Wallis in Love

The Untold Life of the Duchess of Windsor, the Woman Who Changed the Monarchy

By: Andrew Morton

Narrated by: Molly Parker Myers

Length: 12 hrs and 11 mins

Publisher's summary

For fans of the Netflix series The Crown and from the author of the New York Times best seller 17 Carnations comes a captivating biography of Wallis Simpson, the notorious woman for whom Edward VIII gave up the throne.

"You have no idea how hard it is to live out a great romance." (Wallis Simpson)

Before she became known as the woman who enticed a king from his throne and birthright, Bessie Wallis Warfield was a prudish and particular girl from Baltimore. At turns imaginative, ambitious, and spoiled, Wallis's first words as recalled by her family were "me, me." From that young age, she was in want of nothing but stability, status, and social acceptance as she fought to climb the social ladder and take her place in London society. As irony would have it, she would gain the love and devotion of a king, but only at the cost of his throne and her reputation.

In Wallis in Love, acclaimed biographer Andrew Morton offers a fresh portrait of Wallis Simpson in all her vibrancy and brazenness as she transformed from a hard-nosed gold-digger to charming chatelaine. Using diary entries, letters, and other never-before-seen records, Morton takes us through Wallis's romantic adventures in Washington, China, and her entrance into the strange wonderland that is London society. During her journey, we meet an extraordinary array of characters, many of whom smoothed the way for her dalliance with the king of England, Edward VIII.Wallis in Love goes beyond Wallis's infamous persona and reveals a complex, domineering woman striving to determine her own fate and grapple with matters of the heart.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2018 Andrew Morton (P)2018 Hachette Audo

Best Wallis Bio

I have read 3 biographies of Wallis Simpson so far and I think this is the most accurate and even-handed. There seems to be a tendency to romanticize her and make her an idealized romantic heroine, rather than a real person. This book is excellent and uses accounts from all kinds of people who encountered the Windsors, not just their friends. If you are looking for more listens, check out “That Woman”, and for a bit of a laugh with a near-perfect and fake Wallis, try “The Real Wallis Simpson”. I’ll give Pasternak credit for admitting she really likes the Windsors, but her favoritism skews the whole book. She ends up leaving out important facts. Listen to this book for the real story!

Interesting!

I learned a lot about the woman behind the most famous abdication of all time, a lot of it disheartening. #VoicesFromTheGrave #Tagsgiving #Sweepstakes

Fascinating woman and story

Wallis was so shallow and greedy and nasty, but I get how she got that way. She did not mean for her life to end up like this. Very much reminded me of F Scott Fitzgerald's Great Gatsby. I so didn't like her, but found the whole story very intriguing. I think her husband got off on being emotionally abused. He sounded insufferable and vapid. What world, what a life.

Wallis Wasn't A Very Nice Person

She's been romanticized on the screen in made for TV movies and documentaries that speculate on her inner life, but this book reveals her as a very superficial social climber, almost completely solipsistic, bitter and unenlightened. For that reason, this is a rather depressing listen. Very little time is given to her life as a child, so we really don't have a very solid background explaining why she might have turned out this way -- except that she was a middle class girl raised among a much wealthier social milieu. Edward was her willing slave -- though why he was so taken with her and loved her to the last in spite of her bitchiness is another mystery that remains unexplored by this book. The book does give an excellent picture of the nature of their relationship and the shortcomings of both individuals. Just don't expect an uplifting story or sympathetic characters in this book; you will get neither.

The narrator left much to be desired. Her lilting accentuation was irritating, with subtly operatic tendencies that didn't match the words being read. This isn't my preferred style of narration. Her range of expression is quite limited, but she seems to run through the whole range of it within a few sentences.

How Wallis wasted her life...

I didn't know what to expect with this book; I was hooked from the beginning. I feel this book should be mandated reading for young people obsessed with social media. Look where all Wallis' social climbing got her; she lived an empty lie.

I thought the narrator did a wonderful job. I enjoyed her Wallis' voice.

The true story is unbelievable. I thought the author summed it up when he said the British people dodged a bullet when David abdicated for Wallis who really loved Herman.

Wow .

The end chapters will make you gasp, it really did break my heart in the end. I thought I knew everything there was to know about them. I was wrong.

Wallis the Pig

I'd always wondered if Wallis got a bad rap.She didn't. She was a self-absorbed, conniving miserable bitch that got everything she had coming to her and the "king"....pathetic. I only wish worse could have happened to her. She surely deserved it.

I expected more from Morton

I find it difficult to stay engaged in the book. Firstly, the narrator sounds like she would be better suited for the Desperate Housewives voice over. Secondly, I find very little about WS that is redeeming in any way. Is that possible? Can a person have zero redeeming qualities?

Interesting review of the Windsors

Well-written and seemingly honest review of these two unusual lives--but also what appears to be quite self-centered lives--and the author does not gloss over these aspects. Somehow I found the reader a bit annoying, especially at first--but kept listening and became more accustomed to her mode of narration.

Deserved each other or very sad? Y you be the judge.

Well written. It is a book that each reader must find their own conclusions of truth. The lives of these two are not what they lead each other to believe! Stunning leading to stuck. My opinion..... She ends up being such a nasty & cold woman towards the Duke, but given his views is it karma for both? Yes!