“It’s amazing how women get lost in history,” says Stephanie Dray, the New York Times bestselling author of The Women of Chateau Lafayette. “I want to tell their stories.”
At first, the story she was going to tell was that of Beatrice Chanler, a success London actress with a troubled marriage who received the Legion of Honor for her philanthropic service during World War. But then Dray discovered a packet of love letters that were not between Chanler and her husband and she knew she would have to start all over.
Ultimately, Dray would write the stories of two more women whose connection through the centuries was the French country chateau of the Marquis de La Fayette, one of the heroes of the American Revolution. And each time, she would set that book aside as more details emerged.
“Chateau is set in three time periods–during the French Revolution, World War One, and World War Two,” says Dray whose previous books include “My Dear Hamilton” and “Cleopatra’s Daughter.”
In each period, there was an extraordinary woman who rose to the occasion. The first was Adrienne Lafayette, the wife of the Marquis de Lafayette. More than a spouse, she was her husband’s political partner and, like him, faced the danger of the guillotine during the French Revolution. The third woman is Marthe Simone, a teacher and writer, who at first wanted to avoid any activities that could put her at risk from the Nazis during World War II but then becomes an active participant in helping hide Jewish children at the chateau.
“She, like the other two women, deserved to have her own book,” says Dray. “But then I saw the importance of telling all their stories in one novel. I was a government major in college and then I went to law school, but I was really only a lawyer for ten minutes. But I’ve always been interested in government as people, this story is about the rise of the republic and the continued survival of the public.”
Writing about the Chateau Lafayette became so much a part of Dray’s every day living that when she saw the castle for the first time she was so nervous she had to have her husband hold the camera.
“All the video I took is very shaky,” she says.
Indeed, she becomes so immersed in her stories that when she was writing “America’s First Daughter,” she found herself speaking with a southern accent. That passion is evident in one of the take-aways she hopes readers get from reading The Women of Chateau Lafayette.
“The Franco-American alliance saved this country three times over,” says Dray. “This book is relevant to those in powdered wigs and those today.”

FIVE STARS - I loved this book so much! It revolves around three real and well researched women whose lives are interwoven around 3 different wars, American Revolution, WW1 and WW2. All the women have something to do with the Chateau Lafayette. THE Lafayette, the Marquis de Lafayette, that you may have a mad crush on from Hamilton (I do).

These 3 women were all so brave, creative, all trying to better the world using Lafayette's principles as their guiding light. There's wars, love, betrayal, death, inspiration, surprise, lust, everything you want in an epic book that crosses centuries, wars, and real life. The history is deftly told and was so compelling and interesting. There was so much about these wars and the players I didn't know.

Add The Women of Chateau Lafayette it to your Want to Read shelf now, better yet, buy it!

Triple timeline, which in itself I found daunting at times. If it had not been a NetGally book, it would have been a DNF, at times it was good but at times I found it painfully dragging along.
3 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and the Author and publisher for a copy of this book. All opinions expressed are my own.

Wow, this is the first book I read by Stephanie Dray, and it won't be the last! I was captivated right from the start. It's an epic novel about three women who lived during different times, a triple timeline alternating throughout the book. I was amazed by how seamlessly the author moved from one era to the other. And the fact that two of the women were based on actual historical figures made the story all the more interesting. It was evident the book was well-researched and very well-written.

All three timelines were equally interesting to me and were connected by the Chateau Lafayette, a fortified manor house (it's a museum today) that is situated in France and is the birthplace of General Lafayette. I did not know much about Lafayette nor the role his wife played in politics. What an amazing woman she was! History tends to downplay women's roles, but the author brings them out through careful research and skillful writing. She succeeds in building unforgettable characters, strong women that took risks, that made a difference, that were devoted and avant-gardists.

This novel was like reading three books in one. There was never a dull moment. It's a long book with almost 600 pages and typed in small font. It's not a book you want to rush through. It's one that has a lot going on and that makes you invest in its characters and their stories. No fluff here.

If you are a serious historical fiction reader who loves epic well-written stories, look no further. Stephany Dray satisfies the thirst for sweeping era-based historical fiction novels that are sure to become classics.

The Women of Chateau Lafayette brought to life 3 separate historical events that touched pairs, and the world in very different ways. They were woven together by the lives of the women who lived in Chateau Lafayette, the home of the famed French champion of the American Revolutionary War.

There is mystery and romance in this story. The main character, a young woman during the Nazi occupation of Paris, was raised as an orphan living at Chateau Lafayette, wonders who her parents were and what happened to them. We also follow a connected storyline from WWI, as well as the story of Lafayette and his wife.

