Duchess, Countess

By: Catherine Ostler

Narrated by: Catherine Ostler

A SPECTATOR BOOK OF THE YEAR
A TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR
A TELEGRAPH BOOK OF THE YEAR
A VOGUE BOOK OF THE YEAR

'A rollicking read... [Ostler] tells Elizabeth's story with admirable style and gusto' Sunday Times
'Terrifically entertaining: if you liked Bridgerton, you’ll love this. . . and her research is impeccable' Evening Standard

When the glamorous Elizabeth Chudleigh, Duchess of Kingston, Countess of Bristol, went on trial at Westminster Hall for bigamy in April 1776, the story drew more attention in society than the American War of Independence.

A clandestine, candlelit wedding to the young heir to an earldom, a second marriage to a Duke, a lust for diamonds and an electrifying appearance at a masquerade ball in a diaphanous dress: no wonder the trial was a sensation. However, Elizabeth refused to submit to public humiliation and retire quietly. Rather than backing gracefully out of the limelight, she embarked on a Grand Tour of Europe, being welcomed by the Pope and Catherine the Great among others.

As maid of honour to Augusta, Princess of Wales, Elizabeth led her life in the inner circle of the Hanoverian court and her exploits delighted and scandalised the press and the people. She made headlines, and was a constant feature in penny prints and gossip columns. Writers were intrigued by her. Thackeray drew on Elizabeth as inspiration for his calculating, alluring Becky Sharp. But her behaviour, often depicted as attention-seeking and manipulative, hid a more complex tale – that of Elizabeth’s fight to overcome personal tragedy and loss.

Now, in this brilliantly told and evocative biography, Catherine Ostler takes a fresh look at Elizabeth’s story and seeks to understand and reappraise a woman who refused to be defined by society’s expectations of her.

©2021 Catherine Ostler (P)2021 Simon & Schuster UK

Critic reviews

‘What a superb, gripping, decadent, colourful biography that brings an extraordinary woman and a whole world blazingly to life. Filled new research, written so elegantly with empathy, passion and cool analysis, The Duchess Countess is an unforgettable, unputdownable read that seems both modern and historical, utterly relevant today - featuring a cast of characters from Marie Antoinette to Catherine the Great, but also the life of a woman who is both adventuress and victim, who achieved vast wealth and great notoriety, becoming one of Europe's most famous women and the star of the most scandalous court case of the century.’ (Simon Sebag Montefiore)

‘Although this book is a beautifully written and deeply researched life of one of the most remarkable women of the eighteenth century, it is also a scintillating portrait of an age. Since Elizabeth Chudleigh knew so many of Europe’s most talented, fascinating and important people – as well as its most dissipated rakes – the book is populated by as wide a galere of personalities as one is ever likely to meet in a biography. The author has ransacked every archive and visited every place connected with her subject from London to St Petersburg, and the result is the first ever fair-minded estimation of one of the great adventuresses of history. Funny, intelligent, witty, profound and on occasion moving, this book sets a new standard for eighteenth-century biography writing.’ (Andrew Roberts, author of Churchill: Walking with Destiny and Napoleon the Great)

Excellent writing, grating narration

I really dislike it when publishers encourage writers to read their own work—rarely do their talents as narrators match their talents as writers.

This is a well-written and well-researched book, and I think I will enjoy reading the print version, but the author’s voice is so terrible and grating that I just can’t finish the audio version.

Ugh Bad Narration

I think this would be an interesting book but the narrator is awful, so awful. There’s another version of this book on Audible with a different cover but unfortunately the same narrator. I tried but I will be returning. Listen to the sample. She’s loud and overly dramatic, every word… dramatic. This would be a great book with the right narrator. You may be able to tolerate the narration but I gave it a good 3 hours to see if I could adjust to it and I couldn’t.