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Dec 24, 2011

Elizabeth rated it:

When was the last time that the heroine, (which I mean in the most romantic sense of the word), has been described by her author as "stupid" and who has large feet and - this is my favorite part - her husband compares to a sheepdog, but in a good way? Frances Hodgson Burnett has created some of my favorite characters, some nearly unbelievable with their goodness. I've read five or six of her books now and I'd wondered why she felt the need to make the characters so deserving. Reading The Making of a Marchioness More...

10 comments like (22 people liked it)

Dec 24, 2011

Wealhtheow rated it:

I am always impressed by Burnett's ability to write sweet stories without being twee or saccharine. This is what Edith Wharton would write on anti-depressants.

10 comments like (8 people liked it)

May 23, 2011

Abigail rated it:

Serialized in the British Cornhill Magazine in 1901, Frances Hodgson Burnett's The Making of a Marchioness, together with its sequel, The Methods of Lady Walderhurst, were published together as Emily Fox-Seton (the name of the heroine) that same year, and seem to have been linked this way ever since. My edition of the novel, found on the shelves of my public library, is part of The Doughty Library - a Stein and Day series intended to reprint Victorian and Edwardian novels that had undeservedly f More...

13 comments like (3 people liked it)

Dec 24, 2011

Miriam rated it:

I read this because I could get it for free on Kindle--I was interested in seeing how Burnett writes for adults. The racism is typical for the time period, but no more pleasant because of that, and the main character is just a little too good. The moral of the story seems to be that if you allow yourself to be put upon by everybody, eventually everything will work out beautifully. For all my complaining, though,Burnett does keep things humming--it doesn't drag the way some books from that period More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Nov 15, 2011

Brenda rated it:

A very Victorian/Edwardian style of fiction. Professionally speaking, I can spot the passive heroine, the contrived plot (everybody conveniently falling ill and then recovering at the right moment!), and the clumsy murder attempts, doomed to failure. Surely the heroine cannot be as dumb as she is depicted as being; it is significant that all the characters and the narrator assure the reader at least once every chapter that Emily is not stupid, because she sure acts that way. And is it deliber More...

6 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jun 15, 2010

Carol rated it:

The author of famous stories for children also wrote some books for adults, but the style is much the same, somewhat sentimental, very straight-forward and easy to read. Despite the almost unbelievable good nature of the 34-year-old heroine Emily, one admires her, and cheers for her, and laughs as, without trying, she "lands" the "catch" of the day, a titled lord, a childless widower, who, in his early 50's, wants a wife but doesn't want to have to cater to her. The ever-obli More...

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Jun 22, 2011

Karen rated it:

I loved this book (I actually read "Emily Fox-Seton," which is the two parts of the story in one--the second part was originally published separately as "The Methods of Lady Walderhurst."

The first part is a Cinderella-like story in which well-born but poor Emily is struggling to keep to a certain respectable standard of living in late-19th-century London. In addition to being a rather unconventional love story, we get some insight into the state of marriage at this More...

1 comment like

Feb 20, 2010

Sbaird rated it:

Although not her most remembered work The Making of A Marchioness is perhaps Frances Hodgson Burnett's best work. Witty, stark, romantic and as one reviewer cited a galloping read. Emily Fox-Seton is a gentile spinster trying to make a living. She is both naive and smart. Recognizing that she could provide a service to her wealthy friends she becomes indispensable and in the process becomes a Marchioness.

If you are a Nancy Mitford fan you will remember the scene when Alfred propos More...

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Jul 19, 2010

astried rated it:

Another adult Burnett. I like the first part better, Emily looks such a nice, capable woman that could take care her own life, thank you very much. The romance (or the inexistence of it) was touching but not puke inducing. In the second part she seemed to be abandoning her self-reliance and became this adoring sugar sweet wife. I suppose this is real and valid thing to happen even now. It's so easy and comfortable to slip into it. I know I would gladly do it. It sounds as if I don't approve of s More...

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Apr 06, 2009

Star rated it:

I adore the three famous classics by Frances Hodgson Burnett and I looked forward to this book. That said this book didn't live up to my expectations. I knew I was in trouble when there was no plot on the book flap. The only thing it said was that this book was a scathing look at Edwardian Society. It maybe but it was also dull and stodgy. The main character was too good our hero was sort of boring. Nothing clicked and I admit that after skipping to the end (I read all of the 1st part and a litt More...

