This is my second book by Ms. Purcell – I read her debut book, Queen of Bedlam when it first came out. Where that book told the tale of George III’s wife, this one goes back in time to the man who would be George II. As in her first book the story is focused on the women in his life – in this case his wife, Caroline and one of his long standing mistresses, Henrietta Howard. If truth be told it is really Henrietta’s story.

Henrietta was orphaned at a young age and she married into the Howard family – yes, that Howard family. Unfortunately her husband was a complete and total waste of a human life. He was a gambler and a wife beater. If anything was going to get better it was going to fall to Henrietta to change things. Fortunately she was a very driven young lady. She somehow had the wherewithal to sell everything they owned to take the two of them to Hanover to attach themselves to the royal family. She had to leave her young son in England, which would have lasting repercussions on their relationship. But through her determination and personality she secured the family’s position.

Soon the royal family is heading to England to assume the throne and Henrietta is part of the royal household. She soon finds herself as mistress to Prince George. The Princess Caroline was sort of OK with the situation but what wife is ever happy with a mistress.

I must admit that I liked this book far better than I liked Ms. Purcell’s first novel. It was a very interesting tale of a woman about whom I knew nothing. As I mentioned in my review of that book, this is a time period that I really don’t know much about. I like when I can read and learn and be entertained all at the same time. Henrietta was a truly remarkable woman for her time. Her husband really treated her like dirt and yet she still managed to create a life for herself in a time when husbands owned their wives.

I will look forward to the next book in Ms. Purcell’s series. ( )

Purcell's previous novel, Queen of Bedlam, made my top ten of 2014; it was a compelling, sympathetic look at a royal family not often featured in fiction, and it kindled in me a renewed interest (and sympathy) for royal women.

In this book, Purcell tells the story of Henrietta Howard, courtier in the Hanover court of George II and Caroline. Trapped in a violent marriage, Henrietta moves her abusive, gambling husband to Germany in hopes of bettering their lives. Her obvious plight touches Caroline, and the two develop an intimate friendship of sorts.

So loyal is Henrietta that when asked by Caroline, she becomes the King's mistress. And from there, Henrietta is plunged into even more emotional tumult. What privilege and comfort she got from that romance was countered by the loss of her friendship with Caroline as well as access to her only child.

I was gripped by this novel from the first page. Despite the scandalous plot, it's a deeply melancholy novel -- so much loss, so much sacrifice -- and I loved that Purcell focused on the darkly pragmatic nature of royal mistresses. The point of view switches between Henrietta and Caroline (occasionally in the same paragraph, which was confusing!), allowing the rich, complicated relationship between these two women to come into full view. I liked and felt for both of them, two women battling the unfair power wielded by the men in their lives.

The characters are all vibrant and unforgettable. In some ways, Henrietta could be seen as a passive puppet ("...she had given and given of herself until she was nothing but a limp rag rung through a mangle." p 290) and yet, Purcell articulates such tender affection for her, I felt the same way. George I, Caroline's father-in-law, is a manipulative, villainous man I loathed -- fun, since in her Author's Note, Purcell comments that she wrote him from the view of George II and Caroline and plans to feature him in a future novel -- one I will undoubtedly get because I cannot wait to see how she makes me care for him!

The world of the Hanover court is also portrayed with evocative detail, small dashes of description that linger in my mind -- the mushrooms growing from the walls in the dank rooms of one palace, the glittering splendor of another -- as well as other tidbits about life in this time. (For a behind-the-curtain look at writing historical fiction, I recommend Purcell's blog post about wrestling with the historical stuff that readers think aren't historical!)

Moms will appreciate this endorsement for what it means, but this book was so good, I read it in bed (under my pillow, to keep from waking the baby!).

With this read, Purcell can count me a devoted fangirl. She does historical fiction beautifully, taking people and places foreign and unfamiliar, and rendering them warm, real, and approachable. ( )