I am a huge fan of historical fiction and absolutely loved 'I.Eliza Hamilton'. From the beginning pages Susan Holloway Scott has you interested in the wife of Revolutionary War Hero Alexander Hamilton. This book is written from a wife's perspective. It allows you to walk with Mrs Hamilton and see through her eyes. The book describes in detail the beginning of their life together as a couple and continues through their 25 year marriage. It gives an interesting point of view regarding Alexander Hamilton. While this book is set during the Revolutionary War and after, the book doesn't focus on the war. It's main focus is the Hamilton Family. 'I, Eliza Hamilton' was well written and an absolutely absorbing read.

Rating:  3 out of 5 Stars

By the publisher:

As the daughter of a respected general, Elizabeth Schuyler is accustomed to socializing with dignitaries and soldiers. But no visitor to her parents’ home has affected her so strongly as Alexander Hamilton, a charismatic, ambitious aide to George Washington. They marry quickly, and despite the tumult of the American Revolution, Eliza is confident in her brilliant husband and in her role as his helpmate. But it is in the aftermath of war, as Hamilton becomes one of the country’s most important figures, that she truly comes into her own.

In the new capital, Eliza becomes an adored member of society, respected for her fierce devotion to Hamilton as well as her grace. Behind closed doors, she astutely manages their expanding household, and assists her husband with his political writings. Yet some challenges are impossible to prepare for. Through public scandal, betrayal, personal heartbreak, and tragedy, she is tested again and again. In the end, it will be Eliza’s indomitable strength that makes her not only Hamilton’s most crucial ally in life, but also his most loyal advocate after his death, determined to preserve his legacy while pursuing her own extraordinary path through the nation they helped shape together.

My thoughts

coming to this novel knowing little else about Hamilton, other the duel with Burr and the fact that he started the Bank of New York, I was eager to learn about him and the woman who he chose to share his life with.

The author did a great job at setting the scene.  I enjoyed learning about the gowns, the house in which Eliza had grown up with her family and the love that surrounded the family.  The love which surrounded Eliza and her siblings was palpable and the author did a great making sure the reader understood that.  It was obvious that the book was very well researched and there were many "nuggets" that I walked away with which, had it not been for this book, I would have never found out.  Let's just say they are not the things we learn in school.

Eliza, was a feminist in her time.  As a matter of fact, most of the women, it appeared to me, were feminists.  In their own quiet way these women influenced the outcome of many circumstance and there were many lessons to be learned from them on how to get one's point across without being rude or obnoxious..... that fact was not wasted on this reader.

At times I was in awe of the friendship and love between Eliza and her sister but I also could not get past the fact that some of it may have been due to jealousy on Eliza's part.  I don't know if on purpose or not, but at times I couldn't help but feel that Eliza regretted at times not having married a rich man.  It was obvious that their love was immense and they lived for each other.  However, at times there were flecks of jealousy in both of them.

Hamilton spent most of his time in the book going from turbulence to turbulence and trying to impress everyone while Eliza was either pregnant and using her pregnancy as a way to manipulate her husband -- well at least twice.  Don't get me wrong, I don't blame her but it was not what I wanted to be reading about.

The first half of the book was great.  I flew through it devouring every word the author had to say.  Towards the middle of the book I became impatient.  It felt as if the same scenes were being repeated over and over again and there were things that happened through out and characters that were introduced and nothing came of them.  There were times when I felt Hamilton was being a spoiled brat and one who could not take any criticism and would go to any length to revenge people at the expense of everyone.  It's not as if I felt he didn't love her.... the fact that he loved Eliza was very obvious but it was not an unconditional love.  It was a dependent type of love.  I felt as if she would have been ok without him, it felt to me as if he would be lost without her.  I also started to get annoyed at how Eliza kept putting herself down.  For the love of God woman -- grow a back bone and a sense of who you are.  It's clear to the reader that Eliza was an amazing woman in her own right but when she kept putting herself down I felt angry instead of sympathy.  

I am not sorry I picked up the book.  Perhaps I expected too much from this book considering the hype about Hamilton.  I gave it a solid 3 stars and would have given it 4 had it not been for a few typos and the repetitive issues I mentioned above.  I think that if the reader is interested in women's issues and feminism this is a good book.  It's quiet but it gets a point across.  It's educational in a way that it goes through all the challenges of the wars and not just the battles.  There is hunger and disease to deal with.  There is discussion of how finances are bad and how Hamilton devised a plan to repair the United States' credit and, although all these topics are discussed it's still an interesting read.

Eliza first encounters the charismatic Alexander Hamilton in the home of her parents, who are fighting for the liberty of the country. In the midst of the American Revolution, she chooses to marry her love and from then on, her love is tested again and again.

From the start, Eliza leaps off the page as a woman of her times. She is proud to support her husband and raise her children, because that was what she was raised to do. She was an excellent hostess, and knew what it was to be a soldier's daughter and a soldier's wife. The author does a phenomenal job in showing what her life was like, with her being concerned about making ends meet and keeping her family well and together. Eliza is not portrayed as perfect, she makes mistakes just as anyone else does.

The pace of the book is just as it should be, not too fast nor slow enough to bore a reader. The attention to detail, without dumping the reader with too much information at one time, is perfect. I learned a great deal about the time period that I didn't know before, which I always appreciate when I pick up a book based on a historical figure.

For readers of historical fiction, this a must read.