Enjoyable historical fiction about a Transcendentalist who is little discussed although she was, at the time, as famous as Emerson, Alcott and Thoreau. Seemingly well researched, I wish the author had noted more of her sources and how she reconstructed this story - the Author's Notes explain some liberties that were taken, but not how truths were established. All in all, a bit too long but a worthwhile read.

Finding Margaret Fuller is a well researched historical fiction. This latest Allison Pataki novel will keep your attention from the very start until the very end, I highly recommend this book!

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Finding Margaret Fuller by Allison Pataki will be released on March 19, 2024, and I highly recommend this historical fiction! Set during the Transcendentalist period in America, this novel is beautifully written and imagines the life of a great but unknown female writer, Margaret Fuller. The story begins in Massachusetts where Margaret’s life crosses paths with Ralph Waldo Emerson, Nathanial Hawthorne, Henry Thoreau, and the Alcott family. Writing is important and satisfying to Fuller, but her livelihood as a teacher leaves her unfulfilled. Fuller begins to hold conversations, where women thinkers can express themselves. Living at a time when it was very difficult for women to progress and move forward with careers, Horace Greeley believes in Margaret and hires her as the first female editor of the New York Tribune. Eventually, he will send her to Europe as the first female correspondent, where Fuller will write about the Roman Revolution. Pataki did not disappoint me and did a wonderful job bringing Margaret Fuller’s story to life. An advocate for women’s rights, this is a story of a strong woman lost to history.

Described as "the Most Well-Read Person in America", Margaret Fuller is the transcendentalist from the mid-1800s Concord that is seemingly unknown as to compared to the others she associated with. While her life began in Cambridge, where she was eventually the first woman to be allowed to study in Harvard's library, Finding Margaret Fuller traces her life from there to Rome, where she was America's first full-time foreign news correspondent. Her friends and acquaintances read like a who's who of American and British Literature - Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, Edgar Allen Poe, Herman Melleville, William Wordsworth, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, George Sand. This historical novel traces the journey of Elizabeth from 1836 to 1850. During this time, she spends transformational time in Concord, MA, before undertaking a countrywide journey, working in newspaper in New York and eventually traveling to Europe. Her story is an inspiration to women navigating life as a single woman. I cannot say enough good things about this book. I enjoyed the writing, the subject and the history. The author's notes at the end are valuable and a must read. I look forward to the next seemingly "lost to history" woman that Allison Pataki re-discovers and writes about! And I'll also likely be searching my library for the works of Margaret Fuller.

I received an Advanced Reader Copy via NetGalley (Ballantine Books, an imprint of Random House)

How is it that the names of Emerson, Thoreau, Alcott and Hawthorne are familiar to most readers - but the name of Margaret Fuller is not? Margaret Fuller was not only a contemporary and friend of these literary giants, but they were admirers of her writing! In “Finding Margaret Fuller” Allison Pataki brings us the story of Margaret Fuller’s amazing, and ultimately tragic, life. A gifted writer, an early supporter of equal rights, a reporter for Horace Greeley’s New York Tribune, and the very first foreign correspondent, Margaret Fuller is brought to life in Pataki’s sweeping novel. It is a mark of a great historical fiction novel when I want to read further about the character/s in the novel and that is certainly true of Allison Pataki’s wonderful “Finding Margaret Fuller”! Highly recommend! Many thanks to NetGalley for my ARC!
#FindingMargaretFuller #NetGalley

I had not heard of Margaret Fuller but love the writings of Allison Pataki. I was excited to read about Fuller. I had no idea the impact she made in just 40 short years on the women’s rights movement. I also learned a lot about the Transcendentalists and the connection there.
Wow what a great read that every history lover should read!!! Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for my ARC.

I love it when I read a book that teaches me something as well as entertaining me. This is one of those books. Margaret Fuller was an inspirational woman in the 19th Century. The author of the women’s movement one could easily say.

Beginning in 1863 when Margaret receives an invitation to Ralph Waldo Emerson’s to meet his transcendentalist friends at his home. And so begins her influential and exciting life mingling with what we now know are famous authors of the era.

She became an author, a publisher, a leader in women’s rights and is one of the most fascinating women I have been fortunate to read about.

There is so much in this Historical Fiction work, always with some truth and the beautiful writing of the author.

Thanks to Netgalley and RHPG/Ballentine for the review copy. All opinions are my own.

Coming March 19, 2024

Great historical fiction about a person I didn't know, but should. It was wonderful to learn about such a strong woman in times where it was very hard to be a strong woman. She helped to pave the way for all of us. I also really enjoyed the author's note at the end about her process. Very enlightening.

