Her good works and social exploits made her loved by the multitudes, but Georgiana's public success, like Diana's, concealed a personal life that was fraught with suffering. The Duke of Devonshire was unimpressed by his wife's legendary charms, preferring instead those of her closest friend, a woman with whom Georgiana herself was rumoured to be on intimate terms. For over twenty years, the three lived together in a jealous and uneasy ménage a trois, during which time both women bore the Duke's children as well as those of other men. Foreman's descriptions of Georgiana's uncontrollable gambling, all-night drinking, drug taking, and love affairs with the leading politicians of the day give us a fascinating insight into the lives of the British aristocracy in the era of the madness of King George III, the American and French Revolutions, and the defeat of Napoleon.

A gifted young historian whom critics are already likening to Antonia Fraser, Amanda Foreman draws on a wealth of fresh research and writes colorfully and penetratingly about the fascinating Georgiana, whose struggle against her own weaknesses, whose great beauty and flamboyance, and whose determination to play a part in the affairs of the world make her a vibrant, astonishingly contemporary figure.

"Not only a pungent, intimate blend of biography and history, but a provocative contribution to our understanding of women of the past"
Jenny Uglow, Independent

"Georgiana Devonshire was much the most fascinating woman of the age, and Foreman has written a biography to match her"
Ian Gilmour, London Review of Books

"Sumptuously produced, accurate and eminently readable"
Economist

"Georgiana bursts from the pages of Amanda Foreman's dazzling biography like the force of nature she undoubtedly was passionate, political, addicted to gambling, and drunk on life. This is a stunning book about an astonishing woman."
Simon Schama

"A most impressive debut. I predict a great future for Amanda Foreman. She is a scholar who matches her learning to a sense of adventure and writes with engaging vitality."
Michael Holroyd

"A mesmerizing read .... The charm of Amanda Foreman's Georgiana is that it gives you all the fascinating detail you want .... and is at the same time a serious, scholarly work, based on exhaustive archival research."
Antonia Fraser, Literary Review

"Stunning historical research plus feminine acuity yield a vivid portrait of a shrewd, seductive ancestor of Princess Diana's in an age before democracy or contraception."
Brenda Maddox, author of Yeats "Ghosts and Nora" The Real Life of Molly Bloom

"I put this book down entranced by the woman. This is an outstanding debut by a young biographer fully in control of her sources, and with an easy, elegant writing style. She tells a tale that calls not only for our admiration but for our compassion."
Roy Strong, London Sunday Times

"This is an accomplished and well written biography, remarkably mature for a first effort; diligently researched and entertainingly presented. Amanda Foreman is a writer to watch and one from whom much can be expected."
Daily Telegraph

Please click on the following link to read an extract from the USA version of Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire.