The Fortune Hunter: A Novel

I have a very strong knowledge of the subject matter, mostly from an academic perspective. The Fortune Hunter had all the right historical elements, and all the potential be a really great novel. However, sadly, it falls very flat. I didn’t quite love it, but I also didn’t completely hate it. It was just “meh” at best. I enjoy historical fiction, but this was more of an over-wrought love story and just not to my taste.

Very interesting! This book is based on a true story. Bay Middleton, was an ancestor of the Middleton family, and his Commanding Officer was Earl Spencer an ancestor of Diana, Princess of Wales! Bay guided the aging Empress of Austria (Elisabeth - Sissi). Bay was courting Charlotte Baird at the time and they became engaged, but didn't marry until later on.

If you enjoy historical, romantic novels, immerse yourself in this charming reveal of the lives of royalty and characters that are based on fact with an author that richly developed each personality. You want to "tuck in" and enjoy the remarkable prose and enveloping storyline -- liberally seasoned with humor and in juxtaposition just the right does of dampening reality. I so enjoyed being taken back to a place where intrigue and romance gently intertwine with the rigid protocol of the time. I loved it.

Kind of interesting that the characters are real but the tone and plot are quite boring. Using outdated colloquial words does not mean it's a well written story. The whole story seemed pointless and I was glad to finish it.

I enjoyed the book over all, although I had trouble supporting Bay throughout the story. It was disturbing that he leaves Charlotte for the Empress, but then at the end of the book gets Charlotte back.
Casper is an awesome character, and the only major character with which I did not become annoyed.
Overall, I would read it again.

Once again, author Daisy Goodwin draws you in to the detailed world of her current novel. It is a wonderful mix of history and fiction that transports you back to the Victorian Era. I would highly recommend all of Daisy Goodwin's novels and I look forward to her next book.

The narrator did a wonderful job, her voice fit each of person it represented. I've listened to many books on CD and a narrator can make it enjoyable to listen or not and Ms. Corbett's reading of this novel was perfect for this story.
The story itself completely takes you back to that time you can feel as if you were actually there experiencing each character. This is one of those books I would listen to again and again over time. I have lent it out to a few other CD book enthusiasts and they also totally enjoyed the story.
I couldn't wait to see what happens at the same time I never wanted the book to end...

While not a book one might select for repeated readings, the characters are well-developed and the historical basis for the story is fascinating. It is well-written without a ripped bodice in sight - I enjoyed it.

I enjoyed reading this story a lot. There was too much rambling on about fox hunting (yet, I still don't understand what it is or why anyone would want to do it), but aside from that, the story is interesting. If you like period fiction, this is a fun read.

The Fortune Hunter is Daisy Goodwin’s second novel. I purchased the Audible edition of this book not too long after its release, but I didn’t listen to it right away because I was saving it. Well, I saved it for almost three years- and I even read Goodwin’s third novel Victoria- but The Fortune Hunter was absolutely worth the wait.

Charlotte Baird is a young heiress. She inherited her fortune from her mother, who died in a horseback riding incident when Charlotte was very small. Now that Charlotte is older, she has to consider whether the young men who seek to form an acquaintanceship are interested in her or her fortune.

Bay Middleton served in the army with Charlotte’s brother. He finds her to be charming, but he also knows that his situation makes his actions seem more predatory, and that he is merely a fortune hunter.

But the situation becomes even more complicated when Bay is called away to serve as a pilot for the Empress of Austria as she participates in the winter hunt season. “Sisi”, as she is known, is impressed with Bay’s horsemanship; he is the only one who can keep up with her. At Sisi’s behest, Bay moves to the estate where she is staying, and away from the estate where Charlotte and the rest of the house party.

Charlotte still cares for Bay, but his involvement with Sisi is well known in their circles. So Charlotte travels to London to stay with her godmother and help her prepare for a photography exhibition. This proves to be a welcome respite for Charlotte, and an opportunity to sort out her feelings about Bay, and more importantly- what she wants out of life.

And likewise, Bay has captured the attention of one of the most beautiful women in the world, but is that what he really wants out of life?

This was a superbly written book, and while I do regret taking to long to read/listen to it, it was worth the wait. Goodwin has such a knack for developing well-rounded characters; even many of the secondary characters have been fleshed out. One of the most interesting aspects of this is Bay’s ambiguity. He does not quite rise to the level of an antihero, but he does make some questionable choices.

I would absolutely recommend The Fortune Hunter. The Victorian era is one of my favorites, and I love the way that Goodwin brings it to life. The plot is well paced, and full of historical details. Goodwin is one of my favorite authors, and although she is busy with the Victoria miniseries nowadays, I can’t wait to find out what her next project is.

