Wallis Simpson is known as the woman at the center of the most scandalous love affair of the 20th century, but in this surprising new biography, bestselling author Anna Pasternak redeems a women wronged by history with new information revealed by those who were close to the couple—presenting Wallis as a convenient scapegoat to rid England of a king deemed unworthy to rule. The story that has been told repeatedly is this: The handsome, charismatic, and popular Prince Edward was expected to marry a well-bred virgin who would one day become Queen of England when he ascended the throne. But when the prince was 37 years old, he fell in love with a skinny, divorced American woman—Wallis Simpson. No one thought the affair would last, and when the prince did become king, everyone assumed the affair would end. But instead the new king announced he wanted to marry the American divorcee, and Wallis was accused of entrapping the prince in a seductive web in order to achieve her audacious ambition to be queen. After declaring that he could not rule without the woman he loved at his side, the king gave up his throne, and his family banished him and his new wife from England. The couple spent the rest of their days in exile, but happy in their devoted love for each other. Now, Anna Pasternak’s The Real Wallis Simpson tells a different story: that Wallis was the victim of the abdication, not the villain. Warm, well-mannered, and witty, Wallis was flattered by Prince Edward’s attention, but like everyone else, she never expected his infatuation to last. She never wanted to divorce her second husband or marry Edward. She never anticipated his jealous, possessive nature—and his absolute refusal to let her go. Edward’s true dark nature, however, was no secret to the royal family, the church or the Parliament; everyone close to Edward knew that beyond his charming façade, he was immature, self-absorbed, and uneducated—utterly unfit to rule. Wallis begged Edward to stay on the throne and let her go, foreseeing the verdict history would pass on her. Caught in Edward’s fierce obsession, she became the perfect scapegoat for those who wished to dethrone the king they feared to rule. On the night Wallis died, Princess Margaret told a friend, “It wasn’t her we hated, it was him.” Rejecting the sinister schemer at the center of a dark royal fairytale, Anna Pasternak reveals Wallis Simpson as an intelligent woman, written off by cunning, powerful men and forced into a life she never wanted in a complex, riveting, and tragic true story of manipulation and betrayal. **Review “Pasternak seeks to ‘strip away decades of grotesque caricature’ about Wallis Simpson (1896-1986). The author offers a variety of thought-provoking arguments to counter the accepted wisdom about Simpson… Pasternak's most illuminating point is that she knew how to soothe [Prince Edward] and helped him understand the necessity of his duties; unfortunately, she was unable to curb his obsession with her. The author provides a host of intriguing insights into a misunderstood woman. Those who have read other accounts will want to look at this other side.” (Kirkus Reviews) About the Author Anna Pasternak is an author, columnist, and journalist. Her work has appeared in Vanity Fair, Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, Town and Country, Tatler, and every major British newspaper. She is the author of four previous books and lives in England.

The heartbreaking story of the love affair between Boris Pasternak and Olga Ivinskaya – the true tragedy behind 'Dr Zhivago'. Though Stalin spared the life of Boris Pasternak, the writer's lover, typist and literary muse Olga was sent twice to Siberian labour camps because of her association with him, miscarrying their child on her first visit. When released, she always assumed that Boris would leave his wife for her, but he failed to do so. This heartbreaking account by Anna Pasternak explores this hidden act of moral compromise by her great uncle. Drawing on devastating and revelatory family archives, 'Lara' unearths a love story of unimaginable courage, loyalty, suffering, drama and loss. Boris and Olga's affair devastated the Pasternak family, and their saga has since fallen from the common knowledge of Boris Pasternak, who is still regarded as a grand moral influence of his time. This astonishing true history of his love affair throws fascinating new light on his standing,...

For Daisy Dooley, the only thing worse than being 39 and single is being 39 and divorced. A self-professed self-help addict, Daisy leaves the marriage she thought would forever rescue her from the angst of will he or won't he call, coping with painful setups from well-meaning friends, and lonely Saturday nights, only to return to the painful--and painfully funny--world of dating. Supported by her two best friends, one commitment-phobic single serial dater and one picture perfect happy wife and mother of two whose marriage sets the standard in happy marriages--at least from the outside--Daisy must find her way back through the awkward mating rituals that accompany relationships with the post-divorcee rebound man, and the passionate tweny-something eager to date a "mature woman," and battle the longing to be with the one true love who eluded her years before.In the end, Daisy Dooley does date who she deserves, and delivers a lot of laughs and lessons along the way.