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Curse of Riches
- Narrated by: Claire Prentice, Hillary Huber
- Length: 9 hrs and 7 mins
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Publisher's summary
How did the Wendels, one of New York’s most famous Gilded Age families, disappear from history?
The Wendels built a fortune from New York real estate, and rubbed shoulders with the Astors, Vanderbilts, and Stuyvesants. But as the 19th century came to an end, the Wendel family tore itself apart with a series of high-profile sibling squabbles, accusations of insanity and promiscuity, false imprisonment, and unseemly legal battles over love and money.
Following six years of painstaking archival research, Claire Prentice has prised open the door of the Wendels’ Fifth Avenue mansion—dubbed “the house of mystery” by the press—to reveal a fascinating and dysfunctional family imprisoned in a gilded cage.
It’s a true tale stranger than any fiction, filled with vivid characters who struggle to find happiness in a world of unimaginable wealth, and a secret love story between master and maid.
In the words of one reporter writing in 1926, “You would have to go back to the works of Dickens to find a tale as curious and fascinating as that of this old mansion and its occupants.”
Praise for Curse of Riches:
“Gripping, and cinematic, Curse of Riches electrifies readers. Prentice seamlessly blends research and narration to deliver this tale of thwarted romance, headstrong heroines, and the persistence of love and a dream, even when great fortunes fall. A Succession for the Gilded Age—Curse of Riches and unfolds with the logic of a feverish dream. I couldn’t put it down.” (Marie Mutsuki Mockett, author of American Harvest: God, Country and Farming in the Heartland and Where the Dead Pause and the Japanese Say Goodbye)
“In this deeply researched tale, supported by access to diaries, letters, legal and business documents, Claire Prentice peels back the curtain on this weird and long-forgotten family, once among the wealthiest in New York. True stories of rich people behaving badly or strangely offer a glimpse into the money, power, love, heartbreak, madness, hatred, and despair of eccentric and extravagantly dysfunctional families. The secretive, stranger-than-fiction Wendels of New York during the Gilded Age embodied F. Scott Fitzgerald’s oft-quoted comment on the rich: 'They are different from you and me.’ It's a thrilling, shocking read.” (Neal Thompson, author of The First Kennedys and A Curious Man)
"Meet the Wendel family: seven reclusive adult siblings living off a family real estate fortune and growing old together in an anachronism of a house on increasingly commercialized Fifth Avenue. Claire Prentice’s lively, deeply researched narrative about this mysterious clan is both a character study as well as a window into New York City from the Gilded Age to the modern era. I really loved this story." (Esther Crain, author of The Gilded Age in New York, 1870—1910, and creator of the Ephemeral New York website)
"Claire Prentice's A Curse of Riches reads like something out of Henry James, but is stranger than any fiction. Here is the riveting, gothic, real-life tale of the wealthiest, weirdest Gilded Age family that you've never heard of. You won't be able to put it down." (Kevin Baker, author of Paradise Alley and America the Ingenious: How a Nation of Dreamers, Immigrants, and Tinkerers Changed the World)
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- By Logical Paradox on 07-20-14
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Jedediah Smith
- No Ordinary Mountain Man
- By: Barton H. Barbour
- Narrated by: Douglas R Pratt
- Length: 10 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
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Mountain man and fur trader Jedediah Smith casts a heroic shadow. He was the first Anglo-American to travel overland to California via the Southwest, and he roamed through more of the West than anyone else of his era. His adventures quickly became the stuff of legend. Using new information and sifting fact from folklore, Barton H. Barbour now offers a fresh look at this dynamic figure.
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Narrator could use a pronunciation guide
- By Ralph M. Vaga on 03-16-20
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A Land So Strange
- The Epic Journey of Cabeza de Vaca
- By: Andres Resendez
- Narrated by: Jonathan Davis
- Length: 7 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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In 1528, a mission set out from Spain to colonize Florida. But the expedition went horribly wrong: Delayed by a hurricane, knocked off course by a colossal error of navigation, and ultimately doomed by a disastrous decision to separate the men from their ships, the mission quickly became a desperate journey of survival. Of the 300 men who had embarked on the journey, only four survived - three Spaniards and an African slave.
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A worthwhile listen
- By Blake on 07-10-13
By: Andres Resendez
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Allow Me to Retort
- A Black Guy's Guide to the Constitution
- By: Elie Mystal
- Narrated by: Elie Mystal
- Length: 8 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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This is an easily digestible argument about what rights we have, what rights Republicans are trying to take away, and how to stop them. Mystal explains how to protect the rights of women and people of color instead of cowering to the absolutism of gun owners and bigots. He explains the legal way to stop everything from police brutality to political gerrymandering, just by changing a few judges and justices. He strips out all of the fancy jargon conservatives like to hide behind and lays bare the truth of their project to keep America forever tethered to its slaveholding past.
