The Engineer's Wife

Written by Tracey Enerson Wood

Narrated by Libby McKnight

She built a monument for all time.

Then she was lost in its shadow.

Emily Warren Roebling refuses to live conventionally—she knows who she is and what she wants, and she’s determined
to make change. But then her husband, Wash, asks the unthinkable: give up her dreams to make his possible.

Emily’s fight for women’s suffrage is put on hold and her life transformed when Wash, the chief engineer of the Brooklyn
Bridge, is injured on the job. Untrained for the task, but under his guidance, she assumes his role, despite stern resistance
and overwhelming obstacles. Lines blur as Wash’s vision becomes her own, and when he is unable to return to the job, Emily
is consumed by it. But as the project takes shape under Emily’s direction, she wonders whose legacy she is building—hers,
or her husband’s. As the monument rises, Emily’s marriage, principles, and identity threaten to collapse. When the bridge
finally stands finished, will she recognize the woman who built it?

Based on the true story of the Brooklyn Bridge, The Engineer’s Wife delivers an emotional portrait of a woman transformed
by a project of unfathomable scale, which takes her into the bowels of the East River, suffragette riots, the halls of Manhattan’s
elite, and the heady, freewheeling temptations of P. T. Barnum. It’s the story of a husband and wife determined to build
something that lasts—even at the risk of losing each other

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: Apr 7, 2020
• ISBN: 9781980090281

Tracey Enerson Wood

TRACEY ENERSON WOOD is a published playwright whose family is steeped in military tradition. Katharine, the Wright Sister is her fourth novel.

Reviews for The Engineer's Wife

[dianekeenoy · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A fascinating book and really enjoyable on audio. This book is about the building of the Brooklyn Bridge and the Roebling family. The descriptive writing makes you feel like you're right there in the middle of everything. Definitely recommended!

[micareads · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Emily Roebling is the wife of Washington Roebling, the Chief Engineer of the Brooklyn Bridge. After her husband becomes an invalid due to an injury suffered while working on the bridge and PTSD from the war, Emily becomes his eyes and ears on the project. After a time Washington, Wash as she refers to him, ends up working on the bridge project only from afar and most major decisions are left to Emily, who has no education in engineering or bridge building. While working on the Brooklyn Bridge, Emily must also deal with being a wife, a mother, unexpected attention from a most unusual man, as well as the belief that women should be seen and not heard.

I knew nothing about Emily Roebling prior to picking up this book. I had never given much thought to who built the Brooklyn Bridge as it was something that was always there in my eyes. Emily was a pioneer in the advancements of women's rights and was a known suffragist. This was my first book by Ms. Wood but it will not be my last. She did not shy away from expressing Emily's dissatisfaction not only with her unusual marriage but also how she felt at being in charge of a project with no training and for which she would receive no credit.

[jynell-71874 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

As my daughter's name is Brooklyn, I've always loved all things Brooklyn. This book was perfect for me (besides that I love historical fiction!). I love how empowering this book is and how it gives the reader a view into how women had to work so much harder in a man's world! I couldn't put this down and I highly recommend it!

[nancyadair-1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

When engineer Washington Roebling's father died, it fell to him to build the Brooklyn Bridge, an unprecedented engineering feat. Luckily, Wash had married a woman of intelligence and strength, because when he fell victim to caissons disease (decompression sickness), Emily became his link to the outside world. Eventually, her understanding of engineering brought her to be the de facto engineer in charge of the bridge.Tracey Enerson Wood's historical fiction novel The Engineer's Wife imagines Emily's story from girlhood, as a young wife, and finally as an engineer. Wood does a splendid job of incorporating how the bridge was literally built and the risks it incorporated. That alone is an amazing story that sweeps across the heights and depths of human emotion and scientific progress. Wood makes the story universally appealing by turning it into a romance as well, with Emily's love for Wash turns to despair when his illness leaves her without his support, emotionally and intimately. She struggles to find confidence, leaning on P. T. Barnum, their fictional relationship not based on history, but delineating how the real Emily may have struggled without an involved husband. I would have been kept interested strictly by Emily's personal growth and ability to meet challenges usually given to men. But the romance angle will appeal to many historical fiction readers.It is an absorbing and interesting novel. I received a free book from the publisher. My review is fair and unbiased.

