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    The Wife, the Maid, and the Mistress: A Novel
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    The Wife, the Maid, and the Mistress: A Novel
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    The Wife, the Maid, and the Mistress: A Novel
    Audiobook12 hours

    The Wife, the Maid, and the Mistress: A Novel

    Written by Ariel Lawhon

    Narrated by Ann Marie Lee

    4/5

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    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    "Inspired by a real-life unsolved mystery, this mesmerizing novel features characters that make a lasting impression."--PEOPLE MAGAZINE

    "More meticulously choreographed than a chorus line. It all pays off."--THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW


    They say behind every great man, there's a woman. In this case, there are three.     Stella Crater, the judge's wife, is the picture of propriety draped in long pearls and the latest Chanel. Ritzi, a leggy showgirl with Broadway aspirations, thinks moonlighting in the judge's bed is the quickest way off the chorus line. Maria Simon, the dutiful maid, has the judge to thank for her husband's recent promotion to detective in the NYPD. Meanwhile, Crater is equally indebted to Tammany Hall leaders and the city's most notorious gangster, Owney "The Killer" Madden.

    On a sultry summer night, as rumors circulate about the judge's involvement in wide-scale political corruption, the Honorable Joseph Crater steps into a cab and disappears without a trace. Or does he?

    After 39 years of necessary duplicity, Stella Crater is finally ready to reveal what she knows. Sliding into a plush leather banquette at Club Abbey, the site of many absinthe-soaked affairs and the judge's favorite watering hole back in the day, Stella orders two whiskeys on the rocks—one for her and one in honor of her missing husband. Stirring the ice cubes in the lowball glass, Stella begins to tell a tale—of greed, lust, and deceit. As the novel unfolds and the women slyly break out of their prescribed roles, it becomes clear that each knows more than she has initially let on.

    With a layered intensity and prose as effervescent as the bubbly that flows every night, The Wife, the Maid, and the Mistress is a wickedly entertaining historical mystery that will transport readers to a bygone era with tipsy spins through subterranean jazz clubs and backstage dressing rooms. But beneath the Art Deco skyline and amid the intoxicating smell of smoke and whiskey, the question of why Judge Crater disappeared lingers seductively until a twist in the very last pages.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateJan 28, 2014
    ISBN9780804148870
    Unavailable
    The Wife, the Maid, and the Mistress: A Novel
    Author

    Ariel Lawhon

    ARIEL LAWHON is a critically acclaimed, New York Times bestselling author of historical fiction. Her books have been translated into numerous languages and have been LibraryReads, Indie Next, Costco, and Book of the Month Club selections. She lives in the rolling hills outside Nashville, Tennessee, with her husband and four sons. Ariel splits her time between the grocery store and the baseball field.

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    Reviews for The Wife, the Maid, and the Mistress

    4/5

    118 ratings27 reviews

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    • 5/5
      Fascinating who-done-it about the real life disappearance of a state Supreme Court judge in the 30s. Having bought his judgeship he was now at the mercy of the people who got him there. One night he disappeared. His Mistress was hiding when they came and took him. His wife was at their home in Maine. The maid was there and quickly hid when the two police officers - one being her husband - who came and hid something in the judge’s dresser. How were they involved in the set up?! Really enjoyable mystery. Read like non-fiction.
    • 5/5
      I am a believer in fate and destiny. I strongly feel this book was thrown in my path at exactly the most perfect time. I was in need of a great distraction and this novel more than fit the bill. The time period, political angle, historical fiction and time flashbacks.....all issues that turn me off to a reading experience.....all present. The book was part of a flight pairing suggested by a book club I am a member of. Normally I read a summary of a book as well as read reviews before I commit to reading it. Something compelled me to skip those steps and I am grateful because I never would have chosen this book.

