The Rich Are With You Always (Stevenson Family)

By Malcolm MacDonald

Book Overview

The gripping second novel in the classic Stevenson Family Saga from epic master Malcolm Macdonald At a time when fabulous fortunes could be made through the will of a strong man or the wiles of a beautiful woman, John Stevenson's genius as a builder and his wife Nora's clear-eyed, brilliant cunning promise to make them one of England's richest families. But as their fate becomes more and more entwined with that of their friends the Thorntons-repressed and pious Arabella and secretive, sex-obsessed Walter-whispers of scandal and disgrace threaten to bring them all to ruin. The second novel in the classic Stevenson Family Saga, The Rich Are with You Always is the epic story of two families at the height of the railroad boom, where the lives of the Victorian people rose economically and set in motion forces of passion and struggle that would define a people. "A luxuriant, wide-ranging novel... Malcolm Macdonald knows how to grip the reader..." -Boston Globe "Rich and exciting...the heir to R.F. Delderfield " -Washington Star "For sheer storytelling it is hard to beat Malcolm Macdonald. Each separate incident is as gripping as the story as a whole with] a scrupulous care for period detail." - W.J. Nesbitt Northern Echo "Engrosssing...a book to revel in " -Charleston Evening Post

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1402236093
• ISBN13: 9781402236099
• Release Date: January 1
• Publisher: Sourcebooks, Incorporated
• Length: 510 Pages
• Weight: 1.65 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.3" x 1.3" x 6.3"

Customer Reviews

Smart women, mathmatics, railroads, history, romance

this is a great sequel. don't miss it.

Marital Fights Over Money

Part Two of the Stevenson family saga is set in the years 1845 to 1850 as more entertaining characters are introduced and the turns and twists of plot continue to grip us. John Stevenson has become rich building his business on integrity and trust with those he employs and those who conduct business with him. Nora has emerged as a woman truly ahead of her time, adroitly managing the finances of the family firm. All is not well, however, for as united as John and Nora grow when besieged by adversity, they drift apart when life runs smooth. John, in pursuit of more, bigger and better contracts, fails to see his pride bringing Stevenson's to the brink of ruin--more than once. Nora must independently and furtively excercise her own financial genius and creativity and steel herself to defy the man she loves in order to halt crushing disaster from overtaking them. All this is done as she adds three children to the three with which they begin the story, gains social acceptance from many while remaining indifferent to snubs from some, and dazzles capitalists of her own and other countries. Meanwhile, Walter Thornton is deeply involved in his secret life--'nuff said--and by the end of the book, Arabella has traveled from tiresome zeal to frightening fanaticism in her crusade to redeem the fallen. She is a lady with no zest for fun. This installment is heavy on banking, investment, and money manipulation, which lost me, for all it was well written. That's not hard since I have trouble adding up the change in my wallet. It also takes us into French country life and religion, fox hunting, The Irish potato famine, the underside of Victorian morality, and extra tidbits about John's past and Nora's family.