THE SECRET LIFE OF VIOLET GRANT

Manhattan, 1964. Vivian Schuyler, newly graduated from Bryn Mawr College, has recently defied the privilege of her storied old Fifth Avenue family to do the unthinkable for a budding Kennedy-era socialite: break into the Madison Avenue world of razor-stylish Metropolitan magazine. But when she receives a bulky overseas parcel in the mail, the unexpected contents draw her inexorably back into her family’s past, and the hushed-over crime passionnel of an aunt she never knew, whose existence has been wiped from the record of history.

Berlin, 1914. Violet Schuyler Grant endures her marriage to the philandering and decades-older scientist Dr. Walter Grant for one reason: for all his faults, he provides the necessary support to her liminal position as a young American female physicist in prewar Germany. The arrival of Dr. Grant’s magnetic former student at the beginning of Europe’s fateful summer interrupts this delicate détente. Lionel Richardson, a captain in the British Army, challenges Violet to escape her husband’s perverse hold, and as the world edges into war and Lionel’s shocking true motives become evident, Violet is tempted to take the ultimate step to set herself free and seek a life of her own conviction with a man whose cause is as audacious as her own.

As the iridescent and fractured Vivian digs deeper into her aunt’s past and the mystery of her ultimate fate, Violet’s story of determination and desire unfolds, shedding light on the darkness of her years abroad . . . and teaching Vivian to reach forward with grace for the ambitious future––and the love––she wants most.

My Review

Ok, so I might have found a new era that I love. The 60s. I have never read anything by this author but OMG I just fell in love with this book. Vivian and Violet may come from different eras but they are both strong women. However I want to call on Vivian as she had tons of spunk. She is a modern woman. A good role model. Instantly I felt a connection with her. Also there is the on again off again relationship between her and the sexy, charming Dr. Paul. They did share something. The more familiar I became with Violet, the more I liked her as well. She was not a quitter either. In fact, the more someone tried to put her in her place, the stronger she grew. A lovely story in a wonderful time era. I got lost in this story that at 448 pages this book did not seem that long but a quick read.