Innovative Online Book Tours Book Review: The Wild Princess

Author: Marta Hart Perry
Title: The Wild Princess
Publisher: William Morrow
Publish Date: July 31, 2012
Review Copy Provided By: Innovative Book Tours and the Publisher
Book Blurb: 

our of the five daughters of England's Queen Victoria and Prince Albert were regal, genteel, and everything a princess should be. But one was rebellious, scandalous, and untamed. This is her story. . . . To the court and subjects of Queen Victoria, young Princess Louise—later the Duchess of Argyll—was the "Wild One." Proud and impetuous, she fought the constraints placed on her and her brothers and sisters, dreamed of becoming an artist, and broke with a three-hundred-year-old tradition by marrying outside of the privileged circle of European royals. Some said she wed for love. Others whispered of a scandal covered up by the Crown. It will take a handsome American, recruited by the queen's elite Secret Service, to discover the truth. But even as Stephen Byrne—code name the Raven—vows to risk his life to protect the royal family from violent Irish radicals, he tempts Louise with a forbidden love that could prove just as dangerous. In the vein of Philippa Gregory, Mary Hart Perry tells the riveting story of an extraordinary woman—a princess who refused to give up on her dreams, including her right to true love.
Review: I've never read any historical fiction about Victoria or her daughters, so I had to give this book a shot, and I have to say, this is a must read. Princess Louise is a historical figure that there is much speculation about.

Like any good work of historical fiction, it made me want to learn more about the lady in question. She she was a royal ahead of her time. She worked for women's causes and fraternized with the common folk, something that simply wasn't done. She was a royal that was totally unconventional. She attended art school and was actually an accomplished sculptor.

But this book is more about her marriage, which most believed to be a sham, because Lorne, the Duke Of Argyll didn't particularly care for the ladies. Why they wed is a mystery. Their wedding, which was lavish by any standards would suggest a love match, so would the fact that this was the first time since the 1500s that a member of the royal family wed a commoner.

But there's more to the book than merely a scandal surrounding her husband's sexuality. (Which at that time was illegal) Louise wants to find her first lover, a model she met in art school, who mysteriously disappeared.

I absolutely loved this book. I was fascinated by Louise and felt bad for her childless state, but I was proud of her for doing what she wanted.

This book paints a great picture of what Queen Victoria was like and how family life was for these royals. This is a must read for all lovers of historical fiction!

Rating:  5 flowers

Buy Links:

Mary Hart Perry Online: 
Website http://www.maryhartperry.com/
Facebook http://www.facebook.com/pages/Mary-Hart-Perry/169651376460162
Twitter https://twitter.com/#!/Mary_Hart_Perry
Goodreads http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13064827-the-wild-princess