by Karen Harper
Besides visiting Blenheim to get a glimpse of Consuelo’s “gilded cage,” Marble House in Newport, Rhode Island, is open to the public as are other “cottages” there with Vanderbilt ties.
Scholars have long said that Consuelo is the subject of Edith Wharton’s The Buccaneers, her last novel.
I also found Gladys Deacon to be a fascinating, if sad, character. She died in 1977 at age ninety-six, having spent a lot of time in a psychiatric geriatric hospital. Even in her youth, she had been in a mental facility in France, and yet managed to become Duchess of Marlborough.
George Curzon, a minor and rather likable character in this novel, also appears extensively in my previous book, The It Girls. However, another side of him entirely emerges in that novel. Also, I could not resist having George, Duke of Kent, remark on his beloved nanny, Charlotte Bill, who was the heroine of my novel The Royal Nanny. I would have given Charlotte a walk-on part in this book when Consuelo and the duke visit Sandringham, but that visit was the year before she arrived there. I do try to keep straight the dates of what happened when.
Winston Churchill also had a nanny who was truly his emotional mother. And I did not call Consuelo’s American governess Miss Harper just to please myself; that was the loyal woman’s real name. I rather like that bit of serendipity.
What to say about the formidable and amazing Alva Smith Vanderbilt Belmont? She deserves her own story, but I will leave her here as she is seen through Consuelo’s youthful and then mature eyes. How admirable that Conseulo could find it in her heart to forgive, admire, and love the woman who had so abused her in her youth. Despite Alva’s give-’em-hell reputation, she did a great deal to fight for the rights of all American women.
Many pictures of the famous Consuelo are available online. To see them, search for images for Consuelo and 9th Duke of Marlborough. A bio and excellent pictures of romantic and swashbuckling Jacques can be found by searching for his name.
I am very grateful for the encouragement and support for this novel from Annelise Robey, my agent, and Lucia Macro, my editor. And, of course, to Don for being my companion to all the places we’ve been in England and France.
Karen Harper
Reading Group Guide
How does Consuelo’s American democratic background vs. the duke’s aristocratic one merge or clash in the story? Should she have handled things differently? Why did the duke hate America?
Consuelo’s handling of her mother over the years says a lot about both women. Should Consuelo just have cut her mother off after she was forced to marry the duke? Is Alva strictly a villain? Does she redeem her earlier conduct? Why do you think she acted so dictatorially?
Do you believe in love at first sight? We know Jacques claimed to, but does Consuelo show signs of this, too?
I could not have possibly made up a character like Gladys Deacon. Is she a sympathetic character or just the opposite? Can you understand her being unbalanced? Also, did you suspect she was after the duke? At what point? Before Consuelo realized it? Why didn’t she catch on right away?
Is it wrong for parents to favor one child over another, or is it understandable or permissible? Why did Consuelo favor Ivor? Did she try to make up for those feelings by bolstering Bert? Have you seen or experienced parents who do this? Also, in what ways did Winston favor Ivor?
What does Mrs. Prattley mean to Consuelo? Something beyond mere charity? Why does Consuelo continue to think of the old lady over the years?
How much do early relationships affect us in adulthood? How did her governess, Miss Harper, have an impact on Consuelo? What about the ill child she took presents to in her pony cart at Idle Hour?
So many of us tend to see war that is distant from us in time or place in abstract generalities. Modern-day media’s close-up-and-personal coverage makes the human impact of war more real. How does Consuelo’s contact with refugees make the impact of war hit home for her?
I knew quite a lot about Sarah Jennings, the first Duchess of Marlborough, because before I visited Blenheim, I had watched the excellent BBC series “The First Churchills.” Sarah had quite a temper, almost as explosive as Alva’s. Is her “ghost” hostile or friendly to Consuelo and why? Are you aware of any other cases of historic ghosts tied to their homes or to their great achievements?
Jacques Balsan’s life greatly paralleled the history of early flight from hot-air balloons to war planes with bombs. Since Americans tend to focus on the Wright brothers, I was not aware that France was also key in the race toward modern flight. Did any other historical details surprise you in this novel? For example, I was amazed how many people of this era were divorced.
It seems that both Alva and Consuelo changed houses frequently. In what way were their surroundings an extension of themselves? Do you find this is also true about yourself in your choice of home and décor?
