“The Season feels like a different world.” He motioned to the Royal Army men piling sandbags in front of the buildings.
“It does, but I’m glad we had the chance to enjoy it, and to get to know one another. I wish you well, Elm.”
“Do you really?”
“Yes.”
He pressed a tender kiss to her cheek, then turned and headed back to Whitehall before pausing. “Richard is posted at the Queen Alexandra Military Hospital. He’d love to see you.”
He hadn’t called or written after the accident; she hadn’t expected him to. The disappointment on his face at the Oxford infirmary had said enough, until today. “Do you really think so?”
“I do.”
“SOMEONE SAID A woman from the Personal Service League is here to see me,” Richard said to the soldier manning the front desk. The man pointed to Valerie and she braced herself, waiting for him to march right back to where he’d come from.
“I hope you don’t mind my using my credentials to summon you.”
“It wouldn’t be the first time, would it?” He approached as cautiously as she did, the two of them meeting in the middle of the airy Victorian entrance hall. His olive-green uniform with the caduceus embroidered on the collars and his short-brimmed cap was far more dashing than the formal one he’d worn the last time she’d seen him. She tucked her hair behind her ear, surprised by the heat flooding through her, and not at all sure how to proceed but unwilling to scurry away like a scared mouse. She’d determined to come here, and whatever his reaction, she’d see it through. “I’m sorry about the night at Blenheim. The days before it weren’t easy for me and I quite lost my head.”
“If someone I loved had been given a dire diagnosis, I might have lost mine too. How is your uncle?”
“As you might expect, with everything that’s happened.”
“And the cancer?”
She didn’t deny it, confident he’d keep this secret along with the petty few others that’d seemed so important during the Season. “We don’t know yet, but the doctors are hopeful.”
Limbo again, but it didn’t scare her as much as before. There were too many things in the present to cherish to allow worries about yesterday or tomorrow to steal her joy, including Richard not recoiling from her. “Are you enjoying your new posting?”
“The discipline of an army-run hospital takes some getting used to, but it’s to be expected. Discipline is the soul of an army. It makes small numbers formidable; procures success to the weak, and esteem to all.”
“Napoleon?”
“George Washington.” He motioned to her uniform. “I see you’ve been busy since we last met.”
She tugged straight the front of her khaki Personal Service League jacket over the matching skirt. “I help decide what supplies are most urgently needed where, and I’m smashing at it. Hours of writing thank-you notes during the Season gave me the patience of a saint to sit and answer the hundreds of requests we receive from hospitals.” If Dorothy ever got over her snit and spoke to her, she’d be sure to tell her and offer that little olive branch. She still couldn’t stand her cousin, but for Uncle Neville and Aunt Anne’s benefit, she’d find some way to call a truce.
“I’m glad you’re doing well there and that you’re happy.”
“As much as anyone can be at present. Elm paid me a visit today.” This faded his smile. “He apologized and told me to come see you. I’m glad he did. I’ve missed you.”
“Have you?”
“No one can imitate a chestnut tree quite like you.”
He threw back his head and laughed, drawing a frown from the front desk clerk before he sobered. “One of my many unsung talents.”
“Along with helping me to see things differently. It’s made a great deal of difference.” She fingered the gold fork and disk on her necklace, quite through with all this seriousness. “I’ve been told an army marches on its stomach. I hate to think of you starving from a lack of dances, therefore you must come to dinner at Number Ten.”
“It’d be an honor and a privilege.” He took her hand and bowed over it, eyeing her from beneath his cap brim as he pressed his lips to her skin. She drew in a sharp breath, her fingers tightening around his. Then he stood, holding her hand for a moment before he let go. Here was reality, not the fantasy of a title or the Season.
With a wink, he left to return to his duties.
She strolled out of the hospital’s white-brick entrance, rubbing her hand in giddy excitement where Richard’s lips had touched it. She crossed the small drive, passing the military trucks parked along it to reach the Rolls idling beyond the red-brick wall. Six months, and her entire world had changed. She had no idea what the future held, but whatever waited for her or England, she’d face it with the poise expected of the Prime Minister’s debutante niece.
P.S. Insights, Interviews & More . . .*
About the Author
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Meet Georgie Blalock
About the Book
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Behind the Book
Reading Group Guide
About the Author
Meet Georgie Blalock
GEORGIE BLALOCK is a history lover and movie buff who enjoys combining her different passions through historical fiction and a healthy dose of period films. When not writing, she can be found prowling the nonfiction history section of the library or the British film listings on Netflix. Georgie writes historical romance under the name Georgie Lee. Please visit georgieblalock.com for more information about Georgie and her writing.
