Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing
Review: This book started out strong, and really grabbed my interest and held me. But the last fourth of the novel was hugely disappointing. I loved the development of the interesting characters, and the descriptions of NY during the dawn of electrical power. But the fascinating murder mystery was tied up in a way I found hasty and unbelievable. And the story's ending was depressing and anti-climactic. Why introduce two romances and spend pages developing them only to have both of them go nowhere? Why get us to invest our sympathy in the life of a charming and courageous heroine only to have her make mundane choices that result in such a dull and sad ending?Though I enjoyed most of it, I would not recommend spending your money on this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Ambitious, sprawling novel about Buffalo in the early 1900s.
Review: The star of Lauren Belfer's debut novel, "City of Light," is Buffalo, New York. When you think of exciting cities, perhaps Buffalo doesn't spring to mind immediately. However, Belfer's "City of Light" was an entirely different place in the early part of the twentieth century than it is today. At that time, Buffalo was a hub of industry, a major port city, and a place of social ferment. The very rich threw lavish parties and politicians who aspired to high office were careful to cultivate Buffalo's elite and influential citizens. Although the novel is full of carefully researched historical tidbits, there is also a fictional story in "City of Light." Louisa Barrett is an unmarried woman in her thirties. She is the headmistress of the Macaulay School where proper young ladies receive an enlightened education. Louisa is a strong-willed individual with a shadowy past that she keeps carefully hidden. She is also a devoted godmother to Grace Sinclair, who is one of her students in the Macaulay school. Grace's late mother, Margaret, was Louisa's closest friend. Grace's father, Tom, is a controversial figure who uses Niagara Falls to generate electricity, and there are those who resent Sinclair's exploitation of nature to make huge profits for both himself and the titans of industry. Is Tom Sinclair a megalomaniac or a visionary? Is hydroelectric power the wave of the future or a selfish use of nature for man's enrichment? These are some of the issues that Belfer raises. Belfer weaves many other historical strands into this 500 plus page novel. She discusses the plight of African-Americans and women at the turn of the century. She shows how industrialization was a two-edged sword. The Robber Barons got rich, but the poor lived in squalor and they were sometimes maimed or lost their lives working in unsafe factories and industrial plants. For a first novel, "City of Light" is an astonishing accomplishment. Belfer creates a vivid and colorful world that engulfs the reader in a kaleidoscope of images. Louisa Barrett is a strong central character. She is smart, beautiful and vulnerable. Louisa has a strong sense of self-worth as well as an instinct for survival in an often cutthroat world. There are many other fascinating characters that Belfer beautifully depicts in "City of Light." Maria Love is a self-important society matron whose charitable deeds always come with strings attached. Grover Cleveland uses his ties to Buffalo as a stepping stone to the Presidency of the United States. However, Cleveland's womanizing comes back to haunt him more than once. As fascinating as "City of Light" is, it has some minor flaws. The narrative occasionally gets bogged down in melodrama, and it is a little too long. However, Belfer's "City of Light" is, in many ways, a marvelous achievement. The author has created a self-contained world that comes to brilliant life and her elegant prose is a joy to read. Belfer is definitely a writer to watch and I await her next novel with great anticipation.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent Historical Fiction in _City of Light_
Review: Lauren Belfer's first novel, _City of Light_, is an amazing work of historical fiction. Although lengthy at nearly 700 paperback pages, the story moves quickly and with clear and realistic action and imagery. Character development is sound, and technical details are present (a key component of the story is hydroelectric power at Niagara) without being weighty. Belfer's work lives up to its billing of "gripping," "suspenseful," and "wonderful." I would rate it as one of the best works of fiction I have read. The story is well balanced, yet strong and full of emotion. I highly recommend this book ...
Rating: 
Summary: Long in the Tooth
Review: this is a very well written novel but it lacks suspense.
Rating:
Summary: Spellbinding!
Review: The plot has so many good things going on, I just can't help but wonder if it could be even better!?!? I thought the facts were detailed and very accurate, it helped tie in all of the major happenings and give everyone a motive to act. The fictional characters were so well blended that I wasn't sure who was the real thing at first! All of the events in Louisa's life occured for a reason, but I was disappointed when the ending showed that her life was controlled. You would like to think that a woman made her own choices..... Louisa's only goal in life was to protect her "goddaughter" Grace. The little girl had been adopted by Louisa's best friend, now dead. The secrecy surrounding Grace was obviously a driving force to the plot. I liked how Ms. Belfer revealed one shock at a time, instead of unloading everything at once. It kept me in suspense. Status in society was an important thing back then, and it is well described here. The only thing I don't understand is how Louisa Barret could have a good reputation and thought to be a lesbian. Weren't they looked down upon in those days? I could see the push for equal representation with African Americans, it was a good picture of their early struggle. Everything fit well together, but did the ending have to be so sad? Didn't Louisa deserve some happiness in her life? I don't want to give away many of the important details, but this is an awful way to end a book. I thought Louisa deserved much more. Ms. Belfer has a strong piece to introduce her into literature, I hope to see another book from her!