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Informative and Entertaining
- By Kindle Customer on 03-06-22
By: Elie Mystal
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Napoleon's Hemorrhoids…And Other Small Events That Changed History
- By: Phil Mason
- Narrated by: LJ Ganser
- Length: 8 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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Hilarious, fascinating, and a roller coaster of dizzying, historical what-ifs, Napoleon's Hemorrhoids is a potpourri for serious historians and casual history buffs. In one of Phil Mason's many revelations, you'll learn that Communist jets were two minutes away from opening fire on American planes during the Cuban missile crisis, when they had to turn back as they were running out of fuel. You'll discover that before the Battle of Waterloo, Napoleon's painful hemorrhoids prevented him from mounting his horse to survey the battlefield.
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They just throw the facts too fast
- By Concerned_llama on 12-11-20
By: Phil Mason
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1177 B.C.
- The Year Civilization Collapsed
- By: Eric H. Cline
- Narrated by: Andy Caploe
- Length: 8 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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In 1177 B.C., marauding groups known only as the "Sea Peoples" invaded Egypt. The pharaoh’s army and navy managed to defeat them, but the victory so weakened Egypt that it soon slid into decline, as did most of the surrounding civilizations. After centuries of brilliance, the civilized world of the Bronze Age came to an abrupt and cataclysmic end. Kingdoms fell like dominoes over the course of just a few decades. No more Minoans or Mycenaeans. No more Trojans, Hittites, or Babylonians.
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Wanted to Like... And Did!
- By Brett M Miller on 09-12-14
By: Eric H. Cline
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Mythology: Mega Collection
- Classic Stories from the Greek, Celtic, Norse, Japanese, Hindu, Chinese, Mesopotamian and Egyptian Mythology
- By: Scott Lewis
- Narrated by: Madison Niederhauser, Oliver Hunt
- Length: 31 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
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Do you know how many wives Zeus had? Or how the famous Trojan War was caused by one beautiful lady? Or how Thor got his hammer? Give your imagination a real treat. This Mega Mythology Collection of eight audiobooks is for you....
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An interesting set of introductions.
- By Kevin Potter on 05-30-19
By: Scott Lewis
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Dead Mountain
- The Untold True Story of the Dyatlov Pass Incident
- By: Donnie Eichar
- Narrated by: Donnie Eichar
- Length: 6 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
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In February 1959, a group of nine experienced hikers in the Russian Ural Mountains died mysteriously on an elevation known as Dead Mountain. Eerie aspects of the incident—unexplained violent injuries, signs that they cut open and fled the tent without proper clothing or shoes, a strange final photograph taken by one of the hikers, and elevated levels of radiation found on some of their clothes—have led to decades of speculation over what really happened.
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Mystery & Intrigue In The Ural Mountains
- By Sara on 06-30-15
By: Donnie Eichar
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A family first made, then destroyed by wealth.
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What is Ethical
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For the first time, The Lost Tribe of Coney Island unearths the incredible true story of the Igorrotes, a group of "headhunting, dog eating" tribespeople brought to America from the Philippines by the opportunistic showman Truman K. Hunt. At Luna Park, the g-string-clad Filipinos performed native dances and rituals before a wide-eyed public in a mocked-up tribal village. Millions of Americans flocked to see the tribespeople slaughter live dogs for their daily canine feasts and to hear thrilling tales of headhunting.
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Empty Mansions
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When Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Bill Dedman noticed in 2009 a grand home for sale, unoccupied for nearly 60 years, he stumbled through a surprising portal into American history. Empty Mansions is a rich mystery of wealth and loss, connecting the Gilded Age opulence of the 19th century with a 21st-century battle over a $300 million inheritance. At its heart is a reclusive heiress named Huguette Clark, a woman so secretive that, at the time of her death at age 104, no new photograph of her had been seen in decades.
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In the pantheon of serial killers, Belle Gunness stands alone. She was the rarest of female psychopaths, a woman who engaged in wholesale slaughter, partly out of greed but mostly for the sheer joy of it. Between 1902 and 1908, she lured a succession of unsuspecting victims to her Indiana “murder farm". Some were hired hands. Others were well-to-do bachelors. All of them vanished without a trace.
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Can a book about a serial killer be entertaining?
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Written by descendant Arthur T. Vanderbilt II, Fortune's Children traces the dramatic and amazingly colorful history of this great American family, from the rise of industrialist and philanthropist Cornelius Vanderbilt to the fall of his progeny - wild spendthrifts whose profligacy bankrupted a vast inheritance.
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The Rise and Fall of the Gilded Age
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An American Princess: The Many Lives of Allene Tew
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Born to a pioneering family in Upstate New York in the late 1800s, Allene Tew was beautiful, impetuous, and frustrated by the confines of her small hometown. At eighteen, she met Tod Hostetter at a local dance, having no idea that the mercurial charmer she would impulsively wed was heir to one of the wealthiest families in America. But when he died twelve years later, Allene packed her bags for New York City. Never once did she look back.
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American princess
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Deaths of Sybil Bolton
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Journalist Dennis McAuliffe Jr. grew up believing that his Osage Indian grandmother, Sybil Bolton, had died an early death in 1925 from kidney disease. It was only by chance that he learned the real cause was a gunshot wound and that her murder may well have been engineered by his own grandfather. As McAuliffe peeled away layers of suppressed history, he learned that Sybil was a victim of the "Osage Reign of Terror"....
