Goodreads synopsis: “Two women, divided by time, bound by a secret…

1911. Aged just fifteen, Mary Kirk and Wallis Warfield meet at summer camp. Their friendship will survive heartbreaks, continents, and the demands of the English crown, until it is shattered by one unforgivable betrayal…

1997. Rachel’s romantic break in Paris with her fiancé is interrupted when the taxi in front crashes suddenly. The news soon follows: Princess Diana is dead. Trying to forget what she has witnessed, Rachel returns home, where the discovery of a long-forgotten link to Wallis Simpson, the Duchess of Windsor, will lead her to the truth of a scandal which shook the world…“

My Review

Well what an absolutely fantastic audiobook this was I feel as if I was transported back in time into Wallis Simpson’s elite circle of friends learning all about this infamous woman.

Wallis Simpson has been cropping up a lot lately in books I’ve read and TV programmes I’ve watched, so I was really interested to learn more about her life before she became involved with the Prince of Wales. I liked her at first and enjoyed listening to the story of her the friendship with Mary Kirk in the US. By the end of the book I lost all sympathy for her as her true colours were revealed.  I really liked Mary and enjoyed watching her develop as a character, especially later on in the book when Wallis is more involved with Edward VIII.

I also enjoyed the 1997 storyline about Rachel and Alex who come across the wreckage of the car accident that killed Princess Diana. I loved how the links with Wallis are slowly revealed, a very clever way to match up the two storylines. I loved hearing about Rachel’s vintage shop and the descriptions of the clothes she wore and had on sale. I wasn’t at all keen on her fiancé Alex and his obsession with Diana’s death and his documentary making. I was absolutely convinced how things were going to end in this storyline and was very pleasantly proved wrong by the end of the story.

The narrator Laura Aikman was perfect bringing the different characters to life, she really made it a delight to listen to, and I will definitely be looking out for other audiobooks narrated by her.

As you can tell I loved this audiobook and will be recommending it to friends and family and anyone else who will listen! It’s turned out to be one my favourite’s this year and I can’t wait to listen to The Secret Wife, the author’s previous book which I bought whilst I was finishing this.