Review: The Woman Before Wallis by: Bryn Turnbull

Title: The Woman Before Wallis
Author: Bryn Turnbull
Publisher: Mira
Format: e-book (430 p.)
Source: NetGalley & Book Tour

Description:

For fans of The Paris Wife and The Crown, this stunning novel tells the true story of the American divorcée who captured Prince Edward’s heart before he abdicated his throne for Wallis Simpson.

In the summer of 1926, when Thelma Morgan marries Viscount Duke Furness after a whirlwind romance, she’s immersed in a gilded world of extraordinary wealth and privilege. For Thelma, the daughter of an American diplomat, her new life as a member of the British aristocracy is like a fairy tale—even more so when her husband introduces her to Edward, Prince of Wales.

In a twist of fate, her marriage to Duke leads her to fall headlong into a love affair with Edward. But happiness is fleeting, and their love is threatened when Thelma’s sister, Gloria Morgan Vanderbilt, becomes embroiled in a scandal with far-reaching implications. As Thelma sails to New York to support Gloria, she leaves Edward in the hands of her trusted friend Wallis, never imagining the consequences that will follow.

Bryn Turnbull takes readers from the raucous glamour of the Paris Ritz and the French Riviera to the quiet, private corners of St. James’s Palace in this sweeping story of love, loyalty and betrayal. 

My Thoughts: 

This book all began with a single request for a friend to watch the man she loves while she is gone.  What transpired it's what we know to become a huge story.  We meet Thelma Morgan and her twin sister Gloria Morgan the ups and downs these sisters suffer through is huge.  Gloria lands the dashing Reginald Vanderbilt and Thelma falls for Viscount Duke Furness.  

This book so rich in history and what women went through back then and how men behaved.  I found myself following along with Thelma as her story is shared and the ups and downs she went through with her sister to the death of her husband and the court case that shook the country.  

I loved it and think anyone wanting to learn more about Edward the King who abdicated his throne for love to Gloria's ups and downs in her life.  Definitely worth learning more about.  Can't wait to see what this writer comes up with next!