This novel delves into a lesser known aspect of Mary Lincoln's life and family, and that gives it interest. However, the storytelling and character development were lacking, so it wasn't as enthralling as I hoped.

The life and times of Abraham Lincoln are well known to all, but how much do you know about the first lady, Mary Todd Lincoln? Mrs. Lincoln’s Sisters by Jennifer Chiaverini takes us through Mary’s life from a small child until her death. Told from the POV of her various sisters and over two time lines, the story was very informative if somewhat slow at times.

Several years ago I read Fates and Traitors by Jennifer Chiaverini. It was fantastic! I don’t think this novel quite measures up to Fates and Traitors, but stilll well worth the read. Mrs. Lincoln’s Sisters really piqued my interest in the sad and tragic life of Mary Todd Lincoln. She did seem to be a bit self centered but no one deserves all the hardships she had to endure.

For fans of historical fiction and the civil war period, you may want to give this one a try.

This book tells the story of the Todd Sisters. The book was well written. While the Todd sisters aren't always lovable and kind, it is a good introduction to their lives. I enjoyed it.

Having been introduced to Chiaverini through Resistance Women, I was finally ready to dive into one of her most popular series through this title. I know that she is a thorough researcher and so this would feel like a biography, though fiction.

The Lincoln Sisters of Kentucky have been raised within each other's worlds and constantly work to take each other through their different problems and triumphs. Their sister, Mary, reaches the highest and is the most tempestuous of them all. As we go back and forth in time with each sister, we see the history of their relationships and watch the pain, grief and love of their bond through the years.

As I suspected, this very much felt like a fictional biography. That is not a bad thing whatsoever. I learned so much about Mary's life specifically, but a bit about her sisters' as well of course. I feel like this was the strongest part of the book. Because I am one of those readers who loves to hear about the true stories of people's lives. I think while this was hard at times to read, especially the post-Lincoln's death years, I found it valuable to understand the history and these women's lives through their lens. It also really lent to them being built as characters. Their voices and how they expressed themselves was alive on the page.

I will say I wish this had been linear. There were times where not only because this was being told through the different sisters, but also because one minute we were in 1875, the next we were in 1840 something, I had trouble readjusting. Because the thing is that the sisters and their relationship to each other is different between those years. I feel as if there is more of a remove from Mary by the time her husband has died. But they were definitely more cohesive when they were younger. It's asking the reader to readjust not only where they are in the time period but also what they know about the sisters every chapter. It's a lot of work on the brain. I kept up okay. I did worry there was a couple of chapters in the middle where I lost the thread. Especially with such an extensive work, I think it would have just been better to make the timing linear.

The ending of this absolutely broke my heart. I was so incredibly grateful for the chapter from Mary's perspective in 1875 in Chicago. I never thought she was mad. She was a woman pushed by her circumstances and her grief to fight to keep her head above water. It would have been so easy to let the misery of everything consume her. Trying to work through all that would have almost been insurmountable. I think she needed the people around her to have a little more compassion.

Overall, I found this book eye opening and incredibly interesting. I so look forward to reading more Chiaverini in the future. I definitely need to go back and read the other Mrs. Lincoln books now! Thank you!

What an interesting book. The story not only covers the life of Mary Todd Lincoln after the assassination of President Lincoln, but also her life leading up to that point. The different points of views from the her sisters. The book makes you think about how they felt about Mary and how Mary may have felt about them is very interesting. The history that is woven into the story is thought provoking and reminds us to learn from history and not to repeat it. The relationships between the sisters and Mary and her son take on a different light in this story. This was another well written book by the author.

i really enjoy reading this book, i enjoyed reading about Mrs. Lincoln's sisters, the writing was great.

A well done historical narration done in the voices of Mary Todd's sisters. Mary Todd has a bad rap in history and maybe rightly so. However, life was most difficult for her as she suffered great loss. The loss of her husband who worshiped her and those of her two sons. Her eldest son on the other hand was not easily manipulated by his mother and suffered her wrath. The sisters paint a picture of an early loss of their mother and the invasion of the step mother known as Ma. The dynamics of relationships are relatable filled with tension and where does one fit in the pack. Mary Todd had great expectations and she saw those expectations in Abe Lincoln.

