Read The French Mistress Online

Authors: Susan Holloway Scott

The French Mistress

BOOK: The French Mistress
12.59Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads
Table of Contents
 
 
Praise for the Novels of Susan Holloway Scott
The King’s Favorite
An
Historical Novels Review
Editor’s Choice
 
“This is a wild joyride through Restoration England, with Nell firmly gripping the reins. Susan Holloway Scott is so intuitive with period language and so involved in the psyches of her characters, that you are at all times
there
with them, seeing what they’re seeing, feeling what they’re feeling—and always,
always
rooting for the petite whirlwind of a heroine.”—Robin Maxwell, author of
Mademoiselle Boleyn
 
“This is an entertaining . . . fictionalized memoir that brings alive from an ‘insider’s’ perspective a transformation period in English history as Cromwell is out and the Stuarts are back in. Nell comes across as intelligent and witty as she uses double entendres to get the better of hypocrites who claim to know what is morally best for others (sounds so contemporarily familiar). Genre fans will appreciate the life and times of
The King’s Favorite
, as the ‘Duchess’ of biographical fiction Susan Holloway Scott provides an insightful seventeenth-century tale.”

Midwest Book Review
 
“Witty and fascinating, this fast-paced tale brilliantly conjures the bawdy, glorious court of Charles II as well as the gritty reality of seventeenth-century London. Natural storyteller Susan Holloway Scott handles her subject with thrilling expertise—her Nell Gwyn is at once outrageous, tender, and unforgettable.
The King’s Favorite
is a luscious read.”—Susan Fraser King, author of
Lady Macbeth continued . . .
Praise for
Royal Harlot
An
Historical Novels Review
Editor’s Choice
 
“Having previously provided a fictional memoir of Sarah, first Duchess of Marlborough, Scott brings to vivid life another of the seventeenth century’s most notorious, brazen, and powerful females. If anything,
Royal Harlot
is an even more assured, nuanced, and colorful portrait of a woman and her age. . . . In her intriguing portrayal, Scott tempers Barbara’s rapacious sexuality while presenting a Charles who seems far less frustrated with her tempestuousness than the historical record indicates. And although the real Barbara was better known for her ambition and avarice than her maternal devotion, the novelist incorporates her motherhood to good effect. Among this novel’s many strengths are Scott’s impressive depiction of time and place, her evocation of the Restoration-era mind-set, the exuberance of the period, and her sure, succinct presentation of complex historical events. The reader can well believe that this is a memoir penned by a woman who—in reality—was clearly too busy living to ever write one!”
—Margaret Barr,
The Historical Novels Review (
Editor’s Choice Pick)
 
“As in her popular
Duchess
, Scott captures in her latest historical novel the brilliance and hard beauty of Barbara Palmer (Lady Castlemaine), the Merry Monarch’s most famous and enduring mistress. . . . Scott finds a careful balance in Barbara, not salvaging her as a sinner, but giving her something of a heart under all that reputation.”

Publishers Weekly
 
“The Countess of Castlemaine, labeled the Great Harlot of Charles II, never denies or regrets her nature in this fascinating rendering of an outrageous love affair that defies convention and public outrage in Restoration England. . . . Relating the details of Barbara’s fictionalized life, the author takes into account the historical events and unusual influence of a powerful woman in the Restoration court, fleshing out the countess’s adventures with gusto, her flaws all the more glaring in the waning years of her power. All in all, this is a thorough and imaginative re-creation of Palmer’s long career and her extraordinary talent for manipulating circumstances to her own advantage, an informative and plausible treatment of the controversial life of a successful woman in a man’s world.”—Curled Up with a Good Book
 
Praise for
 
Duchess
Named a Booksense Notable Book by the American Booksellers Association
 
“Wonderful . . . whisks the reader into a period rife with intrigue, love, sex, war, and religious strife.”

The Historical Novels Review
(Editor’s Choice Pick)
 
“All the trappings of supermarket tabloids: intrigue, treachery, deceit, and sexual scandals.”—
Publishers Weekly
 
“Susan Holloway Scott has brought to life the racy world of post-Restoration England in her richly researched and beautifully written
Duchess
.”—Karen Harper, author of
The First Princess of Wales
 
“No dry dust of history here, but a vivid portrait of an intriguing woman with all her flaws and strengths. Rich in period detail, the novel also has all the ingredients necessary for a compelling read: conflict, suspense, intrigue, and the romance between Sarah and John Churchill, one of history’s great love stories.”—Susan Carroll, author of
The Huntress
 
“Compelling; it grips the reader from the very first sentence and never lets go. Scott does a wonderful job of bringing Lady Sarah and her world to life.”—Jeanne Kalogridis, author of
I, Mona Lisa
 
“As wickedly entertaining as Sarah Churchill herself. . . . Scott brings Sarah blazingly alive in all her sharp-edged beauty and determination. Not to be missed!”—Mary Jo Putney, author of
A Distant Magic
• ALSO BY SUSAN HOLLOWAY SCOTT •
THE KING’S FAVORITE
A Novel of Nell Gwyn and King Charles II
 
ROYAL HARLOT
A Novel of the Countess of Castlemaine and King Charles II
 
DUCHESS
A Novel of Sarah Churchill
New American Library
Published by New American Library,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.,
375 Hudson Street,
New York, New York 10014, USA
Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto,
Ontario M4P 2Y3, Canada (a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.)
Penguin Books Ltd., 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
Penguin Ireland, 25 St. Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2,
Ireland (a division of Penguin Books Ltd.)
Penguin Group (Australia), 250 Camberwell Road, Camberwell,
Victoria 3124, Australia (a division of Pearson Australia Group Pty. Ltd.)
Penguin Books India Pvt. Ltd., 11 Community Centre,
Panchsheel Park, New Delhi - 110 017, India
Penguin Group (NZ), 67 Apollo Drive, Rosedale, North Shore 0632,
New Zealand (a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd.)
Penguin Books (South Africa) (Pty.) Ltd., 24 Sturdee Avenue,
Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196, South Africa
Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices:
80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
First published by New American Library,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
First Printing, July 2009
Copyright © Susan Holloway Scott, 2009
Readers guide copyright © Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 2009
All rights reserved
REGISTERED TRADEMARK—MARCA REGISTRADA
 
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA:
Scott, Susan Holloway.
The French Mistress: a novel of the Duchess of Portsmouth &
King Charles II/ by Susan Holloway Scott.
p. cm.
eISBN : 978-1-101-08218-8
Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
PUBLISHER’S NOTE
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party Web sites or their content.
The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.

http://us.penguingroup.com

For L.C., the other nerdy history girl.
BOOK: The French Mistress
12.59Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

Other books

Cruel Summer by Alyson Noel
Rogue Forces by Dale Brown
Raced by K. Bromberg
Vera by Stacy Schiff
The Last Sunday by Terry E. Hill
Knight in Blue Jeans by Evelyn Vaughn
Falling For The Lawyer by Anna Clifton