Charlotte Baird, the heroine of "The Fortune Hunter" is not a particular comely young woman, but her late mother's fortune, "made her attractive enough," as the author notes, especially to potential suitors like Bay Middleton whom she meets at a ball. A handsome man with a reputation with the ladies, (and talented steeplechaser) Middleton is currently having an affair with a rich woman, but finds himself developing feelings for Charlotte, and despite the gossip, perhaps not just because she's an heiress. For her part, Charlotte, a talented amateur photographer, is not content merely to marry and settle down, like her soon-to-be sister-in-law, Augusta, something the visiting American photographer, Caspar Hewes, seems to understand.

Soon a rival for Middleton will arise, in the form of the Empress of Austria, who has arrived to visit and whose invitation to become her "groom" during the hunts, Middleton cannot refuse. Elizabeth or "Sisi" as she's called finds her marriage unfulfilling and seeks diversion by traveling abroad. As she and Middleton participate in the hunts together, they find a mutual attraction developing, as well as much gossip. Though Middleton brings up the possibility of elopement with Charlotte early on, she refuses, setting into play a series of maneuvers and misunderstandings, that will take place over a season of hunts, parties, a memorable photography exhibit, and the Grand National race, in which truths will be revealed and partners found.

Set in the early nineteenth century, the novel does a good job bringing the British society world to life, including the thrill of fox hunting. The tension between the characters, which must never be directly addressed, is nicely done, too. Overall, "The Fortune Hunters" is an Austen-like story about pride, prejudice and finding love despite them.

The Fortune Hunter
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The Fortune Hunter
by Daisy Goodwin (Goodreads Author)
3.45 · Rating Details · 6,989 Ratings · 1,043 Reviews
In 1875, Sisi, the Empress of Austria is the woman that every man desires and every woman envies.

Beautiful, athletic and intelligent, Sisi has everything - except happiness. Bored with the stultifying etiquette of the Hapsburg Court and her dutiful but unexciting husband, Franz Joseph, Sisi comes to England to hunt. She comes looking for excitement and she finds it in the ...more
Hardcover, 473 pages
Published July 29th 2014 by St. Martin's Press (first published November 7th 2013)
ISBN 1250043891 (ISBN13: 9781250043894)
URLhttp://headlinepublishing.gwaplive.co.uk/books/detail.page?isbn=9780755370993
CharactersEmpress Elisabeth of Austria
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Shelves adult-novel, historical-fiction, read, romance edit
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January 27, 2017 – Finished Reading
Historical fiction is always tricky. On the one hand, you have the actual facts and on the other hand, you have the drama-filled version or the happy-ending version that most people prefer. You may find an Empress with an eating disorder and a selfish personality interesting to read about, but you aren't necessarily going to root for her. Nor are you necessarily likely to root for a young man who has affairs with married women, is obsessed about his horse, and is basically one of history's first dude bros. So, historical fiction has to cross that line - keep who the historical figures were, but (in many cases) make them more likable. Was The Fortune Hunter successful at this? Not really.

The Good:

- The writing style flows very well. It's an easy and breezy read. In the six days I had the novel marked as being read, I really only read it during two days. I read it on the 22nd, 25th, and the 27th. During which time, I read about 120 or so pages a night. It was a very fast read and the story (mostly) kept me engaged.

- Apparently, there isn't much known about the real Charlotte Baird. Which means that Daisy Goodwin had to do what she could. The fictional Charlotte is bright, quirky, witty, and full of passion. Charlotte loves photography and dreams of living a life where she is loved for herself and not her large fortune. I really enjoyed Charlotte - she was a sweet, slightly naive twenty-year old and I felt for her. I spent most of the novel wanting her to run off to North America to take photographs.

- Caspar Hewes - the dashing American photographer was a character I loved. I was sorely dismayed to find out that he is completely fictional. To be honest, a lot of the minor characters were fairly likable people. I enjoyed Grace, Charlotte's aunts, Sisi's servants, even Fred and Augusta.

- The dialogue is (for the most part) great. Very breezy and fun. I adored the snarky (but oh, so polite) comments that characters would make to one another.

The Bad:

- Elisabeth ("Sisi"), Empress of Austria and Bay Middleton are supposed to have this torrid love affair. But, the novel doesn't read like that at all. The Empress comes across as a woman who has found a new toy and Bay comes across as someone who is purely thinking with his sex organ. They don't really have conversations nor do they have much in common. Yes, they both enjoy hunting...but, that doesn't make a relationship.

