Mark Twain termed the late 19th century “the Gilded Age.” It was a period of time when things were glittering on the surface but with shaky foundations and corruption underneath. Our list of books about the Gilded Age captures both the highs and lows of this fascinating period in American history.
A Brief History of the Gilded Age
Beginning in the 1870s, the United States experienced rapid growth – both in population and industry. There was an influx of millions of European immigrants, who were greeted upon arrival by the Statue of Liberty. There was also a great migration of people from rural parts of the US to cities during this period. This population growth drastically changed the face of US cities. Skyscrapers became commonplace, as did mass transit systems, such as trolleys, cable cars, and subways.
Despite rapidly increasing worker wages in the 1880s and 1890s, this period of American history gave rise to unhealthy and dangerous working conditions. This led to famous labor strikes as well as the formation of labor unions during the final decades of the 19th century.
Definitions of “The Gilded Age” timeline vary. For the purposes of this list, we included books ranging from the late 1860s to the early 1910s.
Books About the Gilded Age
Historical Fiction Books Set in the Gilded Age
A Well Behaved Woman: A Novel of the Vanderbilts
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Book Summary
Alva Smith had a decent society name, but her family had lost all of their money. When she married into the newly rich, but socially scorned Vanderbilt family, she knew only half her problems were solved. She had more money than she could ever spend again, but her new last name was not respected in the city.
When the Academy of Music denied her a box, she founded The Met to prove she wouldn’t handle rejection quietly. But how much can she work around the strict rules of New York society? And will there be consequences for pushing the boundaries?
The Book Girls Say…
If you enjoyed the HBO series, The Gilded Age, you might recognize aspects of the storyline as the show, and this book both draw from New York society history. For continued reading on the Vanderbilt family, consider the non-fiction title Vanderbilt: The Rise and Fall of an American Dynasty by Anderson Cooper, the son of Gloria Vanderbilt.
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An American Beauty
Book Summary
Based on the true rags-to-riches story of Arabella Huntington. At the age of just 17, she was working at a gambling parlor in Richmond, Virginia, when she met Collis Huntington. Thirty years her senior, Huntington was a railroad baron and self-made millionaire. Although he was married, he was drawn to Arabella both for her beauty and her temperament.
Arabella had always been determined to escape her impoverished background, and with the help of Huntington, she moves to New York City, where she poses as a genteel, wealthy Southern widow. With his seed money and her own shrewd investing instincts and business acumen, Arabella began to amass a fortune that would eventually make her the wealthiest self-made woman in the Gilded Age.
When Huntington’s wife dies, he marries Arabella. They are a power couple, but earning a place in the “The Four Hundred” – the elite circle that includes the Astor and the Vanderbilts – will require more than just their vast wealth. Arabella must prove that she also has taste and style, and she must demonstrate impeccable behavior. Does anyone suspect the truth about her past?
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The Social Graces
Book Summary
This novel tells the story of Mrs. Vanderbilt and Mrs. Astor’s notorious battle for control of New York society during the Gilded Age. It starts in 1876 New York with Alva Vanderbilt’s experiences dealing with her entrance to society after marrying into a wealthy family.
She has no idea how poorly she’ll be treated for being “new money” instead of “old money” by people like Caroline Astor. However, Alva isn’t one to give up. When they don’t welcome her into their society, she begins to build her own.
Social Graces covers thirty years of the social feud between Vanderbilt and Astor and is based on true events.
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Gilded Summers
Book Summary
In the Gilded Age, wealthy New York families like the Vanderbilts and Astors escaped the heat of summer in Manhattan by traveling to Newport for the season. Pearl is the teen daughter of one of these families but yearns for a different life than her social-climbing mom expects.
Ginerva is also in Newport for the summer, but she’s a new immigrant from Italy and joins the household as a servant and seamstress. Pearl and Ginerva become fast friends, but Pearl can’t let her family know she’s befriended a member of the staff. The realities of their approaching adulthood become real when Pearl accepts a “suitable” marriage proposal that will pull her further into society life.
The Book Girls Say…
This is the perfect novel for fans of Downton Abbey if you’re looking for an American twist on the upstairs/downstairs life.
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The Most Beautiful Girl in Cuba
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Book Summary
When Grace gets a job at William Randolph Hearst’s newspaper in Gilded Age NYC in 1896, she’s caught in a feud between Hearst and another newspaper tycoon, Joseph Pulitzer. She knows landing the right scoop could make her career.
In Cuba, 18-year-old Evangelina Cisneros dreams of a Cuba free from Spanish oppression. When she’s unjustly imprisoned in a notorious Havana women’s jail, Hearst puts her on the front page and calls her “The Most Beautiful Girl in Cuba,” which becomes a rallying cry for American intervention in Cuba’s battle for independence.
Hearst’s staff, including Grace and a courier named Marina, who is secretly working for Cuban revolutionaries, attempt to free Evangelia. But the story becomes much more significant when the explosion of the USS Maine sends the US and Spain closer to war.
The Book Girls Say…
The Most Beautiful Girl in Cuba reads as a stand-alone book, but is book 4 in the Perez Family series. The novel is based on the true story of Evangelina Cisneros, who changed the course of history.
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The Personal Librarian
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Book Summary
This historical fiction novel is based on the remarkable true story of J.P. Morgan’s personal librarian, a Black woman who became one of the most powerful women in NYC at the turn of the century.
Belle da Costa Greene was working at Princeton University Library when J.P. Morgan’s nephew recommended her for a position curating a collection of rare manuscripts, books, and artbooks for his uncle’s newly built Pierpont Morgan Library. This position of prominence made her one of the most influential people in the art and book world. She became a fixture on the New York social scene.
But Belle had a secret that could change everything. She led people to believe that her dark complexion was the result of her alleged Portuguese heritage. In truth, however, she was born Bella Marion Greener – the daughter of Richard Greener, the first Black graduate of Harvard University.
The Book Girls Say…
We both rated The Personal Librarian five stars! The writing duo of Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray put together a seamless story that educates and entertains. From learning about the progress and recession of the civil rights movement in the decades surrounding the turn of the century to literary and art history, the book introduces several aspects that left us eager to do more research. However, that education was wrapped in a page-turning story full of romance and intrigue.
The book manages to move gracefully between lighter and heavier storylines. We were always on the edge of our seats, wondering if Belle’s secret would be revealed.
If you ever find yourself in NYC, be sure to plan time for The Morgan Library! Angela had a chance to visit back in March, and she was awed by the architecture and grandeur of each and every room, including Belle’s private office.
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Books Set in the 1900s-1910s: The Turn of the Century
The Personal Librarian Book Club Guide with Discussion Questions
PS: We also have a printable Personal Librarian book club guide available on Etsy, including discussion questions, 7 pages of bonus contextual information and photos, a printable bookmark, and more!
The Address
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Sara was the head housekeeper at a posh London hotel in 1884. Based on her background, this is more than she ever expected and the highest station she could rise to in life. But then she meets an American visitor, Theodore Camden. He is building the most luxurious residential building in New York, The Dakota, and invites her to come to manage the property. The job brings her to highs and lows she never could have expected.
Sara’s story is told in conjunction with a 1985 storyline of Bailey Camden, who is returning from rehab and gets the opportunity to start fresh with a job overseeing the renovation of an apartment in The Dakota.
The novel goes back and forth between these perspectives, weaving together a story of love, betrayal, and the quest for success within one of NYC’s most famous residences.
The Book Girls Say…
This book is perfect for fans of dual-timeline historical fiction novels. The Dakota is still standing, and it’s located at the corner of Central Park West and 72nd Street, directly across the street from Central Park. It was once home to John Lennon, who was murdered right outside the building gates in 1980, and it remains home to Yoko Ono. This building, dubbed New York’s most famous apartment building by Architectural Digest, has also been home to many other celebrities over the years.
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The Ultimate Guide to Fiona Davis Books
Books Set in the 1880s and 1890s
Books Set in the 1980s
23 Books Like Downton Abbey
The Last Days of Night
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Book Summary
In 1888 New York, the streets were still lit by gas lamps, but the promise of the light bulb looms. However, the switch to electric light came with an additional complication – both George Westinghouse and Thomas Edison claimed to have invented the lightbulb.
A young lawyer, Paul Cravath, is thrust into the world of New York high society when he agrees to defend Westinghouse in a lawsuit brought by Thomas Edison. Edison has spies and vast resources, including the backing of J.P. Morgan. How can they fight against such a force?
When Paul meets Nikola Tesla, he may have found the secret to defeating Edison. But winning requires risks.
