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90th out of 726 books
—
1,236 voters
City of Dreams: A Novel of Nieuw Amsterdam and Early Manhattan (New York City #1)
by
Beverly Swerling (Goodreads Author)
In 1661, Lucas Turner, a barber surgeon, and his sister, Sally, an apothecary, stagger off a small wooden ship after eleven weeks at sea. Bound to each other by blood and necessity, they aim to make a fresh start in the rough and rowdy Dutch settlement of Nieuw Amsterdam; soon lust, betrayal, and murder will make them mortal enemies. In their struggle to survive in the New...more
Paperback, 592 pages
Published
June 4th 2002
by Simon & Schuster
(first published January 1st 2001)
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This is a well written novel. My only complaint is that the author builds interest in certain of the characters' lives and then drops them without notice, moving the reader forward by 50 years or so. Actually, that also was the very thing that caused me to feel somewhat melancholy. The reality that I'm going to age, and yikes, die, is a little bit painful. The reality that my little boy is going to grow up and have children of his own someday is a lot painful! But there is no (happy) alternative...more
Nov 24, 2008
Irene
is currently reading it
Just started this but am really enjoying it so far. Susan recommended it. (Actually, it is her book.)
Beverly Swerling's first novel is an incredibly ambitious look at the pre-revolutionary history of New York. Swerling focuses on one family, but because her novel spans 150 years of history within that family it touches on a tremendous wealth of subject matter, from early surgery to conflicts with Native Americans to the status of Jews in the early colonies to the status of slaves to the revolutionary war itself. Unlike some authors penning historical fiction--Phillipa Gregory, for example--Swer...more
2 likes · like · see review
Cultural conservatives who yearn for the good old days will not like this book, because it's fairly accurate descriptions of life in New York from the 17th through the 18th century (until the end of the American Revolution) does not jibe with their peculiar notions. Lucas Turner and his sister Sally arrive in the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam in 1661, not long before the British assume control. And so starts a multi-generational novel. The importance of slavery in New York is evident from the fi...more
The main character in this novel is New York City - and that character is well-drawn, carefully researched and complex. New York comes alive in this book as an aggressive, materialistic, cosmopolitan, and surprisingly liberal city, compared with narrow, puritan New England. Just as you can often recognize an adult's features in his baby photo, the characteristics and tone of New York today can be seen emerging from its pioneer past as described here. It is interesting to see, in Swerling's City...more
This book was awesome. I'm usually stuck on thrillers, but I got a free advance reader copy of this book, because I wasn't reading anything at the time and thought I'd give it a try. I didn't expect it to be good at all, but I was blown away. The story, the style of writing, the depth of detail, and the fact that the surgeons, natives and war were based on historical facts. Some of the practices were taken from actual journals of real surgeons from that period. The surgeries, without anesthesia,...more
Jan 25, 2010
Randi Reisfeld
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
NYC history buffs and those into sweeping family sagas
Recommended to Randi by:
Mindy Eichler
I'm a sucker for all NYC history -- and this was well worth it! Recommended by brilliant cousin Mindy, it's number one in a trilogy--it earns the moniker, "sweeping generational saga," as it takes us, via two strong, fascinating fictional families, through the settling of "New Amsterdam" in the 1600s through the Revolutionary War. Who knew NYC made a fortune on the backs of slavery?? Who knew about surgeries without pain killers, and beginnings of pharmacies? Who knew Delancey Street was named a...more
2 likes · like · see review
Jun 19, 2012
Amanda
rated it
2 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
doctors, surgeons, historical and medical history
This is a long book. The first three-quarters were really exciting. The last quarter of the book I had to force myself to read. Her focus in the first three-quarters was on the surgical methods (Yes, it is gross-but still interesting). She lightly touches on historical events and slavery. The last quarter of the book she totally switches her focus and is really focused on historical events and politics and surgical methods are hardly mentioned.
This book was a decent read (Although vulgar at time...more
This book was a decent read (Although vulgar at time...more
This was only okay.
As a former NYC resident with an interest in history, I wasn't really as blown away by the historical information in the book as other reviewers seemed to be. That having been said, Swerling does a good job bringing certain episodes to life. I did appreciate how Swerling at points referred to the shrinking Collect Pond.
Swerling's device of dropping characters and jumping months/years just as things were getting interesting was kind of annoying. A lot of buildup but not as much...more
As a former NYC resident with an interest in history, I wasn't really as blown away by the historical information in the book as other reviewers seemed to be. That having been said, Swerling does a good job bringing certain episodes to life. I did appreciate how Swerling at points referred to the shrinking Collect Pond.
