Bio - Empty Mansions: The Mysterious Life of Huguette Clark and the Spending of a Great American Fortune by Bill Dedman

Interesting non-fictional account of the life of the richest women in the world no one has ever heard of.   This is the story of Huguette Clark and her self-made father, how he amassed his fortune, and how it passed through his descendants eventually to her.  It was the Golden Age of mansions on 5th Avenue - the Vanderbilts, Carnegies - and W.A. Clark had the grandest home of all.  

Huguette, the only surviving child from a second marriage, grew up with wealth, privilege, and tragedy. Sometimes withdrawn, sometimes generous, with unoccupied fully-staffed mansions on both coasts and an eccentric habit of doll-collecting, Huguette ended up managing her fortune a la Howard Hughes - from a hospital bed. Good story for a book club discussion.