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The Grit in the Pearl
- The Scandalous Life of Margaret, Duchess of Argyll
- Narrated by: Lucy Rayner
- Length: 9 hrs and 26 mins
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Publisher's summary
Margaret, Duchess of Argyll (1912-1993) was an international celebrity in her youth, adored and observed by millions. But in 1963, the year of the Profumo Affair, the 11th Duke of Argyll shocked the country when he alleged that his adulterous wife had slept with over 80 men behind his back. He produced, as his evidence, a set of sexually explicit Polaroid photographs and explosive love letters. The duke won a divorce, but this had a dramatic effect on Margaret's life. On the verge of financial destitution, she fell from grace and was abandoned by most of her friends prior to her death in a nursing home in Pimlico in 1993.
Lyndsy Spence tells a tragic story of the life and downfall of this fascinatingly complex woman, and shows how she fell victim to a cruel husband, harsh social mores, and an unforgiving class. It uses new sources, including taped conversations, an unexpurgated transcript of her divorce trial, interviews, and letters. The Grit in the Pearl is a meticulously researched and powerful biography, which acts as a potent lens on various themes in the last century: fame, privacy, the media, sex, power, and relationships between classes.
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When Queen Mary died in 1953, James Pope-Hennessy was commissioned to write an official biography of her - unusual for a queen consort. Queen Mary's life, contrary to popular belief, was essentially dramatic, and she played a far more important and influential role in the affairs of the British monarchy than her public image might have otherwise suggested. Using material from the Royal Archives, private papers, and Queen Mary's personal diaries and letters, Pope-Hennessy's biography was a remarkable portrait of a remarkable woman and received rave reviews across the press.
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Excellent! UPDATED review after 2nd listen.
- By Geri A on 07-31-21
By: James Pope-Hennessy, and others
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Vanderbilt
- The Rise and Fall of an American Dynasty
- By: Anderson Cooper, Katherine Howe
- Narrated by: Anderson Cooper
- Length: 8 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
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New York Times best-selling author and journalist Anderson Cooper teams with New York Times best-selling historian and novelist Katherine Howe to chronicle the rise and fall of a legendary American dynasty - his mother’s family, the Vanderbilts.
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Interesting Approach to a Well Known History
- By HistoryNerd on 09-24-21
By: Anderson Cooper, and others
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George VI and Elizabeth
- The Marriage That Saved the Monarchy
- By: Sally Bedell Smith
- Narrated by: Rosalyn Landor
- Length: 22 hrs and 7 mins
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A revelatory account of how the loving marriage of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth saved the monarchy during World War II, and how they raised their daughter to become Queen Elizabeth II, based on exclusive access to the Royal Archives—from the bestselling author of Elizabeth the Queen and Prince Charles.
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Great telling of their lives
- By Nancy on 04-15-23
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The Queen Mother
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Overall
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For the first time, Lady Colin Campbell reveals the fascinating and moving life of The Queen Mother. With unparalleled sources, including members of the Royal Family, aristocrats, and friends and relatives of Elizabeth herself, this mesmerizing account takes us inside the real and sometimes astonishing world of the royal family.
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A Real Person
- By The Barbster on 01-05-19
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George and Marina
- Duke and Duchess of Kent
- By: Christopher Warwick
- Narrated by: Gildart Jackson
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
For eight brief years, before he was tragically killed in a mysterious air crash during the Second World War, Prince George, Duke of Kent, son of King George V and Queen Mary, and his beautiful wife, Princess Marina of Greece and Denmark, were the British monarchy's - indeed, high society's - most glamorous royal couple; and as golden royal icons, they are still remembered.
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Engaging
- By Jean on 06-02-17
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The Lost Queen
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- By: Anne M. Stott
- Narrated by: Anne Flosnik
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Story
As the only child of the Prince Regent and Caroline of Brunswick, Princess Charlotte of Wales (1796-1817) was the heiress presumptive to the throne. Her parents' marriage had already broken up by the time she was born. She had a difficult childhood and a turbulent adolescence, but she was popular with the public, who looked to her to restore the good name of the monarchy.
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excellent
- By meganajjcec on 10-12-20
By: Anne M. Stott
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Nemesis
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- By: Peter Evans
- Narrated by: Michael Butler Murray
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Overall
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Story
Through extensive interviews with the closest friends, lovers, and relatives of Onassis and the Kennedys, longtime journalist Evans has uncovered the shocking culmination of the Kennedy-Onassis-Kennedy love triangle: Aristotle Onassis was at the heart of the plot to kill Bobby Kennedy. Meticulously tracing Onassis's connections in the world of terrorism, Nemesis presents compelling evidence that he financed the assassination - including a startling confession that has gone unreported for nearly three decades.
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Surprising revelations!
- By Paul MacPherson on 05-09-24
By: Peter Evans
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The Diana Chronicles
- By: Tina Brown
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
In The Diana Chronicles, you will meet a formidable female cast and understand as never before the society that shaped them: among them, Diana's sexually charged mother, her bad-girl sister-in-law, Fergie, and, most formidable of them all, her mother-in-law, the Queen. Add Camilla Parker-Bowles, the ultimate "other woman" into this combustible mix, and it's no wonder that Diana broke out of her royal cage into celebrity culture, where she found her own power and used it to devastating effect.
