Royal Harlot: A Novel of the Countess Castlemaine and King Charles II - Softcover

Holloway Scott, Susan

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0451221346 ISBN 13: 9780451221346

Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group, 2007

Synopsis

London, 1660: Ready to throw off a generation of Puritan rule, all England rejoices when Charles Stuart returns to reclaim the throne. Among those welcoming him is young Barbara Villiers Palmer, a breathtaking Royalist beauty whose sensuality and clever wit instantly captivate the handsome, jaded king. Though each is promised to another, Barbara soon becomes Charles's mistress and closest friend, and the uncrowned queen of his bawdy Restoration court. Rewarded with titles, land, and jewels, she is the most envied and desired woman in England--and the most powerful. But the role of royal mistress is a precarious one, and Barbara's enemies and rivals are everywhere in the palace.

About this title

About the Author

Susan Holloway Scott is the author of more than forty historical novels and novellas. Writing under her own name as well as Miranda Jarrett, her bestselling books have received numerous awards and honors. With more than three million copies of her books in print, she has been published in nineteen countries around the world. Her most recent historical novels have been set in seventeenth-century England, in the decadent, politically charged court of King Charles II, and all have been Historical Novels Review Editors' Choice titles. She is a graduate of Brown University, and lives with her family outside of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Reviews

As in her popular Duchess, about Sarah Churchill, Scott captures in her latest historical romance the brilliance and hard beauty of Barbara Palmer (Lady Castlemaine), the Merry Monarch's most famous and enduring mistress. A young but far from innocent Barbara marries rich but proper Roger Palmer, whose Royalist politics set them on the path that will make her a famous courtesan and favorite of King Charles II. Lusty, bawdy and cunning, she's a fine match for the king, whose reign is portrayed as fraught with great expectations that go largely unfulfilled. Both Charles and his court are pleasingly debauched, and Charles, though well-intentioned, proves himself to be a very poor king as kings went. Charles's court is frequently depicted in this genre, but Scott finds a careful balance in Barbara, not salvaging her as a sinner, but giving her something of a heart under all that reputation. (July)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Edition details

• Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
• Publication date: 2007
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0451221346
• ISBN 13: 9780451221346
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 380