Tiffany Girl: A Novel

Deeanne Gist

May 2015 · Sold by Simon and Schuster

About this ebook

From the bestselling author of It Happened at the Fair and Fair Play comes a compelling historical novel about a progressive “New Woman”—the girl behind Tiffany’s chapel—and the love that threatens it all.

As preparations for the 1893 World’s Fair set Chicago and the nation on fire, Louis Tiffany—heir to the exclusive Fifth Avenue jewelry empire—seizes the opportunity to unveil his state-of-the-art, stained glass, mosaic chapel, the likes of which the world has never seen.

But when Louis’s dream is threatened by a glassworkers’ strike months before the Fair opens, he turns to an unforeseen source for help: the female students at the Art Students League of New York. Eager for adventure, the young women pick up their skirts, move to boarding houses, take up steel cutters, and assume new identities as the “Tiffany Girls.”

Tiffany Girl is the heartwarming story of the impetuous Flossie Jayne, a beautiful, budding artist who is handpicked by Louis to help complete the Tiffany chapel. Though excited to live in a boarding house when most women stayed home, she quickly finds the world is less welcoming than anticipated. From a Casanova male, to an unconventional married couple, and a condescending singing master, she takes on a colorful cast of characters to transform the boarding house into a home while racing to complete the Tiffany chapel and make a name for herself in the art world.

As challenges mount, her ambitions become threatened from an unexpected quarter: her own heart. Who will claim victory? Her dreams or the captivating boarder next door?

Ratings and reviews

Tiffany Girl by Deanne Gist is the story of Florence Jayne who wants more out of life. Her father has decided she can no longer take her painting classes (because he spent the money for tuition on gambling). Flossie (as she is called) decided to get a job outside the home to finance her classes. One-day Louis Comfort Tiffany comes to the New York School for Applied Design (Flossie’s school). Mr. Tiffany is looking for female works to help complete his windows for the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago. Mr. Tiffany is building a chapel with twelve windows. Because of a strike with the Lead Glaziers and Glass Cutters’ Unions, they need workers. Flossie is lucky enough to be one of the ladies picked. Flossie cannot believe her luck (no she has to tell her parents). Flossie finds a room at Klausmeyer Boardinghouse and believes these people will be her family (she is extremely naïve). Reeve Wilder, a reporter for The New York World, lives across the hall. Reeve finds Flossie to be extremely annoying and a disrupting influence. He does, though, find her to be an inspiration for his writing. See how Flossie navigates life on her own as she becomes a Tiffany Girl. Tiffany Girl is basically a long, drawn out romance novel. There is not enough in the book regarding Tiffany and the windows. The fair barely rates a chapter. Flossie is an extremely naïve young woman who had no idea what real life was like outside her home. I just expected more from the book. The writing is okay (a little stilted) and I felt the book was too long. It could have ended much sooner (many things could have been edited from the book). I give Tiffany Girl 3 out of 5 stars. The ending is expected (you know what is going to happen from the moment Flossie and Reeve meet). I received a complimentary copy of Tiffany Girl from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

About the author

Deeanne Gist has rocketed up bestseller lists and captured readers everywhere with her very fun, very original historical novels. She has won the National Readers’ Choice Award, Booksellers’ Best Award, USA Best Books Award, and stellar reviews. With a background in education and journalism, Deeanne has written for People, Parents, and Parenting magazines. Visit her online at IWantHerBook.com and at Facebook.com/DeesFriends.