Love, Theodosia: A Novel of Theodosia Burr and Philip Hamilton
First, a confession: I’ve never seen Hamilton, and haven’t heard the song that inspired this novel. But I have heard of Aaron Burr’s captivating daughter Theodosia, who in 1800 was 17 years old, beautiful, and extensively and highly educated. At a time when most girls received very little in the way of schooling, this set Theodosia apart from her contemporaries; her main emotional bond was with her father.
While Aaron Burr loved his daughter in his own self-absorbed fashion, he also regarded her as a valuable playing piece in his game: politics. In 1800, a Presidential election was being held, with both Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr as candidates (others were running, but only Jefferson and Burr really counted). At that time, the candidate with the most votes became President, the runner-up became Vice President. Burr is bitterly determined to be President at any cost, even that of his daughter. Burr needs the Southern states behind him to win, and he needs the unpleasant and secretly brutal Joseph Alston of South Carolina to bring him those states. This means Theodosia must marry Alston—a man she despises. Worse, Theodosia is in love with Philip, son of her father’s greatest political enemy, Alexander Hamilton.
While the novel’s got a great plot, and fascinating information about the politics of the young United States, the tone can be uneven. Some of the dialogue is very modern, and Theodosia sometimes seems rather snobbish—which of course is due to her raising as Princess Over-educated by her arrogant father. But I enjoyed reading it, since the only other novel I know of that features Theodosia Burr came out in 1941 (My Theodosia by Anya Seton). I’m glad to see Theodosia once again step forward from the historical shadows to tell her own story.
