The Duchess: From the Sunday Times bestselling author of The Governess

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Unlike some other novels dealing with this captivating story, The Duchess takes a more sympathetic approach to Wallis and even poses the possibility the Edward VIII never wanted to be king and saw his relationship with Wallis as a way out. Written with a descriptive and colorful narrative, readers will enjoy the richly detailed accounts of period clothing, jewelry, country homes and the lives of the privileged class in 1930’s Great Britain. This is a dramatic and richly detailed book about one of the most iconic romances of the 20th century. Those who enjoy biographical fiction and books relating to British royalty, will find a great deal to savor in this new novel of The Duchess of Windsor. While Charles “leads with his head and his heart, William is colder,” the book alleges. “He wants the job done and he has no problem with casualties along the way.” When the Duke saves a damsel in distress only to have her hold a dagger to his throat, he knows he has found the woman he was looking for. Only… Alice proves to be too feisty for him to handle. And even more tempting to resist.

The true love of her life was the handsome young Whig politician Charles Grey, whom she had an affair with in 1791, before finding out she was carrying his child. Angelique Latham’s ultimate future was in question from the minute she was born. Born the daughter of the Duke of Westerfield in Hertfordshire by his second wife (a French woman with French nobility blood), she was left motherless at birth, and never secured the love of her half-brothers, who hated her mother and by extension her. So, it is no surprise that when her father passes away and the dukedom goes to her older brother, she is left with no benefactors and doomed to find her own way in the world. This book allowed me entry into the thoughts of Wallis and put a new slant on history if David ever really wanted to be King or if Wallis his perfect reason not to do so.

Customer reviews

De auteur gebruikt twee verschillende tijdslijnen: 1935-1936, en 1972 het overlijden van Edward. In het eerste deel van het boek, waarbij Wallis en Ernest zich settelen in de Britse hoofdstad, kabbelt het verhaal door op een rustig tempo. Bovendien hadden de personages niet zo veel diepgang als in het eerste deel van deze trilogie. Zo miste ik de vlindertjes in de buik bij Wallis, wanneer ze verliefd werd. Ik had een boek vol romantiek verwacht, waarbij de personages in de zevende hemel waren en de liefde als vuurwerk rond zou knallen. Maar het wordt allemaal vlakjes omschreven. Ook bij deze auteur vind ik het verrassend en bijzonder dat het eerste deel in een andere stijl geschreven lijkt in vergelijking met het tweede deel.

brothel in all of Paris. Now Angelique is still a virgin and she plans to keep it that way. She does With real historical events and facts to hand, my imagination took over. I invented a history for her that incorporated real people and events, including some of my other ancestors.I don't even know where to start with my complaints. Of course, the heroine, as is the case with every Steel heroine, possesses beauty and intelligence that defies human expectations. We are told repeatedly of this extraordinary beauty and near genius like intelligence on a regular basis. The Duchess by Wendy Holden is a fascinating and gripping read about Wallis Simpson. We’ve all grown up hearing about the notorious Mrs Simpson, twice-divorced, elegant, witty and the woman who inspired a king abdicate his throne out of love for her. In this book, we follow Wallis Simpson at two crucial moments of her life: at the funeral for her beloved David and when she first met the prince who would change her life. I also couldn’t sympathize with the Prince, since he seemed to bully Ms. Simpson into the marriage, whether she wanted it or not. He also seemed shallow and whiny. But the press vilifies her over her refusal to marry a man she loathes, so Margaret goes to live in exile in Ireland, helping the poor and starting to write her own children’s stories. She makes her way in New York as a journalist and philanthropist, and eventually marries the man who has loved her for years. One thing I do not like are book snobs. I know people who flat out refuse to read Danielle Steel because of her reputation for writing romance novels. I think book snobs lose out on alot of opportunities to read good literature simply because they judge themselves and others to harshly when it comes to their reading choices.