The Book Girls Say…
The Last Days of Night was a Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Historical Fiction in 2016.
The Second Mrs. Astor
Book Summary
John Jacob Astor and Madeleine Force were one of the most prominent couples of the Gilded Age. While seventeen-year-old Madeleine was intelligent and solidly upper-class, she wasn’t in the same league as the Astors, who ruled New York society. She was also 29 years younger than “Jack”.
The press was obsessed with the unlikely duo, but on their honeymoon to Eqypt, they found some reprieve from journalists and photographers. Madeline was even happier when she found out she was pregnant. In April 1912, they returned home aboard the opulent new ocean liner, Titanic. When the ship hits an iceberg, Jack helps Madeleine into a lifeboat and promises to see her soon in New York.
Four months later, widowed Madeleine gives birth to her son, and her society status is elevated. But will she accept this glamorous life or carve out her own path?
The Gilded Years
Book Summary
Set against the backdrop of the Gilded Age, this historical fiction novel is based on the true story of Anita Hemmings, the first Black student to attend Vassar College, the country’s most exclusive school for women. Since childhood, she longed to attend Vassar, but she knew that in order to do so, she would have to hide her race.
At Vassar, Anita is assigned to room with Louise “Lottie” Taylor, the scion of one of New York’s most prominent families. As hard as she tries to keep her distance from her classmates, Lottie’s sphere of influence is inescapable. As the two become friends, Anita is pulled into Lottie’s world and sees what it’s like to be treated as a wealthy white woman. But when Lottie falls for Anita’s brother, the situation becomes very precarious and Anita’s secret is threatened.
The Book Girls Say…
This novel is perfect for fans of The Personal Librarian.
What the Lady Wants
Book Summary
On the night of the Great Chicago Fire, 17-year-old socialite Delia Spencer meets the charming Marshall Fields, and her life is forever changed.
Fields leads the way in rebuilding the city by reopening his dry goods store and then transforming it into a glamorous palace of a department store like the world had never seen before. He became a retail tycoon in Chicago by wooing female customers with his famous “Give the lady what she wants” motto. He also wooed Delia, but their private lives were riddled with scandal and heartbreak.
All the Pretty Places
Book Summary
Sadie’s family owns a nursery that has supplied the top landscape architects on the East Coast for decades. But in 1893, as the economy plummets into a depression, Sadie’s father begins pressuring her to marry for wealth and stability. Sadie has other ideas for her future. She pursues new business from her father’s wealthiest clients of the Gilded Age in an attempt to save the family nursery.
The more time she spends in the mansions and secluded gardens of the elite, the more she sees the disparity of those struggling with poverty and starvation. She finds a new passion in her desire to bring natural beauty to those who can’t afford private gardens. Along the way, Sadie is also reunited with a former employee and former love, Sam.
The Book Girls Say…
Author Joy Callaway wrote this novel about the life of her great-great-grandmother.
The Gilded Hour
Book Summary
Anna and her cousin Sophie come from an upper-class family. Orphaned in their childhoods, the cousins – one white and one mixed race – were raised by their elderly aunt. Both are graduates of the Woman’s Medical School. Anna is a surgeon, and Sophie is an obstetrician and a pediatrician. Their work introduces them to patients who are among the city’s most vulnerable. They begin to see the disparities between the upper crust and the working poor, as well as other hypocrisies of the Gilded Age, and become embroiled in a controversy that may put everything they’ve strived for in jeopardy.
The Book Girls Say…
While it’s a long and somewhat meandering read (more than 700 pages), it is very highly rated and was a Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Best Historical Fiction in 2015. If you enjoy this book, you can continue with the sequel, Where the Light Enters, which takes place the following year. Sophie as she sets out to construct a new life for herself in 1884 Manhattan.
The Lost Summers of Newport
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Book Summary
Spanning the Gilded Age to the present day in three different timelines, this novel is set amongst the summer mansions of Newport, Rhode Island.
In the present day, you’ll meet Andie, the producer of a reality show called Mansion Makeover. She’s in Newport to renovate the once fabulous but now slowly crumbling Sprague Hall. However, she has more than construction problems. The mansion comes with a reclusive heiress who still lives in the house but insists that no one speaks to her and that no one touches the boathouse.
