Bachelor Girl

November 1, 2017

Remember how van Alkemade resurrected the past in the New York Times best-selling Orphan #8? She does it again with the story of Jacob Ruppert, the eccentric millionaire owner of the New York Yankees, who left a big chunk of his fortune to little-known actress Helen Winthrope when he died in 1939.

Copyright 2017 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from February 1, 2018
Van Alkemade's sophomore effort (after Orphan #8, 2015) is a historical novel set in 1920s and '30s New York City, based on the scandalous true story of the millionaire owner of the New York Yankees leaving a fortune to an unknown ex-actress. Colonel Jack Ruppert is the wealthy Yankees owner, and for reasons unexplained, he takes an interest in the life of Helen Winthrope, the daughter of a dead friend. The story is told from the alternating viewpoints of Winthrope herself and Ruppert's young personal secretary, Albert Kramer. The two develop an unconventional bond over their attempts to understand why Ruppert showers them with his generosity. From the first paragraphs, Bachelor Girl plunges the reader deep into life during the Jazz Age, delving into topics not often associated with the time period, including abortion and homosexuality. Details do not slow down the pace, though, and the mystery of Ruppert's largesse and the slow revealing of other secrets and confessions will keep readers up all night looking for answers alongside Winthrope and Kramer.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)