Via connecties worden Wallis en Ernest uitgenodigd op een feestje door Thelma Furness, de minnares van Edward, de Prins van Wales en de toekomstige Britse koning. De prins wordt al snel gecharmeerd door de Amerikaanse Wallis, met haar eerlijke en open inzichten. Ze worden goede vrienden en later, wanneer Thelma van het toneel verdwijnt, geliefden. Wallis komt terecht in een luxueus leventje vol glitter en privileges. Wanneer koning George V overlijdt moet Edward hem opvolgen, maar hij is hopeloos verliefd op Wallis. En één van de grootste schandalen van het Britse koningshuis ontstaat. The rest of the characters serve only secondary roles and are either good or bad people. There is no in between. And of course, the bad ones are those who dislike Angelique and we are supposed to hate, and the good ones are those who see her as a goddess walking on earth. nanny for her. Evidently, she has no one else to turn to and with her bag of money hidden she goes off to live the life of a servant. Now she has never been around children but has to become the nanny to four children 4 1/2 years and younger. Not to worry though, Angelique excels at whatever

Is the Duchess a true story?

In the beginning Wallis is striving for more. She has just arrived in London with her second husband Ernest and wishes she was included in this elusive world of the royals, the rich. Unable to secure employment without references or connections, Angélique desperately makes her way to Paris, where she rescues a young woman fleeing an abusive madam—and suddenly sees a Open an elegant house of pleasure that will protect its women and serve only the best clients. With her upper-class breeding, her impeccable style, and her father’s bequest, Angélique creates Le Boudoir , soon a sensational establishment where powerful men, secret desires, and beautiful, sophisticated women come together. But living on the edge of scandal, can she ever make a life of her own—or regain her rightful place in the world? I read everything and that includes the occasional Steel book. While I moderately enjoyed this and loved the historical aspect of the book, I had a tough time buying into the premise. That is not to say the book is bad. It isn't. It keeps you reading and I liked Angelique, finding her gutsy and interesting. But I have enjoyed other Steel books more and much of what happens in this book made me a bit skeptical. The Princess considered her future sister-in-law a “rival” from the moment she appeared on the scene in 2016, according to Scobie.

She did, however, enthusiastically embrace her husband’s politics and became an advocate of the Whigs. Scobie claimed many within the royal institution doubt the King’s ability to modernise and are impatient to see the Prince of Wales crowned. Angélique es la hija de un duque, su madre murió en el parto y su padre la quería con locura lo que hace que sus hermanastros mayores la odien. Su padre tiene miedo de que al morir el su hijo mayor que es su heredero vaya a dejar en la calle a su hija y efectivamente es lo que ocurre, al morir el duque su hijo mayor no tarda en echar a su hermana que sólo tiene 18 años y la lleva a trabajar de niñera para unos conocidos. When an unexpected encounter leads to a house party with the Prince of Wales, Wallis's star begins to rise. Her secret weapon is her American pep and honesty. For the prince she is a breath of fresh air. As her friendship with him grows, their relationship deepens into love. Wallis is plunged into a world of unimaginable luxury and privilege, enjoying weekends together at his private palace on the grounds of Windsor Castle. It is a fascinating insight into this oft cited character and superbly written as I had expected by this author with the gift of wordsAs someone who doesn’t really take much interest in the British royal family, I was still quite aware of the name Wallis Simpson and how the king infamously gave up the throne for her - a twice divorced woman. I was also aware that history did not view her favourably, so it was quite fascinating to read this author’s take on the subject. Na hun huwelijksreis naar Parijs arriveren Wallis en Ernest in Londen. Het gaat niet zo goed met het bedrijf van Ernest maar ze willen er toch het beste van maken. Wallis heeft te kampen met demonen uit haar verleden, een eerder slecht gelopen huwelijk waar geweld schering en inslag was. Maar de lieve Ernest is galant en geduldig. Wallis kan moeilijk aarden in het preutse Londen en verveelt zich al snel. Als Republikeinse begrijpt ze maar niets van de Britten en hun liefde voor hun koningshuis. It took me quite a few days to read it but that was ok, it was absorbing in its detail and one of those books that made you think about it even when not reading it regarding just who Mrs Simpson really was and were The Royals actually correct about her motives, more than history makes us believe This is my first Wendy Holden book and I was impressed by how she captured Wallis’s voice and kept it consistent, even though we meet Wallis in the 1930s and again in the 1970s when her exiled husband has finally returned to England for burial. Although Mrs Simpson had been held up as a ‘scarlet woman’ who tempted Britain’s king away from the throne, Holden takes a new stance, portraying her as an innocent, slightly naive woman who was out of her depth in aristocratic society. Holden draws some interesting parallels between Wallis and the most recent American duchess, Megan Markle but doesn’t explore whether there’s a similar connection between Prince Harry and Wallis’s David…