-Bay Middleton was terrible. When we first met him, he has just been dumped by his married lover,Henrietta. (Side note: the real Henrietta had a daughter, Clementine Hozier, born 1 April 1885, who was eventually to marry Sir Winston Churchill. Bay Middleton is largely rumored to have been Clementine's biological father. Sadly, Bay and Charlotte married in 1882 - that means he had at least one affair during their marriage.)

Anyway, the night he is dumped, Bay meets Charlotte and decides that Charlotte "isn't like other girls". Six months later, they are both staying in the country with Augusta's family. Bay kisses Charlotte on Monday. On Tuesday he meets Sisi and feels an intense sexual attraction. That night, he goes back and proposes marriage to Charlotte. Why? Bay feels he cannot control himself with Sisi and needs that marriage to help him. Being a good girl, Charlotte says that should wait until she is twenty-one - as to avoid scandal. On Wednesday, Bay eats supper with Sisi and ends up kissing her in the stables. On Thursday, Charlotte goes to London on family business and Bay (not receiving a note that explains this) begins a sexual affair with Sisi that evening. Is Bay a horrible person for all this? To me he is.

What makes it worse, (at least to me) is a couple of days later, Charlotte writes to Bay and explains the situation. Bay is delighted, because he still has fondness for Charlotte and wishes to marry her. HOWEVER, he still sleeps with Sisi that same night. Weeks later, Bay meets Charlotte at Fred and Augusta's wedding and makes it clear he still wants to marry her. But, he still leaves with Sisi (who crashes the wedding, as she hasn't seen Bay in a couple of weeks) and kisses her in the carriage. *Sigh*

In the end, I could never find it in my heart to forgive Bay for his transgressions. Bay’s actions proved him more a fortunate hunter than a romantic lead. Frankly, Caspar was a far better romantic lead (and I'm 90% sure he was gay or at least bisexual).

- Sisi, pissed me off every time she appeared on the page. I understand that the real Elisabeth had several issues: including an obsession with weight, an obsession with keeping her looks and being the most beautiful, and a strange fear of overweight women. All of which is here in the novel. On those things, I pity her. However, she is also rude and selfish and so very shallow. She treats Bay as a toy and speaks to him as if he is a child.

- The love stories really didn't work for me. Sisi/Bay felt very shallow and Bay/Charlotte felt very shallow, too. Sisi and Bay had hunting and horses in common. Bay and Charlotte had nothing in common, actually.

The Meh:

- A lot of historical events are moved around to fit the story. For some reason, that actually really annoyed me. For example, Sisi had two grandchildren by 1875; the novel claims she has one grandchild. Bay Middleton also didn't win the National in 1876. Bay was Elisabeth's "pilot" from 1876 to February 1882. Bay became engaged to Charlotte in 1875 and married her in October of 1882. The entire novel (as far as I can tell) takes place between July of 1875 to March of 1876. I think the story would have worked between if it had taken place over several years, as opposed to several months/weeks.

Homely Charlotte Baird is entering her first season as a debutante in English society. She is now available to marry, should her half brother Fred and his annoying fiancee Augusta agree. Everyone knows it won't be Charlotte's looks that catch's her a man, it will be her fortune. She is the sole heir to the Lennox fortune. And that's nothing to bat an eyelash at.

Enter Bay Middletown, a rogue, a scoundrel, a womanizer. He is smitten by Charlotte and her ways. She is easy on the eyes, comes with money, but Bay see's more in her. He see's a partner. As their friendship/courtship grows, Bay is requested to be the Empress of Austria's pilot for the big hunt. He doesn't want to do it. He wishes to stay and woo/court Charlotte, but he can not say no to his former commanding officer. If he plays the horse right, it could be a big victory for himself and for England. Bay agrees to the job, with reluctance, after awhile he finds the Empress, Sisi, to be very beautiful and very agreeable to him. His relationship with the Empress grows, his relationship with Charlotte wanes. It's a struggle for Bay's affection. Who will win?

I will admit, these people are so passive aggressive when dealing with each other. Just come out and say it, instead of beating around the bush. That was dreadful. I didn't find anything redeeming about any of these people. In fact, I liked the American who came into the picture much to late. I wish he would have been there for the hunt at Melton, when Charlotte took the picture of the Empress when she had her fan up. He could have swept her away to London and started a bigger scandal. For me it was boring. I wouldn't have married any of them. I would have died a widow with many lovers. Screw you people and the Empress.