      Rarely does a book grab my attention and hold onto it like this one did. I was enthralled by all the characters not just the main ones. I did not even realize it was loosely based on a real life event until I was close to the end but the discovery made the tale much more interesting. The layers of deceit kept me eagerly reading in search for answers that were well hidden. The entanglements between Stella, Maria and Sally were intriguing yet shadowed enough that guessing at any alliance would have been far reaching. The book is written so well that I felt like I was present and witnessing the events unfold in real time. Upon reading the last word I uttered one word that summed up my love of this story "Wow!".
    • 3/5
      A fictionalized account of a missing person story that captured a nation in the early 1930's. Lawhon created a plausible solution to the dissapearnce of NY Supreme Court Justice Carter - a thoroughly unlikable character. The story is told from 3 different perspectives and then the intersecting of these 3 perspectives which gives the reader something interesting to think about. A gangster, bad cops and corrupt politicians round out the list of characters.An enjoyable, easy read.
    • 4/5
      This was a wonderful book that kept me interested and engaged. Lawhon has a gift for weaving a story of intricate details of fact, filling in the blanks seemlessly to create a high paced story. The story of three women with very differently relationships to a single man is told in a way that you understand each, their motivations, and no one is left either a villain or victim. Most importantly to this reader was their strength in a era when women largely had no agency. You are left guessing until the very end, and then question what you thought you understood. Upon reflection, does the minutia really matter or is it far more about the people, the relationships, then the mechanics? I know am excited to read anything else Ariel Lawhan writes!
    • 4/5
      This books revolves around secrets kept and shared by three very different women and what they are willing to do to protect themselves in a period in history when women had no protection.

      "Oh, what a tangled web we weave When first we practise to deceive!"

    • 4/5
      ...Three's a crowd This was before my time but evidently the disappearance of U.S. Supreme Court Justice, Judge Joseph Crater in the 1930's was a huge story in its hey day. This book reconstructs that famous mystery through the eyes of his wife, Stella Crater, their maid, Maria Simon and his alleged mistress, Sally Lou Ritz. There actually aren't alot of facts known about Sally and Maria as the author's note in the back of the book explains in detail but it was still one heck of a story. Lawhon really takes you back to the 30's and gives you a front seat look at an era full of showgirls, bootleggers, mobsters and corrupt politicians. If you're curious about how these three women are intertwined with this unsolved mystery then definitely read it!
    • 5/5
      This was an unexpected pleasure to read, and one of my favorite reads thus far this year.

      This novel is a fictionalized recount of the details surrounding a famous real-life "missing" person's case, that of New York judge Joseph Force Crater. The people who know the most about him are the three main women in his life- his wife, maid, and mistress. Each of them react differently to his disappearance and each has their reasons for not wanting to divulge the whole truth.

      I knew absolutely nothing about this case before I caught wind of this book. Ariel Lawhon did an amazing job bringing the thoroughly corrupted Prohibition-Era New York and its inhabitants to life. At times the scenarios were a bit convenient but the characters, their actions and emotions, were so genuine that I didn't mind. I actually cared about the people in the book and what happened to them, especially Ritzi and Maria. Lawhon's prose is seamless and masterful. At no point did the writing dry up or feel forced; it was strong the whole way through. Highly recommended!
    • 3/5
      In 1930, Judge Joseph Crater left his summer home in Maine for a meeting in New York City, and was never seen again. His disappearance -- presumed to be murder -- remains a mystery. This book, while a work of fiction, offers a plausible scenario involving several real-life figures known to the judge. Other characters are amalgams of various people, or completely made up. Joe’s relationship with his wife, Stella, was rocky. He was known to sleep around with showgirls, represented by Ritzi in the novel. The eponymous maid, Maria, kept house in the Craters’ Manhattan apartment. The narrative shifts time frequently, describing events before and after Joe’s disappearance and one night nearly 40 years later, and dropping clues along the way.While some of the characters seemed like over-the-top caricatures, this novel was a pretty good imagining of events with enough suspense to hold my interest.
    • 5/5
      THE WIFE, THE MAID, AND THE MISTRESS is another one of my favorite books read this year. It’s based on the real-life disappearance of Judge Joseph Crater in 1930, and to this day, no one is sure what really happened to him. In this book, author Ariel Lawhon blends fact and fiction to create a captivating tale about what might have become of the corrupt judge. I enjoyed the author’s spin on the puzzling mystery and those involved, and the way she concluded the book was well done.Like the title suggests, this historical mystery plays out from the point of view of three women tied to Crater: Stella, his high society wife; Maria, his maid and the wife of the police detective investigating the case; and Ritzi, his dazzling showgirl mistress. Each one of these women was compelling in her own way, and my heart went out to them. I listened to the audiobook, and the narrator, Ann Marie Lee, gave a fantastic performance in bringing each distinct personality to life.THE WIFE, THE MAID, AND THE MISTRESS is the perfect blend of historical mystery, crime fiction, and character-driven novel. Corruption, murder, and drama against the backdrop of the final roar of the Jazz Age. Definitely my kind of book.Disclosure: Borrowed the audiobook from the library. :-)
    • 5/5
      Very well written. Intriguing story. Kept my interest throughout. Lawhon gives a fascinating and plausible account of the real life disappearance of NY Supreme Court Justice Joseph Crater.
    • 3/5
      I enjoyed this book but the ending was kind of anti-climatic....

