Review: The Queen of Bushy House

 

One house. Two women. Both determined to endure.

July 1818. Dorothea Jordan – celebrated actress and long-time companion of the Duke of Clarence – has returned. Not in flesh, but in spirit. For fifteen years Bushy House was her sanctuary, filled with laughter and her ten children – the FitzClarences. Now she watches as her portraits are taken down and her daughters sent away, in preparation for the duke’s new bride.

Princess Adelaide of Saxe-Meiningen arrives in England with duty pressing upon her shoulders. At twenty-five, she has accepted a proposal no other princess would take. She must tame the duke’s debts, win over his unruly children and – above all – produce an heir to secure the British throne.

But Adelaide soon senses a presence in Bushy House.

As she struggles to find her place in a household shaped by another woman’s love, the restless spirit of Mrs Jordan lingers – watchful, wounded and unwilling to be forgotten.

Inspired by the true story of Queen Adelaide and the actress Dorothea Jordan, The Queen of Bushy House explores grief and ambition, motherhood and legacy – and the enduring power of a love that refuses to fade.

Review

The Queen of Bushy House : A Regency Novel inspired by Queen Adelaide and the Actress Dorothea Jordan by Molly Gartland
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book is an interesting feminist perspective on two women with only one thing in common - the house they inhabit due to their connection with a man. Dorothea is granted access but no rights since she was never married to William IV despite giving him 10 children. Adelaide becomes the official wife as royal life beckoned and demanded a legitimate heir, though ultimately Adelaide would not provide William with a successor. The house becomes the witness of this historical drama and the injustices women face when their life depends only on the value they provide to someone else.

The writing is strong with deft dialogue that moves character and plot without feeling so stilted that it's unrelatable nor so modern that it's distracting. The women shine on the page. It is a good example of relatable historical fiction that adds empathy and encourages curiosity about the past without miring down in unnecessary historical rhetoric.

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Purchase Links

www.mollygartland.com or https://www.mollygartland.com/category/all-products (goes directly to the bookshop)

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Queen-Bushy-House-inspired-Adelaide-ebook/dp/B0H8SBSRJY

https://www.amazon.com/Queen-Bushy-House-inspired-Adelaide-ebook/dp/B0H8SBSRJY

 

Author Bio – Originally from Michigan, Molly Gartland has lived overseas since 1994, including six years in Moscow and stints in Cairo, Cape Town and Dakar. A boomerang Brit whose ancestors arrived in America on the Mayflower, she now lives in south-west London.

A lifelong lover of books, theatre, art and urban wildlife, she is also a devoted supporter of Brentford FC and can often be found wandering through Bushy Park.