Description
Book SynopsisThis is the incredible rise and unbelievable fall of a woman whose energy and ambition is often overshadowed by Napoleon's military might. In this triumphant biography, Kate Williams tells Josephine's searing story, of sexual obsession, politics and surviving as a woman in a man's world.
Abandoned in Paris by her aristocratic husband, Josephine''s future did not look promising. But while her friends and contemporaries were sent to the guillotine during the Terror that followed the Revolution, she survived prison and emerged as the doyenne of a wildly debauched party scene, surprising everybody when she encouraged the advances of a short, marginalised Corsican soldier, six years her junior.
Josephine, the fabulous hostess and skilled diplomat, was the perfect consort to the ambitious but obnoxious Napoleon. With her by his side, he became the greatest man in Europe, the Supreme Emperor; and she amassed a jewellery box with more diamonds than Marie Antoinette's. But as
Trade Review
Kate Williams' entrancing biography of Josephine is a sparkling account of this most fallible and endearing of women. * Daily Mail *
Williams is the Cole Porter of 18th century history. Her serious and thorough investigation is presented in an accessible and playful way. * The Times *
A whirlwind tour of French history. -- Virginia Rounding * Telegraph *
Scintillating . . . Williams illuminates [Josephine's character] with skill. * Country Life *
