Skip to main content
PBS logo
 
 

Book Review of Mrs. Lincoln's Rival (Audio CD) (Unabridged)

Mrs. Lincoln's Rival (Audio CD) (Unabridged)
reviewed on + 25 more book reviews


This is the story of Kate Chase, considered by many to be one of the most brilliant women of her time. She was advisor to her father, Salmon P. Chase, once President Lincoln's rival for the Republican nomination, later his Secretary of the Treasury and finally appointed Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. Considered "the Belle of Washington," Kate always seemed to instinctively know how to behave to win over others, with the single exception of Mrs. Lincoln, with whom she shared a bitter rivalry. In Kate's private life, she had a much harder time, as her choice of husbands, William Sprague (boy governor of Rhode Island), dealt her many challenges and humiliations, which she handled with grace and pride.

The author did a magnificent job of bringing the Civil War time to life with colorful dialogues and a perfect blend of true historical facts and imagination.

I received this book free through Library Thing Early Reviewers, the audio version produced by Recorded Books. Listening to it was a pleasure as the narrator demonstrates a wonderful range with her voice and reads with passion.