Search - Royal Harlot

The title "Royal Harlot" should have tipped me off.

I picked up Susan Holloway Scott's novel about Barbara Villiers Palmer, notorious mistress of England's Charles II, expecting a certain amount of titillation, but also hoping for an enlightening glimpse into merry Restoration London.

I got smut.

A third of the way into "Royal Harlot," I already felt bludgeoned by the sex scenes. Reading this novel was a bit like watching "Showgirls."

I finished the book totally unenlightened about Charles' Dutch wars or his divisive religious policies. Scott spent just a few pages on the Great Plague and Great Fire of London. (I learned more by quickly skimming Wikipedia entries than I did from this book.)

But I did discover Charles II and Barbara Villiers liked sex. A lot.

Very interesting account one of the Royal Mistress' to King Charles II, Barbara Villiers Palmer or as she later became (through royal favor) Countess of Castlemaine, Duchess of Cleveland. This is a fast moving and entertaining read about a woman who is generally reviled in history as she was in her own time period (late 1600's). An interesting and well written account of the world of King Charles II and the "bawdy Restoration court". According to "The Historical Novels Review", "Wonderful...whisks the reader into a period rife with intrigue, love, sex, war and religous strife.". I enjoyed this book. It does have some sexual content but not in the extreme (at least in my view).

A quick read, I'm a fan of historical fiction that's actually based on real people, I love going to wikipedia after finishing the book to find out the rest of the story. \

As for those who called it smutty and raunchy, she was a MISTRESS. Wiki: "A mistress is a man's long-term female lover and companion who is not married to him, especially used when the man is married to another woman." They had sex with each other and with others. So did the rest of the royal court, hello, everyone was related in some way or another. You get more raunch watching an episode of Sex and the City on TBS.

I will open this review by saying that Charles II of England is perhaps one of my least favorite Monarchs of England. Not that he did anything particularly bad to my tastes but he just does not fit into my Gem pile. That said I could barely put down this book. The story of Charles II and Barbra Villiers is pretty well known among historians, and she is always vilified. Always called any score of names that in my opinion could be laid at any royal mistress’s feet, but she always gets the worst of it.
Susan Holloway Scott did not gloss over any of the things that Barbra Villiers was, she was vain, and wonton and even calculating. However she brought to light a side that is most often over looked by the usual rabble, she was loving and tender and generous to her family and friends. Let’s face it to have remained in the King’s favor as long as she did she had to have more to her than just a nice body.
So if you like historical fiction and you don’t mind a lot of the sexual innuendo and some not innuendo in your book I recommend this one for you. It was a good read and one that thoroughly held my attention to welcome me back into the grips of my book obsession and reviewing. My only regret about this one is going to be selecting one to follow it.

I asked for this book because I have always been interested in the period of the Stuarts; Charles II, the "Merry Monarch", in particular. Now I know why he was so "merry"; he did little but play cards, gamble, and hop from bed to bed with his stable of mistresses.

This book shines the light on Barbara Villiers Palmer; a girl who realy enjoyed her work and deserved to be called the royal harlot. Every situation in this book calls for explicit sex and the author concentrated more on these acts than giving us any historical insight into the reign of Charles.

Though not exactly brilliantly done, this book balances its sex, witticisms and small amount of history ably. Barbara's character is contradictory, at times both petty and spoiled, then accepting and forgiving. The ending could have been much more developed- it was a letdown.