What I did like about the book, the history. Some things were off, but nothing Earth shattering. I the reference to the picture of the Empress with her fan. That picture does exist, yes I googled it. Those little details really helped the story seem real. Did it actually happen? Who knows. From the pictures the Empress is beautiful. A grandma at 38, wow, that's young, but I have to remember that they married much earlier than we do!

Charlotte was a lady before her time. I'm glad she didn't just sit around, paint porcelain and sip tea. She had a great hobby, unorthodox for the time, but still really cool. I just wish she could have made better choices when it herself and future.

A spirited English heiress, a dashing cavalry officer and a beguiling Austrian Empress form a love triangle that on first glance may look like characters from a romance novel, but in reality are based on actual people: Charlotte Baird, Bay Middleton and Elizabeth, Empress of Austria. Set in 1875 Victorian England, THE FORTUNE HUNTER, by the bestselling author Daisy Goodwin (THE AMERICAN HEIRESS) is the fictionalization of the life of an ambitious horsemen John “Bay” Middleton and the two women he romances, taking us at full gallop through London’s high society ballrooms, country manor houses and fox hunting while exploring the emotional highs and lows of three very unique people faced with the challenges of personal truth, honor and love.

Miss Charlotte Baird is an intelligent and creative twenty-year old more interested in photography than fashion, beaux, and social decorum. She is also one of the richest women in England. Because she is an orphan, her half-brother Fred manages her Lennox fortune until her majority—and his fiancé Augusta Crewe, the high-minded daughter of an Earl, manages him. While attending a London opera, Fred introduces his sister to a fellow officer, the dashing Captain Bay Middleton. They meet again at the Spencer ball and Charlotte is promptly swept off her feet by his flattery and attentions. (red coat alert) Even though her Aunt Adelaide warns her against the captain’s dubious reputation as a womanizer, and her brother and his fiancé think he is totally unsuitable match for her, she has her own ideas about who she wants as a husband. In her mind, she does not see his reputation, lack of fortune or title as an impediment.

The action soon moves to Melton Hall, the Crewe country seat in Leicestershire, where Charlotte is staying with her brother and his future in-laws during the holidays. The fox hunting season is in full swing and even though Augusta thought Captain Middleton was an unsuitable husband material for Charlotte, she overlooks his faults and invites him too. He is, after all, the keenest rider in England and a retired officer in the 11th Hussars, their neighbor John Spencer, 5th Earl of Spencer’s regiment. Also in the neighborhood for the season is a surprising new resident, Elizabeth, Empress of Austria, the famous European beauty and horsewoman who has escaped the confines of the Hapsburg court and arrived with her royal entourage, including a pet monkey. Obsessed with her looks, the eccentric Empress is a grandmother but has the face and figure of an ingénue in her first bloom. With a strict diet and exercise regimen she has fought back time, but is still continually anxious about her looks. “Beauty was her gift, her weapon and her power, and she dreaded its passing.” p 111

Bay is pressed into service by Spencer to pilot the Empress during the hunting season. Reluctantly he agrees and soon meets the enigmatic “Sisi” whose skill in the hunting field impresses everyone, even Bay. A mutual attraction quickly builds into an infatuation by him, which begs little prompting by her to grow into a full-blown affair between the Empress and her pilot. Regardless, he has true feelings for Charlotte and is confident that she will soon be his. His desire for both of these women has him questioning himself.

“Bay had never thought of himself as a bad person before, not now he wondered what sort of person he really was: the devil in the mirror or the noble-looking young man in Charlotte’s photograph?” p 167

The Empress is not like any other woman he has ever met, “her rank and status made him uncertain.” Here is a beautiful woman in total control of any situation and that intrigues him. Charlotte on the other hand was no challenge; she is easily won and accepts his proposal, entering into a secret engagement until she reaches her majority and receives control of her fortune.

Charlotte returns to London to assist her mentor with an upcoming photographic exhibition. After developing her own pictures taken of Bay and the Empress at Melton, Charlotte’s new friend Caspar notices how ardently Bay is gazing at the Empress and the truth is suddenly so clear to her. Bay loves the Empress and only wants Charlotte for her fortune.

Wrought with aristocratic opulence, social ambition and emotional desire, THE FORTUNE HUNTER was a delicious indulgence for me. I adore historical fiction based on real people and Goodwin has eloquently introduced me to an era in British and Austrian history that I had never delved into before. The atmosphere of the residences and the descriptions of clothing were refreshing, but it was the exciting action scenes of fox hunting and the white-knuckle final steeplechase at The Grand National that were the most thrilling scenes.

