A love so strong, a king renounced his kingdom—all for that woman. Or was she just an escape route for a king who never wanted to rule? Bestselling author Wendy Holden takes an intimate look at one of the most notorious scandals of the 20th century.   1928. A middle-aged foreigner comes to London with average looks, no money and no connections. Wallis’s first months in the city are lonely, dull and depressing. With no friends of her own she follows the glamorous set in magazines and goes to watch society weddings. Her stuffy husband Ernest’s idea of fun, meanwhile, is touring historic monuments.   When an unexpected encounter leads to a house party with the Prince of Wales, Wallis’s star begins to rise. Her secret weapon is her American pep and honesty. For the prince she is a breath of fresh air. As her friendship with David—as his friends call him—grows, their relationship deepens into love....

Sunday Times bestselling author Wendy Holden brings to life the unknown childhood years of one of the world's most iconic figures, Queen Elizabeth II, and reveals the little-known governess who made Britain's queen into the monarch we know today. In 1933, twenty-two-year-old Marion Crawford accepts the role of a lifetime, tutoring their Royal Highnesses Elizabeth and Margaret Rose. Her one stipulation to their parents the Duke and Duchess of York is that she bring some doses of normalcy into the sheltered and privileged lives of the two young princesses. At Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle, and Balmoral, Marion defies oppressive court protocol to take the girls on tube trains, swimming at public baths, and on joyful Christmas shopping trips at Woolworth's. From her ringside seat at the heart of the British monarchy she witnesses the upheaval of the Abdication and the glamour and drama of the 1937 Coronation. During the war, as Hitler's...

The whole world saw Princess Diana step from a gilded carriage for her wedding at St. Paul’s Cathedral. But before that fairy-tale moment came a dark and difficult journey.… Bestselling author Wendy Holden explores the astonishing backstory and young adulthood of the ultimate royal celebrity. Britain, 1961: A beautiful blonde baby is born to Viscount Althorp, heir to the Spencer earldom. But Diana grows up amid the fallout of her parents’ messy divorce. She struggles at school. Her refuge throughout is romantic novels. She dreams of falling in love and being rescued by a handsome prince.In royal circles, there is concern about the Prince of Wales. Charles is nearing thirty and the right girl needs to be found, fast. She must be young, aristocratic and completely free of past liaisons. Pure and innocent.Eighteen-year-old Diana Spencer is just about the only candidate. Her yearning to be loved...

Neil and Sarah are the ultimate happy couple. Until, that is, Neil’s new job leaves Sarah alone to juggle the baby, domestic drudgery, and her own career. When Neil fails to come home one night, Sarah rushes home to her mother, who has always wished that Sarah had married her childhood sweetheart, the fabulously rich lawyer Colin, who has coincidentally reappeared in her life. The stage is set for divorce, but Neil has other ideas. Distraught at the prospect of losing Sarah and recognizing what an idiot he has been, he enrolls in an experimental “School for Husbands,” a clinic aimed at helping hopeless spouses mend their ways. But will its intensive tuition in everything from emotional self-expression to putting the toilet seat down be enough to get Neil back together with his wife? Not if Colin and Sarah’s mother have anything to do with it.

