I love historical fiction and I really wanted to learn more about Margaret Fuller. Unfortunately this novel glosses over all the revolutionary things she did - interview women at Sing Sing and travel the frontier, for instance. I just wasn't impressed with the storyline and it was not engaging.

I really enjoyed Finding Margaret Fuller.
Like Pataki, I had never heard of her before and yet she seems to have accomplished so much -- it's clear that if Margaret had been a man, we would all know her name!
The story is interesting and well written, even though there were times when I wanted to shake her (particularly in Concord at Bush), Margaret was a woman of her time, not mine, so I suppose she should be excused for putting up with jealous women and men who basically cheated her out of money she earned! But thank heavens for Horace Greeley!
Adding to my enjoyment is that a lot of the book takes place in the greater Boston area, where I live, since I am familiar with a lot of the historic sites mentioned in the story.
The last few pages, which deal with her family's death are so sad, particularly since they were practically home. Her manuscript being lost forever is almost the worst part, but at least her name lives on, in part due to the efforts of Allison Pataki.
If you like historical or women's fiction, you must read Finding Margaret Fuller.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for an e-galley of Finding Margaret Fuller.

Allison Pataki writes wonderful historical fiction based off of often overlooked women. Specifically women who have impacted how our lives are today. After reading The Magnificent Lives of Marjorie Post, I knew I had to read her newest novel.

I had never heard of Margaret Fuller, despite the famous circles she ran in. Having rubbed elbows with Waldo, Alcott, Thoreau, and Hawthorne, Margaret was exposed to some of the greatest minds of that generation and thus became a celebrated thinker and author within those circles. As we followed her during her career, it became apparent she was adventurous, brave, and clearly not afraid of doing things outside the social norms for women.

Finding Margaret Fuller was an excellent read from start to finish, full of laughter, heart break, and the trials of being a thinking female when that was not the expectation.

Best-selling novelist Allison Pataki blends a sweeping historical drama with a cast of some of America's greatest writers and thinkers. In the 1830's, Margaret Fuller, a bright and remarkably well read woman, develops a reputation as a gifted writer while navigating society's narrow expectations of a single woman. She becomes a friend and muse to Ralph Wldo Emmerson, while he mentors her and she becomes part of a circle that includes Henry David Thoreau, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and the young Louisa May Alcott. But her literary adventures in America pale compared to what awaits her when she is assigned to cover a burgeoning revolution in Italy. Pataki's fictional version of Fuller's true story turns these iconic figures into flesh and blood people with passionate hearts and minds, and she evokes rural Massachusetts and Europe in chaos with similarly evocative detail. Barrie Kreinik's rich, expressive narration is a brilliant match for Pataki's storytelling, both passionate and elegant. It's a remarkably entertaining story about a truly remarkable woman.

I am a long time fan of Allison Pataki and deeply admire the research and historical accuracy she takes care to utilize in each book she writes. Finding Margaret Fuller was no different! I appreciate that she identifies lesser known female historical figures and writes their stories as if the reader is living alongside them; the experience is immersive, educational, but never forsaking entertainment. While this one did not live up to the greatness of her previous book, The Magnificent Lives of Marjorie Post, I grew fond of Margaret and her gang of literary greats. As a former student of English and Music, it was nice to learn a bit more about Thoreau, Emerson, Chopin, and Sand. I have been recommending this one to anyone who admires historical fiction. Thank you Allison for another amazing historical treat; I am not so fond of historical fiction but I never hesitate to pick up Pataki's novels!

I've enjoyed Allison Pataki's books on the lives of other historical women and 'Finding Margaret Fuller' doesn't disappoint. I too hadn't heard of Margaret Fuller, while being familiar with Emerson, Thoreau and Hawthorne. Such a leading lady of the Transcendental period and tragically lost at an early age. Who knows how her future life and our history would have changed had she lived longer. Definitely a must read for women's history.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC

Review will be posted on 3/9/24
It's 1836 in Concord, Massachusetts and Margaret Fuller is spending time at Ralph Waldo Emerson's house. He is her mentor and friend, which brings her into a literary social circle like none other with Henry David Thoreau, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and the Alcott family. Margaret is known to be highly educated, well-read, and extremely intelligent. She is unconventional for her time in that she has no interest in settling down with a man, but has higher aspirations for herself. Over the years, she has taken on jobs, such as teacher, journalist, writer, editor, and more. Some of these jobs she never was paid for, but once she writes an important book on women, her career takes off. She holds conversations with like-minded women to discuss important issues of the time and before she knows it, she is offered a job at the New York Tribune as the first female war correspondent. Her boss sends her to Europe to write about Italy's fight for independence. While there are many important events that occur in Italy, the most important is meeting her future husband, Giovanni Ossoli. He is a Roman soldier and not someone she would necessarily see herself with, but sparks fly and they end up having a child together. She must escape Italy's fighting more than once to bring her child to safety with the end goal of hopefully getting back to America. Allison Pataki's sweeping saga Finding Margaret Fuller highlights the life of an important woman often forgotten in the pages of history.

