Member Review
Review by
Audrey A, Reviewer
The Woman Before Wallis is the fictionalized story of Thelma Morgan who had an affair with Edward, Prince of Wales before he abdicated his throne for Wallis Simpson.
The daughters of an American diplomat, Thelma and Gloria Morgan were stars of New York social scene in the early 1920s and both married into wealth and privilege. Gloria married Reggie Vanderbilt and Thelma to a viscount who she later leaves for Edward, the dashing Prince of Wales. The girl’s perfect lives are dashed by Gloria’s custody trial. Gloria is sued by members of her late husband's family on charges of negligence, unfit parenting, and homosexuality, and Gloria needs her twin's support more than ever. But as her sister gains international notoriety, Thelma fears that her own dreamlife will end.
I had a hard time getting into this book. While the book is lynch pinned around the Vanderbilt trail, the story is told in rotating time periods. It is only about halfway through the book that the scandal comes to light for the readers in a way that draws them in. It also takes this long to get through Thelma’s previous two husbands and get to her relationship with Prince Edward. These two stories are what drew my attention, and I feel the author spent too much time on the past events that could have efficiently been told in a more succinct manner.
The other issue with the novel is the historical parts are left to the Author’s Note. The outcome of the trail and Thelma’s relationship with Edward isn’t concluded within the story and that’s a loss especially with it being a historical fiction novel. I would have expected the novel to have the history and give the closure to the stories Bryn Turnbull set up.
I’ve been hard on this book, but I did enjoy a portion of it immensely. I enjoyed reading about Thelma and Edward and how she worked with him and kept him on an even keel. I enjoyed the bond between the two sister and Thelma’s great sacrifice for Gloria.
But over the entire good portion is trapped between boring prose and a lack of a true conclusion.
The daughters of an American diplomat, Thelma and Gloria Morgan were stars of New York social scene in the early 1920s and both married into wealth and privilege. Gloria married Reggie Vanderbilt and Thelma to a viscount who she later leaves for Edward, the dashing Prince of Wales. The girl’s perfect lives are dashed by Gloria’s custody trial. Gloria is sued by members of her late husband's family on charges of negligence, unfit parenting, and homosexuality, and Gloria needs her twin's support more than ever. But as her sister gains international notoriety, Thelma fears that her own dreamlife will end.
I had a hard time getting into this book. While the book is lynch pinned around the Vanderbilt trail, the story is told in rotating time periods. It is only about halfway through the book that the scandal comes to light for the readers in a way that draws them in. It also takes this long to get through Thelma’s previous two husbands and get to her relationship with Prince Edward. These two stories are what drew my attention, and I feel the author spent too much time on the past events that could have efficiently been told in a more succinct manner.
The other issue with the novel is the historical parts are left to the Author’s Note. The outcome of the trail and Thelma’s relationship with Edward isn’t concluded within the story and that’s a loss especially with it being a historical fiction novel. I would have expected the novel to have the history and give the closure to the stories Bryn Turnbull set up.
I’ve been hard on this book, but I did enjoy a portion of it immensely. I enjoyed reading about Thelma and Edward and how she worked with him and kept him on an even keel. I enjoyed the bond between the two sister and Thelma’s great sacrifice for Gloria.
But over the entire good portion is trapped between boring prose and a lack of a true conclusion.
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