Synopsis
According to the great diarist, John Evelyn, Charles II was ‘addicted to women’, and throughout his long reign a great many succumbed to his charms. Clever, urbane and handsome, Charles presided over a hedonistic court, in which licence and licentiousness prevailed.
Mistresses is the story of the women who shared Charles’s bed, each of whom wielded influence on both the politics...
Details
15 April 2021304 pages
9781509877072Imprint: Picador
Reviews
In telling the story of Charles's mistresses, Porter skillfully interweaves the politics with the passion . . . an enlightening read.Tracy Borman, The Sunday Times
The lives of these seven women make a terrific story and Porter tells it well.Andrew Taylor, The Times
A fresh look at Charles' reign through the many women who shared his bed.The Herald
In her [Linda Porter's] hands the lives and characters of the women who shaped the reputation of the Restoration court emerge as far more discrete and individual than the identikit line-up of Lely beauties whose portraits are one of the most recognizable identifiers of the period . . . It is testament to Porter's skill as a historian that by the end of Mistresses the darkness at the heart of the brilliant Restoration court is so bleakly exposed.Lisa Hilton, Spectator
