Loved this historical fiction about the complicated Mitford sisters who had dramatic roles among the political elites - including Hitler - during WWII!

Marie Benedict writes beautiful books! Def a sweeping story about the Mitford sisters and would be a wonderful beach read. I love everything about this book. If you like period stories about women relationships then you'd enjoy this one.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC. This is my first Marie Benedict novel and I enjoyed it. I never knew about the Mitford sisters. What pieces of work and wow. Why would these two girls be so fascinated with fascist is beyond me - then again why are some folks fascinated with TFG here in the US is beyond me as well. So much for politics. Yes, I will purchase this for our library. It’s in the next order.

I requested this book as reading for a Book Club discussion we hosted on BookBrowse (https://www.bookbrowse.com/booktalk

The discussion was a great success with many fans of the book, so in addition we ran a featured review, link below

I really love this story. It was very well written. It was probably of my favorite historical fictions. I will definitely be recommending this book

The Mitford Affair tells the story of author Nancy Mitford and her sisters Diana and Unity. We learn about their lives during the crucial period between the World Wars as Hitler is coming to power.

Reading about Unity's devotion to Hitler as well as Diana's actions and the attitudes of so many at that time was difficult, knowing what we know today, but I thought the author did a magnificent job of portraying that time. Seeing how politics divided the Mitford family only further serves to illustrate how so many must have felt at that time.

I always appreciate how Marie Benedict is able to bring historical figures to vivid life and provide us a glimpse into what their lives were like.

I received this book courtesy of the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Disappointing. I have enjoyed many of Marie Benedict’s books.I did not fine this one engaging. The chapters were very choppy. None of the characters were very likable. Family relationships seemed very predictable. I was expecting a better story.

The Milford Affair is a gorgeously written historical novel. It follows the Mitford sisters, namely Nancy, Unity, and Diana, who were beautiful aristocrats who had a surprising connection with Hitler during the years leading up to World War II. Diana's story begins with an affair with Mosely, the head of the British Union of Fascists, leading her to divorce her husband in order to fully devote herself to Mosely and his cause. Unity has always been interested in Nazism, and when she gets a chance to connect with Hitler in person, she drops everything and leaps to his side. Nancy seems to be the more levelheaded sister. She is a novelist. Throughout the story, she discovers the depths of her sisters' devotion to fascism and has to decide whether loyalty to family can overcome what she believes to be right for her country.
I loved the family relationships that were described in this novel. It's quite hard to feel for someone (Unity) who is dedicated to something that we now know was so intrinsically evil, but this is so well written and characterized that it was easy to read anyway. I had not heard of the Mitford sisters, but am now eager to search out more info about their lives.

I enjoyed this book so much! It’s a complicated tale of a group of sisters so enmeshed in the European conflict during the Second World War that at times I had to look up how accurate the information was. It felt too unbelievable, but it was true! Amazing what a significant role these sisters played and what a wild ride to read about. I highly recommend!

I had such high expectations for this book - a great author, a beautiful cover, a fascinating piece of history - and found it to fall short. I prefer plot-driven stories and this is far from that, instead being character-driven. Which would be fine if any of the characters were particularly likable. I found this to make the book incredibly slow and repetitive read. I also just did not enjoy the writing style and felt there was a lot more “telling, not showing”. That being said, the focus characters and time period in history was fascinating and I am glad to have learned about the Mitfords and their role in WWII. The best reading and learning should make you a little uncomfortable when seeing a new point of view and this did achieve that. It was also very timely in it portrayal of politics dividing families and communities, especially showing how each point of view truly can’t see the perspective of the other. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

I was excited to read this book as i had really enjoyed a different book about the MItford sisters. It was very interesting, lots of different characters to get your head around and definitely added some new insight into he lives of the sisters - who you grow both fond of and hate at the same time.

This was a fascinating look at the Mitford sisters in the years leading up to WWII. It was interesting to see into the minds of those who espoused Nazism in the beginning and to understand their loved ones who could sense the disasters that lay ahead. Benedict’s novels are always well researched and well written and focus on unheralded women in history.

I really enjoyed this book. The author brought the Mitford family to life. The plot was engaging and I didn't want the story to end.

This was a DNF for me, and my fault for jumping the gun on the request. I had heard rave reviews from fellow readers on her historical fiction novels and requested this at the same time I checked out "Her Hidden Genius" from the library. I got about halfway through HHG before giving up, but still gave this one a go. Unfortunately, this book further confirmed this author's style is just not for me. She clearly is a prolific researcher and goes all in on the women she features in her novels, credit where credit is due for that.

Whew! So many names! It was very easy to get bogged down and confused, especially when nicknames were added to the mix.

I enjoyed the plot of this one, but I thought there were improvements that needed to be made.

This book is the story of the real Mitford family of England and three sisters in particular, Nancy, Diana, and Unity. The story opens as Hitler is beginning his rise to power. Unity has always had an infatuation with the man, for reasons that are never really explained, and she stalks him until she becomes his confidant. Diana has fallen in love with a fascist named Mosley Oswald, or M, as he is named in the book, and is willing to bend over backward to gain his love, even becoming friends with Hitler, This book tells how the two sisters, Diana and Unity, get caught up in the fascist cause to their own detriment, and how Nancy, a writer, tries to stop them while also dealing with her own problems.
At first, I couldn't figure out why this story needed to be told and why I was reading it. I didn't want to read anything that romanticized Hitler or fascism in any way, but as I kept reading, I began to see that this isn't about a particular man, it is about how one can become easily swayed by charismatic leaders who spout racist, unsympathetic, and cruel ideology with a kind of charm that can turn normally level-headed people into lemmings that follow without question. This is, sadly, a commonplace occurrence today on both a macro and micro level.
This was a risk for Marie Benedict, and I wonder if she plans to continue with this family because the ending is a bit abrupt and leaves lots of questions. I found the story compelling even if I didn't like what was happening most of the time. I give this book 3.5 out of 5 stars.
I want to thank NetGalley and Sourcebooks for the ARC.

4.0. I love historical fiction and this did not disappoint. I was unaware of the Mitford family and their culpability, though minuscule, in events precipitating World War II. Some of the family members were devout and rabid fascists but not all, some even having personal relationships with Hitler. I actually liked this book better than the others in that it was narrated by and brought into focus three of the sisters different perspectives. Thank you to Netgalley for providing me an advance copy for a candid and unbiased review.

What a wonderful historical fiction book! I was hooked by the first page of this one. This is my first book by this author, but it won't be my last. I thought the unique personalities of the characters were great. I can't wait to check out other books by Marie Benedict.

Powerful point about women uniting for a common goal. A quick read that was awesome. I enjoy the reading format and how the characters came to life. Thank you for the ARC.

Marie Benedict’s The Mitford Affair is a well-written work of historical fiction. It stars the Mitford sisters who were belles of British society between the two World Wars— focusing primarily on Nancy, Diana, and Unity.

Diana and Unity become enthralled with fascism and become close with Hitler, while Nancy struggles with her loyalties to her country and to her sisters. The book alternates chapters narrated by these three sisters. The author acknowledges how hard it was to write from the appalling perspectives of Diana and Unity; however, she has done a great job of getting inside their heads and describing what must have been their thoughts and motives.

I had never heard of the Mitford sisters before reading this book. I am glad that I now have. I continue to be a big fan of Marie Benedict and look forward to working my way through more of her novels— both new and backlist.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for my review.