Mount Vernon Love Story : A Novel of George and Martha Washington

Charming, insightful and immensely entertaining in its unique presentation of one of America's legendary figures, Mount Vernon Love Story, by famed suspense writer Mary Higgins Clark, shows the reader the man behind the legend, a man of flesh, blood and passion, and in the author's skilled hands, the story and the man come fully and dramatically alive. Mary Higgins Clark's interest in George Washington was first sparked by a radio series she was writing in the 1960s, called "Portrait of a Patriot," vignettes of American presidents. Always a lover of history, she wrote this biographical novel -- her first book -- and titled it Aspire to the Heavens, which was the family motto of George Washington's mother. With all events, dates, scenes and characters based on historical research, the book was published in 1969. Its recent discovery by a Washington family descendent led to its reissue under its new title, Mount Vernon Love Story. In researching...

the Role Of Leader Comes Naturally To George Washington, The Man Revered As The Father Of His Country. But When It Comes To The Social Aspects Of Mid-eighteenth Century Life, He Is Awkward And Insecure. mount Vernon Love Story Explores Washington's Strength And Compassion, And Illuminates His Dreams Of Discovering True Love. The Novel Charts The Course Of George's Tentative Courtship Of The Young Widow Martha Custis. Charming, Insightful, And Immensely Entertaining, mount Vernon Love Story Reveals With Grace And Drama The Man Behind The Legend—a Man Of Flesh, Blood, And Boundless Passion.

publishers Weekly

originally Published In 1969 Under The Title aspire To The Heavens, This Slim, Muted Historical Romance Is The Long-out-of-print Debut By America's Reigning Queen Of Suspense. As The Quasi-biographical Novel Opens, George Washington Is Preparing To Attend The Inauguration Of His Successor, John Adams; Clark, Employing Inelegant But Efficient Transitional Techniques (adams's Rather Flat Nasal Voice Seemed To Become More Clipped And Sharp-toned.... It Became His Mother's Voice), Quickly Moves The Narrative Back To George's Boyhood. The Temporal Seesaw Continues As She Juxtaposes George's Trials (his Mean Mother, His Unrequited Love For A Friend's Wife) And Triumphs (his Land Acquisitions, His Bravery In Battle) With His Reflections On The State Of The Union In The Novel's 1797 Present. But Her Focus Remains On The Domestic (a French And Indian Ambush At The Monongahela River In 1755 Is Rendered With Far Less Care And Credibility Than Scenes Of George's Skill On The Dance Floor) And The Emotional (george's Mantle Of Leadership Concerns Him Much Less Than The Naughtiness Of His Stepson). What Passes For A Driving Narrative Force Is George's Slow Transfer Of Affection From The Beautiful, Charismatic Sally Carey To The Small, Pretty Widow Martha (known As Patsy) Custis He Married, And Then The Growing Bond Between My Old Man And My Dearest Patsy. Though It Can Be Argued That Clark's Tale Is Neither Sufficiently Historical Nor Romantic And It's Definitely Not A Suspense Story, As Clark Allows In A Brief Prefatory Note This Is A Light Read That Completists Will Devour, And That Clark's Other Fans May Appreciate Simply Because It's A Different Bill Of Fare. Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

Charming, insightful and immensely entertaining in its unique presentation of one of America's legendary figures, Mount Vernon Love Story, by Mary Higgins Clark, shows the reader the man behind the legend, a man of flesh, blood and passion, and in the author's skilled hands, the story and the man come fully and dramatically alive. Mary Higgins Clark's interest in George Washington was first sparked by a radio series she was writing in the 1960s, on American presidents. Always a lover of history, she wrote this biographical novel -- her first book -- and titled it Aspire to the Heavens, the family motto of Washington's mother. The book was published in 1969. Its recent discovery by a Washington family descendent led to this reissue under its new title. In researching Washington's life, Mary Higgins Clark was surprised to find the engaging man behind the pious legend. He was a giant of a man in every way, starting with his physical height. He was the best dancer in the colony of Virginia and also a master horseman. She dispels the widespread belief that although George Washington married an older woman, a widow, his true love was Sally Carey Fairfax, his best friend's wife. Martha Dandridge Custis was older, but only by three months. Mary Higgins Clark describes their relationship from their first meeting, their closeness and his tenderness toward her two children. Martha shared his life in every way, crossing the British lines to join him in Boston and enduring with him the bitter hardship of the winter in Valley Forge. In Mount Vernon Love Story, Mary Higgins Clark tells the story of a rare marriage and brings to life the human side of the man who became the "father of our country." In Mount Vernon Love Story -- famed suspense writer Mary Higgins Clark's long-out-of-print first novel -- the bestselling author reveals the flesh-and-blood man who became the "father of our country" in a story that is charming, insightful, and immensely entertaining. Always a lover of history, Mary Higgins Clark wrote this extensively researched biographical novel and titled it Aspire to the Heavens , after the motto of George Washington's mother. Published in 1969, the book was more recently discovered by a Washington family descendant and reissued as Mount Vernon Love Story . Dispelling the widespread belief that although George Washington married Martha Dandridge Custis, he reserved his true love for Sally Carey Fairfax, his best friend's wife, Mary Higgins Clark describes the Washington marriage as one full of tenderness and passion, as a bond between two people who shared their lives -- even the bitter hardship of a winter in Valley Forge -- in every way. In this author's skilled hands, the history, the love, and the man come fully and dramatically alive. In Mount Vernon Love Story , bestselling author Mary Higgins Clark reveals the flesh-and-blood man who became the "father of our country" in a story that is charming, insightful, and immensely entertaining. Always a lover of history, Mary Higgins Clark wrote this extensively researched biographical novel and titled it Aspire to the Heavens , after the motto of George Washington's mother. Published in 1969, the book was more recently discovered by a Washington family descendant and reissued as Mount Vernon Love Story . Dispelling the widespread belief that although George Washington married Martha Dandridge Custis, he reserved his true love for Sally Carey Fairfax, his best friend's wife, Mary Higgins Clark describes the Washington marriage as one full of tenderness and passion, as a bond between two people who shared their lives—even the bitter hardship of a winter in Valley Forge—in every way. In this author's skilled hands, the history, the love, and the man come fully and dramatically alive.