If this beautifully written novel lacked anything, it was romantic tension and a bit more framing of a woman’s place in society at the beginning. We learn from Charlotte’s family that Bay is a rake placing us on guard for our heroine. Is this the truth or rumors? Charlotte is young and naïve when it comes to love and Bay wins her affection and trust so easily. In turn Bay is won over by the Empress equally as fast. I would like to have experienced more inner-turmoil and tension before each romance. Later in the novel Charlotte’s friend Caspar sums it up perfectly.

“Carlotta mia, every romance needs a little tension. If the gallant captain turns his head and sees you gazing at him as you are now, he will know precisely what is in your heart, but if he turns to see you confiding in me, well, he will be confused, and that would not such a bad thing. Everybody desires a thing more when it is not straightforward.” p 325

Another minor quibble involved some of the horse facts. I realize I have an unfair advantage being a former equestrian and most readers will not care that horses cannot jump twelve foot hedges, nor, (spoiler alert) that a fifteen hand mare is the most unlikely horse to win the Grand National. Not that it could not happen, mind you, it is just REALLY a long shot. Maybe that was the author’s point, paralleling the love story’s happy conclusion?

What makes this novel more than your run-of-the-mill historical romance? Goodwin’s keen eye for focusing the action like a film director—and an hysterical cameo appearance by Her Majesty, Queen Victoria herself of course. Witty humor always wins me over. Oh, and a beautiful cover. Like Sisi I am very shallow.

Laurel Ann, Austenprose

England, 1875: Charlotte Baird is a twenty-something heiress who cares more for art than for amorous suitors. Her ambition is to “…record the world in all its strangeness and beauty,” and she does so through her paintings and photographs. This is all to the chagrin of her older half-brother, Fred, who wants Charlotte to make a sound marital match, not unlike his impending spouse, Augusta, who makes up for what she lacks in royal breeding with fierce social ambition. Charlotte couldn’t care less. But she has one thing that makes the landed gentry and gold-digging bachelors alike stand up and take notice. She is “not perhaps the most striking looking girl in the room, she was undoubtedly one of the richest, as the sole heiress to the Lennox fortune” --- reason enough to be suspect of eager suitors, in Charlotte’s mind.

However, when Charlotte meets handsome Captain Bay Middleton, her heart starts to soften a bit. An avid horseman with ambitions to win the Grand National horse race that year, Bay takes an interest in Charlotte’s photography and asks her to take a portrait of his prized horse. He was different from the rest: “There was a springiness to him that made him a much easier presence than most of the young men she knew.”

A decorated soldier in Her Majesty, Queen Victoria’s service, Bay has the manners but not the money that his friends possess. He could do far worse than to marry Charlotte, from a strategic standpoint, but he does in fact find himself attracted to this unassuming, artistic young woman. The more time the two spend together, the more sense marriage seems to make to both of them. Bay hasn’t formally proposed, yet has all but pledged his love to Charlotte.

But then along comes Sisi. Empress Elizabeth of Austria --- better known as Sisi, to her friends and familiars --- travels to England that winter sans her husband, the Emperor, to enjoy some true British country life. At 38 and already a grandmother, Sisi is still devastatingly beautiful with her floor-length hair and porcelain skin. Not wanting to cause too much of a scene, she quietly rents a manor house and fills it with family and staff. An avid horsewoman, she is dying to try her hand at a true English fox hunt. Because she’s unfamiliar with the terrain, it is suggested that she hire a “pilot” --- a more experienced horseman --- to accompany her on these outings. Captain Bay Middleton comes highly recommended, and although he’s reluctant at first, he accepts the post and soon becomes utterly entranced by Sisi’s confidence and feminine wiles. It’s not too long before the pair are lovers.

But what about poor Charlotte, his naïve intended? Bay feels horrible about his betrayal. He has genuine feelings for her, especially since she has more faith in him than he does in himself: “She expected more of him, and he rather liked the version of himself he saw reflected in her eyes.” But the allure of the Empress proves strong. Who will Bay choose, and can it be possible for these souls to have their Jane Austen-type ending?

Fans of Lauren Willig’s novels, like THE ASHFORD AFFAIR and the Pink Carnation series, Jo Baker’s LONGBOURN and the PBS series “Downton Abbey” will relish this compelling story with its meticulously researched details. Real historical figures of the day, including Princess Diana’s ancestors, the Spencers, figure into the narrative. Bay Middleton himself is even a distant relative to Kate Middleton, the current Duchess of Cambridge. The impeccably researched settings and characters, along with the scintillating story, will make new fans of author Daisy Goodwin.

Reviewed by Bronwyn Miller.