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jmalone3's review against another edition
emotional
informative
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
jenmat1197's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
This story is about Laura Lyons and Sadie Donovan. Laura - a mother, wife and hopeful journalist student in 1913 lives in the New York Public Library with her family. Her husband works there as the superintendent and the apartment in the library is their home. Laura applies to the Columbia Journalism school and gets in. While a student her life is turned upside down when she is introduced to the Heterodoxy Club - an all female group who is fighting for women's rights. When valuable books are taken from the library, Laura's husband is blamed and Laura is left trying to figure out what really happened.
83 years later, her granddaughter, Sadie, is a curator for the Library. As books start to disappear, Sadie and one of her colleagues are blamed. Teaming up with a private security officer, she is determined to not only prove her innocence, but solve the crime.
This was an okay book. I liked the mysteries of both time periods but the characters were just lacking for me. I didn't find them very likable. It is a pretty man hating book - very women centered. Not that this is a bad thing, but i dislike when an author makes every man awful. Stuck with it to the end to see how it resolved.
shadowofadoubt89's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
catzilla711's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
theavidreaderandbibliophile's review against another edition
4.0
The Lions of Fifth Avenue by Fiona Davis is a stimulating dual-timeline novel. The story moves between 1993 with Sadie Donovan and 1913 with Laura Lyons. I found The Lions of Fifth Avenue to be well-written with interesting characters. Laura Lyons was a woman ahead of her time. Laura is a wife and mother who has become restless. She is a Vassar graduate who would like a passion in her life. Her husband, Jack is passionate about the book he is writing, and she wants to find something that fulfills her. Laura is accepted into the Columbia Journalism School which opens a new world. She is drawn to a group of women in Greenwich Village who belong to the Heterodoxy Club which encourages them to share their views and ideas on women’s suffrage, birth control, and much more. Sadie works at the New York Public Library in the Berg Collection. She becomes interim curator and is working hard on an upcoming exhibit. Sadie would like to find something of her grandmother’s, Laura Lyons for the exhibit that would wow her boss. Sadie’s mother was tight lipped about Laura and all of Laura’s papers were destroyed upon her death. But Sadie is excellent at her job and she uncovers information that perhaps should remain buried. When books start disappearing from the Berg Collection, it is reminiscent of thefts that occurred in 1913. Sadie begins searching for answers. I loved hearing about the apartment within the New York Public Library. The author’s descriptions allowed me to imagine the vast library with its beautiful marble, painted ceilings, and the bast number of books. I expect that many bibliophiles would love to live in a library (imagine the fun at night when everyone is gone). I liked learning about the New York Public Library and the resources it contains. Sadie and Laura were developed characters with differing personalities. The secondary characters were less developed. The pacing was slower than I prefer. The mysteries surrounding the books was clever (how the deed was accomplished). It is not difficult, though, figuring out the guilty parties. I appreciated that everything was wrapped up at the end. The Lions of Fifths Avenue is an intriguing historical mystery with ancestral aenigmas, missing manuscripts, a manipulating mother, library lions, and bibliophile bliss.
ebc726's review against another edition
2.0
My least favorite of the Fiona Davis books. The characters and storyline were just…boring to me in this one.
stephanie_w11's review against another edition
2.0
I loved this book until the end when it took an absolute nosedive. It was exciting and intriguing and then turned unnecessarily sentimental with a gross twist of classism all while advocating for a harsh prison sentence for a nonviolent crime. Such a disappointment after a great mystery period piece.
itsgonnabemegan's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
shanhautman's review against another edition
2.0
Really like her other books, but this one just didn’t do it for me. I was really intrigued at first, but the ending was a let down. Not enough resolute for the characters and the plot just fizzled out.