FICTION

Empire Girls

by Loretta Nyhan
Hayes, Suzanne & . Mira: Harlequin. Jun. 2014. 304p. ISBN 9780778316299. pap. $14.95; ebk. ISBN 9780778316299. F
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Hayes and Nyhan team up once again (after 2013's I'll Be Seeing You) with this Jazz Age tale of two sisters close in age but otherwise far apart. Rose is more serious, and she considers it her duty to look after her wild younger sister and their father. Ivy is a dreamer who longs to go to New York and become a star. When their father suddenly dies, the siblings find out they have an older brother and that he is the rightful heir. The only clue to his whereabouts is a photograph taken in front of Empire House, a boardinghouse in New York City. The girls travel there, renting a room at Empire House, where the residents are welcoming but secretive. Ivy finds work at a speakeasy while Rose becomes a seamstress, and they try to figure out their future as their brother is still nowhere to be found.
VERDICT Although the ending is too neatly wrapped up and some secondary characters could be more fully developed, the sisters' internal struggle to realign their dreams and heal the breach in their relationship adds pathos and makes for an ultimately satisfying read. With historical details of Prohibition-era New York, romance, and some elements of mystery, this novel of sisterhood should have wide appeal.
Reviewed by Christina Thurairatnam, Holmes Cty. Dist. P.L., Millersburg, OH , May 15, 2014
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