"When she's good, she's very, very good, and Beautiful People finds Holden on steroids. Unmissable."-Daily MirrorA witty, utterly addictive novel from bestselling author Wendy Holden, Beautiful People is a tale wicked in its observations yet buoyant at its heart: an irresistible confection you'll want to devour immediately.Darcy-a struggling English rose actress when The Call comes from L.A. An Oscar-tastic director. A movie to make her famous. The hunkiest costar in Hollywood. So why doesn't she want to go?Belle-a size-zero film star but she's in big, fat trouble. Hotter than the earth's core a year ago, she's now Tinseltown toast after her last film bombed. Can she get back to the big time?Emma-a down-to-earth, down-on-her-luck nanny trying to weather London's cutthroat childcare scene and celebrity mom whirlwinds. What will it take for her to get back in control of her own life?Jet to London, Hollywood, and Italy; toss in a passionate star chef, a kindhearted paparazzo, and a reluctant male supermodel; and find Wendy Holden at her best-a smash international hit.From BooklistHolden’s novel is the literary equivalent of a big-budget romantic comedy with an all-star Hollywood cast in which everyone’s stories overlap. And it is equally as carefree and enjoyable. Holden’s characters, ranging from a young and troubled starlet to a well-respected English actress, male supermodel, struggling nanny, and celebrity chef, to name but a few, have two things in common: they are all beautiful, and Holden portrays each one with humor and honesty.Their separate stories are eventually entwined in the second half of the novel, once everyone ends up in a small town in Italy, a coincidence that is surprisingly fun and funny. With clever dialogue and a great spectrum of personalities, Holden’s big book of celebrity obsession and the price of beauty is fast-paced, realistic, and hugely entertaining. --Hilary Hatton ReviewWith clever dialogue and a great spectrum of personalities, Holden's big book of celebrity obsession and the price of beauty is fast-paced, realistic, and hugely entertaining.Holden's satirical humor and adept writing shine through. Glitzy fun with appeal for readers of Emma McLaughlin, Plum Sykes, or Lauren Weisberger."There are ringside moments that nail the wispy nature of celebrity and the futility of chasing it."You can tell that this is a Wendy Holden book - the characters are well drawn out and are fun to read - and the book is still loaded with great "chick lit" moments.Pure frothy fun! If you enjoy Sophie Kinsella or Helen Fielding, you will love this author.You'll be sitting there rooting for the underdogs and racing to the end.A fun sparkling jet set read!My goodness, does that Wendy Holden make me laugh or what! I gobbled up Beautiful People.Holden's wit is rapier sharp and her keen sense of observation of the comedic is spot on.Simply Divine... Beautiful People is the next Lipstick Jungle!A funny, entertaining novel that will keep you turning the pages... you are in for a great escape.Light, frothy, and frenetic, this book was a fun read.A fun, witty, story about the trials and tribulations of the acting industry.Fascinating... this novel has a story to tell for every reader.It was fun to root for the good guys and wish terrible things on the bad and to see how the author tied all their stories together.It is satisfying to finally read a book where the good people are rewarded and the ugly people are given their just deserts.Holden's novels are great fun, and this one is no exception.The perfect scandalous guilty pleasure.An entertaining look at how life can chew us up and spit us out and yet, at the same time, we learn so much more of ourselves in the process.

She stopped at nothing. To get everything. Scheming social climber Alexa may be humbly born. But she's a class-hopping cruise missile aimed at the very top of the gold-digging tree. Only a title, mansion and family tiara will do. Befriending feckless aristo Florrie (three surnames plus black hole where her brain should be) means the grandest doors swing open and the prince of her dreams is in sight. But has Florrie's mother, the formidable Lady Annabel, rumbled what Alexa is up to? Beautiful but penniless student Polly, meanwhile, is in love. Is Max, the handsome young vet she's found in a country lane, quite as ordinary as he seems, however? Passionate love, eye-widening snobbery and more than naked ambition abound in this contemporary Cinderella tale - a deliciously satirical novel of the upwardly mobile.

TREAT YOURSELF to a sparkling romantic comedy... Last of the Summer Moët is a bottle of champagne in book form! Wendy Holden's warm and funny comic heroine Laura Lake is back. And this time, she's gone rural... Laura Lake, editor of glossy magazine Society, is always on the hunt for scandalous scoops to fill her pages. Now she's discovered a top-secret village in the English countryside where the rich and famous own weekend retreats. Where film stars, Turner-prize winners and billionaires park their helicopters outside the gastropub and buy £100 sourdough loaves from the deli. Outsiders are strictly forbidden. But luckily Laura's best friend Lulu, a logo-obsessed socialite with a heart as huge as her sunglasses, suddenly fancies a quiet life in the country... But life in this enchanted rural idyll is harder than it looks. A brawl at the world's poshest pub quiz nearly...