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About the Book
Behind the Book
I was fascinated when I read about Neville Chamberlain’s niece being a debutante during the last London Season before World War II. I dove into my research, ready to discover more about this young woman at the heart of politics and society during such a historic time. What surprised me was the lack of information on Valerie, especially her time in No. 10 Downing Street. Valerie left no published autobiographies or journals about her life with her aunt and uncle. After the Chamberlains left No. 10 in May 1940, and Neville died of stomach cancer on November 9, 1940, Valerie faded from public view, appearing here and there in newspaper articles over the years and occasionally in Chamberlain family correspondence. There is a tantalizingly brief mention of Valerie’s involvement with an unsuitable gentleman in a letter between Aunt Anne and Great-Aunt Lillian but nothing more. Her relationships in the novel, like the characters of Richard and Elm, are fictional, as are many of the novel’s details about her life and Season. However, British high society was very intertwined, with everyone connected to everyone else in one way or another, so it is possible that Valerie, Katherine, Dinah, Eunice, and Christian might have known one another.
Valerie’s stepmother and mother are interesting figures as well. Mavis continued to enjoy notoriety from her connection to Augustus John. The nude drawing of her mentioned in the novel is real, but it was not displayed at the 1939 Royal Academy Summer Exhibit. After she cheated on Mortimer Wheeler, who is also a fascinating and scandalous character, he and Mavis divorced in 1942. In 1954, she was found guilty of shooting her lover Lord Vivian and served time in jail. Lord Vivian survived the attack. Mrs. Winterbotham, Valerie’s mother, also faced the court, but it was bankruptcy court. In October 1939, she was before a judge for failing to pay bills because the money from her trust had run out. After that, she, like Valerie, faded from the spotlight.
Katherine, Dinah, Christian, Eunice, and Marian lived long and interesting lives. Katherine married Maurice Macmillan, son of Prime Minister Harold Macmillan. She was heavily involved in politics and became a Dame Commander of the British Empire. Christian went on to write her memoirs of her childhood in Scotland and numerous magazine articles. She cycled across America and married three times, divorcing her first husband, widowed by her second, before meeting her third. Like Valerie, Dinah faded from public v
iew, marrying twice and providing only brief glimpses of her life after 1939 through books about Lady Astor. Eunice became an advocate for disabled children and founded the Special Olympics. She married Sargent Shriver, an Ambassador to France and a vice presidential nominee. Their daughter is Maria Shriver. Marian Holmes began working at Downing Street in 1938, so it is likely that she and Valerie were acquainted. Marian continued on under Winston Churchill, often privy to very private or historic moments during the darkest days of World War II. She remained at No. 10 until her marriage in 1957, and earned the Member of the Order of the British Empire for her work on behalf of prime ministers and Queen Elizabeth.
The debutante Season has a long history stretching back to the 1780s. It faded during World War I before roaring back to life in the 1920s and 1930s. King Edward VIII’s brief reign saw the court presentation replaced with a disappointing garden party before King George VI resumed the evening palace presentations. War muted the 1940 debutante Season before the practice was suspended for the duration of the conflict. Although the Season resumed after the war, it would never be what it had been in the 1930s. Debutante presentations to the monarch officially ended in 1958, but one tradition continued, the Queen Charlotte’s Birthday Ball.
The Queen Charlotte’s Birthday Ball began in 1780 in honor of King George III’s wife, Queen Charlotte. Debutantes curtseyed to the Queen, who stood beside the birthday cake, establishing the association between the Queen and the cake. After 1809, money raised from the ball funded the Queen Charlotte Maternity Hospital, one of the oldest in London and still in existence today as the Queen Charlotte’s and Chelsea Hospital. The ball continued, and after Queen Charlotte’s death, one of her descendants would serve as the ball’s namesake. The ball survived World War II, becoming the unofficial stand-in for court presentations. After World War II, the ball resumed even as the practice of coming out faded away. When court presentations ended in 1958, the Queen Charlotte’s Birthday Ball remained as the official coming-out event for debutantes, lasting until 1978. The ball has recently been reinvented with a more modern spin.
For those curious about the history, I altered the timeline of Valerie’s stay in Downing Street to fit the needs of the story. She actually lived with the Chamberlains from her father’s death in February 1936 until Neville Chamberlain left office in 1940. She was first at No. 11 Downing Street when Neville Chamberlain was Chancellor of the Exchequer, and she moved with her aunt and uncle to No. 10 when Neville became Prime Minister in 1937. The names of the drawing rooms in No. 10 in the story are different from today because those rooms are traditionally named after their wall colors, which were different in 1939. While Neville Chamberlain’s declaration of war speech is accurate, his radio address on Tientsin in the novel is a compilation of remarks he made to the House of Commons during the crisis. Thank you for reading the novel and learning more about the debutantes and their last glittering Season. I hope you enjoyed The Last Debutantes as much as I enjoyed writing it!
