Empty mansions the mysterious life of huguette clark and the spending of a great american fortune by bill dedman was a fascinating read this is an extensively well researched and well written account of a forgotten american heiress and her father wa clark. The whole story when pulitzer prize winning journalist bill dedman noticed in 2009 a grand home for sale unoccupied for nearly sixty years he stumbled through a portal into two centuries of american history learn more about empty mansions by dedman and paul clark newell jr huguettes cousin and one of the few relatives to speak with her. When pulitzer prize winning journalist bill dedman noticed in 2009 a grand home for sale unoccupied for nearly sixty 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 nineteenth century with a twenty first 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 . Empty mansions the mysterious life of huguette clark and the spending of a great american fortune is a non fiction book by the american . Empty mansions reveals a complex portrait of the mysterious huguette and her intimate circle we meet her extravagant father her publicity shy mother her star crossed sister her french boyfriend her nurse who received more than 30 million in gifts and the relatives fighting to inherit huguettes copper fortune