Thanks Netgalley and the Publishers. Not sure what I can say about this, I finished it but it has left no lasting impression at all so hence the low scoring.

Oh poor Diana - careful of what you wish for! I thoroughly enjoyed this dramatisation of the events leading to the fairytale ‘Royal Wedding of the 20th Century’. With narrative from different points of view, from the royal valet, to the old Queen Mother and of course from Diana herself, ‘The Princess’ is an entertaining and quite a touching read - I suppose you could call it ‘a modern historical novel’.

I have always been a fan of Wendy Holden and her particular brand of comic satire and her talents are not wasted on writing about the Royal Family. I’ve now bought The Duchess on the back of reading The Princess and I am looking forward to delving deeper into the family scandal and dramas.

Many thanks to everyone concerned for allowing me to read and review this terrific novel.

A depiction of the early years of Diana, and her "fairytale" romance with Charles. There were some interesting tit-bits that rang true and spoke to thorough research which made this quite interesting, but overall it felt a bit flat and one dimensional. I feel great empathy for the naive, immature Diana (described in this book) and regret for how she was treated.

Reading this book brought back so many memories.
A fictionalised account of Diana Spencer’s childhood and early adulthood. Very readable, bringing back my teenage years and watching Diana’s love story play out in the public eye.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

A historical fiction novel about the early years of Diana Princess of Wales.
The ups and downs of her life and the events that led up to her marriage.
A sad story about secrets, lies and manipulation.
Thank you to NetGalley and for my e-copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is the last in a series of three books that look at royal outsiders and their effect on the royals as a whole. How they infiltrate ‘The Firm’ and the sheer overwhelming descriptions of the first time they enter places or meet senior members.

The royals themselves are on the periphery of the book (the queen mother features quite a bit though) but I always, always enjoy anything to do with them and the fascination continues.

Nostalgic look at the young princess Di, very much on her side, not very flattering to Charles and Camilla. Gentle read, not mind shattering but enjoyable.

Unfortunately this was I did not finish for me. This is a fictional story about the early years of Diana Spencer up until when she met Prince Charles I gave up when reading about her time up boarding school from the viewpoint of her friend. I feel that there are almost too many books, about Diana. I had hoped that this book would be something different but it just did not grab my attention. It may appeal to others unfortunately not me.

This is a fictionalised account of Princess Diana's early life leading up to her marriage to Prince Charles, and I loved it. This was such an engaging read; it hit the points of the real Diana's life but then imagined more story around the events we all know. It was really well done and I very much enjoyed it. It was easy to get absorbed in and hard to put down! I recommend it!

The princess, a fictionalised account of Diana from early childhood up to her marriage to Charles is an easy and quick read. It is also heartbreaking, not just because we know she lost her life so young but the way she was manipulated. She was incredibly naive and gullible, believing she found her one true love, and that he would love and protect her forever and the Royal family, and indeed Camilla, ruthlessly used this to their advantage. If it's true that she learned the truth on the eve of her marriage it's heartbreaking but shows the courage she had to continue along the path she found herself on although she really had no choice at that point.

It was interesting to read a fictionalized story about her life and how she might have been thinking or behaving from when she was young till the moment of marriage through the lens of others or due to her social class. I am sure anyone who enjoys reading more about the royal families and want to have even the faintest idea of how a family placed high in society or the royal family works will enjoy the book.

I loved this latest from this series. It was so interesting and quite sad. You really feel for Diana and the pain she went through. It makes you understand her character alot more.

Was not sure if I would be able to enjoy this fictionalised story of the late Diana, told before her marriage to Charles. However, I found it easy to read and thought it a good subject matter and portrayal of a young girl who we all came to love. Highly recommend.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/6637989045

A bit of a guilty pleasure. I'm not sure what I think about fictionalising Diana's life story when so many of those in it are still around, but it's a sympathetic portrayal of her if not others, and obviously lots of fun to read scurrilous royal gossip! A very easy read too. Maybe one to take away on a holiday. Thanks for the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

A fictionalised account of the late Diana Princess of Wales, in the years leading up to her marriage. As a piece of writing, it's an easy read, with lots of plotting and romantic reading helping to shape Diana's willingness to marry her Prince, and the scheming secrets involved behind the scenes to get her married to him. As with much historical fiction, there is a lot of inventiveness and the taking of creative liberties and as one always knows the outcome, a certain sadness here, having lived through her tortuous years and eventual death.
This certainly isn't my favourite novel by any means; but it was easy and quick to read, and there was much with which to sympathise. The literary device is that Diana is recounting her story to her childhood school friend Sandy, whom she hasn't seen for a very long time. Diana is by now married; Sandy goes to visit her and Diana fills her in on what happened to have her married to the Prince. The pace is moderate and easy to follow; several characters have parts to tell, including Charles himself and his valet, the press and Sandy, as well as Diana herself. It's heartrending to read again of how Diana was manipulated into this marriage, how she naively thought this man twelve years her senior would love, protect and support the young nineteen year old, and how Mrs Parker Bowles was always in the background.
The story is well told, the pace is easy on the mind, and it is an interesting read for anyone who likes stories about a Princess who finds her Prince Charming. Except, in this case, she sadly didn't.
I received an electronic galley ARC of this book from the publisher via Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

This book is a mixed bag for me.

I absolutely love anything about Princess Diana so seeing her through the lens of someone else from a teenager was almost intrusive even though it is fictional.

The backstory and development of Diana’s life is a good read but somewhat jarring when you know how it ends - bittersweet almost seeing this young Diana with hopes of marrying for love.

I did enjoy it, but definitely wanted to separate it from the real Diana

A beautiful book written on some relatively recent history! The book tells a fictional story of how lady Diana Spencer met Prince Charles and the journey they made together.

I enjoyed reading this book - it was a lovely experience. Thank you to the writer, publisher, and NetGalley for allowing me to review this book.

Free courtesy of Netgalley

I really liked this book and it is the first book I have read from Wendy Holden. This book comes under the Historical Fiction genre but because it is recent history of felt more like the story was real because I have lived through the period the book is set.

The book is based on Lady Diana Spencer and her Friend Sandy. It starts when she attends boarding school and becomes friends with Sandy, so you get a feel of how school and home was for Diana when she was younger. The book then moves to her introduction to Prince Charles and how their relationship progresses and ends at the wedding.

The story is told from many of the players in the story and shows how this marriage and Diana was manipulated by the people around her.

I really enjoyed the book and wasn't sure if it was based on fact or a made up version of the story, this fact was cleared up in the Authors notes. The book has taken true facts, as written in other books and partly the Authors imagination. If this is anywhere close to how it was for Diana, it reinforced how I feel about Charles and Camilla, and why they would knowingly put a teenage girl through all the heartbreak that they did. If he didn't Love Diana, he should have stood up to his parents and said no, he is a weak man in my opinion.

I love the royal family and this book gave a peek into their lives. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves this genre or the royal family.

A very interesting fictional account of when Diana met King Charles, leading to their engagement. The story is told in 1992 when Diana has lunch with an old, fictional, friend. I certainly couldn't read this fast enough.