      ** I received this book for free through a first reads promotion.
    • 3/5
      Before the disappearance of Jimmy Hoffa captured the imagination of the public, there was the disappearance of another man, New York State Supreme Count Judge Joseph Crater who also disappeared never to be seen again. Both these men had dealings with organized crime and most likely both overstepped a boundary that ensured they were murdered and their bodies well hidden. In The Wife, The Maid and the Mistress author Ariel Lawhon re-imagines the 1930 disappearance of Judge Crater by highlighting three women in his life, his wife, Stella; his maid, Maria; and his mistress, showgirl Ritzi.This had all the ingredients for a fantastic story, but unfortunately I felt the author rather missed the mark on bringing this book to life. She does provide an interesting backdrop of 1930s New York contrasting the high society soirees with the dark and sinister speakeasies and mob owned nightclubs. With his political connections and shady dealings, Judge Crater should have been a more interesting figure, as indeed, the three female characters should have been as well, but for me they all came across rather flat and one dimensional. Knowing that this was a real life story based on power, corruption and ambition, it was disappointing that it didn’t have the emotional depth or character development needed to bring it to life. The Wife, The Maid and The Mistress was this author’s debut novel, and looking at her catalogue of works I can see she chooses interesting subjects to write about so I plan to try one of her later novels at some point to see if she improves her craft.
    • 4/5
      I received this book as an Advance Reader Copy.