Swerling's device of dropping characters and jumping months/years just as things were getting interesting was kind of annoying. A lot of buildup but not as much...more
I liked it. I learned a lot about early New York City. And, the family tree at the beginning of the book I referred to multiple times. The LA times review on the back cover says it like it is . . . "A whopping saga ... whose every strange chapter - - -teeming with bizarre medicine, slave uprisings, executions, thriving brothels, and occasional cannibalistic Indians. . . brings forth shocks of recognition." I was both fascinated and squeamish as I read through the descriptions of medical techniqu...more
This was a hard one to rate. Nothing new to say really: didn't enjoy the constant sex scenes (if I was looking for a sexual novel, I'd go to the romance novel section of the bookstore and pay 10 cents), and didn't enjoy the explicit, graphic nature of the various violent activities that went on. I didn't really enjoy the way the plot/timeline jumped around so wildly, and agree with previous reviews that it made it more difficult to really care about, follow and invest in the characters. Nonethel...more
Oct 05, 2009
Kathy Petersen
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Shelves:
x-feb-09-thru-jan-10,
read-non-mystery-fiction
City of Dreams has all the worst and the best of historical fiction. It goes on and on and on through several generations for nearly 600 pages with detailed descriptions of raw sexual practices and gross medical procedures, although in the latter case she seems to have gotten them anatomically correct. Well, probably in the former case as well. Some of her characters are forward-thinking 'way beyond their time and place, although most of them not too radically. However, I wasn't tempted to put t...more
I really liked this hostorical novel about New York during the colonial period. The characters were intriguing, the drama was satifying, there was a little romance, and a lot of gross-out medical facts. There were some fairly disturbing scenes of both botched and successful abortions; I am admittedly squeamish about such things. The only drawback is that this novel covers a family tree, so that no one character is given the treatment that I enjoy in novels such as Outlander (it seems while the a...more
This was the first of Beverly Swerlings historical novels for me. Because it gives such good background about NYC - a very important part of my life - I gratefully took all of it in. Also the healing/surgeon/doctor lineage story. And the wildness of life on the frontier. The stories of the operations were rough but real. We are lucky is many ways to be alive in the US of A at this moment. I went on to Shadowbrook, very romantic and full of adventure as well as history I didn't know about in the...more
5.0 out of 5 stars - Great story of family secrets, retribution and survival
Loved this one -- the first in a series about colonial times in the early days of the USA. It features a family who are interested in furthering the science and art of medicine -- barbers, surgeons, physicians, and apothecaries. Wow, were those some really barbaric times! The characters were compelling and multi-layered and the saga details the interactions and fueds between families.I have read a bit of historical ficti...more
Loved this one -- the first in a series about colonial times in the early days of the USA. It features a family who are interested in furthering the science and art of medicine -- barbers, surgeons, physicians, and apothecaries. Wow, were those some really barbaric times! The characters were compelling and multi-layered and the saga details the interactions and fueds between families.I have read a bit of historical ficti...more
1 like · like · see review
Riveting historical fiction that "goes down like M&Ms" to quote an old book friend. City of Dreams is the story of the growth of Nieuw Amsterdam later to become Manhattan and a colorful cast of characters. The book explores themes of immigration, religious differences, slavery and the medical profession and the early thinking of healing. The book sacrifices character development for lighting fast plot but it is so interesting that you forgive the author (although I can't give it five stars b...more
If you are interested in early medicine and use of herbal medications, this book would be for you. It's historical fiction, yet the reader will learn much about the medical practices used by our ancestors. It's informative yet disturbing and it will make you appreciate living in the world we live in when it comes to your health.
The story is of a brother and sister coming to America to pursue their dreams of being a doctor and a pharmacist, respectfully. There are trial and errors in both their p...more
The story is of a brother and sister coming to America to pursue their dreams of being a doctor and a pharmacist, respectfully. There are trial and errors in both their p...more
This was the first to come to mind as a book to which I could give the lowest possible rating. Frankly, I don't know why I finished it -- I suppose the fact that I did indicates that the writing itself isn't too bad. Still, it left me feeling dirty. I had been expecting an interesting glimpse into medical history in colonial America. What I found embodies the very definition of bodice-ripper. The author seems to glory in the lurid and the gory without regards to the necessity for the actual plot...more
Awesome history of NYC that was well researched and wonderfully woven into a story line filled with interesting characters, adventure, and enough smut and romance to make it a great page turner. Definitely made me want to explore and rediscover NYC, especially lower Manhattan. Didn't care for the way the chapters were broken up, often by 50+ years, so the jumping forward really interrupted the flow of the family story lines which were interesting and intriguing, and then abruptly halted. But I d...more
This was fascinating. I love historical fiction, and the fact that this book was about the early history of Manhattan and involved Irish immigrants was a perfect match for me. The descriptions of early surgery, while a bit gory at times, were equally fascinating. I was sorry to see some characters go as time advanced ahead, but not sorry enough to stop reading or dislike the book. If you enjoyed this, definitely look for the second book which follows the grandson of the main character and takes...more
I've been really enjoying historical fiction. Right at the beginning of the book you are informed that it is fiction, but the medical aspects are real. The story is about a brother and sister back in the 1600's that come to NY as a surgeon and apocathery. The stories spans generations of this family of "medical professionals". Reading some of the medical procedures literally made me squirm they were so graphic. I am SO glad to live in a society with anesthesia!! Anyway, the book is quite fascina...more
I really enjoyed the journey of the innovation of surgery and medicine in this book. As one who frequently uses essential oils, the apothecary descriptions and uses were of much interest to me. I wish greater cultivation of medicinal herbs was a more common domestic practice.
