Elizabeth Cobbs

Elizabeth Cobbs Hoffman

The Hamilton Affair

A New York Times Bestseller and one of the best historical fiction books of 2016 and 2017! “A juicy answer to Ron Chernow's Alexander Hamilton…” --Cosmopolitan Set against the dramatic backdrop of the American Revolution, and featuring a cast of legendary characters, The Hamilton Affair tells the sweeping, tumultuous, true story of Alexander Hamilton and Elizabeth Schuyler, from passionate and tender beginnings of their romance to his fateful duel on the banks of the Hudson River. Hamilton was a bastard and orphan, raised in the Caribbean and desperate for legitimacy, who became one of the American Revolution's most dashing--and improbable--heroes. Admired by George Washington, scorned by Thomas Jefferson, Hamilton was a lightning rod: the most controversial leader of the new nation. Elizabeth was the wealthy, beautiful, adventurous daughter of the respectable Schuyler clan--and a pioneering advocate for women. Together, the unlikely couple braved the dangers of war, the perils of seduction, the anguish of infidelity, and the scourge of partisanship that menaced their family and the country itself. With flawless writing, brilliantly drawn characters, and epic scope, The Hamilton Affair tells a story of love forged in revolution and tested by the bitter strife of young America, and will take its place among the greatest novels of American history ever written.

A Novel

Vicky (A City Girl's Thoughts)

At a glance I thought The Hamilton Affair was the inspiration for Lin-Manuel Miranda's musical "Hamilton" but judging by the reviews this came out before the musical. Nevertheless, if you want to learn about Alexander Hamilton, or are a fan of the Broadway musical, this is the book for you.

Cobbs Hoffman primarily focused on Alexander Hamilton and Eliza Schuyler's relationship, as well as his fight for honor and respect during the Revolutionary War. His mother divorced her first husband, then married Alexander's father. At that time it was illegal for a woman to remarry after divorce, so Alexander and his brother were considered illegitimate children, unworthy of inheritance and respect. This pushed him to attend college here in the U.S., where his writing earned him the chance to fight alongside George Washington. Rewarded with a military - later on a government - position, Hamilton finally earned the respect he wanted as a child in St. Croix, but his political enemies, as well as lust, will test him and Eliza for the rest of his life.

This is under the genre of historical fiction, just in case you thought this is nonfiction. The plot is easy to follow, but I was hoping Cobbs Hoffman would delve more into Alexander's political rivalry, since a lot of time is spent focusing on that topic, almost (in my opinion) more than his relationship with Eliza, but since this is the first time I'm reading a novel about Alexander Hamilton, I felt enough information was used to educate readers who have little to no knowledge about him.

jess

Like many of the people who were interested in this book, I picked up The Hamilton Affair because of the musical Hamilton, eager to learn more about Alexander Hamilton. I'm going to be honest; I couldn't make my way through Chernow's biography. The Hamilton Affair is a good compromise in between the musical and the biography in that it's quite factual without being overwhelming. Apart from one character, everything lines up with Hamilton's life. There's a bit of artistic licence, but I found it to be decently detailed in its retelling of Hamilton's life. 

What I had issues with, mostly, is the narrative, especially the pacing. It was jumpy and slow at the same time. There were many instances where the narration jumped ahead a few years, and then told things in flashback - John Laurens' death, the writing of the Federalist Papers, George Washington's death ... it was just weird. I feel like a lot of the emotional impact was gone as well. Things weren't happening in the now; they were constantly happening in the past for the characters. I felt like there was a lot of telling, and it made many of the characters feel somewhat dry and dead. Alexander Hamilton's and Eliza Schuyler's lives were chaotic, and I think the scope of this book was too minimal to tell it.

The Hamilton Affair

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