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Paperback Book Details
  • 08/2017
  • 9781548732394
  • 262 pages
  • $11.49
Sheila Myers
Author
The Night Is Done: A Durant Family Saga
Sheila Myers, author
William and Ella Durant, heirs to a bygone fortune, are recounting the events that led to the Durant family downfall during the Gilded Age. In 1931 William returns to visit the estate he once possessed in the Adirondacks to speak with the current owner, copper magnate Harold Hochschild, who is writing a history of the region and wants to include a biography of William. Simultaneously, Ella is visiting with an old family friend and former lover, Poultney Bigelow, journalist with Harpers Magazine, who talks her into telling her own story. William recounts the height of his glory, after his father’s death in 1885 when he takes control of the Adirondack railroad assets, travels the world in his yacht and dines with future kings. However, his fortune takes a turn during the Financial Panic of 1893 and amid accusations of adultery and cruelty. Ella’s tale begins when she returned from living abroad to launch a lawsuit against her brother for her fair share of the Durant inheritance. The court provides a stage for the siblings to tear each other’s reputation apart: William for his devious business practices and failure to steward the Durant land holdings, and Ella for her unconventional lifestyle. Based on actual events, and historic figures, The Night is Done is a tale about the life altering power of revenge, greed and passion.
Reviews
Myers (Imaginary Brightness) satisfyingly concludes her historical trilogy set in the Gilded Age by presenting the detailed downfall of ruthless real estate mogul William West Durant; his exasperated wife, Janet; and his estranged sister, Ella. In 1931, the penniless Durant recounts his tragic life. After inheriting his father’s vast wealth and interest in the Adirondack Railroad, William immediately begins to make bad investments. He squanders money on yachts, panders to princes, and builds mansions he can’t afford to run, all while hiding assets from Ella. She sues him for her rightful inheritance and tries to overcome discrimination to become a novelist. Meanwhile, Janet, verbally abused and infantilized by William, begins an affair with her doctor. After getting proof of William’s own infidelities with an actress, Janet sues for divorce. While at times it’s fun to follow William’s wallowing in his absolute greed, arrogance, and deceptive business practices, the petty slights, retribution, and rich-people problems wear thin, and the frequent changes in points of view muddles the plot. Nevertheless, Myers expertly depicts a precarious era soaked in vicious gossip, stained reputations, and ostentatiousness. Readers will enjoy the historical details that bring this Gilded Age soap opera to life. (BookLife)
Harvey H. Kaiser, author, Great Camps of the Adirondacks

The trilogy of the Durant family is capped by the fascinating final volume, The Night is Done.  In a vein of nostalgia, the story ends in William West Durant's last years and closes out a saga of tragic proportions as the vast Durant wealth and privilege is reduced to impoverished circumstances.

News
06/03/2018
Best Book of Fiction 2017

The Night is Done: A Durant Family Saga won the 2017 Literary Award for Best Book of Fiction by the Adirondack Center for Writing.

Formats
Paperback Book Details
  • 08/2017
  • 9781548732394
  • 262 pages
  • $11.49
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