In 1958, you’ll meet Lucia, aka Lucky, Sprague, who fled Mussolini’s Italy with her grandmother. They return to her Nana’s Newport house, which she hasn’t seen since 1899. One night in the boathouse, she uncovers a shocking truth that changes everything she thought she knew.
In 1899, mining heiress Maybelle Sprague was taking singing lessons from Ellen, who had been hired to help polish Maybelle for her entrance into society. Maybelle’s stepbrother has just purchased a home among Newport’s elite and hopes to marry Maybelle off to an Italian prince. However, Ellen has a checkered past that the family doesn’t know about.
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Books Set in Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont
Summertime Reads for Historical Fiction Fans
Carnegie’s Maid
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By the end of the Gilded Age, Andrew Carnegie had amassed an unimaginable fortune. Clara Kelley is thought to be the influence who changed Andrew Carnegie from a ruthless industrialist into what may have been the world’s first true philanthropist.
Clara started working for him under the guise of an experienced Irish maid, but in reality, Clara was a poor farmer’s daughter. Keeping up the ruse is difficult when you don’t know the rules of being a lady’s maid.
However, Clara has the resolve of Pittsburgh steel, combined with a fierce instinct for business. Soon, she becomes someone that Andrew relies on. As they get closer, she knows that being her true self would be too big of a risk to her family.
The Book Girls Say…
Set on the cusp of the Gilded Age, this novel vividly depicts the opulence of the architecture and fashions of the time period.
Clara Kelley is Marie Benedict’s fictional character, though she’s said to be a composite of several historical figures and is based on careful research from the time. We’re not sure what changed Carnegie’s heart for sure, but the author’s assumption that it was someone close to him seems possible.
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Books Set in Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware
The Mad Girls of New York
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This historical mystery is based on the real life of journalist Nellie Bly. While she currently works for the ladies’ pages, she has greater ambition. However, the editors believe women are too emotional and delicate to be real journalists.
Eventually, she gets her big break. Rumors about the conditions and circumstances inside Blackwell’s Island Insane Asylum for Women are terrifying. But no one can get inside. The New York World publication had an idea…what if a woman feigns insanity to get committed and find out the truth?
What Nellie finds is more horrible than she expected. The investigation could make her career and make a difference to the women of Blackwell’s Island. But can she get out to tell her story before rival reporters scoop it up?
The Book Girls Say…
If you’ve read The Address by Fiona Davis, you may recognize Nellie’s name.
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The Engineer’s Wife
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Emily was determined to make changes in the world and was an active participant in the women’s suffrage movement. But when her husband, Washington Roebling, was injured on the job as the Chief Engineer of the Brooklyn Bridge, Emily put her own work on hold to take over for her husband. As the bridge rises, Emily wonders if she’s building her own legacy or that of her husband.
This novel is based on the true story of how Emily Roebling transformed this project of monumental scale. Her work took her into the bowels of the East River, to suffragette riots, and into the halls of Manhattan’s elite.
The Book Girls Say…
Despite shattering gender barriers in engineering, few people at the time openly recognized Emily’s efforts toward completing the Brooklyn Bridge. Nearly a century later, Elizabeth Zott, in Lessons in Chemistry, would similarly experience the frustration of men taking credit for her scientific work.
Note that while most of this historical fiction novel stays pretty true to Emily’s life, one aspect that the author notes is pure fiction is the storyline involving PT Barnum. The two did become friends in real life, but anything more is a work of the author’s imagination.
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Non-Fiction Books About the Gilded Age
Vanderbilt: The Rise and Fall of an American Dynasty
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Book Summary
Journalist Anderson Cooper, whose mother was Gloria Vanderbilt, teamed up with New York Times bestselling historian and novelist Katherine Howe to write this in-depth account of the triumphs and tragedies of one of America’s most legendary dynasties from an insider’s point of view.
It all began with Cornelius Vanderbilt, who was known as The Commodore. Throughout the 1800s, he built two empires – one in shipping and one in railroads, becoming the wealthiest man in America. When he died in 1877, his heirs began fighting over his fortune, fracturing the family in ways that would never fully heal.
This book traces the family’s history, and their influence on American capitalism, from the hardscrabble wharves of old Manhattan to the lavish drawing rooms of the Gilded Age, and from their ornate 72-room summer estate in Rhode Island to Europe.
