New Orleans Legacy

3.5 starsMary MacAllistair has been convent educated, and on her sixteenth birthday she receives the gift of a family legacy - a casket containing family treasures handed down from one Mary (or Marie) to the next. At the same time, Mary is stunned by the news of her father's death, along with the big surprise that her *mother* is really her step-mother and wants nothing to do with Mary - she's on her own in the world. Mary finds a New Orleans address in the casket, and she's off all by herself t [...]

I have been searching for this book for years!! I read it when i was 16 and loved it! I really want to read it again and i am so glad i found it! If you like historical fiction or adventure or romance novels you will probably like this book.

This is the only book by Alexandra Ripley I can stand. Mary McAlister is an orphan at a convent school. The only clue she has to her maternal past is a little box filled with weird stuff. The box leads her to New Orleans, where she (of course) falls into every puddle of bad luck she sees. Plucky Mary perseveres. She becomes an in-demand dress designer and meets the man of her dreams. He seems great, but turns out to be a cad! Then she finds her family and the whole city gets yellow fever. Blah, [...]

The plot here is pretty ridiculous but I am a sucker for all things New Orleans. I loved a lot of the detail and history, which sort of made up for the fact that the hero and heroine barely ever actually interact. When they do, Mary is kind of an idiot and Val is a total jerk. So there's that. The ending was rushed, even as long as the book felt at times I would have liked at least another chapter or epilogue or something to really tie things up. I feel like by the time the love story actually s [...]

This book was a surprise. Less of a historical romance and more historical fiction. With a bit of romance. I recently took a trip to New Orleans and it was easy to imagine the backdrop. There were even major real life players in New Orleans society. It's the story of an innocent and naive young girl who scrapes her way to her dream by sheer will. It's believable in how she grows, but a little silly that it all takes place in a little over a year. I found it a great weekend read.

i thought i was never gonna drop this book it really hurt me to realize that i was only a reader and not a character a book that makes you feel like you are eating a very salivating meal

I feel so deliciously bad reading this romance novel's historical flare makes it readable and interesting

I liked the over all story in this novel, but I thought a lot of the characters were kind of stereotypical, and shallow. The French girl who Mary befriended was the absolute worst, and every time she made an appearance, I just wanted to strangle her. Every time that any guy talked to her, she thought that she loved him, and she was just the biggest airhead.I did however like Mary's character the bes, even though she did some pretty stupid things through out the book herself.

Naiwniutka książka. Nie obroniłaby się, gdyby nie pyszny Nowy Orlean w tle. Za dużo płytkich wątków, zbyt wiele gwałtownych, nierealnych zmian w bohaterach. A i sami bohaterowie narysowani zostali bardzo grubą kreską, w większości są czarno-biali i do bólu przewidywalni.Czytadło bez większego polotu, jedynie miasto zostało dobrze opisane.

Not usually my genre, but this was a fun read.

"Ignorance can be cured; stupidity is fatal." P. 308 Michaela de Pontalba

This book gave me wonderful background on the history of New Orleans in a fast moving, historical novel. Maybe a bit racy, but worth it because I learned so much history in an interesting way. Her book "Charleston"as the same, and enriched my visit there. I knew all the facts plus understood was a crevasse or break in the levee did to a plantation. I understood about the Irish channel area of New Orleans, and how the Pontallba Apartments, a major landmark in Jackson Square, were built. I learned [...]

I loved this book. If you like historical fiction, this book is a must read. There are lots of "little details" about the city of New Orleans, it makes you want to go there. To see all these things that the author is describing. I would have liked maybe an epilogue, it ended at an "ok" place, but I craved more at the end. If history is your thing, read it. If New Orleans is a place that you want to go, read it.

I was first introduced to Ms. Ripley's work in the late 1990s. My mom had this book at her town house. Both she and my sister had read it. I thought it was the same author who had written from Fields of Gold, and was delighted to find out it was. My mom gave me her copy of this book and I happily got swept up into it. Such a joy of a historical romance novelist to read. Not my usual cup of tea, but when it comes to her? Her writing just sucks me in!

I read this the first time way back when I heard she was going to write the sequel to 'Gone with the Wind'. I liked the plot well enough to read it a couple more times. HINT: This was where I got my Red Beans & Rice recipe!!!

This isn't my usual type of book, but I chose it because of my fascination with New Orleans and its history. It was rather far-fetched, all that happened to such a young girl in a year's time and how maturely she handled it all. I did enjoy learning about such things as the casket, or "casquette", girls and am motivated to learn more about them, so the book was a worthwhile read for me.

You laugh,you cry,and you want revenge for the herion in the story.Well written story,pulls you into the story and it is very hard to put down.I read it in 3 days as well her other books.And with all her books I also hated to see the story end.If you love books of old south and struggles of families and women you will love this book.

Wonderful historical read! This is really not a romance novel; it's a history lesson. Ripley's language is beautiful and really makes you feel like you're in New Orleans. I savored every page of this book and look forward to reading more of her work.

For it being a "romance" novel, there were a lot of interesting twists and turns in the plot. Which was quite enjoyable. But I also feel, that there was not a sufficient closure at the end of the book. I felt like the book needed another channel or an epilogue.

One of my favorite books ever!! I agree that the ending is very rushed, the guy is somewhat of a douche bag (isn't every man though?), and the lead character can be an idiot but somehow it works! I love the historical New Orleans back drop. I fell in with this book because of that.

I was really enjoying the story that the author was weaving but then it ended. It was like the book was not allowed to be more than 500 pages for there was this hurried up ending when the rest of the book had taken it's time to let the story unravel.

I don't remember anything about this book other than the fact that I enjoyed reading it. I was probably in high school (or maybe it was junior high) when I read it. It's one of those embarrassing books from my past

A very good and interesting read for the summer. Never been to New Orleans and never knew the true history of how it was initially founded by the Spanards who fought and loss to the French.I loved the story line most of all! This was a page turner for me once I got pass a certain point.

Just like Scarlett and most of Ripley's other books, this was delicious, juicy escape reading with a plucky heroine and enough unconventionality to keep me genuinely interested. If you're looking for beach reading, this is reliable.

It's a shame, really. If the language wasn't so immature and the grammar errors so frequent, I could have given this book a higher rating. The story is a good one for those who love historical fiction (New Orleans, in this case) and a good love story.

I an not a fan of historical romances but I first read this book at my grandmothers as a teenager. It had everything. Drama action love hate Its just a great book

Leí este libro hace varios años y recuerdo que me gustó mucho, por que fue como ir de viaje. Espero volver a encontrarlo para poder leerlo de nuevo

Light and fun (and, I believe, out of print, but I've got a copy to loan).

started on 1/20/94

I was reading this novel when I suggested to Tom that we go to New Orleans for our honeymoon. We had a wonderful time, and I loved seeing the places that were mentioned in the novel!