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Dec 30, 2008

Karen rated it:

This book almost could have been written by Edith Wharton, if EW had been more sentimental. It's all about the desperate measures some characters are willing to take in the quest for financial security through marriage or lineage. It's also fun and suspenseful and a little Cinderalla-y and a more than a smidge dated (especially regarding race, naturally). And it's kind of quirky. Our heroine is delighted to find her eyes described in a love letter thusly: "They seemed to me then to resemble More...

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Apr 05, 2010

Marya rated it:

I haven't read this since I was a teenager and while the idea of a perfectly open and naturally aristocratic nature raising a woman from genteel poverty to titled riches makes the first half fairly readable, the harping on Emily's perfect normality and confiding childlike nature really cloys. The thing one likes about Mary Lennox and Sara Crewe, in her childre's books, is that they are NOT perfect paragons. I would much rather have read a book about the semi-evil Anglo-Indian wife of the heir. More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 23, 2012

امة rated it:

Well, that was a great novel, the first part of the novel I should say, for the whole novel's name is Emily Fox-Seton I think. What attired me the most was the good-natured manner of the heroine, its was really something extraordinary that made her so very happy in her life and always had good thoughts of other people around her .. she was helpful, optimist, caring, grateful to everyone and above all so modest. As deep as I went through the novel, I enjoyed learning from her childlike but meanin More...

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Feb 07, 2010

Jane rated it:

Like most people, I knew Frances Hodgson Burnett as the author of The Secret Garden and A Little Princess, two of my childhood favorites. Burnett was actually a prolific, popular, and crititcally well-received author for adults as well. I bought my copy of The Making of a Marchioness from Persephone Press, which has a wonderful shop in Bloomsbury. They publish neglected and out-of-print works of literature, primarily by women. This novel was well-worth the read and will please lovers of 19th More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 22, 2012

Sorcha rated it:

Emily Fox-Seton is a single, well bred woman of 35, with some education but absolutely no money. She lives in one room of a boarding house, and with the help of the daughter of the house, is able to work her limited wardrobe as best they can.[return][return]She therefore works for a living, surviving by running errands for various wealthy people around London. When one of her employers invites her for a summer holiday at a country estate, Emily is ecstatically grateful and accepts. One of the gu More...

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Dec 24, 2011

Lauren rated it:

Unlike Burnett's well known children's books The Secret Garden and Little Lord Fauntleroy, this is a Victorian-era novel written for adults that follows a naive, middle aged, working class woman as she unintentionally wins a marriage proposal from a highly eligible Marquis and steps into a position of wealth and luxury. The foreword to the book (which, I'll admit, I only skimmed) mentions how this has become a rediscovered classic that's sometimes taught alongside Jane Austen novels. I can see t More...

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Dec 24, 2011

Lauren rated it:

These stories – Lady Walderhurst is the sequel to the Cinderella-inspired Marchioness – are a far cry from the Burnett novels I read as a child. On the surface, they are little more than late Victorian chick lit: Marchioness is a fairy-tale romance while Lady Walderhurst is an uneven melodrama. The protagonist, Emily Fox-Seton, is a wide-eyed, cloyingly innocent lady who frequently made this modern girl cringe (although I did sort of like reading about a legitimately nice and modest heroine – wh More...

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Dec 24, 2011

Eline added it

This was a strange read to me. I enjoyed the first part, with Emily Fox-Seton being almost unnaturally kind, happy and thankful for everything while at the same time the author keeps telling us how she's rather naive and a little stupid etc. Combined with the many female characters, all of different background, each with their own personality that shows us the constricted role of women in the 19th century. Add the delightful deliberate sentimentality and you have a really pleasant read. However, More...

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Dec 24, 2011

Amyem added it

http://www.gutenberg.org/files/17226/172...

What an odd book. Two shorter books are combined into one volume, perhaps from magazine serializations? I'll have to go back and check my bio of Burnett. The first book is the story of how Emily Fox-Seton moves from genteel poverty to the wife of a Marquis. It gets going in the second book with intrigues and plots but then she seems to have lost interest in the last few chapters and wraps up many loose ends without much plot development. What More...

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Dec 24, 2011

Lindsay rated it:

"I wanted so much to like this book and indeed I enjoyed Part 1 very much. The introduction mentions that the two parts of the novel were originally written separately and it really shows. Part 1 has a lovely, fairy-tale like quality in which Emily Fox-Seton, the unfailingly kind and obliging protagonist, reaches her lowest ebb only to be raised up to heights of which she dared not dream. So far so good.[return][return]I was unable to read far into Part 2 because aspects of the author's More...

