The Dressmaker's Dowry

Author: Meredith Jaeger
Genre: Historical Fiction
Publisher: Harper Collins Publisher, 2017
Pages: 384
Rating: Recommend

Synopsis: San Francisco: 1876 - Immigrant dressmakers Hannelore Schaeffer and Margaret O'Brien struggle to provide food for their siblings while mending delicate clothing for the city's most affluent ladies. When wealthy Lucas Havensworth enters the shop, Hanna's future is altered forever. With Margaret's encouragement and the power of a borrowed green dress, Hanna dares to see herself as worthy of him. Then Margaret disappears, and Hanna turns to Lucas. Braving the gritty streets of the Barbary Coast and daring to enter the mansions of Nob Hill, Hanna stumbles upon Margaret's fate, forcing her to make a devastating decision. . .one that will echo through the generations.

San Francisco: Present Day - In her elegant Marina apartment overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge, Sarah Havensworth struggles to complete the novel she quit her job for. Afraid to tell her husband of her writer's block, Sarah is also hiding a darker secret - one that has haunted her for fourteen years. Then a news headline from 1876 sparks inspiration: Missing Dressmakers believed to be Murdered. Compelled to discover what happened to Hannelore and Margaret, Sarah returns to her roots as a journalist. Will her beautiful heirloom engagement ring uncover a connection to Hanna Schaeffer? 

Review: I recently read Boardwalk Summer, and absolutely loved it. I was so excited to read Meredith Jaeger's other book, her debut novel, The Dressmaker's Dowry. As it turns out this author has a formulaic writing style. No doubt I would have loved The Dressmaker's Dowry had I read it first, and is a good book, but how disappointing to find out this author is a one-trick pony. I will be curious to see if she changes up her storytelling style if she publishes a third novel.

Now, as for a review of The Dressmaker's Dowry. I loved the setting, I felt uncomfortable knowing Sarah was keeping a secret and knowing it would eventually blow up in the novel. The past timeline was a bit farfetched, but this author knows how to move a story along.