Name: She Walks in Beauty
ISBN: 9780764204333

Siri Mitchell

For a young society woman seeking a favorable marriage in the late 1890s, so much depends on her social season debut. Clara Carter has been given one goal: secure the affections of the city's most eligible bachelor. Debuting means plenty of work--there are corsets to be fitted, dances to master, manners to perfect. Her training soon pays off, however, as celebrity's spotlight turns Clara into a society-page darling. Yet Clara wonders if this is the life she really wants, especially when she learns her best friend has also set her sights on Franklin De Vries. When a man appears who seems to love her simply for who she is, and gossip backlash turns ugly, Clara realizes it's not just her heart at stake--the future of her family depends on how she plays the game.

She Walks in Beauty

Lauren Tabor

First read in 2016 and I really enjoyed it! 
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Re-read in 2019 and I thought it was just ok. *3 stars. I’m a little disappointed because I remember really liking this book and enjoying the cute romance. But reading it a second time I feel like there was hardly any romance and found a lot of the characters to be plain annoying. I’m still fond of the memories I have of reading these years ago and will cling to those rather than my current read of it.

I'm still torn about this book. I liked it, I would recommend it if someone wanted a relatively easy read about debutantes in New York City, but it's nothing to rave about. Clara's idea of society and what is "right" and "wrong" is rather annoying- she was too naive and believed that she was right all of the time. Everyone seemed to like her too much, even with the addition of Mr. Douglas. I realize that this genre, and particularly the point of view of the debutante, is pretty much defined by naivety, but it's getting boring. It would have been better to see Lizzie's side of the story, of a family not so obsessed with what "is owed" to them, and a girl more willing to participate with society.

Frankly, Clara was boring, and annoying. She undercut herself despite the fact that she was apparently so amazing that both DeVires men were highly interested in her. If they were both so great, then she should have been getting some kind of ego boost. I was glad to see her little charade of ambivalence fail towards the end, and that she started joining in on the societal games. It was nice for her to get knocked on her tail in the end.

I still believe the obsession with one man is unrealistic. While it's obvious that they would want to include the heir in their family so that they could move up in society, it would be so stupid to suddenly turn other prospects away, especially if she was so well admired.

Despite a lack of depth in some topics, so much that it might have been better to simply forgo them, it was rather enjoyable as it continued. I like how the reality of tightly laced corsets was handled, as well as a woman's troubles with "decent" society. The true frivolity of the "skills" learned if a husband was not found in the season was also handled well. I wasn't so happy with how much God's acceptance of a person for who they are was shoved down my throat. I get it, they were tired of being made up like dolls on display.

She Walks in Beauty

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