Reading Group Guide
A theme running through the novel is to “learn from and carry on.” In what ways does Valerie learn and carry on? Keeping a stiff upper lip is considered a classic trait for the people of Great Britain. How do you think this helped and hindered them during the war?
Valerie and her friends seem to be dancing in the face of upcoming sorrow. Do you think they behaved well, badly, or that they did what young people of any generation would do?
What do you think of the idea of debutantes? Is it something fun, or an antiquated way of sending women out into the world?
Did this novel change your viewpoint on Neville Chamberlain? Was he in denial about Hitler’s rise, or was he trying desperately to avert another war?
Were you surprised at how many of the aristocracy seemed to agree with the rise of fascism, even if they may not have liked the idea of Adolf Hitler?
Valerie grows to believe that lineage and position trump everything else. Is she right in her viewpoint? Do you think this remains the way things are? Why or why not?
During this time, young women like Valerie, Eunice Kennedy, and Dinah, Lady Astor’s niece, were dismissed when they tried to become more involved in politics. Given the roles—albeit some behind the scenes—that their relatives play in politics, why do you think this hypocrisy persisted?
Valerie’s mother gives her up in a quest for freedom. Is there any part of you that feels sympathy for the situation her mother had in her life?
Valerie becomes friendly with one of the secretaries, Marian. Who do you feel has the more fascinating life, and why?
Does Valerie learn and grow in significant ways during her Season? Or is her biggest growth yet to come?
Praise for The Last Debutantes and Georgie Blalock
“Storm clouds hover over high society on the brink of war, tarnishing the glamour of the Season in this wonderfully told story of love, war, and friendship.”
—Bryn Turnbull, author of The Woman Before Wallis
“As the world teeters on the precipice of war, a glittering group of debutantes try to hold on to life as they know it, even as they know everything is about to change. A perfect Downton Abbey-esque story to get swept away in!”
—Stephanie Marie Thornton, USA Today bestselling author of And They Called It Camelot
“A fascinating portrayal of London high society overshadowed by the threat of World War II, Georgie Blalock’s The Last Debutantes follows Valerie de Vere Cole, niece of British prime minister Neville Chamberlain, as she navigates the perilous waters of the London Season, guarding a dreadful secret that will surely spell ruin if it gets out. Beneath society’s sparkle lurks pain and betrayal, and Valerie’s courage and empathy bring nuanced understanding to these privileged but damaged souls. Atmospheric, moving, and compelling, The Last Debutantes is a must-read!”
—Christine Wells, author of Sisters of the Resistance
“An exciting and compelling view inside the glamorous lives of debutantes coming out in the 1930s before World War II put a hold on society soirees. Georgie Blalock brings to life not only the glitz of the aristocracy but the sometimes ugly gossip behind the scenes in this fascinating tale of family, friendship, betrayal, and survival.”
—Eliza Knight, USA Today bestselling author of The Mayfair Bookshop
“Rich with historical detail, The Last Debutantes is an immersive read about the final season of house parties and champagne fountains before the war. Young, headstrong Valerie de Vere Cole must navigate a labyrinth of political and domestic dangers as she struggles to define herself in a society about to change forever. A must for fans of Downton Abbey and The Crown!”
—Kerri Maher, author of The Girl in White Gloves
“The Last Debutantes by Georgie Blalock gives us a glimpse into a social season that will be unlike all of the others that came before it. Valerie de Vere Cole may be the prime minister’s daughter, but she has family secrets to hide—will her fellow debutantes prove themselves to be friend or foe? A story about friendship and finding yourself in a world that is about to change irrevocably, The Last Debutantes will appeal to historical fiction lovers.”
—Brenda Janowitz, author of The Grace Kelly Dress
Also by Georgie Blalock
The Other Windsor Girl
Copyright
This book is a work of fiction. References to real people, events, establishments, organizations, or locales are intended only to provide a sense of authenticity, and are used fictitiously. All other characters, and all incidents and dialogue, are drawn from the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real.
P.S.™ is a trademark of HarperCollins Publishers.
THE LAST DEBUTANTES. Copyright © 2021 by Georgie Reinstein. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmi
tted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
Cover design by Mumtaz Mustafa
Cover photographs © Nikaa/Trevillion Images (woman); © Shutterstock
Title page art © Tartila / Shutterstock, Inc.
FIRST EDITION
Digital Edition AUGUST 2021 ISBN: 978-0-06-300930-1
Version 06092021
Print ISBN: 978-0-06-300929-5
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