This week’s reviews include The Royal Windsor Secret and Lessons in Chemistry.
THE ROYAL WINDSOR SECRET
by Christine Wells
Published by Willam Morrow (September 12, 2023)
Reviewed by Penny A Parrish
What if Edward, the Prince of Wales, had an illegitimate daughter? He was known to be involved in several relationships before his marriage to Wallis Warfield Simpson in 1937. That possibility is the premise for this intriguing book.
Cleo is a 16- year old orphan who lives in Cairo with her “Aunt” Seraphina in 1935. They reside in the famous Shepheard’s Hotel, where Cleo spends her free time riding horses with her friend Brodie, whose parents have died. Their carefree lifestyle changes when Lord and Lady Grayson take them to Paris and then England for a proper education and social introduction. Both teenagers have dreams. Cleo wants to be a jewelry designer in Paris, and Brodie wants to travel the world and study wildlife. It takes them a few hundred pages to realize that their dreams also include each other.
Although enjoying the perks of Paris and London, Cleo is never able to let go of her desire to find out who her parents really are. She was supposedly left outside the hotel in Cairo by an unknown person. Serafina professes to have no information on Cleo’s heritage. So the girl looks for answers herself.
That investigation takes her to Marguerite, a Parisian courtesan. (This reader learned the difference between a mistress and a courtesan. The former is with one man, the latter keeps several around for variety.) Marguerite is dazzled by jewels and considers them more important than money. Her goal is to get a nice collection from her dalliance with Edward.
Is Marguerite Cleo’s mother? That answer changes constantly throughout this book. Is the Prince of Wales Cleo’s father? She not only gets a chance to meet him but work for his wife in the period leading up to WWII. Will she confront a former king with this question?
Wells has certainly done her research. Cleo, Serafina, Brodie and their relatives are fictional. But the other characters were real, and the author has taken documented experiences and incidents and woven them into this fascinating piece of historical fiction that runs from 1914 to 1952. The chapters include the prelude to the revolution in Egypt and the Duke of Windsor and his wife in Portugal before heading to the Bahamas where they lived during the war. Churchill sent Edward there as governor when his association with Hitler had become problematic for the British.
If someone told me I was the illegitimate daughter of a modern royal, could I directly prove it in this age of Ancestry.com? Probably not. The royals have not and will not spit in a cup to become part of any such database. It was fun to ponder the possibility for a while!
Penny A Parrish is a long-time book reviewer and artist. Learn more about her by visiting her page at Brush Strokes Gallery, which is in downtown Fredericksburg.
LESSONS IN CHEMISTRY
By Bonnie Garmus
Published by Doubleday (April 5, 2022)
Reviewed by Vanessa Sekinger
I often choose books that have been made into movies, and love to compare it to the movie. But I am almost always in the book-was-better camp.
This particular book, Lessons in Chemistry, is now a series on Apple TV. I chose it thinking it would be a light and entertaining read, and was half correct. It was entertaining, but it was also poignant and thoughtful and challenging. I was not expecting to feel such deep sympathy and admiration for the main character, Elizabeth Zott. I enjoyed the book so thoroughly that I have not watched the series, and I am not sure I will.
The novel opens with Elizabeth Zott confronting a fellow parent of a kindergartener about his daughter eating her daughter’s lunch. This opening belies the depth of the story to come. Elizabeth Zott is a chemist in a time (the 1950’s) when women did not generally have careers in science or often at all. She is brilliant and innovative, but is kicked out of her PhD program after defending herself while being sexually assaulted by her academic advisor.
Although this is a difficult part of the text, readers will admire Elizabeth’s determination to stay focused on science. Her drive to understand the world around her through chemistry and share those findings with others is singular. Readers will also celebrate with her when she finds her soulmate. Elizabeth Zott and Calvin Evans are able to manage their personal traumas by allowing themselves to love and be loved. When they add 6:30, their rescue dog, to their family, he figures prominently in the storyline. Some of my favorite chapters were the ones from the dog’s perspective.
Elizabeth’s career takes another significant turn due to a sexist boss, but she shakily lands on her feet as the host of a local tv station afternoon cooking show. This part of the story helps her to put her life together. Elizabeth’s story does not have a happy ending, but she does have happiness.
It would be nice to say that the overt mistreatment that Elizabeth experienced was no longer relevant, but sadly, most women will be able to relate to Elizabeth’s experiences.
Those events are not the focus of the novel; it centers on the way that Elizabeth approaches the world and how she is confident in her own worth and vision. The author uses Elizabeth’s story to offer the reader things to consider.
Her message is that if you don’t have a family that supports you, create your own family. If you are not valued where you work, leave and find a new opportunity. Ultimately, find what sustains and fulfills you and make time for it.
Elizabeth Zott would say that chemistry is change, and we are all built for change. She wants people to know that they always have the potential for change and should not let anyone convince them otherwise.
Vanessa Sekinger is the editor of the Books and Culture page and loves to read, spend time with family, laugh, and be outside.
Support Local Journalism
Send your thoughts, questions and story ideas to [email protected]!
The FXBG Advance is off and running, but we can’t do this without your help. You can support local journalism here in Fredericksburg by donating $8 a month. Your dollars will go toward hiring journalists so that we can broaden our reach and strengthen our coverage.
The content is now, and will continue to be, free.
Help us bring aboard the journalists who will elevate our coverage and strengthen the community we all share.
Consider joining for $8 monthly, $80 yearly, or becoming a supporting member for $200 or a Founding Member for $500.
Thank you for reading and supporting FXBG Advance.
-Martin Davis, Editor
