real. This book was empowering, and something that anyone with a love of historical fiction will want to put at the top of their TBR pile. You are going to love it!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

This was a pretty enjoyable book, however for whatever reason I did get bored in certain parts of the story. I think this book may be a good one to listen to the audiobook version of so the reader is completely immersed in the story. I will try the audio when the book is released. In the meantime, the story of the Colony Club was one I was excited to read because I had never heard of it, and I love reading historical fiction. I just found my mind wandering while reading though. I don't believe the book was awful in any means though.

Many thanks again to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to review this book.

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In turn of the 20th century New York City, Daisy Harriman is refused a room at the Waldorf because she is without a male chaperone which makes her realize that there is a need for a club for women (there are many for men). Daisy brings in her other wealthy female friends (like Alva Vanderbilt) and the Colony Club is born. The Colony Club will be a place where a (wealthy) woman can meet and discuss the social issues of the day, use the gym and pool, read a book or play cards - amazingly (or not) Daisy is met with derision by the men of the era who do not understand why women would want a place outside of their home to congregate. Stanford White, the most prominent architect in NYC at the time, is the only architect they want for the job and he allows Nora Bromley, a young architectural student from the lower east side to help him with the work, including helping with the decorating. Nora, as one of the only female architects has to deal with the hostility of the male architects in the office and is insulted that she has to work on the female club. This historical novel looks at the building of the Colony Club from these multiple lenses.

This was a great novel steeped in NYC history. The story takes place at the end of the gilded age of NYC, tells about the scandal Stanford White and delves into the sexism of the age and how it affected both the very wealthy and the lower class. I enjoyed this one so much, partially because I love historical NYC novels but also because I thought the author did a great a job telling the story of the different women of the age. I’ve had her novel The Tiffany Girls on my TBR for a while but it will be put higher up now.

4.25 stars

I adore historical fiction, and this book was fantastic. It tells the story of the Colony Club's creation, the first women's club in New York City, and what strong women in 1905 can accomplish when standing together. The narrative is presented from the viewpoint of a fictional character, Nora Bromley, a newly minted female architect.

I loved this book. I was captivated by Nora’s story and the creation of the club. It’s a compelling tale and great historical fiction! I highly recommend it.

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for the early read in exchange for a fair review.

During the Gilded Age, a society woman is refused a hotel room because she is alone, so she decides to open a woman's club and hires an architect to design and build it. Similar to men's clubs, this woman's club will have members who pay to stay there or visit there.

I love historical fiction and this book made me think a bit of the fabulous show The Gilded Age. The setting was well crafted and the characters intriguing. It did move a bit slowly, but overall, an enjoyable read!

I’m always on the lookout for more books set in the Gilded Age and thereabouts, and I’ve seen Shelley Noble recommended a few times before, so I was excited to try The Colony Club. The concept intrigued me, particularly the establishment of the first women’s social club. And Noble did her research into the era, capturing how the Colony Club helped open women up to a world beyond the domestic sphere which had previously been considered their primary (sometimes only) domain.
Various historical people populate the pages, and while I didn’t know a ton about them prior to reading the book, Noble does a solid job bringing them to like, from Florence “Daisy” Harriman to Elsie de Wolfe to , and more, not to mention other major figures of the Gilded Age, like JP Morgan. But she also weaves in some of her own fictional characters, particularly Nora Bromley, who fits right in among the other brilliant women.
I enjoyed the narrative overall, covering the establishment of the club and some of their early achievements, and it was fairly engaging overall. But my one issue comes from the timeline and how it impacts pacing. On the one hand, there’s a framing narrative set in 1963, largely following older Daisy telling the story, and I found the times that it would dart back to this framing narrative rather jarring. And as is the case with historical fiction that covers several years, the story felt rather disorienting, with all the skipping around, instead of feeling more fluid and like a more cohesive narrative.
But in spite of these subjective issues, I mostly enjoyed this book, and am interested in reading more from Shelley Noble in the future. I’d recommend this to readers looking for women-centric historical fiction.

Super fun & interesting to read. I even looked up the building (which is still there!) on Google Maps. The POV shifts between people rather bluntly and somewhat confusingly... perhaps a little tilde between them? My students (all young men) would not be interested, but it could be a feminist manifesto!

In the very early part of the 20th century a woman by the name of Daisy had the idea for a womens club. She gathered a group of her friends and fellow socialites and The Colony Club was born.

I chose this book because I liked the cover and love reading about the Gilded Age in America. The story was very interesting and well told. While I thought the book would be about Daisy and her socialite friends it was very heavy on Nora, a young woman who wants to be an architect. I did enjoy Nora's story. I did think at times the story got bogged down a bit with some repetitive details.

I found all of the descriptions of New York and the club well written and I could easily picture the scenes. I thought it was extremely easy to feel part of the story and really feel what Nora was experiencing and also feel the excitement of The Colony Club and everything it stood for.

Fans of historical fiction are sure to enjoy this book. As will fans of New York, architecture, and The Gilded Age. A well written story with lots of great detail.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest opinion which I have given.

This is the type of book that I love to read: historical fiction based on the lives of trail blazing women. And then throw in a murder, and I’m sold! This novel features 2 real life figures, society matron Daisy Harriman and glamorous actress Elsie de Wolfe, and 1 fictitious female architect, Nora Bromley, who come together to design and build the first women’s club in New York City during the Gilded Age. The women have to fight misogyny and overcome the scandal resulting from the murder of the primary architect on the project, Stanford White. l enjoy reading about high society during the Gilded Age, and this novel was clearly well researched. Unfortunately it didn’t grab my attention enough that I felt unable to put it down. I think I was anticipating more focus on the murder and subsequent trial, and not the day to day life of the 3 women during construction. 3.5/5⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for an advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to read and review this ARC.

