Gail L. (VoraciouslyEatBooks) reviewed Georgiana : Duchess of Devonshire (Modern Library Paperbacks) on + 22 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 5
Not light reading. Many quotes from family letters and newspapers of the time. Politics, gambling, intricate and complicated ties between members of the nobility.
Helpful Score: 3
This story is much more fascinating than the movie. What a story -adultery, politics, fashion, scandal. Princess Diana was directly descended from Georgiana and shared her flair for being in the public spotlight.
Patty R. reviewed Georgiana : Duchess of Devonshire (Modern Library Paperbacks) on + 96 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 2
Georgiana Spencer was, in a sense, an 18th-century It Girl. She came from one of England's richest and most landed families (the late Princess Diana was a Spencer too) and married into another. She was beautiful, sensitive, and extravagant--drugs, drink, high-profile love affairs, and even gambling counted among her favorite leisure-time activities. Nonetheless, she quickly moved from a world dominated by social parties to one focused on political parties. The duchess was an intimate of ministers and princes, and she canvassed assiduously for the Whig cause, most famously in the Westminster election of 1784. By turns she was caricatured and fawned on by the press, and she provided the inspiration for the character of Lady Teazle in Richard Sheridan's famous play The School for Scandal. But her weaknesses marked the last part of her life. By 1784, for one, Georgiana owed "many, many, many thousands," and her creditors dogged her until her death.
Biographer Amanda Foreman describes astutely the mess that surrounded the personal relationships of the aristocratic subculture (Georgiana and the duke engaged for many years in a ménage à trois with Lady Elizabeth Fraser, who inveigled her way into the duke's bed and the duchess's heart). Foreman is, by her own admission, a little in love with her subject, which can lead to occasional lapses of perspective, but generally it adds zest to a narrative built on, rather than burdened by, scholarship, that is at once accessible and learned. An impressive debut, in every sense. --David Vincent, Amazon.co.uk
Biographer Amanda Foreman describes astutely the mess that surrounded the personal relationships of the aristocratic subculture (Georgiana and the duke engaged for many years in a ménage à trois with Lady Elizabeth Fraser, who inveigled her way into the duke's bed and the duchess's heart). Foreman is, by her own admission, a little in love with her subject, which can lead to occasional lapses of perspective, but generally it adds zest to a narrative built on, rather than burdened by, scholarship, that is at once accessible and learned. An impressive debut, in every sense. --David Vincent, Amazon.co.uk
Nanette B. (naners) reviewed Georgiana : Duchess of Devonshire (Modern Library Paperbacks) on + 16 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
I liked this book, but it was hard for me to get through. There is alot about English Politics.
Laura D. (lauradenenholz) reviewed Georgiana : Duchess of Devonshire (Modern Library Paperbacks) on + 3 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Great book, a little dense for someone who is not experienced reading biographies. Characters can be easily confused, as many have very similar names!
Cathie L. (rockinbookz) -
Helpful Score: 1
good book, I really enjoyed it, but kind of went over the same things over and over.
very very interesting woman.
very very interesting woman.
Helpful Score: 1
A delightful (and incredibly well-documented) account of Georgiana's life. Ms. Foreman has a talent for bringing a woman and her times to life.
Keri (TXGrobanite) reviewed Georgiana : Duchess of Devonshire (Modern Library Paperbacks) on + 270 more book reviews
Normally I love biographies, but I got way too distracted with all her footnotes and I just couldn't take it anymore. I don't mind a few, but when you have them every other sentence, it gets very distracting. I'll try to find other biographies on Georgiana because her life does look interesting.
Waymon C. (Waymon) reviewed Georgiana : Duchess of Devonshire (Modern Library Paperbacks) on + 13 more book reviews
The precourser to Princess Di. Scholarly and lively work.
Rosalie C. (ldybritt) -
Excellent biography, I was born within a few miles of Chatsworth, Georgiana's home, and loved reading the rich history of the beautiful house - and that beautiful Duchess, for her life and times no other biography equals it. She was truly a woman before her time.
Mary S. (Brantach) reviewed Georgiana : Duchess of Devonshire (Modern Library Paperbacks) on + 7 more book reviews
A well written and in depth biography. The writing style is reminiscent of Carolly Erickson in that the history flows more like a novel than a text book. While the book does have a good amount of footnotes, it is not overly done, and each one offers more elaboration on different points throughout the book. The author truly did her research and shows us a glimpse of what politics was truly like in the late 18th - early 19th centuries and the role that the Duchess played as leader of the Ton. We also get a good look behind closed doors at the strengths and weaknesses of the various nobility and politicians that surround the Duchess. With family portraits and newspaper drawings from the era included, it was quite easy to become immersed in the history. A great read for any history buff that is interested in a woman who left her imprint on society.
Susan R. reviewed Georgiana : Duchess of Devonshire (Modern Library Paperbacks) on + 2 more book reviews
Highly entertaining book and very well researched and written. Even if you have seen the movie, you will find the discussions of her impact on the political scene (and the political scene itself) very interesting. It is not light reading, but for someone interested in British history, I certainly recommend it.
Katherine W. (KateW) reviewed Georgiana : Duchess of Devonshire (Modern Library Paperbacks) on + 10 more book reviews
Thoroughly researched and a good read. Scholarly and accessible - I hope to see more from this author in the future.
Dorothy V. reviewed Georgiana : Duchess of Devonshire (Modern Library Paperbacks) on + 19 more book reviews
Biography of an high-living ancestor of Princess Diana.
BRITTNEY E. (BrittE) reviewed Georgiana : Duchess of Devonshire (Modern Library Paperbacks) on + 176 more book reviews
The winner of Britain's prestigious Whitbread Prize and a bestseller there for months, this wonderfully readable biography offers a rich, rollicking picture of late-eighteenth-century British aristocracy and the intimate story of a woman who for a time was its undisputed leader.
Lady Georgiana Spencer was the great-great-great-great-aunt of Diana, Princess of Wales, and was nearly as famous in her day. In 1774, at the age of seventeen, Georgiana achieved immediate celebrity by marrying one of England's richest and most influential aristocrats, the Duke of Devonshire. Launched into a world of wealth and power, she quickly became the queen of fashionable society, adored by the Prince of Wales, a dear friend of Marie-Antoinette, and leader of the most important salon of her time. Not content with the role of society hostess, she used her connections to enter politics, eventually becoming more influential than most of the men who held office.
Lady Georgiana Spencer was the great-great-great-great-aunt of Diana, Princess of Wales, and was nearly as famous in her day. In 1774, at the age of seventeen, Georgiana achieved immediate celebrity by marrying one of England's richest and most influential aristocrats, the Duke of Devonshire. Launched into a world of wealth and power, she quickly became the queen of fashionable society, adored by the Prince of Wales, a dear friend of Marie-Antoinette, and leader of the most important salon of her time. Not content with the role of society hostess, she used her connections to enter politics, eventually becoming more influential than most of the men who held office.
Constance E. (constance2u) reviewed Georgiana : Duchess of Devonshire (Modern Library Paperbacks) on + 20 more book reviews
Georgiana was a boring woman, rich, spoiled, idle and promiscuous. She was a compulsive liar, a compulsive gambler, a compulsive spender, needy, clinging, spoiled, immature. In a word: trailer trash (OK, 2 words). Ugh
Jocelyn P. reviewed Georgiana : Duchess of Devonshire (Modern Library Paperbacks) on + 8 more book reviews
Fascinating historical book. Condition of book: a little worn, but readable.