The storylines were engaging, and as the plot progresses, you learn that they are connected by more than just the location in which these women lived.

The writing is very good and I was drawn in by the variety of personal struggles the people of pairs experienced during their time in history.

If you enjoy history, I highly recommend The Women of Chateau Lafayette. Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for providing me with an advanced digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

4.5*
In the wilds of France, away from the bustle of Paris, lies Chateau Lafayette, the castle made famous by its owner Gilbert Lafayette. Orphaned young, Gilbert was raised on the estate. At the age of sixteen it was arranged for him to marry fourteen-year old Adrienne. It was a love match that would sustain them both through tumultuous times. When the French populace rose up and the country was enmeshed in the French Revolution, the family found refuge in Chavaniac, Lafayette’s chateau. But it was earlier, during the American Revolution that Lafayette made his name. He helped the American patriots defeat the British which resulted in his French countrymen considering him a standard-bearer of liberty. But even his reputation wouldn’t later save him from the disgruntled French masses bent on overthrowing the aristocracy.

Adrienne is the key character in the story of Chateau Lafayette. She develops into a stalwart, supportive wife who is steadfast in her devotion to her husband and children. Chavaniac is the castle where the family often finds respite from the chaos of Paris and Versailles. Her story is powerful, touching and remarkable and her relationship with her husband is moving and stunning. It demonstrates a young woman who becomes a hero in her own right.

During WWI the Chateau became a home for orphans and gave an American socialite a real purpose. Beatrice is married to William Chanler, a wealthy man who was one of Teddy Roosevelt’s Rough Riders. Beatrice rose from a humble childhood to popularity on the stage, and finally, to the heights of society. Her husband was estranged from her and their children while he pursued his need for adventure. Deprived of a satisfying marriage and needing a purpose, Beatrice ends up finding fulfillment at Chateau Chavaniac. Like Adrienne’s story, this is based upon the real Beatrice Chanler, following her marital strife and her work to help French orphans at Lafayette’s former home.

Chavaniac also plays a critical role in the story of the third central character, Marte. She’s a fictional creation based upon the many orphans raised at Chateau Lafayette. Hitler’s army has advanced into France and Marte is now a teacher at Chavaniac. True to its heritage, the chateau proves once again to be a haven during times of chaos. It also provides shelter for many Jewish children trying to avoid the Germans. Marte plays a key role in saving the children and like her predecessors, Adrienne and Beatrice, uses the chateau to advance the cause of liberty.

Dray’s book is powerful and memorable. It flawlessly blends the fictional story of Marte into the stories of the real women and the actual historical events. All the women are strong, courageous and determined to stand by their convictions. The chateau is beautifully described and plays a monumental role in weaving the three timelines together. Dray has added Author’s Notes explaining the facts and fictional details of her book. Her background information is helpful in fully comprehending the reality of the women, the events and the places in the book. Powerful and totally satisfying, this should appeal to all lovers of history.

Thank you to NetGalley, Berkley Publishing Group, and Penguin Publishing Group for the opportunity to read and review this book before it's publication date! This in no way affected my review, opinions are my own.

I absolutely LOVED this book - the three timelines worked so well together, and each timeline was so completely engrossing it was near impossible for me to stop reading! Every time I would get to the end of a chapter, I knew I had to keep going to get back to that timeline ... which would happen again at the next chapter for the 2nd timeline, and then again at the next chapter for the 3rd timeline. Read, Repeat, Read, Repeat, Read, Repeat! (Sleep recommended, but not required.)

I was expecting for this book to take some time to get into, and probably to take a good amount of time to finish (576 pages, hello), but honestly I flew through it. It was well written with believable characters, three intricately researched and developed plots, and a compulsively readable framework.

Speaking of research: the historical research that was put into this novel by Stephanie Dray is absolutely FASCINATING - including the fact that during her research, she seemed to come up with heretofore UNKNOWN information about the heroine of the 1917 timeline. I mean?? That's amazing???

All of that being said, it's a brilliant book and I cannot recommend it highly enough. Whether you're an avid historical fiction reader or you want to dip your toes into the genre, this is a fantastic option. I will definitely be on the lookout for more of her books in the future.

What an amazing read. You can tell the research and love that Stephanie put into this book. Stunning characters are brought to life in an incredible place called Chateau Lafayette. What extraordinary lives these three women led - way ahead of their time and place. I think this is her best book yet. This is definitely a must read for everyone who enjoys history and historical fiction.