Praise for the Work of Karen Harper
The It Girls
“The It Girls is a glorious romp through the lives and loves of the scintillating Sutherland sisters! . . . Readers who enjoy historical fiction are in for a treat!”
—Hazel Gaynor, New York Times bestselling author of The Cottingley Secret and The Girl Who Came Home
“In today’s age of Kardashian celebrity buzz on every magazine cover and social-media platform, Harper takes a look backwards at the earliest it girls. Film-history buffs will adore exploring the early days of Hollywood with cameos from famous stars; fans of Kathleen Tessaro and Penny Vincenzi will enjoy the layers of intrigue and the sweeping plot. Harper’s ability to shift between raw ambition and tender compromise makes this family-focused novel a genuine delight.”
—Booklist
The Royal Nanny
“The Royal Nanny is a gem, revealing that those forgotten in history are often the true treasures.”
—Erika Robuck, nationally bestselling author of Hemingway’s Girl
“A compulsive, page-turning read that fearlessly reveals both the gilt and the tarnish of the British Royal Crown.”
—Sandra Byrd, author of Mist of Midnight
“Fans of Downton Abbey will devour this vivid tale of one nanny’s unwavering love and sacrifices endured for the sake of the royal children in her care. Full of emotion and heart, Lala redefines the meaning of motherhood while Harper gives us a behind-the-scenes look into the lives of the royals.”
—Renée Rosen, author of White Collar Girl
“This is a beautifully told novel of a woman who was surrounded by all the glitz and glamour of royalty but remained unaffected. . . . Readers will greatly admire the protagonist while learning about the quirks of the royal family and the events that shook the world in the early 20th century.”
—Historical Novel Society
“There is nothing more fascinating than a behind-the-scenes glimpse into the lives of the rich and famous or, in this case, the royal, rich, and famous. Karen Harper does a masterful job of combining historical fact and fiction to create a rich and thoughtful view into the lives of Britain’s King George V, Queen Mary, and their children.”
—Melanie Stanley, Ohioana Quarterly
Also by Karen Harper
HISTORICAL NOVELS
The It Girls
The Royal Nanny
The Queen’s Governess
The Irish Princess
Mistress Shakespeare
The First Princess of Wales
The Last Boleyn
THE QUEEN ELIZABETH I MYSTERY SERIES
The Hooded Hawke
The Fatal Fashione
The Fyre Mirror
The Queene’s Christmas
The Thorne Maze
The Queene’s Cure
The Twylight Tower
The Tidal Poole
The Poyson Garden
SUSPENSE
Chasing Shadows
Drowning Tides
Falling Darkness
Broken Bonds
Shattered Secrets
Upon a Winter’s Night
> Dark Crossings
Finding Mercy
Return to Grace
Fall from Pride
Down River
Deep Down
The Hiding Place
Below the Surface
Inferno
Hurricane
Dark Angel
Dark Harvest
Dark Road Home
The Falls
The Stone Forest
Shaker Run
Down to the Bone
The Baby Farm
Empty Cradle
Black Orchid
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 LLC.
AMERICAN DUCHESS. Copyright © 2019 by Karen Harper. 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, transmitted, 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 © Richard Jenkins Photography; © suraark/Getty Images (Castle); © titoOnz/iStock/Getty Images
Frontispiece © Bettmann/Getty Images
FIRST EDITION
Digital Edition FEBRUARY 2019 ISBN: 978-0-06-274834-8
Version 12292018
Print ISBN: 978-0-06-274833-1
About the Publisher
Australia
HarperCollins Publishers Australia Pty. Ltd.
Level 13, 201 Elizabeth Street
Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia
www.harpercollins.com.au
Canada
HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Bay Adelaide Centre, East Tower
22 Adelaide Street West, 41st Floor
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
M5H 4E3
www.harpercollins.ca
India
HarperCollins India
A 75, Sector 57
Noida
Uttar Pradesh 201 301
www.harpercollins.co.in
New Zealand
HarperCollins Publishers New Zealand
Unit D1, 63 Apollo Drive
Rosedale 0632
Auckland, New Zealand
www.harpercollins.co.nz
United Kingdom
HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.
1 London Bridge Street
London SE1 9GF, UK
www.harpercollins.co.uk
United States
HarperCollins Publishers Inc.
195 Broadway
New York, NY 10007
www.harpercollins.com