The narration starts at the lowest point in Mary's life. After the death of her husband, she had attempted suicide and is now committed by her eldest son Robert. It was her demise as her expectations went down hill. Her sisters in different ways come to Mary's rescue and in their narration carries the life span of Mary Todd. Their reflection of Mary's life and their relationship with their sister and brother-in-law is filled with a spectrum of emotions.

I have heard different accounts of the character of Mary Todd. It seems like she was a manic depressant and had no control of her emotions. The portrayal does a fine job in not judging Mary Todd the woman but opening the eyes of those that may judge her badly. She was her own worst enemy in the end. I enjoyed getting to know more of her in the eyes of her sister and in history.

A special thank you to Harper Collins Publishers and Netgalley for the ARC and the opportunity to post an honest review.

I have read the other books in this series and this one did not disappoint. It was nice to hear it from a family member's perspective. I also love that the book can stand alone and could be read without reading the previous two books.

In doing research on the Civil War, the Lincolns and those people around them, Jennifer Chiaverini has found material for several powerful novels. Her latest, MRS. LINCOLN'S SISTERS, focuses on the relationship among several of Mary Lincoln's sisters, alternating among the years when Mary and family first meet Abe Lincoln, the couple's years at the White House, and the stressful time ten years after the assassination when Mary's son Robert finds he must seek to have his mother sent to an asylum. We see Mary's actions from varying vantage points: her oldest sister Elizabeth, who opens her home to the fragile Mary; Frances, another older sister, who worries about Elizabeth's own health and Mary's tendency to demand too much from others; and Ann, the younger sister who frankly is embarrassed at the number of times that Mary Todd Lincoln has shamed the family with her outrageous actions, but at the same time cannot deny loving her. We see how the Todd family splits between the North and the South after Abe's election as president. While this novel clearly features Mary and her son Robert, it is only through the eyes of the sisters, all of whom have had some kind of falling out with the most famous Mary. I've read many books by Jennifer Chiaverini, and I think this may be my favorite. Her ability to fuse together intensive research into a living, breathing story just continues to improve. After recently reading MRS. GRANT AND MADAME JULE and now THE LINCOLN SISTERS, I feel I understand the private lives of President Lincoln and his wife better. As I read about their early marriage and the couple's growing importance in Springfield being reflected in the changes Mary made to their modest house, Chiaverini did such a good job describing the house that I was able to recall just how it looked from my own visit there 20 years ago. I received an ecopy of this title from Netgalley. All opinions are mine.

Note: I have posted a review to BN, but have not received word that it has been posted.

This is the first novel I have read by this author, and I thoroughly enjoyed her style of storytelling and getting to know all of the Todd relations. Mary Todd and Abraham Lincoln are fascinating and complicated historical figures, and this novel kept me engaged and turning the pages. This is a journey worth taking to read and savor the strength, determination, and loyalty of these women and their stories.

This follows the life of Mary Todd Lincoln and her relationship with her sisters through the eyes of the sisters. The storyline shifts back and forth from when they were young together through the Civil War and later in life after Mrs. Lincoln's son has her committed as legally insane. It was interesting to see Mary's story through the different minds and attitudes of the other characters.

In this follow up to Mrs. Lincoln's Dressmaker, Jennifer Chiaverini explores Mary Todd Lincoln's relationships with her sisters. It was interesting to learn about Mary as a young child and how her early experiences shaped the course of her life. Mary's sisters each had different personalities and different relationships with her. The women come alive in this work of historical fiction.

This is was an enjoyable novel that was a quick read once I got involved in the story. I have always found the life of Mary Todd Lincoln to be fascinating but sad. The tragic deaths of her children and her husband are part of history just as her spending habits are.

In this book her sisters try figure out how to help her as her son, Robert commits her to a sanitarium. Mary has always been difficult so it puts the sisters at odds as to how to handle this news. As in any situation you will have differences of opinions which I found interesting. To be honest the person I liked the most was Robert, he had so much to deal with and at times I thought Mrs. Lincoln treated him cruelly.

Overall, I thought this was a wonderful novel, it was well pace with historical details and it was well written. Thanks, you to the publisher and Netgalley for the copy. All opinions are my own.

I came away from this book with a completely different understanding when it came to the stories that I had heard about Mary Todd Lincoln. History tells us of her mental illness but never went into detail regarding how after the death of her sons, and her husband’s murder while sitting next to her at the theater, unhinged a woman who had already shown symptoms.

