# Read the first page of The Address by Fiona Davis Read the opening of The Address by Fiona Davis free, no signup. In 1884, a servant becomes manager of New York's famous Dakota. - Page: https://uncovered.ink/read/the-address-fiona-davis - Genre: Historical fiction - Year: 2017 - ISBN: 9781524742003 - Read it blind (cover and title hidden): https://uncovered.ink/?b=9781524742003&s=read-page - Buy: https://bookshop.org/a/125786/9781524742003 - Borrow: https://search.worldcat.org/search?q=9781524742003 ## The opening The sight of a child teetering on the window ledge of room 510 turned Sara’s world upside down. After several years toiling as a maid and working her way up the ranks, she’d been awarded the position of head housekeeper at London’s Langham Hotel a month prior. One of her largest tasks was keeping the maids in line, all young girls with hardly a shred of common sense among them. When they should have been straightening the rooms, she’d more often than not find them giggling in the hallways or flirting with the boys delivering tea trays or flowers. That morning, she’d been called into the manager’s office and reprimanded for not being harsh enough on her charges. “You’re soft. We’re starting to wonder if you’re simply too young for the position,” said Mr. Birmingham from behind his walnut desk, which, despite its elegant spindle legs, was roughly the size of a small boat. Having recently turned thirty, Sara didn’t feel young in the least, not that she’d ever acted that way. When she’d first arrived at the Langham, she’d skipped the giddy overtures of friendship from other maids her age, knowing that she had to stand out if she wanted to move up quickly. Her coolness had paid off, and her higher salary more than made up for the lack of companionship. But for Mr. Birmingham, who found pleasure in making the younger maids cry, Sara’s self-imposed isolation wasn’t enough. He directed her to take a seat, but once she had settled herself, the perspective in the room suddenly felt off, as if something in the furniture’s configuration had changed since Mr. Birmingham last summoned her to this spot—or else she was so annoyed by his request for an interview during the busiest hours of the day that she’d worked herself into a kind of nervous imbalance. Sara’s employer was short and had the poor luck to have a torso shaped like a chicken egg with a double yolk. She towered over the man by several inches. Yet somehow Mr. Birmingham was peering down at her from his thronelike seat. She stole a glance at the floor. The bottom five inches of his chair’s legs were stained a different color than the rest. He’d had them lengthened. When she looked back up, he puffed up like a songbird, clearly peeved that she’d noticed. She shifted in her seat. “I’m sorry, Mr. Birmingham, I will be tougher on the girls.” “If they’re difficult, give them a slap. Better yet, send them down here and I’ll do it for you.” He licked his lips. Right. She imagined he’d enjoy it immensely. “Is there anything more?” “No, Mrs. Smythe. Off you go.” She was still getting used to being called Mrs. Strange. How a single promotion afforded not only a living wage but also a new moniker that had nothing to do with her marital status, or lack thereof. No head housekeeper could be called a Miss. Wasn’t proper. The girls were still getting used to addressing her by her full name, and she had to be firmer with that as well. It wouldn’t do for Mr. ## Books with a similar feel - [The Author's Guide to Murder by Beatriz Williams](https://uncovered.ink/read/the-authors-guide-to-murder-beatriz-williams.md) - [The Paris Seamstress by Natasha Lester](https://uncovered.ink/read/the-paris-seamstress-natasha-lester.md) - [Learned by Heart by Emma Donoghue](https://uncovered.ink/read/learned-by-heart-emma-donoghue.md) - [Flower Net by Lisa See](https://uncovered.ink/read/flower-net-lisa-see.md) - [On Mystic Lake by Kristin Hannah](https://uncovered.ink/read/on-mystic-lake-kristin-hannah.md) - [The Ambassador's Daughter by Pam Jenoff](https://uncovered.ink/read/the-ambassadors-daughter-pam-jenoff.md) --- Source: Uncovered (https://uncovered.ink). A short sample shown for reading and discovery. Rights holders can request removal at https://uncovered.ink/takedown.