Written beautifully and showcasing a fascinating life of a woman who possessed a superior intellect in a time when knowledge for women wasn't deemed to be of any importance, a writer, one of the leaders of the women's rights movement, a Transcendentalist, and so much more, I was immediately pulled into this story and eager to learn more about this woman whom I knew nothing about besides her name, I kept on reading and… wow.

Excellent historical fiction and a definite recommendation.




Thank you to Ballantine Books and NetGalley for the DRC

Finding Margaret Fuller is a well researched historical fiction. I honestly never heard of her until this book. I knew of Alcott, Emerson, Poe, but not Fuller. As an history major I appreciate the amount of research that was done by the author. I personally did my own research while reading, as I just wanted to double check that the info was indeed correct.
It is a smooth read, descriptive enough to picture the scenes, without being over the top.
I would raccomand this book to anyone that is interested in history.

I liked this one and learning about Emerson and his contemporaries of his time . It was a good story well told and a captivating read
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for listening me review the book

Free spirited Margaret Fuller fights against the stereotypes and expectations of women. After spending a summer with Ralph Waldo Emerson, she quickly becomes one of his confidants. Through her connection with Emerson she meets many of the famous writers and Transcendentalists of the era. However, she longs for romance, and a story of her own.

The book started pretty slow. It took a while for me to get into the story and characters. I enjoyed reading about Fuller's time in Europe, however that was only a short part of the novel. I also enjoyed learning about famous novelists and how their lives were entwined. Overall,, 3 out of 5 stars.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. If you enjoyed “The Magnificent Lives of Marjorie Post” by this author, you’ll also enjoy this book. If you have not read “Marjorie Post” or “Margaret Fuller” by Ms. Pataki, you’re missing out.

This author does a superb job researching the protagonist. The protagonist is based on a real person, and the book presents Margaret Fuller in a detailed, interesting approach. I was amazed at what I learned about Margaret Fuller. In addition to getting to know and love Margaret Fuller, the reader gains great insight into many authors and prominent people of those times, such as Henry David Thoreau, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Louisa May Alcott, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Walt Whitman, Melville, Edgar Allan Poe, William Wordsworth, Frederick Douglass, Frederic Chopin. Details of how Margaret Fuller, a woman ahead of her time, was able to have a prolific writing career. She was a woman of many “firsts:” First woman to research in the Harvard library to study, work and write, America’s first full-time foreign news correspondent, and many more “firsts.”

I enjoyed learning about this woman and think you will too. Read this book. Learn and grow from this outstanding woman. You will not be disappointed.

I received a complimentary copy of this book through NetGalley. Thanks to the publisher, Ballantine Books, an Imprint of Random House, and the author for the privilege to read this advanced copy. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

WHAT a treat! A completely captivating, deeply emotional historical novel about a woman I knew little about, but came to love. All I knew about Margaret Fuller (1810-50) before reading this book was that she was a Unitarian-Universalist and associated with the transcendentalist philosophy that developed in the 1820s and 1830s in New England. Others in that crowd (all residents of Concord, MA) include essayist/poet Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882), author Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864), naturalist Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862), and educator Bronson Alcott (1799-1888 - also Louisa May's Daddy). Why we have all grown up knowing these names but not Fuller's is beyond me.

For me to say that Margaret Fuller was a genius way ahead of her time must be one of the world's great understatements:

• She was a self-supporting, career woman at a time when lone women couldn't go anywhere without chaperones and a woman's only acceptable options were either marriage or spinsterhood. (And spinsterhood was NOT very acceptable.)

• Fuller was a widely published woman author at a time when almost no American women were published.

• She was the first female editor of a major newspaper in New York City.

•She is considered by many (including Susan B. Anthony 1820-1906) to be the inspiration behind the American feminism movement.

And Fuller's work, success, and travel (through the U.S., England, France, and Italy) put her smack in the middle of many of the most prominent writers, artists, and thinkers of her day. Aside from the names referenced above, she hung out with abolitionist Frederick Douglass (1817-1895), publisher Horace Greeley (1811-1872), English romantic poet William Wordsworth (1770-1850), writer/critic Edgar Allen Poe (1809-1849), French novelist George Sand (1804-1876), and Polish composer Frédéric Chopin (1810-1849).

Bestselling author Allison Pataki does a remarkable job of combining rich research, believable dialogue, and creative character exploration -- all in the service of making Margaret Fuller come alive as a three dimensional human being.

I even found as I approached the end of the novel that I was stalling -NOT eager to finish the book. Because I didn't want to read about Fuller's tragic death. So, no surprise, I highly recommend this book.

