A WELL-BEHAVED WOMAN is a story about the notorious Alva Vanderbilt who married a rich man to save herself and her sisters from destitution. Once Alva Smith lived a prosperous life, but that was until their fortune was lost. She has to wed really well and she catches the eye of William Vanderbilt from the very rich, but socially outcast Vanderbilts. Alva is hell-bent on getting herself and the Vanderbilts everything they want, no matter the cost. But, can all the money in the world buy her the happiness she wants?

A WELL-BEHAVED WOMAN is a book about a woman's struggle to save her family by sacrificing her own happiness by marrying a man she doesn't love. She strives to build a reputation for the Vanderbilts, a family who has always been looked down upon, despite their wealth. And, she even sacrifices her own daughter by marrying her off to a duke.

The book started off really well, but unfortunately, in the end, it failed to truly captivate me. Alva Vanderbilt is such a fascinating woman. However, I felt that the most interesting aspects of her life, like her interest in equality for women, for instance, were overshadowed by her loveless marriage and her constant yearning for love. It just went on and on. I wanted a strong woman who knew what she wanted and who didn't give a damn about the consequences. I never felt that she was especially strong. While reading this book, I felt like if she wasn't friends with Consuelo Yznaga, her best friend and later on Duchess of Manchester, she never would have gotten especially far in life.

A WELL-BEHAVED WOMAN did have its moments. Towards the end of the book, you really got a feeling that Alva is starting to get interesting because she is discovering the injustices in the world and tries to do something about it. And that's when the book ends. So, alas, this could have been a great book, but I found the story not especially memorable.