Such a powerful book. An excellent fictional account of an intriguing period of time. I am a royalist through and through, and Fern brought the Queen back to life for me. Beautifully written, page-turning and just an overall excellent book. Escapism at its finest.

I throughly enjoyed this fictional story of the life of Marion Crawford who was governess to Queen Elizabeth (Lillibet) and her sister Margaret and it gives a wonderful and insightful overview of Royal life behind the Palace doors and the social life of the late 30s until the marriage of Elizabeth to Philip. Crawfie as she was named by Lillibet, came for the summer as governess to the Royal children intending to return to studies in Psychology to work with children from disadvantaged backgrounds, but she sacrificed this all, as well as postphoning her marriage to George, her older suitor to be supportive of the family. The main players of the times the ex-King, Mrs Simpson, as well as the Duke and Duchess are brought to life in the pages, even Queen Mary and the late King are included. The courtiers and the royal household had various roles that they followed and this niave Scottish teacher became intrigued with the events of history happening before her eyes. Sadly she was not respected by her husband when she eventually married and her writing a book about her experiences with the princesses put her outside the circle of trust. Fern has brought Marion to life and you feel certain empathy about the path she followed in her role as governess, when she tried to give the children an understanding of normal life outside their privileged lives.

What a lovely enjoyable and fascinating read. Really interesting with the historical content and was also quite poignant the timing as the Queen has recently died. Would definitely recommend this book

Not read a book before about our recent royal family so my knowledge is scant. This book was all about Crawfie the Royal nanny to Elizabeth and Margaret. It is a work of fiction but based on real events. It was an easy and enjoyable read.

Such a striking account although it’s fiction, so much attention to detail has gone into this.

Maybe with all that’s surrounding the Royals at the moment it had more of an impact.

First book I’ve read by Fern Britton. She writes well from her experiences in life.

Although this is a fictional account of the Royal governess, it didn't feel like reading a novel. There was so much attention to detail, which made the story come alive. I really felt for her towards the end. I'm sure she must have known the rules when she was employed but she was manipulated by her husband and the press, as well as the Royal family. Perhaps it's the striking parallel with today that makes it so readable.

A fantastic book following the life of Marion Crawford, I honestly could not stop turning the pages. I fantastic reas for anyone.

I couldn't get enough of this book! I randomly chose it to read and it turned out quite fitting following the death of our Queen. The story is based on the teacher who worked with Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret. In all honesty, I think a bit of an unsung hero. How much is factually true is a difficult question but learning more about Marion was an education in itself. I loved it!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publish for this copy in exchange for an honest review.
I hadn't realised when requesting this book that it was a fictionalised account of a real life person. Had I know I'd probably not have read it and that would have been to my great loss.
This was an excellent novel, well written and engaging and it has made me explore the fact around 'Crawfy' that I otherwise wouldn't have known.

This was a fictionalised account of the life of the Nanny, Margaret Crawford, to the late Queen and Princess Margaret when they were children, The story begins before George V1 became King. I know Fern Britton did a lot of research for this, but I did not feel as engaged with the story as I had hoped. Whether this was because my own expectations were unrealistic or not I do not know. . I know it was loosely based on real events and the times were very different. Interestingly much has since been shared about the early life of Elizabeth II since her death and maybe this has influenced my reaction. I enjoyed the book and felt very much for the situation of Crawfie, who it seemed was always not going to get the life she wanted.

Loved this book such a good story that I had to keep reminding myself was fiction, This is the first Fern Britton book I have read and I will look out for others now.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book. I have chosen to write this honest review voluntarily and it reflects my personal opinion.
This is the first book I have read by Fern Britton, although I understand it is slightly different to her usual work as it is based on true historical fact. I was pleased to find that it is an engaging, easy read and although the author makes no claim for accuracy it presents the lifestyle, behaviours, beliefs and morals of the time. Young people today will find it hard to understand the loyalty Marion showed to her employers but this is completely realistic, although I thought it was hard to believe Marion's behaviour at times because she seemed to vacillate between naivete and confidence. Nonetheless I enjoyed the book and feel sure it will make an excellent Christmas gift for many women interested in royalty.

I found this book so interesting - I have lived through a lot of the time and had heard of Crawfie. To read the story albeit fictional of the truth was fascinating. It gave insight to the firm (the Monarchy) and the difficulties of trying to be a normal family within political and hierarchical boundaries.
Excellent

I didn't realise, that Marion Crawford 'Crawfie' as she affectionately known, was a real person!!
She's taken on by the Royal household, to educate both Princesses Elizabeth 'Lilibet' & Margaret!!
Although a lot of the conversations etc are fictitious, you can really imagine, what life was like in all the royal palaces. This book even includes Crawfie's life during ww11, and thereafter!! Most were happy, but, some really were not!!
You have to make your own mind up, in the last section as to whether she was right, wrong, or badly treated or not!!
This a wonderful read, I wasn't sure if I'd like it, but no, I loved it!!
Truly exceptional writing!!