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Dec 24, 2011

Shannon rated it:

While I usually reserve 5 stars for books that are quite moving or near perfection, I couldn't help giving 5 stars to The Making of a Marchioness due to the pure enjoyment I got from reading the book.

Originally composed of two novels, the book follows Emily Fox-Seton, a errand-runner, of sorts, for the upper classes through her adventure in becoming a Marchioness and the trials of her early marriage. The first half of the book is a romance along the lines of Jane Austen - a witty loo More...

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Dec 24, 2011

Laura rated it:

The first half is a quaint romance. While both the hero and heroine could be a little more interesting, I believe the point is that they aren't interesting at all. Emily borders on being annoying for her stupidity and letting everyone trample all over her, but she's so sweet one can't completely dislike her. Lord Walderhurst is simply an older, utterly logical fellow looking for a gal--and not just a pretty face, which is admirable.

The second half has been called racist in recent tim More...

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Dec 24, 2011

Tony rated it:

Burnett, Frances Hodgson. THE MAKING OF A MARCHIONESS. (1901; this edition 2009). ****. A good friend of mine (Hi, Barb) from California and from Goodreads, reviewed this book and I got a copy of the review. I made a comment that I didn’t know that Burnett wrote anything else besides “Little Lord Fauntleroy,” and “The Secret Garden.” Apparently, however, she wrote many novels that enjoyed fairly wide popularity at the time. If they were all like this one, however, I’m afraid that this wou More...

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Dec 24, 2011

SarahC rated it:

First published in 1901, Marchioness displays Burnett's ability to follow a non-heroine through events that may be dramatic but still interesting. You'll find an ever-innocent woman here who appreciates love and good fortune simply for what it is, but who dwells among those who are far from innocent.

Although from a genteel background, unmarried Emily Fox-Seton has been forced into the working world and largely exists as a lady's companion and secretary. She does live independentl More...

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May 07, 2011

Alice rated it:

I am shocked that I had never heard of this book until just a few weeks ago. (Thank you Aunt Gayle!) What a delightful read! Previously I had only read the author's books for children, and, like many people, I didn't even know about her novels for adults until now.

The book was originally published in two parts: the first is a "Cinderella Story" of sorts, and the second is a drama/suspense/romance. It's filled with interesting characters, and moments that will make you s More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Dec 24, 2011

Margaret rated it:

Here's another adult novel by an author much better known for her children's books. The only other adult novel by Burnett I've read is A Lady of Quality, which I didn't like; I tried The Making of a Marchioness and liked it quite a bit more. The book is divided into two parts. The first is a simple Cinderella tale, akin to Burnett's other books; simple Emily Fox-Seton is raised into the nobility when she marries the Marquis of Walderhurst. In the second part, the book becomes a melodrama as Emil More...

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Oct 25, 2010

Tim rated it:

I enjoyed The Making of a Marchioness more than I feel I should have. The innocent and hardworking Elizabeth Fox-Seton ends up marrying the Marquis and then must survive interactions with his current heir while said Marquis is in India. The story is sentimental, tells us what to think of the characters, makes us love Elizabeth for her simple goodness and faith in human nature, and I had a good time reading.

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Oct 13, 2011

Sarah rated it:

In The Making of a Marchioness, Frances Hodgson Burnett combines two short novels, one a Cinderella story, and the other a family tale the edges over into the crime/thriller genre. The heroine, in both cases, Emily Fox-Seaton is a woman from a good family who was orphaned at an early age and faces life with little or no prospects. She is however, very sweet, grateful for any kindness and easily taken advantage of. Both plots revolve around these elements of her personality.

I enjoyed More...

1 comment like

Mar 23, 2010

Sarah rated it:

This is an awfully cute period romance, with some dramatic undertones. Emily is a well-bred woman whose family died when she was a child, and who understood at an early age that she would have to work for her living. She hired herself out to upper-crust ladies to run errands, plan parties, and basically act as a genteel gopher while she just barely ekes by. With a permanently sunny disposition, paired with a practical nature and a pretty face, she catches the eye of her employer's cousin. After More...

1 comment like

Mar 31, 2008

Nancy rated it:

Unbeknownst to me, Frances Hodgson Burnett, author of The Secret Garden, and Little Lord Fauntleroy (sp?), also wrote popular fiction for adults. She writes here about British social classes, a popular topic of the era (this was published in 1901). The story is about a down-on-her luck woman of great moral character and naive friendliness who makes her living as an assistant of various kinds to the nobility: finding servants, taking in sewing jobs, running errands, etc. She is invited to one of More...

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