This is an Anastasia retelling set in the Gilded Age of Boston and New York. It is an interesting idea but not executed very well. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book

Joanna Shupe’s The Courtesan Duchess single-handedly began my obsession with historical romance. When I saw The Gilded Heiress on NetGalley, I knew I just had to read it. And she definitely delivered.

We’re introduced to Leo, a conman flying by the seat of his pants, as he evades capture by a policeman. Only for him to run into Josie, and ingenue, singing in the streets of Boston from her supper. From there it follows the well-loved tale of Anastasia.

This was a fast and charming read and I couldn’t put it down. I found myself choking back tears once Josie reunited with her parents, even though I knew that would happen. This was a top tier read for me and I’m looking forward to Ms. Shupe’s other books.

I have enjoyed the author’s work and I will definitely read her future titles, but this one really didn’t work for me.

The age gap between the MC’s- she’s 18, he’s ten years her senior was icky and I didn’t like his more predatory nature toward MFC (I understand that the MMC here is morally gray, it’s just not on my personal list of acceptable morally gray behavior in a MC - his second chapter threesome with sex workers didn’t help either). I realllly didn’t like Leo.

This was also a first person POV which I never love, and the writing much more simplistic than I’m used to seeing from the author. It didn’t appeal to me (serious reader of both histroms and retellings) at all.



Thank you to Avon and NetGalley for the DRC

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an early copy of this book.

I liked that the story traveled from Boston to New York City. However, I had a hard time immersing myself in the setting and time period. When reading Joanna Shupe novels, I'm usually immersed so that was unusual.

I didn't mind the age gap since this is a Joanna Shupe novel and this seems to be one of her favorite tropes.

I had a problem with understanding why as I, the reader, should want Josie and Leo together. Josie was constantly on his ass about every little thing (sometimes with good reason) and Leo is attracted to her. Okay, I get it, but I wanted a scene where they enjoyed their time together to understand why they should be together.

Throughout reading, I had a problem with Josie. Her moral compass doesn't waver even when something is done for legitimate reasons which led her to be awfully judgmental to Leo. But then will want Leo to throw out his newfound principles when it suits her. A side note is her constant repeating that she has taken care of herself all her life… but she doesn't act like it. If a character says this, I want proof of street smarts which Josie doesn't seem to have. If a character has to say they're independent on repeat, I don't believe it.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 (4.5 stars)

A dazzling Gilded Age romance with scandal, secrets, and sizzling chemistry!

Joanna Shupe once again proves she’s the queen of historical romance with The Gilded Heiress. Set against the glittering backdrop of 1890s New York, this story swept me away from the very first page. Heiress Josie Price is a bold, layered heroine—fiery, independent, and determined to reclaim her life on her terms. And Leo, our complex con-man hero? Let’s just say he’s dangerously charming in all the best (and occasionally frustrating) ways.

Their chemistry absolutely crackles, and Shupe handles their slow-burn tension and steamy scenes with confidence and flair. I loved how the plot wove in real historical figures and the underbelly of New York’s theatrical world, adding depth and drama. The story’s themes of identity, autonomy, and reinvention felt both relevant and emotionally resonant.

While Leo’s early choices may challenge some readers, his emotional journey and eventual redemption were satisfying and well-earned. This is a rich, compelling romance for those who love their heroes flawed and their heroines fierce.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Books for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review. I devoured this one and can’t wait to read what Joanna Shupe writes next!

This is exactly what I wanted out of an Anastasia retelling. It honored the cartoon, while injecting twists and turns that kept me inside Joanna Shupe's world. I couldn't put it down once I started to read it!

Typically I enjoy Joanna Shupe's historical romances and while I did end up liking The Gilded Heiress, it didn't hold my attention like her other works have. It felt a little long in places and the spark between Josie and Leo was a little lacking and the 'mystery' was easily solvable, not that that is a dealbreaker. However, once I got to know the characters and they got into NYC, it became more interesting and I found myself more engaged. A solid 3 star read.