I’ll admit that I’m usually a bit of a snob when it comes to celebrity books, not so much comedians who are writing all the time, but when someone’s a presenter I never know what I’m going to get. I gave this a go because I’m interested in the history of the Royal Family and being an avid watcher of The Crown I thought it might be diverting. In fact I was very pleasantly surprised and became truly involved with the story of Crawfie.

We are taken back to London between the wars, a rather turbulent time that’s seen a lot of change socially, economically and culturally. We travel between 1932 and 1936. In 1932 Marion Crawford is looking forward to a career as a teacher, when an opportunity presents itself. Unexpectedly, she is offered the role of governess to two Princesses. Elizabeth and Margaret are the granddaughters of George V from his second son, the Duke of York and his wife. Just four years later and a huge change rocks the royal household, George V’s death paves the way for his eldest son David to succeed him as King. Choosing the regnal name Edward VII, he is a rather controversial figure amongst the establishment, often disregarding court protocol and conventions and sometimes appearing too political. When a constitutional crisis occurs Crawfie’s life will change forever. Edward causes concerns in his choice of companion, the twice divorced American Wallis Simpson. His abdication, to marry the woman he loves changes the course of history and everyday life for the princesses and their governess. It has already been an adjustment to become part of a royal household and now she finds herself in this new position with new responsibilities- governess to the future Queen. The author really does portray this change well, always relating back to how this feels for our heroine, an ordinary young girl given extraordinary responsibility. Marion Crawford is our representative in this novel, we see familiar events from history brought vividly to life, with the same sense of wonder and bewilderment,

I felt I was in the hands of an expert storyteller as this unfolded and I really did feel Crawfie’s trepidation at the changes this brought to her life. It was refreshing to see a well documented part of history told from the angle of a worker in the household. Someone who is nether upstairs or downstairs, but in that liminal role of governess. She is respectable, but not royal, Works for the family but isn’t a servant. It’s a unique position, but sometimes a lonely one too. She is at the very heart and the future of the Royal Family, but will never be one of them. The author really did bring this home to me. It’s her future and position in this household that Crawfie must consider when she falls in love with George. He may be the love of her life, but can she choose him over her life with the princesses? I loved the sense of loyalty she feels, both to the Crown and her young charges. If she chooses them, their lives will become her life and they will be her children, Will this loyalty be repaid?

I won’t spoil the book by talking about the reality of Marion Crawford’s decision at this time and how her life played out, but she was torn between George and the royals her entire life. The author has told a story that’s an incredible glimpse into the Royal Family at this turbulent time. I felt like I was there as a fly on the wall! I ended up whipping through this so quickly, possibly because it flows beautifully. There is no doubt about the extensive research that’s gone into the novel, it wears this research lightly though and never lapses into telling us what happened rather than showing us. It’s charming and thought provoking, giving us a glimpse of what it means to have a sense of duty, whether as a Queen or her governess.

Omg what another fabulous read it had me totally engrossed from beginning to end would highly recommend

A fascinating story of the governess to Elizabeth and Margaret of the Royal family.
How she gave her life in service to the royal family and through her naivety and trust in a man she thought loved her lost everything.
Superbly written. Fern is one of.my favourite authors.

I was lookjng forward to reading this book as I have loved all Fern Brittons books before and was not disappointed. This was a fictional account of a true story and was brilliantly written. The story of Crawfie as the 2 princesses named her was so endearing and gave some insight into the royal family life. Wonderful to read in the year of the jubilee and I will definitely recommend. Thank you to Netgalley for ARC

The good servant by fern Britton

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I was not expecting this ! I’ll be honest I expected a good read but I did not expect to fall in love with this book!!
Perhaps it’s because I’ve just rewatched the crown and the jubilee parties are still fresh in my mind but wow.

This is the story of a bright young woman with aspirations of helping children who becomes the governess of the future queen and princess Margaret and the love and sacrifices she experiences throughout her life.

The book is full of warmth, love, family and above all loyalty and even though it doesn’t have the happiest of endings it kept me enraptured from the first page until the last.

Although this book is loosely based around the facts (due to limited information in the public realm) you can see that the author has done a great deal of research and I loved the fact and fiction mix.
I just cannot process how beautifully this story was told, I must confess I didn’t go into this read expecting much as I hadn’t heard anything of this book and only knew of the author from tv presenting but I will certainly be reading more from her. Her writing flows so easily and it was such an enjoyable read.

Although this is not a short book the time reading it completely flew by. It’s one of those books that once you start reading completely takes over and I found myself constantly wanting to read just a little bit more. I can see myself picking this book back up and revisiting it often in the future.

Please make sure you read the afterwords though as ferns notes on writing the book and the questions she raises to the reader add a whole new dimension to this wonderfully constructed book.

It’s such an emotional beautiful read and I cannot recommend it highly enough !!!

Thoroughly enjoyed this book and another novel by this author which has captured my attention. Based on a true story we meet Marion Crawford who is engaged to look after the education of the princesses, including Elizabeth who would become Queen.

The story weaves cleverly between her home life and relationship with an older man who she later unhappily marries and the autocratic life at the royal palaces.

The ending is very poignant and I felt so sorry for Marion who had given her life to her charges and their family. A few tears were shed!

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher and the author for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.