I was originally interested in this story after reading another book about Florence "Daisy" Harriman called The Last Light Over Oslo, which took place years after this historical fiction novel. In The Colony Club we meet Daisy as a young society mother in the early 1900s eager to make positive changes in the social and health spheres of women and children. Along with Daisy, we follow the POV of Nora, a young (fictional) wannabe architect who must deal with a tough family situation, money woes, and misogyny in the workplace; and Elsie de Wolfe, a famous actress of time who becomes a celebrated interior designer. All three women's paths cross in the creation of The Colony Club, the first of it's kind social club in NYC.

I really enjoyed Nora's story and it seemed like most of the book focused on her. Daisy and Elsie's characters were pretty one-dimensional and didn't really add much to the story. The description of the book indicates that the murder of the Colony's Club main architect, Stanford White, will be a bigger catalyst in how these women come together but it only happens about 70% of the way through the novel.

I liked learning about the fight for the existence of the Colony Club and learning more about how buildings are designed. Would have loved some images of the real people and places but I guess that's why Google exists.

Three stars.

I received a free e-arc of this book through Netgalley.
I really enjoyed this fast-paced look at some of the first women in interior design and architecture in the United States. It kept my attention. I really liked Nora and George. The idea that men could have men's clubs all over, but that women "belonged in the home" is so aggravating to read so I'm sure it was a million times worse to live through. I'm thankful for these pioneers of women's rights.

After she can't get a room at the Waldof because she's a single female, Daisy Hariman, decides to build a women's club so they'll have a place to gather and stay while in the city.

Set in the Gilded Age, high society Daisy, architect Stanford, actress turned interior designer Elsie, and Nora - a low society new graduate determined to become an architect are put together trying to pull this club together. Nora felt she was being demoted to working on a women's club, until she sees it coming together. All the characters are entertaining and the storyline moves fast - it's a really interesting book!

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for a temporary, digital ARC in return for my review.

Nora Bromley is studying architecture when she wins first prize in a school competition, catching the eye of Daisy Harriman, a New York socialite who is in a contest of her own, to build an exclusive club for women where members would have a place to exchange opinions, research issues, stay physically fit and promote important social causes. With Stanford White as chief architect and Elsie de Wolfe as interior decorator, the Colony Club will be an aesthetic meeting place. When Nora is taken on as an intern in White’s firm, there is much unrest and abuse. As she proves herself worthy and talented, her projects increase; unfortunately, when she is appointed as assistant to the interior decorator, she believes her architectural career is challenged. Even worse, in June of 1906 when White is murdered by Harry Thaw, her reputation is threatened. Shelley Noble’s storyline is based on a 1963 interview of Daisy whose life would reflect what the Club would come to represent: women’s activism and New York City history.

Thank you to Net Galley and Harper Collins Publishing for an early copy of The Colony Club by Shelley Noble

Author Shelley Noble has created a detailed and believable narrative focusing on the life of Florence Jaffray "Daisy" Harriman who along with other prominent women in early 20th century New York worked tirelessly to establish a place where they could socialize, hold meetings, dine, exercise and avoid a hotel when in need of accommodations. The Colony Club was the dream they envisioned an d realized, although not without hardship and unfair press.

Alongside Harriman's story (her husband, Bertie, was diplomat Averell Harriman's cousin) is the compelling portrait of a young woman, Nora Brimley, who dreams of becoming an architect in a world where women are expected to stay home and care for home and family. When Nora wins first prize in an architectural contest, she realizes the beginnings of a career in her chosen field. Being accepted in a labyrinth of men tests Nora's resolve at every turn. While Brimley harbors feelings of inadequacy, it is her persistence in making the Colony Club a success that sees her through.

When the murder of a Nora's boss along with the mistaken belief that Brimley is somehow involved becomes the top news story in New York City, the plot takes some dramatic turns that lead to triumphs for the women who never gave up and were armed to continue to fight for child labor laws, women's suffrage and better hospitals for tuberculosis patients. What a debt of gratitude we all owe these courageous women!

I don't know where to start - this is a phenomenal book that will be extremely difficult to set down! The publisher's description notes "a thrilling historical novel about the inception of the Colony Club." It was on that basis I selected this novel. While the details of the Colony Club were painstakingly researched, I was entranced with the character development, especially Nora. Nora has worked hard to achieve her skills as an architect - in a male dominated field. She persists despite her male colleagues. Ms. Noble wraps character development around several characters including society matron Daisy Harriman and others. While Daisy is wealthy, she wants a club that "will nurture social justice." The end of the book comes all too quick and will leave you wanting more - as it did me!

The Colony Club by Shelley Noble

I received a digital copy of this book from NetGalley for review. My opinions are my own.

4/5 stars

I really liked this book as it’s a topic I knew little about - women in architecture in the early 1900s. I do think that it speaks to women in the working field in general, and what they had to do to get into male-driven fields.

This book intertwines two stories together - the women of the Colony Club, working to be taken seriously and advocating for social issues, and Nora, a brand new architect hired by Stanford White’s firm. The stories eventually overlap.

My favorite character in this book is Nora - I was so invested in her story.