Divided when Mary's son Robert had her committed, Elizabeth, Frances, and Ann never lost focus on what was best for their sister. Told in a non-linear format, in the voices of the Todd sisters, Jennifer Chiaverini takes the reader through the life of Mary Todd Lincoln and how through births, deaths, estrangements, and misfortunes, their bonds and devotion remained strong.

Though historical fiction, the author brings time, place, and the women to life without bogging the reader down in the unnecessary or overstatement since the circumstances are thought-provoking enough.

With so many excellent historical fiction titles out there, this is a disappointment. The slow, plodding storyline is excruciating, mired in trivial and stilted dialogue., failing to move forward in a reasonable fashion. The author seems to be trying to pen every fact in her research of the period into the manuscript to demonstrate she’s done her homework. It does not translate into a smooth narrative. Skip this one.

I enjoyed Mrs. Lincoln's Sisters, an account of Mary Todd Lincoln's later years. It was a perfect companion to Courting Mr. Lincoln, which I read last year.

Elizabeth, Mary's oldest sister, has been informed that Mary has been institutionalized because she has attempted suicide. Her witnessing the assassination of her husband and then the death of her son just a few short years later has taken its toll. Elizabeth and most of Mary's other siblings have been estranged from Mary for years, but Elizabeth wants to help. But Mary won't answer any letters from any of her siblings. They are assured by Mary's oldest and only remaining son that she is being well taken care of.

We get varying perspectives, and therefore opinions, of what they should do about Mary from other siblings, Francis, Emilie, and Ann. They agree they must overcome their differences to help, but they don't agree on what is best.

As the current story is told, we get flashbacks all the way to Mary's childhood, the death of her mother, her education, the courtship, her political life, the Civil War, and of course, the assassination.

All in all, we get a detailed picture of Mary's life. But is she insane? Did she need to be institutionalized?

As I mentioned, Courting Mr. Lincoln did a great job of describing a mostly missing piece of the history of Abraham Lincoln, and Mrs. Lincoln's Sisters did overlap in that area a bit. But I have become somewhat enamored with the Lincolns, and really enjoyed these perspectives. What a fascinating and tragic life Mary Todd Lincoln had.

If you are interested in this piece of history, I highly recommend Chiaverini's account of Mrs. Lincoln's Sisters.

First sentence: A whimsical breeze rustled the paper beneath Elizabeth’s pen as she wrote in the garden, but she held the sheet firmly against the table with her left hand and it was not carried aloft. She lifted her pen and waited for the gust to subside rather than risk smearing the ink, and in that momentary pause a light shower of blossoms from the plum tree fell upon her, the table, and the head of her sixteen-year-old grandson Lewis, sprawled in a chaise lounge nearby, so thoroughly engrossed in Jules Verne’s Around the World in Eighty Days that he did not notice the petals newly adorning his light brown hair. She smiled, tempted to rise and brush the blossoms softly to the ground with her fingertips, but he looked so charming that she decided to leave them be.

Premise/plot: Elizabeth. Frances. Ann. Emilie. These are some of the narrators of Jennifer Chiaverini's newest historical novel. The novel is told in alternating voices--each chapter narrated by one of Mary Todd Lincoln's sisters--and alternating times. The book alternates between the present--1875 moving forward--and the past--starting in 1825. The book centers on Mary Todd (Lincoln) and her mental health and capabilities.

Mary has always, always, always been Mary. Strong-willed. Easily offended. Bearer of grudges. Irresponsible with money. But now that the court has ruled her insane, the sisters each have their own reaction and response. What is best for Mary? Will they help Mary's situation or make it worse if they try to mend bridges and repair relationships now?

My thoughts: I found this a fascinating read. I love, love, love historical fiction. I haven't read much about the Lincolns. Though I do seem to remember having read a young adult novel starring Mary Todd--remember vaguely at least. I don't recall ever having read about her later years after the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln. So fascinating is about as good a word as any.

I am usually not a big fan of books with multiple narrators--but in this case I didn't mind. Each sister had her own relationship with Mary; each sister had a unique perspective. To only have the perspective of one sister would have been incomplete and inconclusive.

I usually prefer books with a clear chronological narrative--very straightforward. But again in this case I didn't mind. Readers are able to trace the story and arrive at their own conclusions about Mary.

I loved the focus on family and on sisters in particular. Elizabeth, the oldest sister, really went above and beyond to nurture her younger sisters and support them to the best of her ability. I liked all the sisters.