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic Historical Fiction!
Review: Belfer's debut novel is amazing in that it aspires to do so much --- and succeeds! The author blends historical figures with fictional characters and does so seamlessly. The novel focuses around Louisa Barrett, headmistress of a school for girls from elite families in Buffalo, New York. The book is billed as part murder mystery, part love story, yet it works on many different levels, the combination of which cannot be defined easily. Louisa's tale unfolds somewhat slowly at times, and Belfer's research into the turn-of-the-century Niagra and Buffalo scene is evident, as her details sometimes become "skim-worthy". Overall, however, the novel is a fascinating look at money, power, and one woman's struggle at self-definition.
Rating:
Summary: This book is not for me.
Review: I found the subject matter of Buffalo and Victorian era very interesting, but the book really didn't grab my attention until I was three quarters of the way through it. Way too much "cloak and dagger" stuff taking place for my taste. Every look, Every Move, Every Action seemed to have some mysterious dark overtone to it which made it very distracting to read. The plot does not merit such a long and cumbersome book. This could have been wrapped up in much fewer pages.
Rating:
Summary: A nice drink of water
Review: Until reading Belfer's book, I thought of Buffalo, NY as a place with a lot of snow and an above average pro football team. Now, it is a place instrumental to the beginnings of the modern world. Niagra is no longer a great waterfall, but a natural monument to where electricity was born. Using the minorities of the day to tell a powerful story (no pun intended, Belfer conveys how progress was made on the waterfront and in human backwaters. It is a nice blend of history, mystery, and thriller. I highly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: compelling but uneven
Review: I was drawn to the historical subject matter of Ms. Belfer's book. The headmistress of a girl's school and the secrets she hides beneath her prim facade intrigued me. Ms. Belfer did a lovely job of summoning the Gilded Age in all its grandeur, squalor, and inequality. She tackled issues like political corruption, the old boys' network, racism, the abuse of women and children, unionism, and environmentalism. Altogether an ambitious and noteworthy book, especially considering that this is a first novel. However, certain things just did not ring true. Why would a prim and proper headmistress of a girls' school, so anxious to preserve her reputation, encourage people to believe she was having a lesbian relationship with Francesca? That just doesn't make sense. Yes, I've read Lilian Faderman about Boston Marriages, etc., but in the Victorian era such romantic friendships were presumed to be asexual and that's the only reason they were tolerated. And why would the powerful men of Buffalo offer up a virginal headmistress to Grover Cleveland for his illicit pleasures. That simply strains credulity. I think they would have chosen a professional courtesan for such a task. The whole murder mystery set up and romance set up turn out to be hoaxes. In a way it was interesting that none of the romantic interests pan out, that the one solid thing Louisa is left with is her profession of educating young girls who will hopefully achieve their dreams even if she didn't achieve hers and her friendship with Mary, an African American woman, the only one she trusts with her innermost secrets. The last 100 pages of the book are extremely plot-heavy, especially when that plot ends so abruptly with a dead end. The real love affair in this book is that between Louisa and her "goddaughter." I asked myself why the tragic ending was necessary. Are tragedies somehow viewed as more "literary" than happier endings? I love the feminist message of female solidarity, I just wished the plot and character development were more realistic and consistent. Again, it's altogether a compelling read, but once I finished it, I knew it was a book that I would give away and not return to and reread as I have done with other historical novels such as A.S. Byatt's POSSESSION or Louise Erdrich's THE LAST REPORT ON THE MIRACLES AT LITTLE NO HORSE.
Rating:
Summary: A Buffalo I Never Knew
Review: Growing up outside of Buffalo I had no idea of it's rich history. I guess I always took it for granted. When I read CITY OF LIGHT I was taken aback by the discriptions Ms.Belfer used. I could not put this book down. I read it in two days and then I read it again. I then began to research Buffalo and its history. I have to thank Ms. Belfer for reintroducing Buffalo to me and for making me proud to call it my hometown.
This book has great depth, something that I have missed in books since Jane Auel's last, PLAINS OF PASSAGE. I often felt I was walking the streets of Buffalo. I could feel the crunch of fresh snow or see what Lackawanna might have looked like with the shacks full of poor men and thier families. What I would give to see Buffalo's past splendor and true beauty. Ms.Belfer has written with great imagination and detail. One of the best reads in a decade.
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