I just had the pleasure of reading The Woman of Chateau Lafayette. I loved the going back & forth from meeting Adrienne Lafayette to Beatrice during WW I to Marthe in WW II. I knew nothing about Adrienne Lafayette and it was wonderful to read about her and the heroine she was in her own rite, I never heard of Beatrice Chandler and have since read everything I could about her. Stephanie Dray made these women come alive and weaved a story that was a must read for historical novel fans.

The Women of Chateau Lafayette by Stephanie Dray
Publication Date: March 30, 2021
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Description from NetGalley...
“Most castles are protected by men. This one by women.

A founding mother...1774. Gently-bred noblewoman Adrienne Lafayette becomes her husband, the Marquis de Lafayette’s political partner in the fight for American independence. But when their idealism sparks revolution in France and the guillotine threatens everything she holds dear, Adrienne must renounce the complicated man she loves, or risk her life for a legacy that will inspire generations to come.

A daring visionary...1914. Glittering New York socialite Beatrice Chanler is a force of nature, daunted by nothing—not her humble beginnings, her crumbling marriage, or the outbreak of war. But after witnessing the devastation in France firsthand, Beatrice takes on the challenge of a lifetime: convincing America to fight for what's right.

A reluctant resistor...1940. French school-teacher and aspiring artist Marthe Simone has an orphan's self-reliance and wants nothing to do with war. But as the realities of Nazi occupation transform her life in the isolated castle where she came of age, she makes a discovery that calls into question who she is, and more importantly, who she is willing to become.
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Thank you to @netgalley @berkleypub for the digital ARC in return for my honest review.
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My thoughts...
Epic! Both in the size (over 500 pages) and story spanning within three wars. Reading about strong, inspiring and empowering women will never grow old, but there was something more to the three women in this book. Based on the true story of a Chateau Lafayette and the women connected to it by its’ legacy, Dray did a remarkable job in bringing these women to life. Their strengths were clear, individualized and distinct. The three timelines and stories wove themselves so well. I was hooked and got lost in the book. A story about learning from the strength of the women who came before

"The Women of Chateau Lafayette" is based on the true story of an extraordinary castle in the heart of France. Most castles are protected by powerful men. This one by women.
1. A founding mother of France and America, Adrienne Lafayette becomes her husband's political partner in the fight for independence. She must choose to renounce the complicated man she loves or risk her life for a legacy that will inspire generations to come.
2. A daring visionary and New York socialite, Beatrice Astor Chanler is a force of nature, daunted by nothing--not her humble beginnings, her crumbling marriage, or the outbreak of war. She takes on the challenge of a lifetime: convincing America to fight for what's right.
3. A reluctant resistor, French schoolteacher and aspiring artist Marthe Simone has an orphan's self-reliance and wants nothing to do with war. But as the realities of Nazi occupation transform her life in the isolated castle where she lives, works and teaches, she makes a discovery that calls into question who she is, and more importantly, who she is willing to become.
This book is really long! But the three strong female lead characters are inspiring and courageous examples of what a woman can do when she's defending the people and causes she believes in.
The author does a good job of connecting the dots and the characters. I fell in love with the Lafayette castle and wish I could visit!
I didn't like how the chapters alternate between characters. When I took a break from reading, I'd return to the story and need a few pages to remember the storyline.
For readers interested in a sweeping novel about one castle and three strong women who share a vision and dream, this book if for you.

This was such an impressive work. The novel is told from three points of view and in three (notable and) different periods of time. I found myself equally interested in the stories of Beatrice, Marthe and Adrienne. The three women are strong and memorable characters based on actual women (in some cases), each with a unique story all of which are connected. I admire Stephanie Dray's writing - she includes great historic details in each time period and develops the stories and characters for them all - it is almost like three connected novels. So impressive! I loved the stories and the strength and resilience of the women. It was an absolute pleasure to read.

This ambitious saga follows three distinctive women across 150 years and four different wars: the American and French Revolutions and World Wars I and II. Each would have been impressive on its own, but braided together, they create a multifaceted anthem of Franco-American relations and feminine courage. The tales are united across time by a common theme – the tireless pursuit of liberty – and a special place which comes to symbolize it: the Chteau de Chavaniac, a large manor house in the Auvergne region of central France where the Marquis de Lafayette was born.

