Royal Pains: A Rogues' Gallery of Brats, Brutes, and Bad Seeds - Softcover

Carroll, Leslie

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0451232216 ISBN 13: 9780451232212

Publisher: Berkley, 2011

Synopsis

The author of Notorious Royal Marriages presents some of history's boldest, baddest, and bawdiest royals.

The bad seeds on the family trees of the most powerful royal houses of Europe often became the most rotten of apples: über-violent autocrats Vlad the Impaler and Ivan the Terrible literally reigned in blood. Lettice Knollys strove to mimic the appearance of her cousin Elizabeth I and even stole her man. And Pauline Bonaparte scandalized her brother Napoleon by having a golden goblet fashioned in the shape of her breast.

Chock-full of shocking scenes, titillating tales, and wildly wicked nobles, Royal Pains is a rollicking compendium of the most infamous, capricious, and insatiable bluebloods of Europe.

About this title

About the Author:

Leslie Carroll is the author of several works of historical nonfiction, women’s fiction, and, under the pen names Juliet Grey and Amanda Elyot, a multipublished author of historical fiction. Her nonfiction titles include Royal Romances, Royal Pains, Royal Affairs, Notorious Royal Marriages, and Inglorious Royal Marriages. She is also a classically trained professional actress with numerous portrayals of virgins, vixens, and villainesses to her credit, and is an award-winning audio book narrator.

A frequent commentator on royal romances and relationships, Leslie has been interviewed by numerous publications, including MSNBC.com, USA Today, the Australian Broadcasting Company, and NPR, and she was a featured royalty historian on CBS nightly news in London during the royal wedding coverage of Prince William and Catherine Middleton. She has also appeared as an expert on the love lives of Queen Victoria, Marie Antoinette, Catherine the Great, and Napoleon on the television series “The Secret Life of...” for Canada’s History Channel. Leslie and her husband, Scott, divide their time between New York City and Denver, Colorado.

From Booklist:

A collection of factual stories about 12 members of European royalty who represented some of the worst outcomes of inbreeding. From King John of England in the 12th century Vlad III of Wallachia (upon whom Bram Stoker based Dracula), Ivan the Terrible of Russia, and finally to Princess Margaret, younger sister of the present Queen Elizabeth II, the range of depravity described runs the gamut. There are sadists, psychopaths, and possible sex addicts, as well as those who are simply troublemakers. For those who enjoy reading about the scandals of the noble class, and want to learn more about the darker side of various royal families, this is a thoroughly enjoyable, quick read. Each persons environment is described so that the reader enjoys a sense of what was normal for a particular time period, and for most of these royals, they were far outside their norms. For those not familiar with royal families outside of Western Europe, there are a few standouts from other areas of Europe as well. --Rebecca Gerber

About this edition

• Publisher: Berkley
• Publication date: 2011
• ISBN 10: 0451232216
• ISBN 13: 9780451232212
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 416