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Review: The Mitford Girls

I know I have unusual reading tastes for someone my age (always have), but when the author of a book confirms that you are strange for having heard of the Mitford sisters and are under the age of 50something, well, what more is there to say?

I was first introduced to the Mitford sisters by the brilliantly funny and exceptionally well-written Pursuit of Lovewritten by sister Nancy. I'm a complete Anglophile, so reading this hilarious account of the lives of the slightly impoverished English gentry was a thrill for me. Then, a few months ago, the son of another sister, Diana, was in the news for having to resign his job because he made the unfortunate mistake of letting a video of himself dressed in a military commanders outfit, counting off in German during a BDSM scene. Now, I'm all for people wanting to do what they want in their private lives, but the unfortunate thing for Mr. Max Mosley, he was both the boss of Formula 1 racing, and the son of Sir Oswald Mosley, the founder of the British Fascist Party. I recognized the name Mitford from the article, and went to do more reading, and was quickly intrigued to learn that not only were Mr. Mosley's parents married in Germany with Hitler and Goebbels present, his aunt, Unity Mitford, had had an extremely close friendship with Hitler in the years running up to the Second World War.

So, when I returned home and found a copy of The Mitford Girlsby Mary S. Lovell, I knew I had to read it, and before I knew it, I'd finished the entire 400+ pages in one day. The Mitford sisters (Nancy, Pam, Diana, Unity, Decca, and Debo) are fascinating women for their time and social class, and this biography brings them to life and gives insight into each sister's personality while simultaneously being an entertaining read.

Nancy, as I've already mentioned, was an accomplished writer, as was her sister, Decca, who married the nephew of Winston Churchill, became an avowed Communist, fought for civil rights in America, became a best-selling sociological author, and managed to become a professor - all without ever having been formally educated. Pam, the quiet sister, lead her own life, Diana, the famed beauty of her era became entangled in a scandalous divorce, affair, secret marriage, and as already mentioned, was active in the British fascist movement. Unity became a close friend to Hitler, and Debo became (through family tragedy) the Duchess Cavendish, and proprietress of the famed Chatsworth House in England.

Lovell draws upon formerly inaccessible materials (private letters and diaries), as well as interviews with the surviving sisters and their loved ones to present a balanced but fascinating look into the lives of these extraordinary women, while remaining conscious of the effect their actions had upon each other (Diana and Decca remained fiercely at odds over their extremely different political ideologies) and upon their family. Her treatment of Diana could be construed as apologetic by some, but she does take pains to demonstrate that, while Diana did support the idea of fascism and admired Hitler, she, like her brother, did not subscribe whole-heartedly and blindly to the genocidal/racial aspect of his doctrine. To me, this is a fair enough point to make, but it may well offend some.

In sum, to anyone who loves anything English, or is interested in getting inside the world of the British aristocracy at the end of its heydey, this book is a must read. It is a compelling read, and one that I found difficult to put down, and I felt almost sad to be leaving the mad world of the Mitford clan behind when I finished the book.

4/5 stars

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Review: The Seduction of the Crimson Rose

Posted by Maya Posted on: 06/20/08

Review: The Seduction of the Crimson Rose

Last summer, I happened upon an author named Lauren Willig. Her book caught my eye for being a work of historical fiction, a genre that I read a good deal of, but it soon turned out to be heavily influenced by the chick-lit/romance genres, which I rarely venture into.

That evening, I found myself positively glued to her book (the third in a series, I later discovered). The plot centered around the exploits of flower-named English spies during the time of the French Revolution. The dialog was witty, fresh, and funny, the characters well-sketched, and the historical romance so fun (as opposed to the contemporary romance Willig has blossoming between Colin and Eloise, the researcher who uncovers the stories we are reading), that I raced through the book at lightening speed.

That book, entitled 'The Deception of the Emerald Ring' led me to Willig's other works, a rare occurrence for me. There are many authors whom I love deeply, but I rarely seek out their other works with such enthusiasm.

The first, 'The Secret History of the Pink Carnation' was entertaining enough, but the second, 'The Masque of the Black Tulip,' fell flat. Still, remembering how much I had enjoyed two of the three books out, I made certain to get a copy of her latest, 'The Seduction of the Crimson Rose' when it came in February.

Willig is back to form with this book, and her style just gets stronger. Of the four, this is by far the best, with deliciously sarcastic wit peppered throughout the dialog, fueled by the relationship between Mary Alsworthy and Lord Vaughn, both of whom feed off of this snappy banter. It marks a nice change from the usual sappy dialog (for though Willig's writing is great, I wasn't as impressed with her dialog in the previous works), and makes it even more difficult to put the book down.

My only two quarrels with the book would be the that, as readers, we never truly get to know Lord Vaughn, and are suddenly expected to believe he has had a change of heart.

Secondly, while the historical romances are fantastic, the contemporary romance between Eloise and Colin is deadly dull. At the end of four books, the pair have barely managed to get past the first kiss, and though a fifth (eagerly anticipated) book is in the works, I am enthused to read it only for the history.

It is beyond me why Willig persists in using this plodding storyline, and even more puzzling as to why her editors haven't encouraged her to pick up the pace at least a little. I'm not asking for them to jump into bed by page 15 of the next book, but a little progress in some direction would be nice, for at the rate we're going, we'll be at book 15 before anything genuine happens.

Still, Willig is a fresh, new talent in the field of romantic historical fiction, and someone whose work I recommend highly.

Overall rating: 4.5/5

(adapted from a post originally posted on my Wordpress blog: illusionsofme.wordpress.com)

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