Duchess: A Novel of Sarah Churchill
In the perilous world of kings and queens, she matched ambition with loyalty, ruthless intrigue with consuming passion…
London, 1673.
With her family ruined by war, penniless thirteen-year-old Sarah Jennings is overjoyed to be chosen as a maid of honor at the bawdy Restoration court of Charles II. She soon wins the trust of Lady Anne of York, a lonely princess who becomes one of her staunchest allies. And though Sarah's beauty stirs the desires of the jaded aristocrats, she wants a grander future for herself than that of a pampered mistress. Only one man possesses ambition and passions that match her own: John Churchill, a dashing young military hero. He would ask for her hand and win her heart for a lifetime…
But Whitehall Palace is ripe with ever-shifting alliances and sexual scandal, and Sarah will need all her cleverness to succeed. Titles, power, and wealth are the prizes, while an idle whisper in the wrong ear can bring a cry of treason and the executioner's ax. Will Sarah's loyalties and her dreams falter when a king is toppled from his throne and a new queen crowned? And will she dare risk everything when her one true love is tested by a passionate, dangerous obsession?
What others are saying about Duchess
The American Booksellers Association has named Duchess a Book Sense Notable Book for August, 2006. The Historical Novels Review has named Duchess an Editor's Choice.
“Sarah Jennings's ascent from poverty as a 13-year-old to the highest echelons of late 17th-century English society has all the trappings of supermarket tabloids: intrigue, treachery, deceit and sexual scandals. In this first-person telling, Scott takes a near-scholarly approach but maintains the thrills… That Sarah is an ancestor of both Winston Churchill and Lady Diana Spencer gives this novel appeal to several generations of historical fiction readers.”
--Publishers Weekly
“Scott's elegantly crafted story of two charismatic soul mates who gave up the chance to marry others, preferring wealth and advancement, is sure to appeal to lovers of good historical fiction.”
--Library Journal
“This wonderful fictional biography of Sarah, Duchess of Marlborogouh, whisks the reader into a period rife with intrigue, love, sex, war and religious strife...There are so many reasons to reccommend this book, from its myriad of believable chracters, ably drawn settings, polished and fluent prose, to its ability to totally immerse the reader in the past...Readers looking for a true escape into the past will want to add this book to ther collection and their keeper shelf.”
-- Historical Novel's Review, An EDITOR'S CHOICE for November, 2006
“I couldn't put down Duchess. The portrayal of life at Court is full of the intrigue and scandal that surround any royal family, and that makes for an excellent read. I highly recommend it..”
--Bookreporter.com