Allison Pataki is one of my favorite writers so I was thrilled to see that she has another book that is soon to be published. Typically, I am familiar with her subjects and the brilliance of her writing and research bring the characters to life and give the reader a much greater understand and appreciation of who they were as a person as well as the time in which they lived. I have to admit, I had never heard of Margaret Fuller and was absolutely captivated from the first paragraph. This book is among the very best and satisfying historical fiction as it compelled me to do my own research on Fuller, her writing, and the tumultuous time in which she lived in Italy. The author's note was fascinating as to how Pataki herself was introduced to Fuller and I applaud and thank her for introducing readers to this remarkable figure in our history.

You may wonder who Margaret Fuller is, as did I. We find Margaret in 1836 in Massachusetts accepting an invitation from Ralph Waldo Emerson (Waldo) to meet his friends and peers at his home in Concord. Among them we find Henry David Thoreau (Thoreau), Bronson Alcott and family (Louisa May Alcott’s father), Nathanial Hawthorne and more. She is the only woman in the group, a woman who is brilliant, fiercely independent, a muse to Waldo. Margaret’s temperament and personality is such that she has a wandering soul, craving challenges, adventure. Her struggles are also financial as she is the breadwinner of the family, supporting her mother after her father passed away. The conventions of that era wer such that women were thought of as chattel, not as smart as men, and certainly not having minds of their own. Margaret was the forerunner of equality for women, an activist for women’s rights and an advocate for human rights, equality for all. She was a writer, a hostess for women-only literary salons all while defying the conventions of the times. Through her notoriety she met with Horace Greeley who offered her a position as a foreign correspondent. While in Italy she met with Frederic Chopin, Walt Whitman, George Sand and more, as well as becoming involved in the unification of Italy.
This was an amazing story, yet as I read this I felt saddened to think that for the most part of her life until Italy she was a lonely person. She lived at a time during big historical events. She lived big always wanting more, wanting bigger adventures, someone who wanted better possibilities for women. Way before women were told to burn their bras there was Margaret Fuller, a person who was born way beyond the era she lived in.
Well researched and certainly well written, Ms. Pataki brought this protagonist to life along with a cast of characters that were also most definitely larger than life. The events of the times and the people involved literally jumped off the pages This novel will resonate with me long after reading it. Highly recommended. My thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine Books for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

No one tells the life story of real, historically important, people like Allison Partake! She brings to life characters from the past, expertly weaving fact and fiction. This current title will have you rereading the stories of America's most infamous authors!

“Finding Margaret Fuller” by Allison Pataki was a remarkable story about the woman who should be acknowledged as the founder of the woman’s movement in America. I am ashamed to say I never heard her name before picking up this book even though I am totally familiar with her Trancendentalist peers like Emerson, Hawthorn, Thoreau, Douglas etc,. She was an author, first female publisher, teacher, and advocate of women’s rights. She broke down the barriers that prevented women of her generation to lead successful independent lives. Her story is epic and it has left me wanting to know much more about her legacy. This is a fascinating, beautifully written, and well researched story that I know you will enjoy.

Thank you NetGalley, Random House Publishing Group, and the author for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

LOVED Allison Pataki’s latest book, Findinf Margaret Fuller! It was fascinating, captivating and taught me so much! It will keep your attention from the very start until the end with a million emotions in between. Highly recommend!

Thank you to netgalley for the arc in exchange of an honest review.

OMGG, I FREAKING LOVED THIS BOOK, I was sobbing my eyes out by the time I finished reading it, I was expecting the ending but I wasn't expecting it to hurt so much, It was like someone took a knife to my soul, multiple times, slowly slicing away, my heart was shattered, like nothing could've prepared me for how much pain it brought.

Usually, I'm not a huge fan of non-fiction/biographies, but when I saw this on NetGalley and saw so many famous names in the blurb, I was instantly intrigued, because who was Margaret Fuller? and how was she an acquaintance or a friend to so many of these famous names? So I did what any sane person would do and requested the book, and I GOT ACCEPTED, I'm freaking honored by that.

Anyhow, I got started reading the book, and IT WAS FROM MARGARET'S POV, it was kinda shocking but I LOVED THAT, at first, I thought that I wouldn't be able to finish or find it boring and DNF, but that wasn't the case, personally at the first few chapters I thought it was at a really slow pace, but now I understand that it was because I was reading from her POV at the most important points of her life.

This is a book about a woman in the 19th century, who's America's most well-read person and a TOTAL BADASS, she's a freaking ICON, and I can't believe she lived 200 years ago, that seems so far away and it is and this WOMAN accomplished things, that we as modern women most of the time don't get to accomplish, I find that crazy.

To end all of this, PLEASE READ THIS BOOK, I BEG OF YOU, and thank you to Allison Pataki, Random House Publishing, and NetGalley for the ARC.