I’m not so sure about this book. Through the first half It was one of those books in which the writing wasn’t that great but the story was intriguing enough to keep you riveted. Then it began to take a turn for the slightly idiotic. I won’t give examples so I don’t spoil it.

I kept reading because the story felt like it was leading to somewhere.

All in all though, I don’t know what the point was of this book. It seemed like halfway through the novel the author realized it wasn’t going anywhere so they just added whatever new characters and crazy ideas they could come up with.

That began to showcase the less-than-stellar writing style.

This is a book I’m sure I will soon forget. Definitely not as bad as other books I’ve tried - good enough for me to read it in one week without giving up - but not a book I would recommend to others.

Oh, it takes place at the end of the 19th century and follows a girl named Elizabeth from France to New York.

What a story! Sagas are not really my thing but I was recommended it by a friend and truly enjoyed it. This book is not for the faint hearted. It tells the story of how a young French girl is orphaned in New York at the turn of the 20th C and all the dramas and tragedy that befall her and her family. The story in itself is quite sad, but very realistic for the era. It veers between two worlds: poverty and riches and two places: New York and Charente (France). There was so much suspense in each chapter that I was riveted throughout. I read it pretty quickly as it was one of those you can't put down, despite it being a long story. It had an abrupt ending, leaving you intrigued as to what happens to the main characters. I would love to read the next book in the series, just to find out whether Lisbeth and Richard stay together. The plot is original and meaningful, giving you a good insight into how tough life was for Europeans emigrating to the New World circa 1890. It's not sugar coated which adds to its realism and is one of the reasons I enjoyed it so much. Yes, I would recommend it.

I received The Manhattan Secret as part of a NetGalley giveaway.

In late 19th century France, a young couple escapes her domineering parents to travel to America with their young daughter Elizabeth. Tragedy befalls them along the way, and Elizabeth is orphaned in a new country. Taken in and nurtured by a well-off couple, she grows up happily, oblivious of her shadowy past. When she comes to terms with her trauma, she discovers the life she left behind in France, and the legacy she may one day inherit. But after traveling to her homeland and meeting her long-lost relatives, she comes to to terms with the past and plans for a new and unexpected future.

This was...a weird read. I agree with other reviewers that something was lost in translation ("moist genitals" is one of the more disturbing sex scene phrases I've ever encountered), but it was something more than that. It just wasn't a well crafted story in ways that transcended the words on the page. The heroine is beautiful and universally adored, despite being a limp, passive, boring noodle of a person. Characters swung wildly between kind and cartoonishly evil. The whole thing felt like a Victorian melodrama with some bad sex scenes added--the beatific, saintly parents sacrificing everything for their adored daughter, an orphaned waif (and lost heiress) wandering the streets of New York, her inheritance a medieval French estate filled with darkness and secrets, two dashing suitors. Had the characters been more interesting, the story might have worked, but everyone involved had the charisma of a paper bag, the wild changes in plot and temperament were weird and off-putting, the ending was bizarre, and it all added up to one mess of a novel. Hard pass for me.

I’m not even sure where to begin with this book. My head is still spinning. There is a LOT going on here. It is very long. Many a time I questioned why I was still reading, but the story was crazy enough that I felt compelled to get to the end. That being said, it ended so abruptly that it made me mad. Something definitely gets lost in translation here, and a lot of the characters- most of them- aren’t likeable. Thank you to netgalley for the ARC.

Thanks to Net Gallery for the copy of this book. This book is about a girl named Elizabeth who leaves France with her family destined for the new world. She looses both of her parents and is taken in by a kind family in NY. Eventually, she discovers the truth about her past and wants to meet her family in France.

I have a lot of mixed feelings about this book. Ultimately, I agree with previous reviews that perhaps there is some of the “artistic prose” lost in the translation from French. I also found the pacing to be off. The book’s teaser tells you her parents die and she is taken in by another family—so I expected this to happen “quickly” in the book—instead, it is roughly the first third of the book. This was more difficult to get through because you already knew what was happening. After that point, I really was invested in the story and wanted to finish. I finished the last half of the book in just over 24hrs vs the beginning.

Disclaimer: I admit that I will “downscore” books that have content that I would characterize as “mysoginistic.” This book has sex scenes in which a man does not heed the woman’s clear request to stop, then depicted as “she was happy he didn’t stop after” as well as an incest rape scene.

The writing of this novel just wasn't for me, unfortunately. It didn't flow naturally nor did it feel easy to read. I was somewhat interested in the outcome of the characters, however, I struggled with the idea of whether I actually liked the main character. Some plot points seemed intriguing, but overall the novel felt a little flat to me. I have heard wonderful things about the author though so I suspect this might be the case of the translation, rather than the work itself. I'd be happy to read something else from this author in the future, I can feel the promise within this story, it was just missing something.

