The Palace Papers: Inside the House of Windsor – the Truth and the Turmoil @TinaBrownLM @CrownPublishing @JanBelisle @absltmom

Jan’s Review

This is a fairly lengthy book, with plenty of juicy and dishy details that I didn’t know about the RF, which made this book enlightening as well as engaging. It seems no matter how much we think we know, there is always something new to learn.

Tina Brown leaves no stone unturned when exposing the intricacies of the House of Windsor, aka The Firm. Every member of the family has a spotlight on them, with some coming off more favorably than others. The author also shines a spotlight on the news media who relentlessly hounds the royals (and other celebrities).

I found the first part of the book interesting, but my interest flagged a bit when the narrative turned towards the Prince Andrew/Epstein scandal and Meghan and Harry. Too much time was spent on Meghan’s rather boring background, career, and history. I was also disappointed that the author didn’t expose the many untruths and exaggerations in the infamous Oprah interview and their many complaints.

This was a buddy read with Marialyce and while we both enjoyed very much enjoyed the book, we were deeply disappointed in the authors kid glove treatment of these two.

I was left with a deeper admiration for Queen Elizabeth. In this age of social media and oversharing, her philosophy of “Never Complain, Never Explain’ is part of the allure and mystique of the Royal family, and likely the secret to the longevity of the monarchy. Her overriding concern, despite personal trials, was her duty as monarch, always putting the people’s needs above her own. All of which makes Harry & Meghan’s behavior even more unseemly and self-serving. I hated wasting a minute of my time reading about these two.

Luckily, the future of the monarchy seems to be in good hands with King Charles and Camilla, and of course Prince William and Princess Catherine, who seem to be following in step with the Queen’s philosophy, but with a modern flair.

Marialyce’s Review

If you are at all interested in how the Royals act and react , this book might be the key to that issue. It follows the very regal Queen Elizabeth who found herself pulled into a more modern world after the death of Princess Diana. It is a story of how the Royals perceive life through hundreds of years of tradition and the way things were and are for them.

It seems like a life of glory, riches, and traditions, that many of us seem to envy, but it is a life that is filled with obligations, of one lacking privacy, and of one that while glamorous, is filled with luxury, and responsibilities. The Royals have been born into this, most adhering into traditions, and desperately trying to be the monarchs they have been trained to be.

The author covers sensitive topics that including Diana, who definitely had her own issues and did everything she could to hurt Charles not considering that what she did to him would also be done to her boys. She speaks of Andrew, the supposed favorite child of Elizabeth’s, who has become a pariah in the family, justifiably so. She speaks of Diana’s much-loved boys who had to coped with their parents’ behavior, their father carrying on many years long affair with Camilla and the most embarrassing taped phone conversation between Camilla and Charles.

Family rivalries, the innuendo, the blood sucking media have made life for the Royals complicated and often difficult. William and Catherine, due to ascend the throne someday, seem to be preparing a path that will allow them being closer to the people they rule. Charles and Camilla also seem to be striving to restore the dignity of Queen Elizabeth’s reign.

I will not say too much about Henry and Meghan, since I am not in their fan club, but for one thing, for a couple who want privacy, their faces seem to be prominent in the media. They both seem to be self-serving and dedicated to besmirching the monarchy for monetary and notoriety reasons. It is a shame that so soon after the death of Queen Elizabeth, they stepped in to assure reputations would be ruined. It was a big sign of both jealousy and searching to be number one, which will not happen being the “spare” as Harry claims he is.

At any rate, this book is fascinating and I did learn some new things about the family. Jan and I enjoyed the bulk of the story, but both agreed the author cut Meghan a lot of slack when relating her sob story.

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