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Intense journey
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In Plain Sight
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On a cold January morning, the killer executed Assistant District Attorney Mark Hasse in broad daylight. Eight shots fired a block from the Kaufman County Courthouse. Two months later, a massacre. The day before Easter, the couple slept. Bunnies, eggs, a flower centerpiece gracing the table. Death rang their doorbell and filled the air with the rat-a-tat-tat of an assault weapon discharging round after round into their bodies. Eric Williams and his wife, Kim, celebrated the murders with grilled steaks. Williams planned to exact revenge on all those who had wronged him.
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BOR-ING!!
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Catherine de Medici
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Poisoner, despot, necromancer - the dark legend of Catherine de Medici is centuries old. In this critically hailed biography, Leonie Frieda reclaims the story of this unjustly maligned queen to reveal a skilled ruler battling extraordinary political and personal odds - from a troubled childhood in Florence to her marriage to Henry, son of King Francis I of France; from her transformation of French culture to her fight to protect her throne and her sons' birthright. Based on thousands of private letters, it is a remarkable account of one of the most influential women to wear a crown.
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Narrator didn't get one name right
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What listeners say about Curse of Riches
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Debra j Brown
- 05-17-23
Great book
I love nonFiction or books based on real life. This did not disappoint. Truly shows that money doesn’t buy happiness!
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- Paul
- 11-28-23
Fascinating Tale of a Bygone Family & Era
It’s a tale of a gilded age New York City family long since forgotten. It is a well researched story that brings to life the unusual tale of the Wendel family. The author does a great job bringing out the human side of the family members.
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- alyson
- 04-19-23
Could not stop listening!!
What an amazing story! The level of historical preservation that was needed for this is fascinating!! And most of us have no idea who these people even were.
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- jt
- 05-29-23
Intriguing read
This book was Remarkable narration perfect the story of this family, their isolation in some respects. Their greed was amazing. One of the best books I’ve read.
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- Holly A. Hayes
- 07-03-23
Interesting History of Several Lives Seemingly Wasted
The vast fortune of the Wendel family certainly didn’t bring them happiness. Wow, is all I can say! It seems that money can become a huge burden.
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- Customer
- 08-08-23
Fascinating story of the weird and wealthy
I could not stop listening to this book, and the narration was wonderful. What a bizarre, true tale of family dysfunction and greed.
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- S Cal
- 08-15-23
very interesting
I was fascinated by this story, it was very interesting. The narrator was very easy to listen to.
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- JESSICA BAUER
- 11-07-23
Money or Love
This was a very well researched book. It makes one think if you can have money and love or if you must make a choice.
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- Jakk
- 12-14-23
A triumph of research
I had never heard of the Wendels before Audible recommended this book. I was in good company. The fact that an immensely wealthy family of New York City landowners was forgotten is perhaps best illustrated by the lack of even one Wikipedia article! Nonetheless, author Claire Prentiss has unearthed an engrossing story. Anybody who owned billions in real estate in Gilded Age NYC would be fascinating, at least to me. But the cast of oddballs in this particular family was "special," even for an era brimming with rich eccentrics. The Wendels consisted of six unmarried daughters and one unmarried son. Only one daughter married...at the age of 61. Unlike their contemporaries, the Astors, Vanderbilts and Carnegies, there were no further heirs to expand, squander or squabble over the remaining fortune. In their lifetimes, the Wendels stubbornly held on to their vast properties and their privacy. The author really had to dig the archives of old newspapers and historic papers to track down enough details to make a fluent tale out of what she uncovered. Still, I found the story vaguely tragic. It is as cob web covered as the old Fifth Avenue mansion they refused to sell. A large part of the saga is devoted to the family patriarch, John Wendel, who allegedly maintained a 32-year affair with Martha, a former family employee who bore him an illegitimate son. Racy stuff in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Apparently, Martha went through a LOT for love of John. Prentice gleaned the most intimate aspects of her drama from surviving letters, legal documents and God knows what other sources. There was ultimately a financial settlement on Martha and her son, but never a legal acknowledgement of their kinship. The other significant portion of the story covers the travails of one Wendel sister, Georgie, who spent her life running from John's repeated attempts to have her confined in mental hospitals. Finally, there were thousands of would-be "heirs" who burst from the woodwork in 1931 when the last Wendel sister died. With all the money and bizarro elements, the most remarkable thing about this story is the virtual disappearance of the Wendels from history and memory.
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- ckwrites
- 08-11-23
Slow Start but Worth It
Such an interesting tale of a complicated family. While it could have been tighter, I still found myself wishing there had been more on the family “weirdness” and the reasons none of these siblings, especially the women, married young or had children, given the era and the other ways in which they were dominated by social mores of the time. But isn’t that the theme - we’ll never know because they disappeared with barely a trace.
Oh, and I’m still crushed about poor Toby’s final days. Note to self - set up dog trust.
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