The Lost Summers of Newport: A Novel

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THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

"An engrossing and sumptuous tale, this novel is a fantastic spring read." Good Morning America

From the New York Times bestselling team of Beatriz Williams, Lauren Willig, and Karen Whitea novel of money and secrets set among the famous summer mansions of Newport, Rhode Island, spanning over a century from the Gilded Age to the present day.

Three stories elegantly intertwine in this clever and stylish tale of murder and family lies...This crackerjack novel offers three mysteries for the price of one. Publishers Weekly (starred review)

2019: Andie Figuero has just landed her dream job as a producer of Mansion Makeover, a popular reality show about restoring Americas most lavish historic houses. Andie has high hopes for her latest project: the once glorious but gently crumbling Sprague Hall in Newport, Rhode Island, summer resort of Americas gilded classfamous for the lavish summer cottages of Vanderbilts and Belmonts. But Andie runs into trouble: the reclusive heiress who still lives in the mansion, Lucia Lucky Sprague, will only allow the show to go forward on two conditions: One, nobody speaks to her. Two, nobody touches the mansions ruined boathouse.

1899: Ellen Daniels has been hired to give singing lessons to Miss Maybelle Sprague, a naive young Colorado mining heiress whose stepbrother John has poured their new money into buying a place among Newports elite. John is determined to see Maybelle married off to a fortune-hunting Italian prince, and Ellen is supposed to polish up the girl for her launch into society. But the deceptively demure Ellen has her own checkered past, and shes hiding in plain sight at Sprague Hall.

1958: Lucia Lucky Sprague has always felt like an outsider at Sprague Hall. When she and her grandmotherthe American-born Princess di Contifled Mussolinis Italy, it seemed natural to go back to the imposing Newport house Nana owned but hadnt seen since her marriage in 1899. Over the years, Lucky's lost her Italian accent and found a place for herself among the yachting set by marrying Stuyvesant Sprague, the alcoholic scion of her Sprague stepfamily. But one fateful night in the mansions old boathouse will uncover a devastating truth...and change everything she thought she knew about her past.

As the cameras roll on Mansion Makeover, the house begins to yield up the dark secrets the Spragues thought would stay hidden forever....

Reviews

"An engrossing and sumptuous tale, this novel is a fantastic spring read." Good Morning America Three stories elegantly intertwine in this clever and stylish tale of murder and family lies from Williams, Willig, and WhiteThis crackerjack novel offers three mysteries for the price of one. Publishers Weekly (starred review) "This triple POV novel comes form the minds of three historical fiction powerhouses, so you know it's going to be a delight." Buzzfeed The Lost Summers of Newportby a trio of historical fiction icons, Beatriz Williams, Lauren Willig and Karen Whiteis an elegant approach to the old trouble in paradise scenario, spanning generations of deceit in a New England mansion. Chicago Tribune If, like me, youre mourning the season end of the HBO series, The Gilded Age, I have good news: Atlanta author Karen White along with Beatriz William and Lauren Willig have pennedThe Lost Summers of Newport, a historic mystery spanning more than a century of the once-wealthy Sprague family residing in an extravagant Gilded Age home in Newport, Rhode Island. The Augusta Chronicle Three historical fiction powerhouses combine efforts to create an enthralling adventure spanning from the onset of World War I to the 1960s, telling the story of three women and their stay at the famous Ritz Hotel in Paris. Book Riot on All the Ways We Said Goodbye All three of these team W writers create engaging characters and complex relationships while setting a tone that matches the storys time periodThe twist at the center of the story is worth the price of admission on its own. A great choice for anyone looking for clever historical fiction with plenty of drama, action, and surprises in every chapter. Library Journalon All the Ways We Said Goodbye A sweeping historical novel about the strength of women who find themselves in impossible situations. Popsugar on All the Ways We Said Goodbye Full of heart and intrigue, the authors' latest collaboration captures women's perseverance and how history connects us all. Bookliston All the Ways We Said Goodbye For most people, staying at a grand hotel is a rare treat. Its a time to indulge in luxury, to be catered to with impeccable service and to forget about the outside world until check-out. Its not unlike the experience a reader gets when readingAll the Ways We Said Goodbye. Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Author Bio

A graduate of Stanford University with an MBA from Columbia, Beatriz Williams spent several years in New York and London hiding her early attempts at fiction, first on company laptops as a communications strategy consultant, and then as an at-home producer of small persons, before her career as a writer took off. She lives with her husband and four children near the Connecticut shore. Lauren Willig is also the New York Times bestselling author of the novels The Ashford Affair and That Summer as well as the Pink Carnation series, and is a RITA Award-winner for Best Regency Historical for The Mischief of the Mistletoe. An alumna of Yale University, she has a graduate degree in English history from Harvard and a J.D. from Harvard Law School. She lives in New York City, where she now writes full time.