
A Beautiful Rival
A Novel of Helena Rubinstein and Elizabeth Arden
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Narrated by:
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Lisa Flanagan
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By:
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Gill Paul
About this listen
In this stunning new novel, bestselling author Gill Paul reveals the unknown history of cosmetic titans Elizabeth Arden and Helena Rubinstein and their infamous rivalry that spanned not only decades, but also broken marriages, personal tragedies, and a world that was changing dramatically for women—perfect for fans of Fiona Davis, Marie Benedict, and Beatriz Williams.
Who would have guessed that the business of making women beautiful was so cutthroat?
They could have been allies: two self-made millionaires who invented a global industry, in an era when wife and mother were supposed to be the highest goals for their sex. Elizabeth Arden and Helena Rubinstein each founded empires built on grit and determination…and yet they became locked in a feud spanning three continents, two world wars, and the Great Depression.
Brought up in poverty, Canadian-born Elizabeth Arden changed popular opinion, persuading women from all walks of life to buy skincare products that promised them youth and beauty. Helena Rubinstein left her native Poland, and launched her company with scientific claims about her miracle creams made with anti-ageing herbs.
And when it came to business, nothing was off-limits: poaching each other’s employees, copying each other’s products, planting spies, hiring ex-husbands, and one-upping each other every chance they had. This was a rivalry from which there was no surrender! And through it all were two women, bold, brazen, and determined to succeed—no matter the personal cost.
In this sweeping novel from the bestselling author of Jackie and Maria and The Manhattan Girls, two larger-than life fashion icons come alive with all their passion, bitterness, and ambition as they each try to live the American dream.
©2023 Gill Paul (P)2023 HarperCollins PublishersListeners also enjoyed...
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- By HistoryNerd on 05-11-21
By: Renée Rosen
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Scandalous Women
- A Novel of Jackie Collins and Jacqueline Susann
- By: Gill Paul
- Narrated by: Lisa Flanagan
- Length: 10 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
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1966, NYC: Jacqueline Susann’s Valley of the Dolls hits the bookstores and she is desperate for a bestseller. It’s steamy, it’s a page-turner, but will it make the big money she needs? In London, Jackie Collins’s racy The World Is Full of Married Men launches her career. But neither author is prepared for the price they will pay for being women who dare to write about sex. Jacqueline and Jackie are lambasted by the literary establishment, deluged with hate mail, and even condemned by feminists. In public, both women shoulder the outcry with dignity; in private, they are crumbling.
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Perfection
- By sarah stephens on 09-19-24
By: Gill Paul
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Diva
- A Novel
- By: Daisy Goodwin
- Narrated by: Lorelei King
- Length: 11 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
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In the glittering and ruthlessly competitive world of opera, Maria Callas was known simply as la divina: the divine one. With her glorious voice, instinctive flair for the dramatic and striking beauty, she was the toast of the grandest opera houses in the world. But her fame was hard won: raised in Nazi-occupied Greece by a mother who mercilessly exploited her golden voice, she learned early in life to protect herself from those who would use her for their own ends.
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How I love a Great Diva!
- By Lianne Bremer on 04-01-24
By: Daisy Goodwin
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What the Lady Wants
- A Novel of Marshall Field and the Gilded Age
- By: Renée Rosen
- Narrated by: Kirsten Potter
- Length: 12 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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In late 19th-century Chicago, visionary retail tycoon Marshall Field made his fortune wooing women customers with his famous motto, "Give the lady what she wants." His legendary charm also won the heart of socialite Delia Spencer and led to an infamous love affair.
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Wasn’t expecting that!
- By Meghan Jones on 12-19-17
By: Renée Rosen
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Fifth Avenue Glamour Girl
- By: Renée Rosen
- Narrated by: Hillary Huber
- Length: 12 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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It’s 1938, and a young woman selling face cream out of a New York City beauty parlor is determined to prove she can have it all. Her name is Estée Lauder, and she’s about to take the world by storm, in this dazzling new novel from the USA Today bestselling author of The Social Graces and Park Avenue Summer.