The Manhattan Secret by Marie-Bernadette Dupay is a book translated from French. It is a pretty good romance book but at times I had difficulty with whether or not I liked the main character, Elizabeth. She undergoes a lot of hardships and endures a mysterious childhood where all of a sudden the secrets of her biological parents, the voyage to the United States and her history just come to her as she is skating in Central Park. The couple who have taken her in and loved her since are discarded and the heroine goes off to France to a beautiful castle owned by her wealthy grandfather to discover her roots. She seems to have developed some type of clairvoyance and sees images of her future that do come to fruition at the books conclusion. There are several love interests and one of the main ones is a likeable fellow that befriended Elizabeth in her youth. The other is a mysterious carnal young man that is also devoted to Elizabeth and taken with her physical charms. The ending is an abrupt surprise and leaves the reader wandering about the future of several characters. Thanks #NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review #NetGalley#TheManhattanSecret.

Wonderful read. I enjoyed the story very much. The main character’s journey into womanhood.
Would recommend, very well written, I felt I was right there beside her. .
Definitely worth reading.

The Manhattan Secret is an extremely well crafted and multi layered novel with characters that are very relatable and a story that you will love but will break your heart in two.

Unfortunately I really didn’t like this book and I struggled to finish it. I found the characters not nice and I struggled with what was going on.

Great read. I tend to read very different historical fiction but really enjoyed this one. The plot is action-packed and the author took care to create multifaceted characters. The ending came as a bit if a shock!

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

TW: various abuse and incest.

This story covers the last 20 years of the 1800s and flips between NYC and France. Six year old Elisabeth and her parents set off for New York via ship to escape Elisabeth’s cruel grandfather. The trip proves disastrous and Elisabeth is orphaned; picked up and raised by a rich NYC family. When Elisabeth turns 16 she learns the truth of her “adoption” and she returns to France where she uncovers even more sadness and secrets. The plot summary was really intriguing and I think the bones of the story could have been there but it just didn’t work. It’s translated from a popular French author and the translation wasn’t bad per say, but the dialogue/transition/flow in the English version was not good. A lot of the dialogue was redundant but then really important plot points were told in afterthought conversation and you almost missed it. None of the characters are likable and several are deplorable. But again, the bones of plot were there and I was intrigued enough to need to know how it all ended.

Just what I needed on a quiet Sunday morning! The Manhattan Secret reads well and has an absolutly enthralling plot. I particularly enjoyed the wintry and enchanting Manhattan at the turn of the century backdrop, as well as the charming French countryside sourrounding the Laroche chateau. The cast of characters is also very well-fashioned.

The Manhattan Secret is the first book in a series and I've not seen the next volume announced yet; hopefully that will soon change!

Many thanks to Hodder & Stoughton and Netgalley!

What a book! I finished in less than 24 hours, and now I can't wait to get my hands on the next volume in the series. I wouldn't want to spoil the plot for anyone, but can say as much: you'll come across many a twist and turn and ultimately get to the bottom of the secrets you longed to discover, which is why the reading experience so satisfying. At the same time, you realize there's so much more to come, and you must get your hands on the next instalment to find out…

The Manhattan Secret is an English translation from the French. I don't know if suffered in the translation or what, but the writing is elementary, not flowing as it should be. It is an intriguing story -- a couple moves from France to America to escape her overbearing, abusive father. When their daughter is orphaned, she is taken run by a wealthy family, but at the age of 16 she learns her French family has been looking for her. She is angry and returns to France. Here she learns her grandfather has many secrets of his own. There's more erotic sexual scenes than I like.

I did not enjoy this book as much as I thought I would. I was able to read this on NetGalley.

This story is a historical drama with romance throughout (hadn’t expected the romance, but that's fine). At first I was leaning toward a 3 star rating, because of the plot—a French family takes a perilous boat journey to NYC and experiences tragedies. As a result, the young daughter, Elizabeth (Lisbeth) is orphaned and is soon after raised by a wealthy American family. Lisbeth later returns to France to confront her past. While in France, she uncovers lies and secrets and experiences treachery as well as love.

The Manhattan Secret has all the elements of a sweeping, heartfelt saga. However, as I read, I found the first part of the book to be just a series of tragic, unfortunate events. (The events were realistic, but it also would’ve been nice to have some glimmers of hope included in the storyline). The story then fast forwards ten years, switching the focus to a teenage Lisbeth. And this is where it all became too melodramatic for me.

The tragic, amorous, and adventuresome scenes seemed too hasty, with awkward dialogue that interrupted the flow of the narrative. Additionally, I couldn't connect with the main character, Lisbeth, who I found to be mostly exasperating and rude. Her beauty seemed to be constantly mentioned as if that made her irresistible, despite her negative attitude and outbursts. I did, however, like her clairvoyance, which was an interesting feature to the story. As well, I appreciated her relationships with her father’s family and maternal grandmother and always cheered her on when she confronted her lecherous and villainous grandfather. Overall, I actually preferred several of the secondary characters.

Stepping away from the characters and plot, I felt like the transitions between dialogue and narrative didn't have a seamless flow. Further, the dialogue sounded mechanical and unnatural. I think the latter issue could've been remedied if the dialogue had been pared down in several places, as it often times repeated what had been read in the narrative. I'm not sure if these issues have to do with the fact that this book is a translation, but they didn't allow for me to become fully immersed in the story.


I continued reading and ultimately finished The Manhattan Secret because I remained curious about how the plot would unfold.