I would definitely recommend this one!

Before she married Abraham Lincoln, Mary Todd was one of the Todd sisters, the belles of Lexington, KY, society. Ten years after her husband was assassinated, Mary is estranged from her family and suffering from wild paranoid delusions. Her increasingly erratic behavior has forced her only surviving son Robert to have her committed to a sanatorium. From childhood, Mary's sisters were aware of her self-centeredness, her manipulative nature, and her almost pathological need to be the center of attention. Mary was what would today be called a drama queen - if her life was quiet, she would create some drama or blow some imagined snub way out of proportion. Although the focus of the book is on four of Mary's sisters (Elizabeth, Frances, Ann, and Emilie) and the roles they played in her life, anyone interested in Mary Todd Lincoln will enjoy this work of historical fiction.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an eARC in return for a review.

I was given a copy of this book on Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.
My Interest

Lexington, Kentucky, is a wonderful city. The history goes back to the time when Kentucky was part of Virginia. The elite has long taken pride in the heritage. The Todds of Lexington were a big part of that heritage. Mary Todd Lincoln was one of her father Robert Smith Todd’s 16 children by two wives. Mary was a child of the first wife. Like Eleanor Roosevelt, many years later, Mary was raised in a political family, was well-educated, and expected to converse knowledgeably at the table.

Sadly, as most Americans know, Mary Todd Lincoln suffered from what today is known as Bipolar Disorder and migraines. She lost her second and third sons when they were young children. Worst of all, she was, of course, beside her husband when he was shot at Ford’s Theater.

Finally, I so enjoyed Jennifer Chiaverini’s earlier Mary Lincoln book, Mrs. Lincoln’s Dressmaker, that I was very happy to get to read and review this new book about Mrs. Lincoln.
The Story

Mrs. Lincoln’s Sisters tells her story before and after the White House. Beginning when she was a little girl, not long before her mother’s death, the book alternates between childhood and 1875-1876 at the time of Robert Lincoln’s controversial decision to have his mother committed to a mental institution in Bellvue, Illinois. Through the story we see the development of the woman famously called “The Hellcat” by her husband’s private secretaries.

Mary, Elizabeth, Frances, Ann, Emilie (“Little Sister”) remained close throughout their long lives. All were born daughters of extreme privilege and all married well–the goal of women in that time. Emilie, famously, was the wife of a Confederate officer who had turned down a commission in the Union Army offered by his brother-in-law. Mary had hoped Emilie would live with them in the White House.

In the 1870s chapters, we see just what a struggle it was for the sisters to deal with their famous sister–especially when a meddling journalist becomes Mary’s mouthpiece giving an alternate opinion of the condition of Mrs. Lincoln in opposition to that of Robert Lincoln. Elizabeth Edwards, especially, was put on the spot in this situation.

Whether Mary was truly mentally ill enough to require commitment or whether she could have lived safely with a caregiver is not answered. Robert Lincoln, later Secretary of War and Ambassador to Britain, would be taken to task for the rest of his life for his “treatment” of his mother.
My Thoughts

This is a good and engaging novel, but to me it lacked the spark of her earlier book, Mrs. Lincoln’s Dressmaker. Too often, especially in the pre-White House chapters, I felt I was reading sections of history books strung together. The 1870s chapters were far more readable as were the later-in-time chapters after Mary and Lincoln were married.

Jennifer Chiaverini is one of my favorite historical fiction authors, and I always enjoy how she takes real women from history and creates stories that merge their life events with historical events. Her books are well-researched and educational, all while telling a compelling story. Her latest book, Mrs. Lincoln’s Sisters, is no exception to this. I was highly anticipating this book and was so glad to get an eGalley from the publisher on NetGalley. I love stories about sisters, and with Mary Lincoln having so many sisters, this story about their interactions is a great unknown tale from history. The author does a good job of weaving a complex narrative in different time frames and explaining the different ways her sisters dealt with Mary’s temperament and frailties, even from a young age. It paints a more forgiving picture of Mary than what has been portrayed by history and provides several reasons for her mania, from her childhood as an unwanted step-child to the traumatic losses of her husband and children. This book was so engrossing that I read it in just two days! I highly recommend this book for historical fiction fans and also those who are interested in the casualties from the Civil War. While official counts only include those soldiers who died on the battlefield, I would also say that Mary should be included in any list of Civil War casualties.

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