The Book Girls Say…
This book focuses more on the family and less on the business side, and the authors don’t shy away from hard truths. Be aware that this book is not written in a chronological timeline, but most readers say it flows nicely.
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Children of the City: At Work and At Play
Book Summary
Those of us who grew up on Disney’s Newsies, or who have seen the Broadway musical version, know a bit about the 1899 newsboy strike and the child labor struggles at the end of the 19th century. With that in mind, we went in search of a book that would shed more light on these events and came across this non-fiction book.
In addition to a chapter on the Newsies, this book also takes a broader look at the social history of the era from the perspective of the children who would grow up to become “the Greatest Generation.”
The Book Girls Say…
In writing this account of the times, the author drew upon hundreds of memoirs, autobiographies, oral histories, and other primary sources in order to transport us to the daily lives of these children and their families.
Empty Mansions
Book Summary
This in-depth non-fiction delves into the long life of the reclusive and mysterious Huguette Clark. The daughter of one of the wealthiest men of the Gilded Age, she grew up with unimaginable wealth and privilege, including living in the largest house in New York City (121 rooms in all).
She led a fascinating life that mirrors the history of the 20th and 21st centuries. She held a ticket for the Titanic and was still alive long after the 9/11 terror attacks in NYC, and yet she was so secretive that when she died at age 104, no new photograph of her had been seen for decades. Despite owning gorgeous homes in Santa Barbara, Connecticut, and New York City (all of which sat empty but were still maintained by servants), Hugette lived her last 20 years in a simple hospital room.
The Devil in the White City
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This book alternates the true stories of two men connected to the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair at the height of the Gilded Age. Daniel H. Burnham is the architect of the fair, responsible for constructing the famous “White City,” which attracted appearances by Buffalo Bill Cody, Susan B. Anthony, and Thomas Edison.
Dr. Holmes erected the World’s Fair Hotel near the fairgrounds with a gas chamber and crematorium. He lured both guests and victims to his hotel with his charismatic personality.
The Book Girls Say…
While Erik Larson’s books are written in a narrative style, they are still classified as non-fiction. This one is more true crime/horror than some of his other works, as a serial killer is involved. While it still has high reviews overall, many readers comment that it feels like two different books combined into one, with the history of the fair and the sinister Dr. Holmes sections feeling disconnected despite being told in alternating chapters.
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Classic Gilded Age Books
Book Summary
This 1873 satirical novel examines the greed and political corruption in post-Civil War America. The title of this novel quickly became synonymous with materialism and corruption in public life during this era.
The Age of Innocence
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At the end of the 19th century, Newland Archer is preparing to marry the beautiful and conventional May Welland. But when Countess Ellen Olenska returns to New York, fresh out of a disastrous marriage, Archer falls madly in love with her. He is torn between expectations and passion as he struggles to make a decision. The consequences of his choice could either define his life or destroy it.
This book won the 1921 Pulitzer Prize for its vivid portrait of the Golden Age of Old New York. The wealthy families also summer in Newport, Rhode Island, giving us a glimpse of Gilded Age life outside of the city.
The Book Girls Say…
Like many classics, this novel is slow going at times, but many readers find that the end wraps the story up nicely in a way that makes everything clear. One reader elaborates, “This is not an easy read, due to style and syntax, but it is far ahead of its time in terms of its take on the pretenses of society, the hypocrisy of status and class, and women’s place therein.”
More Historical Fiction Recommendations
If you love reading about different periods in history through historical fiction (or non-fiction), you may enjoy participating in our Decades Reading Challenge. We’ve also included an index to more book recommendations you may enjoy.
- Books Set in the 1880s and 1890s
- Books that Span Multiple Decades
- Books Set in the 1970s
- Books Set in the 1960s
- Books Set in the 1950s
- Summertime Reads for Historical Fiction Fans
- Books Set in the 1940s
- Books Like Outlander
- Unforgettable Dust Bowl Books
- Books Set in the 1930s
- Books Set in the 1920s
- Books Set in the 1900s and 1910s
- Best WW1 Historical Fiction
- Gilded Age Books
- Mystery Books Set in the 1920s
2023 Reader Survey Results
Thursday 13th of July 2023
[…] Additionally, after learning that many of our readers enjoy historical fiction set in the 1800s and earlier, we modified the Decades Reading Challenge for 2023 to begin several decades sooner, allowing us to explore books set in the 1880s and 1890s. […]