If you’re looking for a light historical romance with Anastasia vibes, this was a fun read and worth checking out. I saw this book promoted around social media and immediately requested it based on the Anastasia nod as I loved that movie when I was little and was curious to see how it worked in this setting and as a romance novel.

The author definitely accomplished the Anastasia plot and it was a fun read. However there were a few things that were a bit of a miss for me.

At times it felt like the language didn’t quite fit the era, and in particular to the Boston accents felt a bit off.

There also felt like there could have been more tension between Leo and Josie throughout the book. One of the things people love about the romance from Anastasia is the tension that builds, and the clear nods of love between the two. I didn’t feel that very strongly in this book, it was there but by the ending I didn’t feel strongly about them staying together?

I also expected more of a plot twist at the end, it felt like there were far too many nods to what was going to happen. So when it did and that was all, it felt like a missed opportunity to cause a bit more chaos.

Overall though I enjoyed this for what it was and think it makes a fun light read. I would still recommend it to others despite the items I mentioned above.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this!

I appreciate that Joanna Shupe tried something different here--testing the waters with first-person narrative in historical romance, I assume to appeal to a younger audience of readers--but the story unfortunately didn't work well for me. The internal narrations felt too modern for the time period, which is a shame because the atmospheric details of Gilded Age New York were interesting and unique (and felt more authentic). I also couldn't warm up to Leo as a love interest, and I didn't feel any particular romantic tension between him and Josie, as opposed to just lust (usually Shupe does a great job of balancing the two, so this was disappointing). I realize based on recent articles that historical romance as a genre needs to innovate to pull in a new audience, but hopefully this is not indicative of where it is headed.

Thank you to Avon and Netgalley for providing an ARC for review!

Thank you for the advance copy. I enjoy Joanna Shupe’s stories. The Anastasia element appealed as well as the Broadway connections.

Welll....I didn't love this. I wasn't disappointed, per se, because I didn't read the synopsis or know anything about the author, but I was hoping to like it and didn't. It's a historical romance, but honestly, other than no cell phones, wearing dresses, and hailing hansom cabs, it was not historical. Their were certain words or phrases that seemed to be used for the sole purpose that they were era-appropriate, but most of the time they just spoke normally, so that was disorienting too. I didn't love the romance or the plot in general - I wasn't sold on their relationship as anything other than...idk...acquaintances? The end was so predictable and honestly the writing over the course of the whole book was so simple. I personally wouldn't recommend this.

I was really interested in this title but I had to unfortunately DNF. Anastasia is one of my favorite stories of all time, so the promise of a retelling excited me. However, being from the male POV right from the beginning and having him jump into bed with two other women right at the get go when i know this is intended to be a romance between him (presumably) and the missing daughter (the Anastasia character) was too much of a turn off for me. I love Dimitri in the original Anastasia because he was so obsessed with her and her alone that having this *boy* immediately get it on with strangers in the first chapter was too much of an ick for me- this could have been improved if the scene was a fade to black or if it just heavily implied the actions taking place rather than graphic smut on page 12.

Thank you for the opportunity to ARC read. Since I did DNF, I will not be rating this on Goodreads or tagging the author in any social media posts I may make.

Absolutely loved this story. Great riches to rags to riches with hope, love, fame and fortune. Love the characters, time period and descriptiveness of the lives from this era.

The animated 1997 Anastasia movie was a formative text for me, so I am extremely excited for Joanna Shupe's newest Gilded Age historical romance, The Gilded Heiress. This book is swoony and a lot of fun. I enjoyed how the story follows the major plot beats of the mythology around the Anastasia impostor stories, while still being adapted to make sense to the changed setting. I loved the exploration of a new angle of Gilded Age New York that focuses more on the seedier working class elements. I appreciate that the hero is actually rogueish, streetwise, unscrupulous, but still charming—a difficult balance to strike (I personally loved his opening scene where he evades the police by hiding in a brothel).