The descriptions of surgical procedures are not for the faint of heart nor mind as there is quite a bit of crass language used to describe what is going on during many of the surgeries. Also, there is quite a bit of descrip...more
The descriptions of surgical procedures are not for the faint of heart nor mind as there is quite a bit of crass language used to describe what is going on during many of the surgeries. Also, there is quite a bit of descrip...more
The author explores slavery, medical science, the early American bordello, and politics of the Ameican Revolution in this engaging novel set in New York City, originally the Dutch city of Nieuw Amsterdam. Among interesting historical trivia, Beverly Swerling gives us the origin of the term "grog," first used in the 1740s. This is the term applied by British sailors to their watered-down rum rations administerd by Admiral Edward Vernon, a naval officer always identified by his heavy grogram silk...more
1 like · like · see review
Epic historical novel. Spans many generations of one family and over a century in time, from the early Dutch colony in New York, to just after the American revolution. A fair amount of murder, intrigue, sex, and scandal. The historical backdrop is really detailed and interesting, with a lot of connection to major events and people in New York City history. However, since it quickly covers so many generations and sub stories, some of the characters and plot lines seem very flat and not developed....more
Jul 14, 2009
Nina
added it
This book is about early New York (when it was New Amstedam) and early Manhatten. I enjoyed reading about the history of pre-Revolutionary and Revolutionary War NY. I knew some of the history but not a lot. It was also about early medical practice which was fascinating. There is a fair amount of violence in the book and it is a bit of a potboiler but it was worth reading. I understand it is part of a trilogy so one of these days I may get around to reading the other two books in the series (whic...more
City of Dreams is the first in Beverly Swerling’s series of historic novels about early Manhattan. The story begins in 1661 when the Turner siblings, Lucas and Sally, arrive in Nieuw Amsterdam with nothing to their name but their medical skills and no one to trust but each other. The novel’s timeline ends three generations later, at the close of the American Revolution.
Almost as soon as the Turners set foot on dry land we are given the measure of their intelligence and resourcefulness; Lucas is...more
Almost as soon as the Turners set foot on dry land we are given the measure of their intelligence and resourcefulness; Lucas is...more
I thought the earliest parts of this book were the best. I liked reading about the days of Nieuw Amsterdam when NYC was a tiny burgh with dirt roads and wood houses. The family feud was a bit ridiculous in every generation. I also got tired of every female character eventually getting raped for some random reason or another. Apparently no historical writer can ever imagine a woman actually enjoying her sexuality. I realize women didn't have a choice in almost anything they did back then, but my...more
Aug 17, 2011
Scott Fuchs
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
no one
Recommended to Scott by:
stubled upon it on Amazon
Shelves:
ny-fiction
STORY = C+
WRITING = C-
While this is a a number of steps above a Harlequin Romance [although love is not of major importance herein] and many, many staircases above a nonsenseical NYC 'Romance' of four or so years back, "Gramercy Park", one *does* have the feeling that Swerling is well researched. In it's examinations of early NYC medicine and politics, is where the major reward lies.
Simon and Schuster would profit more by relegating these books to one of its imprints and issuing it as a trade pa...more
WRITING = C-
While this is a a number of steps above a Harlequin Romance [although love is not of major importance herein] and many, many staircases above a nonsenseical NYC 'Romance' of four or so years back, "Gramercy Park", one *does* have the feeling that Swerling is well researched. In it's examinations of early NYC medicine and politics, is where the major reward lies.
Simon and Schuster would profit more by relegating these books to one of its imprints and issuing it as a trade pa...more
When I started City of Dreams I had such high expectations. This book had been on on my wish-list for the past 24 months. I sort of expected a magical and amazing reading experience, but unfortunately all I’m left with is mixed feelings. There were times - for a few paragraphs - I thought the story was superbly exciting, and then it felt back into a rather tedious narrative about diseases and lots and lots of primitive healing or (medieval) surgical procedures, amongst others. I think the main f...more
City of Dreams takes readers through 130 years of the early history of New York City, following a few specific families through their generations as they fight, marry, grow apart and grow together.
Edward Rutherford has become the master of this particular storytelling conceit, often following families through many hundreds of years of history. He tends to focus on historical detail and accuracy, while Beverly Swerling is more interested in the dramatic and emotional interactions between her cha...more
Edward Rutherford has become the master of this particular storytelling conceit, often following families through many hundreds of years of history. He tends to focus on historical detail and accuracy, while Beverly Swerling is more interested in the dramatic and emotional interactions between her cha...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Am I being too critical | 5 | 38 | Nov 23, 2012 07:33pm |
I’m told that a number of critics who have said kind things about my books, have been less kind about the very brief bio on my book jackets. First, don’t blame Simon & Schuster; it’s my fault. Publishers use the data supplied by the author for this kind of thing, and I didn’t supply much. I guess because it seems that almost everything needs a long explanation. Which is probably me being egoti...more
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Jun 10, 2012 05:35am