[fromthecomfychair · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The Brooklyn Bridge may have been designed by her father-in-law, John Roebling, and worked on by his son Washington, but without Emily Roebling's supervision, it apparently would not have been built, at least not by the Roeblings or at the same time period. When her husband gets caisson disease, or "the bends" after working deep below the river surface in the caisson, Emily takes over his work supervising the project, under his guidance and tutelage. She has no degree in engineering, as women are not allowed to enroll in college in the late 1800's, but she has her husband's brain and his library to guide her. She gives up her desire to fight for women's suffrage in order to see his vision of the bridge materialize. She must have been a very strong, very smart woman to have taken on the role she did, fighting prejudice every step of the way. And she was ultimately, celebrated at the end of the project. The only disappointment was, on finishing the novel and reading the back matter, I discovered the extent to which her story was fictionalized, both because of the lack of historical detail about her private life, and the author's need to tell a compelling story.

[janarose1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Emily, a strong, intelligent and determined woman, marries Wash, a bridge engineer. When Wash is named Chief Engineer on the Brooklyn Bridge project, Emily is excited and willing to help in whatever way possible. When Wash is injured on the job, she steps in and takes over for her. As her marriage begins to crumble, Emily asks herself if the sacrifices she is making are worth it.This was a well written and well paced book. Emily was a very likeable and very well crafted character. Overall, highly recommended.

[vintagebeckie · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The plot of The Engineer’s Wife fit into the theme of my summer reading goals — a biographical novel featuring a strong woman who broke society’s expectations. The book follows Emily Warren Roebling from her first encounter with Washington Roebling during the Civil War to the completion of the Brooklyn Bridge in the 1880s. Real life events and people are fictionalized as the author tells the story not only of the building of the iconic bridge, but a fascinating woman who wanted more than society dictated at the time. The construction struggles parallel the problems for a woman of the time. Did you know there was a law against women wearing pants?! Neither did I! Emily’s tenacity and loyalty are strong, and she is presented as a woman with flaws, but also fierce convictions and determination. I enjoyed this novel very much. The afterward lets the reader in on what is fact and what is fiction. I will admit that reading the author’s notes gave me a bit of a let down. There are some plot threads that added drama and tension to the novel, as well as an exploration of Emily’s character. These turned out to be purely fictional. It left me feeling like I really didn’t know the main character at all. That being said, I would still recommend The Engineer’s Wife. As a prospective reader, keep in mind that this is fiction. ? The novel is targeted to the general market. There is some language and adult situations.Recommended.Audience: adults.(I purchased the audiobook from Audible. All opinions expressed are mine alone.)

[arthistorychick · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The Engineer’s Wife by Tracey Enerson WoodSource: NetGalley and Sourcebook LandmarkRating: 2½/5 stars**MINI-REVIEW**The Bottom Line: For me, this book boiled down to two things: 1) a great deal of whining and 2) some very slow sections that were difficult to get through. Despite these two things, I stuck with this book to the bitter end and while there are certainly some interesting and even entertaining bits, they just weren’t enough to balance out all the whining and the slow bits. I wanted to like Emily and have compassion for Wash, but both, with their general attitudes and demeanor made it hard to do so. I will say, I admire what Emily was able to accomplish: she had to teach herself the math and the principles of engineering in order to complete one of the most iconic projects in all of the US all while fighting the prejudices and laws (literally!) that often hampered her efforts. At the end of the day, I wanted to like this book so much more than I ultimately did. This is absolutely a story worth telling, but unfortunately, the presentation of this story isn’t quite up to snuff.