Margaret Fuller is captivating. I am not sure Pataki made her entirely interesting every second of Finding Margaret Fuller as some parts were pretty slow. The first half of the book where Margaret struggles to find her place in Massachusetts and jumps from job to job is a bit boring, to be honest. Her romantic tension with Ralph Waldo Emerson definitely kept it interesting, but I knew she had bigger fish to fry as he was already married and seemed pretty needy. For me, the story took off once she was sent to Italy as a war correspondent. I found this really captivating and her life in Italy jumped off the page. By this point, like any good biographical fiction, I was googling facts about Margaret, because I wanted to see what would happen to her during Italy's fight for independence and was surprised by some of the details about her life.

I was also surprised that I didn't know much about Margaret Fuller. She is an important person when it comes to women's rights and Transcendentalism, so I am glad Pataki is highlighting her amazing life in Finding Margaret Fuller. I think readers can agree that Margaret led an important life, one to be remembered, and even though Pataki kept a slow pace at times in Finding Margaret Fuller, I think it was an important and very memorable read--one that I kept thinking about long after I turned the page.

Are you familiar with Margaret Fuller? Are you a fan of Allison Pataki? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.

Allison Pataki’s meticulous research and well-honed writing ushers the reader into Margaret Fuller’s world. Do you recognize her name? If not, once you become acquainted with her, you will not soon forget her or the force with which she lived. Her world included well-known contemporaries such as Waldo and Lidian Emmerson, Henry David Thoreau, Nathaniel and Sophia Hawthorne, Bronson and Abba Alcott, and Louisa May Alcott with her sisters. If you ever wanted to meet some of America’s nineteenth-century thinkers and literary greats, this is an opportunity not to be missed. You only need to turn to the first page and begin your journey to Finding Margaret Fuller.

Like many literature lovers I’m well versed in the Transcendentalists’ works - Emerson, Hawthorne, Thoreau and Alcott. I’ve been to
Boston, Concord and Walden Pond but never heard of their contemporary, friend and muse, Margaret Fuller.
Allison Pataki perfectly emulated Margaret Fuller’s voice and gives the reader an inside look to Margaret’s private thoughts and moments. We walk with her and Ralph Waldo Emerson through Concord, with play with little Louisa May and float down the river with Thoreau to where Hawthorne is waiting outside the Old Manse. Margaret Fuller speaks out for women’s rights and stirs the heart of a young Elizabeth Cady Stanton. She’s the first woman reporter for the New York Tribune and becomes a foreign correspondent. In Rome she finds love and her home though its gripped with revolutionary war. The reader joins Margaret on all her adventures understanding her heart and her fears. I highly recommend this novel to romantics, lovers of historical fiction and literature. More of us need to know of Margaret Fuller and all she inspired. She’s a woman truly worthy of a legacy.

Excellent book! It seems well researched. It's definitely well written. Margaret's story is amazing.

I loved this story! Margaret Fuller was such an interesting woman and was so ahead of her time! I have multiple patrons at my library that I will be recommending this book too. One person I have recommended this book to is my mother, who already enjoyed Allison Pataki's books before, and she absolutely loved it! Thank you Netgally and Random House for allowing me to read this early!

what a wonderful book. as always partake delivers. the characters are wonderful. had me do research to see the actual people and their biography. great for discussion. lots to talk about. easy read and totally enjoyable.

Margaret Fuller was a fascinating woman and it is thanks to Allison Pataki that I now know how forward thinking she was. I had heard of Margaret Fuller, but knew nothing about her. Margaret was a writer and an avid believer in educaton and opportunity for women. Almost all the characters in the novel have recognizable names and these were Margaret's friends. Amazing! She was a forward thinker and the first female column writer for a major newspaper. This is the best kind of historical novel. It leaves the reader yearning to do their own research into a fascinating subject.

⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

Margaret Fuller is a force to be reconned with. From her famous friends (Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, Nathanial Hawthorne, Elizabeth Barrett-Browning, a young Louisa May Alcott) to her commitment to writing (journalist, translator, editor, writer) to being a member of the transcendentalism movement and an advocate for women’s rights. To say she was remarkable is an understatement.