As is often the case with Shupe's books, the ending is a little too tidy for my taste, but it went down easily in this book, as it's a fairy tale story of sorts. The hero has major "princesses don't marry kitchen boys" energy, which is perhaps THE line from the 1997 film that imprinted on me, and was the most important element that I want in an Anastasia adaptation. This is a book for the yearners.

I’ve enjoyed Joana Shupe’s books to date. I loved the cartoon Anastasia as a kid. So it makes sense that I enjoyed this book even though it lacked a good Rasputin like villain.

All jokes aside, this was exactly what it was advertised to be. Was it great? No. But it did its job of being a light hearted historical romance.

Thank you NetGalley and Avon for an advanced copy.

I started this book and quickly realized the writing style was just not for me. The pacing and development for the plot and characters left some holes and felt erratic. Therefore I won’t knock off stars because some might find this enjoyable. It just wasn’t for me. I didn’t finish to give a true review.

I wanted to love this book, I just couldn't get past how much I did not like Leo or just how overall creepy I found him? I know he was supposed to be an unlikeable character to an extent but he was just too much for me. I think that this book tried it's hardest to do an Anastasia retelling with it's own twist but I think with some changes to the plot overall, we could have had a hit on our hand, here it just felt too much. Leo wasn't just a charming thief or a man with inventive ways to keep his family afloat more than he just felt like he was just a creep. I wanted more Flynn Rider from him.

I am rating it a 3/5 because I feel that maybe others would be able to look past it and like it, but it was not for me.

I love the Anastasia story and this was a unique take on that storyline. I had a hard time connecting with the characters, especially Josie. I enjoyed the growth of Leo and hearing his story, but his relationship with Josie was a little too in-your-face.

I love some of Joanna Shupe's other books, but this one didn't work for me. The Pendleton / Anastasia storyline is already a bit implausible, but I was ready to be invested in it. But the singing plot layered on top of that felt like too much. It just didn't feel plausible that she would be such an amazing talent AND a lost heiress, that this confidence man would stumble on her, that he would just happen to meet an incredible other singer out of the blue who helped her get discovered -- at a certain point it was all too much.

Also, an issue that I've had with some of Shupe's work is that the male lead is often keeping a very big, significant secret from the female lead, which the reader knows about form the start and the female lead finds out about about 2/3 of the way through the book, causing fallout and misunderstanding. I know this is a common romance structure, but it's so obvious from the beginning that the fallout is coming (and precisely what it will look like) that it feels expected, and makes the build to that point just feel like throat-clearing preamble. This was very much true here, and I wonder if there could have been a way for the reader to know less of what Leo was up to so it all could have felt a little less obvious.

That said, I did like the third act. I was invested in the Pendleton parents and thought Mr. and Mrs. Pendleton were handled in a lovely way. I would have loved seeing more of that developing relationship.

Thank you so much for the ARC.

The Gilded Heiress by Joanna Shupe is a story of Josie who is an orphan performing on a street corner when she is "discovered" by Leo.
Leo, a playboy and con-man, not one to miss out on an opportunity, recognizes the similarities between Josie and a wealthy high society New York City child kidnapped at a young age, but never found.

Leo takes the steps to convince Josie that he can make her a star.
The story then follows Leo and Josie traveling here and there, making connections with the show business world, while trying to ignore their attraction to one another.

Things get spicy, which is something that I skip through, but that's just me; others will enjoy that aspect.

I had a little trouble keeping the time frame straight, as we were told it was in the 1880's New York City's Gilded age, but sometimes reads like more modern day.
I would like to have seen more of the glitter of show-biz back then in characters such as the colorful Ella Wesner.

The story is pretty much predictable, but still a relaxing, entertaining read.

Thank you to Netgalley and Avon/Harper Voyager for the Advanced Reader Copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.