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Lots of fun
- By Robin on 05-01-23
By: Renée Rosen
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White Collar Girl
- A Novel
- By: Renée Rosen
- Narrated by: Lauren Ezzo
- Length: 12 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
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There’s a story out there buried in the muck, and Jordan Walsh, coming from a family of esteemed reporters, wants to be the one to dig it up. But it’s 1955, and the men who dominate the city room of the Chicago Tribune have no interest in making room for a female cub reporter. Instead Jordan is relegated to society news, reporting on Marilyn Monroe sightings at the Pump Room and interviewing secretaries for the White Collar Girl column. Of course, that all changes the moment she establishes a secret source inside Mayor Daley’s office.
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Couldn’t listen for more than 3 chapters.
- By Gigi k on 02-22-22
By: Renée Rosen
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The American Adventuress
- A Novel
- By: C. W. Gortner
- Narrated by: Ell Potter
- Length: 12 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
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Daughter of New York financier Leonard Jerome, Jennie was born into wealth—and scandal. Upon her parents’ separation, her mother took Jennie and her sisters to Paris, where Mrs. Jerome was determined to marry her daughters into the most elite families. The glamorous city became their tumultuous finishing school until it fell to revolt.
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Cw Gortner is amazing
- By Ris Gray on 02-13-23
By: C. W. Gortner
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The Woman Before Wallis
- A Novel of Windsors, Vanderbilts, and Royal Scandal
- By: Bryn Turnbull
- Narrated by: Mary Jane Wells
- Length: 11 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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In the summer of 1925, Thelma Morgan arrives at the Paris Ritz still stinging from the heartache and humiliation of her failed marriage. Her twin sister, Gloria, newly and blissfully wedded to Reginald Vanderbilt and with a baby in tow, has invited her to spend the summer - and though romance is the last thing on Thelma’s mind, she can’t deny that Reggie’s friend Duke Furness is as charming and dapper as he is keen to win her affection.
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Beautifully Written
- By Amazon Customer on 11-29-20
By: Bryn Turnbull
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The Collector's Daughter
- A Novel of the Discovery of Tutankhamun's Tomb
- By: Gill Paul
- Narrated by: Imogen Church
- Length: 11 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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Lady Evelyn Herbert was the daughter of the Earl of Carnarvon, brought up in stunning Highclere Castle. Popular and pretty, she seemed destined for a prestigious marriage, but she had other ideas. Instead, she left behind the world of society balls and chaperones to travel to the Egyptian desert, where she hoped to become a lady archaeologist, working alongside her father and Howard Carter in the hunt for an undisturbed tomb.
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Great read!
- By Peddoc on 11-25-21
By: Gill Paul
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The Other Windsor Girl
- A Novel of Princess Margaret, Royal Rebel
- By: Georgie Blalock
- Narrated by: Ann Marie Gideon
- Length: 8 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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Diana, Catherine, Meghan...glamorous Princess Margaret outdid them all. Springing into post-World War II society, and quite naughty and haughty, she lived in a whirlwind of fame and notoriety. Georgie Blalock captures the fascinating, fast-living princess and her “set” as seen through the eyes of one of her ladies-in-waiting.
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The Other Windsor Girl
- By Kerri on 11-23-19
By: Georgie Blalock
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Empresses of Seventh Avenue
- World War II, New York City, and the Birth of American Fashion
- By: Nancy MacDonell
- Narrated by: Gail Shalan
- Length: 10 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
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Empresses of Seventh Avenue will tell the story of how these extraordinary women put American fashion on the world stage and created the template for modern style—and how the nearly $500 billion American fashion industry, the largest in the world, could not have accrued its power and wealth without their farsightedness and determination.
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So boring
- By BVJ on 02-10-25
By: Nancy MacDonell
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American Duchess
- A Novel of Consuelo Vanderbilt
- By: Karen Harper
- Narrated by: Ann Marie Gideon
- Length: 8 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
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Karen Harper tells the tale of Consuelo Vanderbilt, her “Wedding of the Century” to the duke of Marlborough, and her quest to find meaning behind “the glitter and the gold”.