Heavily character driven at the beginning, I had a hard time getting into the beginning of this story. It was very slow with its flowery (1800 appropriate) speech and name dropping. Although revered by her famous friends, she seemed to be taken advantage of, mainly due to her being a woman. The story dragged for me until about 2/3 of the way in, then seemed to follow more of a story of her time overseas until her dramatic ending, which is hinted at in the first chapter. The writing is excellent and research top notch. Even though this wasn’t a hit for me, I enjoyed learning about this amazing women who was ahead of her time. I recommend Ms. Pataki’s earlier books, The Magnificent Lives of Marjorie Post and Beauty in the Broken Places.

Thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for this ARC. This is my honest opinion.

Thank you to Net Galley, Ballantine Books and Allison Pataki for the opportunity to read Finding Margaret Fuller.
I recently saw Allison Pataki on The Today Show and immediately looked for this book on Net Galley. I was so happy to receive it! I thoroughly
enjoyed every minute of it. This book is beautifully written with vivid and detailed writing. I had never heard of Margaret Fuller but I found her to be fascinating, dedicated and admirable. I loved the descriptions of all of her travels and experiences throughout the world. I felt like I was there with her instead of just reading about it.
Margaret was a bit ahead of her time. She was not fully accepted but what strength and convictions she had! Every young girl should read these experiences. Life is not always easy but obviously hard work will pay off. I especially liked her travels to Harvard and the feeling she must have had sitting in the library. So simple yet so dramatic.
I look forward to more historical fiction from this author and will definitely look into her backlist.

Once again, Allison Pataki has shown herself to be the master of biographical fiction. So much has been written about the Transcendentalists of Concord, Thoreau, Emerson and Alcott, but Margaret Fuller has become a lost woman. Allison Pataki brings her to life in this fascinating, beautiful novel. She gives us a portrait of a woman who was far ahead of her time in so many ways. She was one of the founders of the feminist movement, a writer, international newspaper reporter and so much more.

The book is rich in period details, and her descriptions of Concord, Italy, and everywhere Margaret Fuller walked are so real you feel like you're right there with her. Once again Ms. Pataki has given us a work of fiction that feels truer than any biography could.

How do we not know more about this brilliant woman, Margaret Fuller? I am glad that her story was told.

When I first learned about this book, I was excited to read it. The book shows that the author did extensive research. It was fun reading details about the lives of all the great authors (Hawthorne, Emerson, Alcott, etc.).

I like the way the story unfolded. The author is excellent at writing details and descriptions. I could "see" all that Margaret saw, and I felt that I was there with her.

I recommend this book. I look forward to reading Pataki's other books.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine Books for a chance to review this book.

Link to Amazon review: https://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/R3SQJ19J0SKHJK?ref=pf_ov_at_pdctrvw_srp

In 1836, a group of "thinkers" was getting national attention. Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, Nathaniel Hawthorn, the Alcott's (with daughter Louisa May) all live near each other when "the most well-read person in America" is invited to visit- Margaret Fuller. As a woman before her time, Margaret is an intelligent writer and scholar and makes friends with the Walden Pond crowd. She goes on the be a journalist and have internation fame; this is her story.

Margaret meets many, many well-known people in America and Europe. You would think all that name dropping and her adventuresome life would be interesting. It might be, but not in this book. The pacing of this book was so slow, and it felt like a textbook. I have loved many Pataki novels before, and I don't know if it was the subject matter or the writing, but this one was not a win for me. It took me over three weeks to get thru it when I normally read a book in 2-4 days. I stuck it out and the conclusion is interesting, but then little is made of it when it should have been riveting. I suspect poor editing is partly to blame for this as you can tell it was heavily researched and enthusiastically written. I look forward to Pataki's next endeavor and I hope it's better than this one.

Thank you to Netgalley for the advance copy for review.

Allison Pataki books are just awesome! I love learning so much about a person I hadn't heard of before this story!

Margaret Fuller isn't a name I was familiar with, until this book. And wow, what a fascinating lady and her life was simply awesome! I loved learning more about her - and all her famous friends, name after name of literati and influential people. Her life was so interesting - and this book is so well written! I really enjoyed this historical read!

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for a temporary, digital ARC in return for my review.

Although I was an American Studies major and thought I knew “all” about the Transcendentalists, I somehow missed Margaret Fuller—except for a vague notion that she was somehow the seductress of the group. Amazing, isn’t it? And this was the ‘80’s!

Well, I am so glad I read this factionalized biography of the great, and I suppose misunderstood, Margaret Fuller. I was fascinated by her life, and shocked that her story is not better known today. I am in awe of her accomplishments, brought beautifully to life by Allison Pataki. I loved it, and recommend it highly to anyone who enjoys historical fiction based in the first half of the 18th century—and who thinks they know about the early leaders of the women’s movement.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.