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One of the best Diana's
- By J F Whitmore on 08-02-12
By: Tina Brown
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Lady Catherine, the Earl, and the Real Downton Abbey
- By: The Countess of Carnarvon
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Overall
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Lady Catherine, the Earl, and the Real Downton Abbey tells the story behind Highclere Castle, the setting for Julian Fellowes’s Emmy Award-winning PBS show Downton Abbey, and the life of one of its most famous inhabitants, Catherine Wendell.
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Not what was advertised
- By Jessica C Anderson on 09-10-19
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Heiresses
- The Lives of the Million Dollar Babies
- By: Laura Thompson
- Narrated by: Laura Thompson
- Length: 13 hrs and 3 mins
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
Heiresses: Surely they are among the luckiest women on earth. Are they not to be envied, with their private jets and Chanel wardrobes and endless funds? Yet all too often those gilded lives have been beset with trauma and despair. Before the 20th century a wife’s inheritance was the property of her husband, making her vulnerable to kidnap, forced marriages, even confinement in an asylum. And in modern times, heiresses fell victim to fortune-hunters who squandered their millions.
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tough listen and tough to keep track
- By Amazon Customer on 03-29-23
By: Laura Thompson
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When Queen Mary died in 1953, James Pope-Hennessy was commissioned to write an official biography of her - unusual for a queen consort. Queen Mary's life, contrary to popular belief, was essentially dramatic, and she played a far more important and influential role in the affairs of the British monarchy than her public image might have otherwise suggested. Using material from the Royal Archives, private papers, and Queen Mary's personal diaries and letters, Pope-Hennessy's biography was a remarkable portrait of a remarkable woman and received rave reviews across the press.
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Excellent! UPDATED review after 2nd listen.
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What listeners say about The Grit in the Pearl
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Eric Conley
- 02-12-20
Delicious from start to finish!
I absolutely LOVED this book! Honestly, one of my favorite audible books ever. I adored Margaret with all her flaws and eccentricities. I went along for the ride of this story right from the start and was not bored for a moment . The narrater, Lucy Rayner is stellar. I just enjoy listening to her speak! I highly recommend this book, in fact I did tonight, told my friend she has to buy this book....
Thank you Lyndsy Spense and Lucy Rayner!
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14 people found this helpful
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- Clive Hazell
- 04-26-21
Frothy fun
If you ever wanted to know how the rich and aristocratic are different, read this. Depravity, debauchery and debutantes. This book has it all, and you will never look at British aristocrats in the same way.
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- OaklandBookworm
- 01-13-24
Interesting historical; narration a bit problematic
It will come across amazing that women in the British aristocracy could be so maligned and shunned once upon a time just by doing what their male counterparts took for granted they could do with impunity. Interesting snapshot of society behaviors, mores and artifices that thankfully are a thing of the past. Kind of a Downton Abbey noir. Narrators can really add to a good yarn (as The Grit in the Pearl is), but I hate to say the narrator’s read did not make the most of the material. With nuanced intonation and cadence, this audiobook would have been 4-5 stars. However, the narrator was practically monotone although having the proper upper class “cut glass” enunciation, and almost every sentence ended in something of a upward lilt - California Valley Girl meets Sloan Ranger - with the result sounding like a series of questions being asked by someone with lockjaw. The speech was slow and I upped the speed to 1.3 - that gave the narration a little umph and seemed to help gloss over the terribly self conscious diction. All in all an interesting life story - I had long heard about the infamous photo - to our modern eyes, it’s much ado about mind your own business. But this book gives it context and provides an astounding account of a woman ahead of her time whose only crime was to own her sexuality.
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- Linda
- 11-16-21
Why do I care??!
This is hours of detailing the life of an empty, self absorbed, ridiculous, stupid , waste of ectoplasm.
I cannot see why she rates a biography.
Ho hum.
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- Ashley
- 12-13-23
A solid 3
Well written; I enjoy this author and the narrator as well. The main character herself was what I didn’t enjoy. I am fascinated by all genders, religions, colors, creeds and enjoy hearing the life stories of those who lived/live among us. Aside from people like her, that is. Lacking substance all around.
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- Amazon Devotee
- 02-18-23
Well read Emphasis and tone
Felt as if I could see the events the author was revealing as they occurred
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- Jean-Marie
- 12-29-23
It was just okay…
The woman was more wild than the presentation of her story. It was okay for background noise but half-way through, the narrator continues with her droll voice.
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- Brad in PDX
- 05-06-20
Wonderful Bio
This was a great biography. I knew very little about her life but now I am intrigued.
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- MiMi
- 03-07-23
A Very British Affair
I watched the Netflix show by that title and, fascinated by it, found this free book on audible! It did not disappoint. Riveting. Juicy. Fills in all details missing from tv program. Definitely worth a listen, even though narrator is condescending and annoying.
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- JPALJ
- 11-20-21
The Original Lady Gangster
To only have lived a day in the life of this icon. Fortunately, this book lets you do exactly that and there is neither a dull moments nor a lull in the activity. Engagingly written and read in a lively manner (if you increase to 1.45 narration speed).
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2 people found this helpful