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Surprisingly interesting life
- By labradoodler on 07-24-19
By: Karen Harper
What listeners say about A Beautiful Rival
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- Barbara A
- 11-22-23
Loved it
I never knew about the story. Absolutely incredible. Well written and well performed. I especially appreciated the epilogue and appreciated that the author explained which parts she took liberty with and which parts were true. Well done.
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- Jane Scibilia
- 10-13-24
Easy listening read
Loved the plot and the way the story moved. It is a plausible take on reality.
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- Laura Stokes
- 07-14-24
I saw it as a Broadway show
Loved the narrative. Loved the story. Legendary women. Easy listen. Very good narration. Listened to it all in one weekend.
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- Linda E. Wilson
- 04-27-24
Couldn’t stop listening
This is the first book I listened to by Gill Paul. I loved it and zipped through it, listening every chance I got. It’s a fascinating story, entertaining, with deep character portrayals. I enjoyed learning about these two fashion icons.
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- Amanda
- 08-10-24
Strong Women
I had absolutely no idea that there was such a fierce rivalry between Elizabeth Arden and Helen Rubinstein in the early 1900s. These two women, each of them being titans of industry in the cosmetic world, were strong, independent, smart, and sadly lonely and untrusting. They lived in a time when women were still expected to marry, manage a home, and raise children. They each faced hardship, failed marriages, and deceit from their supposed friends and family. Despite all of the shared success and hardships and the fact that they had so much in common, they likely never met on friendly terms, and each spent decades of their lives trying to outwit the other. The story is told from each woman's point of view in alternating chapters. I really enjoyed the story and will look through other books by this author. The history was well researched, and from what I've found by reading a little on my own, it is very accurate with a few liberties from the author on private conversations and thoughts/emotions, of course.
The narrator did a good job and made this one a pleasant listen.
Mild spoiler warning:
There is a chapter near the end of the book that describes a very sad scene involving animals. There are descriptions of injury and suffering that I had to skip past. I imagine while I read, and those are images that will never leave my mind, so I wanted to give fair warning to anyone else with a soft heart for animals. If you, like me, want to skip this chapter, you'll know it because Elizabeth Arden gets a call in the middle of the night about a fire. Just go ahead and ove to the next chapter.
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- Lila
- 06-10-24
Very interesting fictionalized history of two famous beauty icons
The narrator is extremely talented. She can do various accents and differentiate between numerous characters. Perfect diction, pacing, inflections.
The novel was a times a bit wearing due to the very lengthy entity between the two main characters over decades. But it was always interesting and included many Scenes in which the lives and the businesses evolved and developed over many years.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Timeisrunningout
- 02-14-25
Strong and courageous
These two women certainly pioneer in industry, and it was a wonderful fictional history to see what might have been and to remember how hard it was for early women pioneers
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- Bianca Sabrkhani
- 08-13-24
Enjoyable Book Misses Crucial Historical Moment
When I read the description of this book, I saw the timeline and the subjects it covered and was very excited because many WWII-era books discuss 'Victory Red' lipstick, which I assumed would be part of this story since Elizabeth Arden developed it. While the book was very good, I was disappointed to reach the end of the war and realize that such a significant aspect of that timeline was skipped over completely, with only a passing mention of a military contract.
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- SUE
- 03-07-25
Great story. 2 successful women
Narrator great. Story was good and so many things I did not know about either of them. Great read
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- Amazon Customer
- 07-06-24
Not even if it were free
This was terrible, couldn’t even finish. Such unrefined utter nonsense. Two strong intelligent women who rose up in a man’s world, made an iconic name for themselves and created an industry in which they dominated and the author wrote pure petty crap of a storyline for both. No depth of character…..she stole my ribbon, well she stole my crayon first nonsense. All I can say is not only do I want my money back, I want my time back too!
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3 people found this helpful