      This was an excellent read. I loved the way Lawhon layered the three main characters. This is one of the best books of 2013 for me.
    • 5/5
      Fabulous book. Very entertaining. Great read.
    • 4/5
      Great title right?! Could be about the Schwarzenegger family, but no, this scandal is much older. Ariel Lawhorn crafted a wonderfully rich novel based on an actual unsolved case from 1930.Three women, Stella (the wife), Maria (the maid), and Ritzi (the mistress) all have at least one thing in common... a very shady and very missing Judge Crater. I enjoyed getting to know Lawhorn's version of all of them and their individual stories.There were definitely twists and turns that caught me by surprise, and I was never bored with this tale of showgirls, bribes, and speakeasies. My only complaint is about the format. Generally books that flip back and forth through a timeline don't bother me, but this one did. I kept losing track of what year it was and that was a bit irritating. Overall, great story that I would recommend to most.
    • 4/5
      I do enjoy narrative nonfiction and detective mysteries and found The Wife, the Maid and the Mistress right up my alley!The Wife, the Maid, and the Mistress is fiction but largely based upon the mysterious disappearance of justice Joseph Crator in 1930, the heyday of the Jazz Age. A New York state judge, Joseph Crator had a socialite wife but was known to frequent speakeasies and have ties to the known gangster Owney Madden. One August night, Joseph Madden leaves the popular speakeasy Club Abbey and disappears without a trace.The story is told from the point of view of three women whose lives intersect with that of Joseph Crator. Crator's socialite wife Stella spends much of her time in their vacation home in Maine and it takes her weeks to report his disappearance. Crator's mistress Ritzi is a popular Broadway showgirl and one of Owney Madden's proteges. It's Ritzi's bad luck that she's there the night that Judge Crator disappears. The Crator's maid, Maria, is juggling two jobs and struggling to keep her life in order. It doesn't help that Maria keeps bumping into Ritzi and that Maria's husband is a detective assigned to Joseph Crator disappearance. Maria must keep deadly secrets - hers and other peoples' - and keep from attracting the attention of powerful and dangerous men.The Wife, the Maid and the Mistress takes us to society penthouses and popular speakeasies and gives a peek into the glamour and squalor of the1930s Jazz Age. The novel starts slow but grips you once you get to know Ritzi and Maria. If you're looking for a fun, historical mystery, The Wife, the Maid and the Mistress won't disappoint!ISBN-10: 038553762X - Hardcover Publisher: Doubleday (January 28, 2014), 320 pages.Review copy courtesy of the publisher and Netgalley.
    • 5/5
      Fascinating who-done-it about the real life disappearance of a state Supreme Court judge in the 30s. Having bought his judgeship he was now at the mercy of the people who got him there. One night he disappeared. His Mistress was hiding when they came and took him. His wife was at their home in Maine. The maid was there and quickly hid when the two police officers - one being her husband - who came and hid something in the judge’s dresser. How were they involved in the set up?! Really enjoyable mystery. Read like non-fiction.
    • 4/5
      This was a fascinating take on the real life disappearance of Judge Joseph Crater. He disappeared in the 1930s in New York City.This is a story that takes place among gangsters, speak-easies, and affluent parties amidst the Jazz Age of Manhatten.The disappearance of Judge Crater was never solved and has remained a cold case with lots of speculation to what may have happened. This version tells the story of Stella, his wife and his mistress, Ritzi and Broadway showgirl. Also mixed into this group is Maria Simon, the Crater's dutiful maid.This was a terrific book, set in a very exciting time. The author did a fabulous job of mixing fact with fiction to create a gripping story.
    • 4/5
      The wife, the maid and the mistress by Ariel Lawhon is a novel based on the true life disappearance of Justice Joseph Crater. The main story takes place in New York during the 1930's and is told from the point of view of the judges wife, Stella, his chorus line mistress, Sally Lou Ritzi, and his maid Maria Simon.The author gives us a peek into the political and criminal underbelly of 1930's New York. If you're like me after I read the first third of the book you will wonder why you should keep reading. But let me clue you in---Keep Reading---because there is a twist at the end.
    • 4/5
      Set in 1930 and based on a true story, this novel centers around three women whose lives were changed forever by their involvement with Joe Crater, a corrupt New York State Supreme Court judge. Stella is the wife, "Ritzi" is the mistress and Maria is the maid. When Joe Crater disappears mysteriously, their stories are told in alternating, fascinating detail. What makes this book so engaging is the interactions among the women - all very different from each other and all likeable as individuals. This novel is replete with all that defined New York City in that era - gangsters, showgirls, and unscrupulous politicians. Good historical fiction leads its readers to want to know more about the facts, which is what happened after I'd finished this book. I researched the real-life figures in this obscure case, which enhanced the experience of reading Lawhon's fictional account.I am grateful to Goodreads for the opportunity to read this book.
    • 4/5
      Good story...compelling and interesting. A quick and easy read.
    • 5/5
      Fascinating paegturner speculating the real story behind the disappearance of Justice Joseph Crater in 1930 through the women who were closely involved in his life. A wonderfully imagined and brutal rendering of 1930's New York, complete with gangsters, showgirls, corrupt politicians and the women forced to live in their shadows. Completely absorbing and tough to put down once begun.
    • 3/5
      Set in 1930 New York, this is a fictionalized account of what might have happened to Judge Joseph Force Crater. Judge Crater, "the missingist man in America", disappeared one August day in 1930 never to be seen or heard of again. This was a big story at the time. With the depression and Tammany Hall politics; speakeasies, and Broadway chorus girls involved, the author weaves a plot and characters that make it an interesting read. The first part was a little slow but it did pick up after that. I had trouble with the ending; it seemed not very likely to me but I don't want to give anything away by saying more. But despite the ending I probably would have given it four stars if not for some historical inaccuracies that immediately jumped out at me. That's my pet peeve, it may not even be noticable to others. Overall, very readable, lots of unexpected twist and turns and a possible solution to a 84 yr old mystery.