Marthe Simone had grown up at the orphanage at Chavaniac, and now, in 1940, she teaches the children recuperating from illness at the preventorium there. A talented artist, she accepts a commission to paint portraits of the cteau’s best-known mistress, Adrienne Lafayette, since the Vichy regime may find the 18th-century marquise less objectionable than her famous husband. As times grow darker, and Marthe’s interpersonal relationships shift in surprising ways, she must decide what risks to take, and who to trust.

In July 1914, colorful American socialite Beatrice Chanler debates separating from her estranged millionaire husband as war erupts in Europe. A caring mother who’s aghast at seeing wounded children while traveling through Amiens, Beatrice determines to back the war effort despite President Wilson’s declaration of neutrality. Over a century earlier, Adrienne de Noailles, only a teenager when she marries Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette, makes innumerable sacrifices to support her husband while he fights for the American colonists, but her husband’s principles imperil the couple as tides turn during their country’s own revolution.

Based on original research, as explained in the wonderful author’s note, this novel provides satisfying, deep immersion into all three timelines. All three heroines (two are real, one fictional) feel dimensionally real, and their actions are truly inspiring.

(from the Historical Novels Review, May 2021)

Although Stephanie Dray books have been on my radar for a while, this is the first of hers that I have picked up and I must say she has a talent for writing historical fiction.

Be no mistake...this book is HUGE. It’s not for the casual historical fiction reader. It comprises 3 women’s stories and each of these women could have had a book all their own.

- One woman, Adrienne, the French wife of the notorious Lafayette who was instrumental in the American Revolution.
- One woman, Beatrice, an American socialite/actress responsible for creating aid and shelter for children during WW1.
- One woman, Marthe, an orphan who grows up in the previously mentioned shelter and is coming of age during WW2 trying to figure out who she really is.

All of these woman are tied to Lafayette in some way and to one another. Some of the time lines are throughout a lifetime and some are a bit shorter but they are each compelling and fascinating to read.

There were times when all I wanted to do was read Adriennes plot, but then something else would happen somewhere else and I would be drawn to another women’s story. Like I said, it’s a big book, so it’s not really one that you can binge through but I also found that there weren’t too many dull moments as well. It was a portion of history I didn’t know much about so I drank in the history of the different time periods surrounding the Lafayette heritage.

Maybe the only thing that rubbed me wrong was that in each plot there was an infidelity sub plot which I always hate reading about. The more I got into the story though I understood more or less why it was incorporated in there and it was after all historically accurate and truthful to the people they were portrayed after.

This was a solid 4 star for me and I would definitely recommend it to historical fiction fans and those who have read Drays books in the past.

Thank you to Berkley for my e copy of the book! All opinions voiced are my own.

First of all, I would like to thank Berkley for giving me an ebook ARC of this book as thanks for participating in the cover reveal last year, and apologize that I was unable to get it reviewed prior to the release. I was really struggling getting through it as an ebook and now that I have read the whole thing (mostly—see below), I can see why. There were so many characters that were interconnected across multiple timelines that I needed the ability to be able to flip back and forth more easily than one can do with an ebook, especially when you're using a 12-year-old Kindle Touch that doesn't have PageFlip. So thank you and apologies.

I had a really hard time getting into this book at first. The time-skipping was really jarring, particularly the 18th-century time jumps. The World War I and II timelines were so well-connected (and this becomes more apparent the further into the book you get) that it didn't totally take you out of the story, but Adrienne's timeline was so far distant from the other two that every time it switched to her I would have no clue what was going on, and every time it switched back to the other timelines I would have no clue what was going on. This was absolutely destroying my enjoyment of the book. On top of it, Adrienne's storyline was incredibly rushed. While Beatrice's and Marthe's stories were written at a pretty normal "novel" pace, with good amounts of detail and dialogue, Adrienne's chapters were broad brush strokes, summaries of sometimes years at a time that would slow down for half a page to give us a little bit of dialogue before careening back into summary mode. This whiplash pace-change yanked me out of the book even more than the massive time jumps. At about 100 pages in, around I believe the third or fourth chapter of that, I took a step back and flipped through the book, counting the number of chapters and the years attached to each one. This is what I discovered:

"So, if I counted correctly, it looks like Adrienne gets 18 chapters total, which leaves 46 for Beatrice and Marthe (didn't check if they were evenly distributed, but if they are, that leaves 23 chapters for each of them). Both Beatrice's and Marthe's stories cover approximately 5 years, spread over 23 chapters. Adrienne's story covers 33 years. This is why the pacing is so bad, cramming 33 years into 18 chapters, most of which are only 4-6 pages long, is just way too rushed." (quote from my reading progress on Goodreads)

Essentially, Adrienne's story is written with novella pacing rather than novel, and yet it covers the majority of the woman's life. I was really disappointed by that. While Beatrice's and Marthe's stories were linked almost inextricably, Adrienne was only connected to them very tenuously. Including Adrienne in this book that really honestly was Beatrice and Marthe's singular shared story was a huge injustice to her. She should have gotten her own book.

