The Winthrop Agreement
New York, 1893. Lithuanian immigrant Rivkah Milmanovitch debarks on Ellis Island, expecting to join her husband and start a new life, but instead, she finds herself abandoned and pregnant. Seeking help from Lottie Aarons, a fellow refugee, the friends share cramped quarters in the Lower East Side, and Rivkah gives birth to a daughter, Mimi. While Rivkah struggles to provide a better life for her child, enduring sordid factory and tenement conditions, Mimi, imaginative and artistic, dreams of becoming a fashion designer and living a life of luxury. By chance, while attending school, and doing piecemeal work with her mother, the fifteen-year-old meets and is seduced by Frederick Winthrop, the aristocratic son of one of NYC’s wealthiest families, who has a bizarre penchant for birds of prey and young girls. As a series of surprising and dramatic incidents unfolds, Mimi is burdened by a secret that would destroy her future and that of her young son, Matthew. Although deeply troubled by her vow of silence, she pursues her dream and gains international fame as an haute couture designer. Only when Mimi is confronted with a life-threatening scandal does she finally unravel the puzzling and sinister events that forced her to conceal her past.
Steeped in vivid descriptions of New York City’s Gilded Age, Simpson’s fascinating novel creates a richly layered tapestry of the heartbreaking plight of immigrants juxtaposed with the opulent lifestyles of the elite. Mimi’s exciting and mysterious journey is enhanced by a cast of unique, well-developed characters and lively dialogue. Seamlessly threading significant political, social, and historical events into this captivating story, Simpson’s plot is filled with tender, emotional scenes and psychologically twisted moments. A memorable and intriguing read.