    • 4/5
      maidIn this novel, based on a true story, the author tries to explain how the New York State Supreme Court Justice, Joseph Crater, suddenly went missing. He does a marvelous job of creating suspense with a largely realistic narrative that feels like it just might be plausible. Not all of the characters are real and at the end of the book, the author explains which are pertinent and which are not. He uses fictional characters to set up the atmosphere of the times in which they struggled, each in his/her own way.On August 6, 1930, the real Judge Crater vanished and was never seen again. His body was never found and there was no explanation for his disappearance. He rose to his position during the time of speakeasies, showgirls, and gangsters. The political machine was well oiled. Corruption was commonplace. Everyone seemed to have a price in New York, sometimes on their own heads! Some familiar names will jump off the page; one in particular was Al Smith and another was Franklin Roosevelt, both Governors of New York State during Judge Crater’s career.The three main female characters are quite a triumvirate! They are very strong-willed, single-minded women from very different walks of life who labored against difficult odds. They followed their ambition, their instincts, their hearts, and the men in their lives. Stella was the wife of Judge Crater. Maria was a seamstress and the Crater’s maid. Ritzi was a showgirl, actress, escort, and sometimes mistress of the Judge. Each of these women had character in their own individual way, and each was connected to the other in some unforeseen coincidence. Each understood the value of keeping a secret and the value of deception when necessary. Each was motivated by tremendous ambition and/or the desire to protect someone in their lives whom they either loved or needed. Each wanted more out of their lives than they had at present, and each was dedicated or indebted to a male figure. They had come through the school of hard knocks and were living in a time period when women were largely powerless on their own and, therefore, relied on men for their fame and fortune.The story spans almost five decades, from the 20’s to the end of the 60’s, in an attempt to explain the background of Joseph Crater leading up to his appointment as Supreme Court Justice and his ultimate disappearance and presumed murder. Like the media today, they ran with the story for a headline, without much regard for the facts. Gangsters routinely blackmailed and “coerced” those they could, in order to obtain the authority they required to be successful, powerful and in control. Some in the police department and other businesses were blatantly dishonest.again and again in order to connect them to Crater’s disappearance and one or another person of questionable character like Owney Madden, who was an actual gangster, heavily involved in organized crime. He was a major figure who created the excitement and mystery around which the story revolved. Each of the women had a connection to him, willingly or not. Owney Madden seemed to move the players around like chess pieces. He was powerful and well connected.In an attempt to piece together the tale of Judge Crater’s disappearance, from the few facts known, that were not taken to the graves of the witnesses, this author has embroidered a very good mystery and detective whodunit it and has even included a moving love story. It is a good, well told tale that will definitely engage readers and hold their interest.
    • 5/5
      Who would have thought that being a maid could be this dangerous? Maria never would have guessed that. Maria cleaned for Judge Joseph Crater who had a mistress and who was involved with gangsters. Then one day Joseph disappeared, and even his wife didn't know where he was. Joseph’s wife, Stella, their maid, Maria, and Joseph’s mistress, Ritzi, were characters you will love and feel sorry for. Stella Crater knew about her husband's mistress, Maria saw the mistress one day when she arrived to clean and was sworn to secrecy, and Ritizi hated what she did. All three women were tied to Joseph Crater for different reasons and hated him for different reasons.THE WIFE, THE MAID, AND THE MISTRESS is based on a true incident. Judge Joseph Crater’s disappearance has never been solved, and his body has never been found.When I realized THE WIFE, THE MAID, AND THE MISTRESS was based on a true incident, the book pulled me in even more. The book took you back to a time when showgirls, speakeasies, proper etiquette for ladies, murders, and greasing palms was prevalent.You will be drawn into the glitz, the glamor, and the corruption of the 1930's and into the lifestyles of the wealthy as well as the working class.Ritzi was my favorite just because of her guts. Maria was sweet and got drawn into something way out of her league. Stella was indifferent to life and her marriage. They all had a common thread and a common interest.If you like historical fiction and this era, don’t miss THE WIFE, THE MAID, THE MISTRESS. The surprise ending ties things up nicely.I am wholeheartedly recommending this book. Loved it. 5/5
    • 4/5
      A great book, the title is pleasantly a little misleading, at least for me it was.This is a reimagining of a true slice of history back in the 1930’s about the mysterious disappearance of Judge Joseph Force Crater and the women in his life.The three women who this book is really about are his beautiful, classy trophy wife Stella, his small town, long legged showgirl girlfriend Ritzie and his dutiful maid Maria.These three women who at first seem to have nothing in common come together in many wonderful and mysterious ways throughout the story.I found the story within the story very interesting as I had never heard about Judge Crater before this. I enjoyed the characters, especially Ritzie whose story of leaving the small town to make it in the big city is a common and mostly sad one.
    • 5/5
      The Wife, the Maid, and the Mistress by Ariel Lawson is an exceptional fictional account, based upon known fact, of the 1930 disappearance of Judge Joseph Force Crater. Lawson takes the reader back to the time period, expertly sets the mood and then gives the reader well thought out characters and a rather plausible account of just what happened to Judge Crater. The Wife, the Maid, and the Mistress was a book I did not want to put down and while it will not be out until January 2014, I just had to read it sooner rather than later. The Wife, the Maid, and the Mistress is a wonderfully complex and well-written account using, fiction, historical fact, and a brilliant storyteller’s imagination to put the pieces together. I do think book discussion groups will enjoy The Wife, the Maid, and the Mistress.