Anyway, these jumps to and from Adrienne were yanking me out of the book and ruining my enjoyment of it, so around the 100 page mark I decided to just skip her chapters entirely. And I didn't appear to miss anything important to the rest of the book. Seriously, if you can skip one of the narrators entirely and not miss a single thing from the plot, the narrator shouldn't be there. Adrienne Lafayette deserved her own book, and Beatrice and Marthe deserved their own book without having to share (slightly less than) a third of it with someone who doesn't belong.

That said, with Adrienne's chapters removed, my enjoyment of the book improved exponentially. Marthe's and Beatrice's stories were so tightly interwoven that an exciting part of the mystery of the book became trying to figure out how they were connected, especially since the majority of the WWI characters were still around in WWII and all played a role in the mystery. There was a lot of intrigue and suspense, and romance as well. This book really was about Beatrice at its core, and after reading about how the author connected with her family, it made me really gratified to see her story finally get its time to shine. With the Adrienne chapters removed, I would easily give this a five-star rating; however, the rushed pace of the Adrienne chapters combined with the fact that they're completely superfluous to the story knocks a whole star off for me.

This is the sort of book that you can read multiple times to catch all the hidden layers of meaning. At some point in the future I would like to try reading each of the three stories in chronological order. It's possible I may have enjoyed Adrienne more if I'd had the time to read her whole story through without interruption. But regardless, Beatrice and Marthe's shared story is very good and will stick with me for a long time.

this book is chockfull of history! i was not aware of this part of history, so found it very interesting and enlightening. i liked the connections, even though it took me a while to put it altogether. i loved the stories of strong women who put forth so much and sacrificed during the wars. it is a long book that requires taking one's time to appreciate it.

Not knowing that much about Lafayette, I was happy to read and review this novel. From his loving supportive wife to the young women living in the Chateau during WWII and beyond, this well written historical fiction gives a brilliant picture of Lafayette and his enduring heritage to the world. Well worth the read, and recommended!

In this book, the narrative is divided between three female protagonists during pivotal times in French and American history. Though Adrienne Lafayette, Beatrice Astor Chanler and Marthe Simone are from different eras and classes, the shared commonality is duty to the greater good. What each face are the perils of war yet still fight in the despite how futile it seems. With Adrienne’s vision for Chateau Lafayette, a home for orphans and the ill, it sets a foundation that is strengthened in generations to come.

“Our cause is just, and righteousness must prevail. If we must perish to see that it does, it will be to our everlasting glory, even if no one remembers our names.”

Though the sacrifices made by Adrienne were significant, her POV often fell short in that there was often more telling than action making it harder for me to connect with her. Beatrice is definitely a dynamo of a character. Because of her past, she wasn’t about to settle in the many roles she assumed. Plus, her relationship with William is incendiary due to their formidable personalities. As for Marthe, she has so much heart despite her sense of loss. There were times when I was zipping through the pages to see what decision she was going to make next.

“Maybe you fall in love with me some day. Or maybe you leave me for someone else. That’s life. But we have to survive it to live it.”

With the plot focusing on the lasting mark of these memorable women, the male characters provide a counterbalance showing the restrictions of the eras but also how they recognize their unstoppable drive. The last quarter of the story was action packed and full of emotional impact. Certainly, this was a long read but covers much historical material in an adept narrative offering parallels in the lives of these characters.



*An ARC was provided in exchange for an honest review.*

Stephanie Dray's talent really shines in her The Women of Chateau Lafayette. What an awesome read! I highly recommend it. Five stars.

The Chateau Lafayette has been the center of drama and history for hundreds of years. This book tells the stories of a few of the women who have lived in the Chateau through three different wars: The American Revolution, World War I and World War II. Some of the characters are real and the author tried her best to weave together true historical accounts of their lives. Some of the characters are amalgamations of people who existed and what they might have experienced at the Chateau Lafayette. I especially loved learning about Adrienne Lafayette and her time as that is a very unique storyline. The WWI and WWII timelines were less compelling for me. Overall, a strong piece of historical fiction that tells the often overlooked stories of women.