The Address

A Novel

By: Fiona Davis

Narrated by: Saskia Maarleveld, Brittany Pressley

Length: 11 hrs and 42 mins

Publisher's summary

From the New York Times best-selling author of The Lions of Fifth Avenue comes the compelling national best-selling novel about the thin lines between love and loss, success and ruin, passion, and madness, all hidden behind the walls of The Dakota - New York City’s most famous residence.

When a chance encounter with Theodore Camden, one of the architects of the grand New York apartment house the Dakota, leads to a job offer for Sara Smythe, her world is suddenly awash in possibility - no mean feat for a servant in 1884. The opportunity to move to America. The opportunity to be the female manager of the Dakota. And the opportunity to see more of Theo, who understands Sara like no one else...and is living in the Dakota with his wife and three young children.

One hundred years later, Bailey Camden is desperate for new opportunities: Fresh out of rehab, the former interior designer is homeless, jobless, and penniless. Bailey's grandfather was the ward of famed architect Theodore Camden, yet Bailey won't see a dime of the Camden family's substantial estate; instead, her “cousin” Melinda - Camden's biological great-granddaughter - will inherit almost everything. So when Melinda offers to let Bailey oversee the renovation of her lavish Dakota apartment, Bailey jumps at the chance, despite her dislike of Melinda's vision. The renovation will take away all the character of the apartment Theodore Camden himself lived in...and died in, after suffering multiple stab wounds by a former Dakota employee who had previously spent seven months in an insane asylum - a madwoman named Sara Smythe.

A century apart, Sara and Bailey are both tempted by and struggle against the golden excess of their respective ages - for Sara, the opulence of a world ruled by the Astors and Vanderbilts; for Bailey, the nightlife's free-flowing drinks and cocaine - and take refuge in the Upper West Side's gilded fortress. But a building with a history as rich, and often as tragic, as the Dakota's can't hold its secrets forever, and what Bailey discovers inside could turn everything she thought she knew about Theodore Camden - and the woman who killed him - on its head.

©2017 Fiona Davis (P)2017 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“A delicious tale of love, lies and madness.” (People Magazine)

“The Address is compelling, historically minded fiction with unexpected - and entertaining - twists and turns...the novel delights...” (Ms. Magazine)

“Lively and detail rich - set against the backdrop of NYC’s infamous Dakota building - with a thread of mystery that makes it easy to enjoy, hard to put down.” (Family Circle)

Wanted to Like It More

3.5 stars. This book sounded wonderful but the reality was a little less so. It offers two interconnected stories, 100 years apart, but both taking place at The Dakota. The first introduces Sara Smythe, a competent hotel manager at an upscale London hotel in 1884, who saves the life of a young girl and is rewarded for her courage when the girl’s father invites her to move to New York to work at the upcoming address of the future, The Dakota.

The second story takes place 100 years later, when Bailey, a young interior designer just out of rehab, is hired by her cousin to redesign the family apartment in The Dakota, which she is to inherit as the scion of Theodore Camden, the architect of the building and the man who invited Sarah to move from London to New York.

With the two main sets of characters in place, the stories wind around and through each other until, finally, at the end, we see how they are intertwined. In between, there are traumas, a murder, affairs, romances and breakups, a stint at an insane asylum and many other dramatic events.

They don’t always coalesce in a natural way and things (to me) were somewhat predictable.

The narrators are fine. Saskia Maarleveld, who is a seasoned narrator, did an excellent job with Sarah's story. Brittany Pressley was a little less successful with Bailey's; her reading made Bailey sound like such a spoiled brat and I don't think that's what the author intended for this character.

Excellent

this book is very well written, and I also enjoyed the narrators! i Highly recommend this book!

A few irritations

I enjoyed the story and the history of the Dakota. However I found the many mispronunciations by the reader irritating. Surely to goodness if you have to read a French phrase, learn to say it properly!

Great Book

This was a great book! A combination of New York City history and fictional character based on low to upper level society.

Well Narrated, Interesting Story

The Address does a very good job going between the 1890s and the 1980s, bouncing between two connected narratives. Davis did her homework for both periods, and makes the two different New Yorks feel very much alive. While the mystery element is present, it might not be the strongest part of the novel. As a connecting device it works well, but it was not hard to see how it would develop. Full credit to the narrators who did a very solid job in voicing each of the protagonists.

Great story and performance!

This was such a good listen in every way. I thought I had figured out where the story would end, but I did not! The ending surprised me and made the whole story so much better than I imagined. The performance was wonderful and the author’s references to history anchored the story so well. I may just listen to this again and certainly will recommend it.

The Address Review

I had a hard time getting into this book, but once I did I really enjoyed it. I found it to be a bit predictable, but still kept my attention.

A very enjoyable read

Really enjoyed this story, a blend of history and fiction with suspense. Characters are well developed and it is easy to lose oneself in their stories.

tied together nicely.

the pace of this book was enchanting, you can "see" every chapter. delightfully well told.

AWESOME

After listening to a couple of "just okay" books, I wasn't expecting much... though I was intrigued by the summary given on Audible. Boy, was I surprised! The Address drew me in right away and was another one of those, "I want to know what happens but... I don't want it to end"! The storyline was incredible, as was the narration. Looking forward to listening to another title by this author!