THE
WOMAN BEFORE WALLIS
Author:
Bryn Turnbull
ISBN:
9780778361022
Publication
Date: July 21, 2020
Publisher:
MIRA Books
Book
Summary:
An
irresistible historical debut, THE WOMAN BEFORE WALLIS (MIRA Trade Paperback;
July 21, 2020) is set in the glamorous world of British and American royalty in
the 1920s, based on the true story of the woman who owned Prince Edward's heart
before introducing him to her dear friend Wallis. Perfect for fans of Netflix’s The Crown and Jennifer Robson’s The Gown.
The daughters of an American diplomat, Thelma and
Gloria Morgan were stars of New York social scene in the early 1920s, dubbed
“the magnificent Morgans.” Both would marry into wealth and privilege beyond
their imaginations, Gloria to Reggie Vanderbilt, and Thelma to a viscount.
Thelma begins an affair with Edward, the dashing Prince of Wales, that will
last nearly five years.
Then, in 1934, Thelma's life is upended by her
sister Gloria's custody trial — a headline-grabbing drama known as The Matter
of Vanderbilt, which dominates global news for months and raises the bar for
tabloid sensationalism. Back in New York, sued by members of her late husband's
family on charges of negligence, unfit parenting and homosexuality, Gloria
needs her twin's support more than ever. But as her sister gains international
notoriety, Thelma fears that her own fall from grace might not be far behind.
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Links:
Author
Bio:
|
Bryn
Turnbull is a writer of historical fiction with a
penchant for fountain pens and antique furniture. Equipped with a Master of
Letters in Creative Writing from the University of St. Andrews, a Master of
Professional Communication from Ryerson University, and a Bachelor’s degree
in English Literature from McGill University, Bryn focuses on finding the
stories of women found within the cracks of the historical record. When she’s
not writing, Bryn can be found exploring new coffee shops, spending time with
her family in cottage country, or traveling. She lives in Toronto, and can
generally be found with a book in hand.
Social
Links:
Twitter: @BrynTurnbull
Instagram: @brynturnbullwrites
Facebook: @brynturnbullwrites
Goodreads |
Excerpt
ONE
October 9, 1934
RMS Empress of Britain
THELMA CONSIDERED MANHATTAN HER HOME,
though she hadn’t lived there for over ten years. To her, it was a city
of firsts: she had smoked her first cigarette there, a Lucky Strike stolen from
a nun’s desk drawer at the convent and passed around the dormitory after
bedtime. She and her twin sister, Gloria, had rented their first apartment on
Fifth Avenue: an attic brownstone, which, at sixteen years old, they were far
too young to live in unchaperoned but did so anyways, stuffing the living room
with flowers and leaving the icebox empty. Her first encounter with the society
pages had been at New York Harbor: she was eight at the time, mobbed by
reporters at the behest of their diplomat father in an attempt to turn the tone
of a negative press scrum. The next day’s papers would run pictures not of
Harry Morgan on his recall to Washington but of his twin daughters, Thelma and
Gloria, walking down the gangplank in matching pinafores.
First marriage, thought Thelma,
gripping the sable collar of her coat more tightly around her neck. First divorce. She stayed on deck long
enough to watch the ship slip past the redbrick buildings of Southampton before
seeking refuge from the chill air.
Though Thelma felt
uneasy at the prospect of being away from David for nearly six weeks, she knew
that she had little choice: Gloria’s trial had become a media sensation,
chewing up columns on front pages across America and Europe. The custody
battle, dubbed the “Trial of the Century” by reporters who squeezed onto the
courthouse steps each day, was a nightmare for her sister, forced to defend not
only her right to raise her own daughter but also to preserve her own good
name. Thelma still rankled at the letter Gloria had sent her: For Reggie’s sister to believe what’s being
said about me is bad enough, but to know that the rumors came from our own
mother is too much to bear…
Thelma knew that
the stories would continue long after the trial concluded—it was inevitable,
given that it revolved around a Vanderbilt daughter with a Vanderbilt fortune.
She had received the letter five days ago and booked passage on the earliest
steamer bound for New York. If it had been either of her other
siblings—Consuelo or Harry Junior—in this situation, Thelma would have offered
what help she could, but as her twin, Gloria held Thelma’s allegiance the
strongest. It was how it had always been: one supporting the other.
There was only one
consideration weighing on Thelma’s mind which made it difficult for her to
focus on what she would find in America.
“Shall I come,
too?” David had asked days ago at Fort Belvedere. Dismal weather had driven
Thelma, David and their guests indoors, an afternoon of weeding David’s gardens
mercifully replaced by card games and needlepoint round the drawing room fire.
David laid his embroidery hoop to one side, the half-finished rose pointing
sightlessly at the ceiling.
Across the room,
Wallis Simpson, perusing the contents of the bar cart, turned.
“Don’t be silly,”
she said. From a club chair in the corner, Wallis’s husband, Ernest, folded
down the corner of a newspaper. There was a momentary silence as Wallis’s long
fingers trailed delicately along the crystal tops of several heavy decanters
before she selected one.
“You can’t possibly
think it’s a good idea for him to get caught up in this mess,” she said,
glancing at Thelma as she poured a neat scotch. “You’ve seen the papers. Can
you imagine the sort of froth they’d work themselves into if the Prince of
Wales stuck his oar in? I don’t mean to offend you, Thelma,” she said, “but it’s
just not seemly for him to get involved, don’t you agree?”
David’s brows
knitted together as Wallis handed him the whiskey. “I feel so terrible about it
all,” he said. “Gloria’s a decent sort. She doesn’t deserve all this…surely
there’s something I can do?” He looked up at Thelma, his spaniel eyes
imploring.
Wallis sat down.
“You can let Thelma go to support her sister,” she said. “Gloria needs her
family, sir, not the distraction of a royal sideshow.”
“Wally’s quite
right, sir,” said Ernest, resting his newspaper on his lap. “You’d be hindering
more than you’d help. Couldn’t fix me up one of those as well, could you,
darling?”
David exhaled, but
didn’t look convinced. “Perhaps,” he said, as Wallis returned to the cart. “I
wouldn’t want to add any more controversy to this ghastly business, but I hate
the thought of you going on your own.”
Thelma sat beside
him, smiling at the thought of what David’s advisors would say if he so much as
commented on the Vanderbilt trial, let alone sailed to America.
“They have a
point,” she said, taking his hand in hers. “I don’t think there’s much for you
to do. But thank you for wanting to help.”
He smiled, worry
carved into the lines of his face. “Of course,” he said, and kissed Thelma on
the cheek. He picked up his needlepoint, lifting the embroidery hoop to inspect
the stitching more closely. “Just don’t stay away from me too long. I don’t
think I could stand it.”
Perching herself on
the armrest of Ernest’s chair, Wallis caught Thelma’s eye. She smiled, red lips
curling in a wide, reassuring grin.
Excerpted from The Woman Before
Wallis by Bryn Turnbull, Copyright © 2020 by Bryn Turnbull.
Published by MIRA Books
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