For a divorced mother of two, it was a fairy-tale romance?

When lovely Jenny MacPartland met the man of her dreams while working in a New York art gallery, she could hardly believe her luck. Artist Erich Krueger was handsome, sensitive, a painter whose exquisite landscapes were making him a virtual overnight success...

Elisabeth Jakab

...As in all of Mary Higgins Clark's tales of horror, things soon begin to go slightly, then massively, awry....The plot appears to have been put together out of generous borrowings from many familiar sources, ''Psycho,'' ''Gaslight,'' ''Rebecca,'' ''Jane Eyre,'' among others....Suspense builds as the story sweeps rapidly along, and in spite of my sense of deja vu, I was kept guessing for far longer than I care to admit....While ''A Cry in the Night'' is not on a par with Mrs. Clark's previous efforts, it has its own virtues. It is a good harrowing tale by a master of horror fiction who seldom disappoints her readers. -- New York Times

Mary Higgins Clark, the New York Times bestselling Queen of Suspense shares another story filled with intrigue and mystery.When Jenny MacPartland meets the man of her dreams while working in a New York art gallery, she's ecstatic. Painter Erich Krueger—whose exquisite landscapes are making him a huge success—is handsome, sensitive...and utterly in love with her. They marry quickly and Jenny plans a loving home on Erich's vast Minnesota farm. But lonely days and eerie nights strain her nerves to the breaking point and test her sanity. Caught in a whirlpool of shattering events, Jenny soon unearths a past more terrifying than she dares imagine...tragic secrets that threaten her marriage, her children, her life. The role of leader came naturally to George Washington, but he stumbled when it came to the social aspects, he was woefully insecure. It was only through the love of a woman, one who endured the long months of separation and the other demands of his life, that he found the happiness that gave real meaning to his life. Despite hardships, at the end of his long career, when they returned to Mount Vernon, the love between them burned as brightly as when he had first taken her there as a young bride When Jenny MacPartland met dashing artist Erich Krueger, he seemed like the answer to her prayers. Handsome, good with her two daughters, he only wanted to whisk her away from her poverty-stricken life. But when she married him and moved to his ranch, Jenny began to worry. Stumbling across old family secrets, Jenny finds the shocking truth that lies behind a string of deaths--and fears she and her children may be next "Lorsqu'elle fait la connaissance du beau, riche et irrésistible Erich Krueger, Jenny, divorcée, a le coup de foudre. Après une cour hâtive, Erich l'épouse et l'emmène avec ses filles chez, lui au Minnesota, dans une maison de rêve. Mais le bonheur de Jenny ne dure pas longtemps. Bientôt survient une succession d'incidents étranges et terrifiants ; le conte de fées tourne à l'éprouvante ... A depiction of the marriage of George and Martha Washington, not without conflict, punctuated by long months of separation. At the end of George's long career, the couple return to Mount Vernon, just as happy as they were at the beginning of their marriage When Jenny MacPartland, divorced mother of two young girls, marries Erich Kruger, she believes that her dreams have come true, until they return to his gloomy family estate where the presence of his dead mother turns Jenny's dream into a nightmare Follows the story of George Washington from the time he steps down from the presidency to return with Martha to his beloved Mount Vernon home, a period during which the couple shares a renewal of feelings from the early years of their marriage This Novel Tells The Story Of A Rare Marriage And Brings To Life The Human Side Of The Man Who Became The Father Of Our Country. Mary Higgins Clark. This novel tells the story of a rare marriage and brings to life the human side of hte man who became the "father of our country." It was obvious that the exhibition of paintings by Erich Krueger, the newly discovered Midwest artist, was a stunning success. IT WAS A WINDSWEPT, RAW MARCH MORNING and the city looked bleak and dreary as it shivered under the overcast sky.