About the Book
Lucy Duff Gordon knows she is talented. She sees color, light, and texture in ways few people can begin to imagine. But is the male dominated world of haute couture, who would use her art for their own gain, ready for her?
When she is deserted by her wealthy husband, Lucy is left penniless with an aging mother and her five-year-old daughter to support. Desperate to survive, Lucy turns to her one true talent to make a living. As a little girl, the dresses she made for her dolls were the envy of her group of playmates. Now, she uses her creative designs and her remarkable eye for color to take her place in the fashion world—failure is not an option.
Then, on a frigid night in 1912, Lucy’s life changes once more, when she becomes one of 706 people to survive the sinking of the Titanic. She could never have imagined the effects the disaster would have on her fashion label Lucile, her marriage to her second husband, and her legacy. But no matter what life throws at her, Lucy will live on as a trailblazing and innovative fashion icon, never letting go of what she worked so hard to earn. This is her story.
My Review
I don’t read historical fiction often, but when I saw the Titantic had a role in this story, I had to accept the review request. I’ve been slightly obsessed with Titantic’s story since the movie released when I was young girl, so to read about a passenger that survived the sinking seemed fascinating to me. I wasn’t familiar with the name Lucy Duff Gordon before reading this, but I loved learning about a self-made woman that did so much to pave the way in women’s fashion and beyond. I wouldn’t consider myself a fashionista, but hearing about the different fabrics, colors, stitches, and reading the concept of the design and then having it leap off the page was a lot of fun. Add in the timeframe of the late 1800s and how women were “supposed” to look and dress and act, to have a heroine who was going against the grain (designing lacy underwear, oh my!) was thought-provoking and made me want to cheer at times.
Initially the Titantic bits drew me in, and I will say we didn’t get that storyline until halfway through the book and there was just a little at the end about the survivors and lawsuits that happened after the tragedy. I wish there had been a little more, but I understand the story is really all about Lucy, her business and how she was a true entrepreneur and advocate at a time it was frowned upon for a woman to be such things. While at times the story got a little long and drawn out, I’m still glad this introduced me to Lucy Duff Gordon.
3.5 stars
