Book Review: ‘The Duchess Countess: The Woman Who Scandalized Eighteenth Century London’ By Catherine Ostler

I had never heard of the woman known as The Duchess Countess, Elizabeth Chudleigh, known as the woman who scandalized London in her day. She lived from 1721-1788 and at one point was the Princess Of Wales, in 1743. Her family died young and left her peniless and the job paid her a yearly salary, only thing is she could never marry. But Elizabeth defied that and married on several occasions, including to the Duke Of Kingston in 1769 and four years later she got all his money, making her wealthy. But his family contested and it lead to a sensational trial, all Elizabeth had to do was go away quiet. But Elizabeth refused and it created quite the controversy for that time period. She ended up fleeing with her fortune and lived a grand life abroad from England. This is a great debut novel looking at the life of a woman who lived her life on her terms, everything and everyone be damned. It’s also a fascinating look at the time period. Author Catherine Ostler has really done her homework on the book. More books like this and she will be someone to watch out for.

You can pick up The Duchess Countess in stores on Tuesday, February 22nd from Atria.