An exuberant story of a young Australian actress caught up in the excesses, royal intrigues and class divide of Jazz Age London, losing her way but reclaiming her heart in the process.London, 1920s: Kit Scott, a privileged young Australian aiming to become a star, arrives in the city to find the Jazz Age in full swing. Cast in a West End play opposite another young hopeful, Canadian Zeke Gardiner, she dances blithely into the heady lifestyle of English high society and the London theatre set, from Noel Coward to Fred Astaire and his sister, Adele.When Kit is photographed dancing the Charleston alongside the Prince of Wales, she finds herself at the centre of a major scandal, sending the Palace into damage control and Kit to her aristocratic English relatives - and into the arms of the hedonistic Lord Henry Carleton. Amid the excesses of the Roaring Twenties, both Zeke and Kit are faced with temptations - and make choices that will alter the course of their lives forever.The ingénue is a stock character in literature, film and a role type in the theater, generally a girl or a young woman who is endearingly innocent. Ingénue may also refer to a new young actress or one typecast in such roles.The term comes from the feminine form of the French adjective ingénu meaning "ingenuous" or innocent, virtuous and candid. It may also imply a lack of sophistication and cunning.The Bright Young Things, or People,was a nickname given by the tabloid press to a group of Bohemian young aristocrats and socialites in 1920s London.They were party goers,went on nighttime escapades,and some became alcoholics and abused substances.André Eugene Maurice Charlot was a French impresario known primarily for the highly successful musical revues he staged in London between 1912 and 1937. He also worked as a character actor in numerous feature films.The Roaring 20s was a period of economic prosperity with a distinctive cultural edge in the US and Europe, particularly in major cities.The era was full of social, artistic and cultural dynamism.The spirit of the era was marked by a general feeling of novelty associated with modernity and a break with tradition.

Set in 1920's London, our leading lady is aspiring actress Kit Linton. She has left her family and their narrow minded ways behind in Australia to head to London to fullfill her dream of a theatre career. She crosses paths with famous people including Fred Astaire, Noel Coward and the Prince of Wales. 

The scandal of the title leads us down a path in the story.....in our modern day terms not scandalous at all. Kit is photographed dancing the Charleston alongside the Prince of Wales, sending the Palace into damage control and Kit into the arms of the hedonistic Lord Henry Carleton.

While she does have aristocratic English relatives, Kit has tried to distance herself from this lifestyle, as she tries to  follow her own path and true passion in theatre.  Theatre life is complicated, or id that complemented, by an affection for her co-star Zeke Gardiner, who is a good looking Canadian. He is also is finding himself in a different country and treading the boards, with his dancing and singing talent.

Essentially a love story, .of many twists and turns, readers will be caught up in the era of 1920s London theatre life, a dash of royalty, a sprinkle of Charleston glamour and the blossoming of homosexuality and caberet cross dressing. Lords and ladies acting in reckless ways.....this is where the true scandel lies I think.

There is a great ensemble of supporting characters like Val, Perry and Tallulah and I believe a little bit of historical license as the Prince of Wales and his brothers head the roaring 20s glitter. A fun and fast time was had by these characters.  I loved the scene set and also the crossover to real people who were actually living in this time

I found the romance between Zeke and Kit often frustrating............as I am sure they did too at times.

Thanks to NetGalley, Pamela Hart and Hachette Australia for this escapism. I received a digital copy of this novel in return for an honest review.

This is a wonderful novel set in 1920’s London, the story centres around Kit Scott a young Australian actress who has come to London to make it on the stage. Cast in a West End play opposite another young hopeful, Canadian Zeke Gardiner.

Kit finds herself enjoying the heady lifestyle of English high society and the London theatre set, hanging out with the likes of Noel Coward to Fred Astaire and his sister, Adele.

When Kit is photographed dancing the Charleston alongside the Prince of Wales, she finds herself at the centre of a major scandal. The Palace goes in to damage control and is encouraged to be seen with Lord Henry Carleton.

Kit is torn between the pulled of living the fine life as apart of the English high society that she was brought up to be apart of or continuing on stage.

I really enjoyed this book, it was an intriguing inside in to the way you were treated depending on class to be very interesting, and that those in the theatre weren’t considered very highly.

‘She’d yearned for a world where people could be themselves, even if it was only here, behind closed doors, among friends. But if she were herself would they like her? Or would she be too dull and respectable for them?’

One is always guaranteed a great read with a Pamela Hart story and her latest release lived up to expectation. Listening to a podcast, Pamela explained how it was time to move on from the war years and into the 1920s - it was time to celebrate! Pamela brilliantly captures all the glitz and glamour of the era along with the push to break with long held traditions.

I enjoyed reading Kit’s story as she tries to break free from her upper class upbringing in Sydney to the stage and lights of London. Pamela introduces real time events and people such as Noel Coward and the Astaire’s from the entertainment side, to royalty with the Prince of Wales and his circle of friends, adding a real depth to the story. Kit finds herself torn between two lifestyles and two men representative of each way of living. Pamela perfectly portrays the hedonistic partying lifestyle of dancing and drinking but balances it with a more reflective aspect of cutting ties of past lives and ways of living. The ‘scandal’ itself is not simply the one off capture on film but rather, how women especially struggled to forge a new path from the ashes of war.

Within this seemingly lighthearted tale, I appreciated the spotlight Pamela shone on issues such as the role of women, LGBT clubs, alcoholism and domestic abuse and the fictional likelihood of living the life of royalty and landed gentry. Testament to Pam’s writing is how seamlessly she interweaves all of the above to produce a complete and engaging tale.

I congratulate Pamela for stepping away her war year novels and producing this compelling read of life after the war in London. It captures the emotions and perfectly portrays everything from the growth of fashion and music, to politics and social conventions. This is a wonderful tale of historical fiction that I thoroughly enjoyed.

‘Zeke was right, and yet ... there was still a place for formality and etiquette in the world, wasn’t there? To make things run smoothly, the way they should. ‘All these rules,’ he said, leaning comfortably against the wall and watching the crowd with shrewd eyes. ‘They’re just to make sure you can exclude people who aren’t your class. That’s all etiquette is.’ There was truth to that. But surely there was more to it?

In short: not my glass of champagne. I have to give the author their dues: setting is done beautifully. Sprinkling fiction with real life personalities is very tasteful.

But... The characters frustrated me to no end. Especially the main heroine Kit. She is... 'almost there'. She is almost gentry but she is not. She is almost likeable human and then she is not. It seemed to me that Kit did not know herself or what she wants some of the time. I did not paticularly liked her 'insight' comments about Zeke... Kit was too snobby for her own good, in places.

Overall, The Charleston Scandal is nice romantic story with a happy end. May be 'scandal' is too strong of a title...

3.5⭐⭐⭐⭐ I have several of Pamela Hart's novels on my shelf waiting to be read and I'm looking forward to getting to them at some point.

Pamela Hart's newest novel is set in the 1920s involving a young actress, Kit, who has come to London from Australia to follow her dream. Kit comes from a well-to-do family and through her upbringing has taken on the views of the aristocracy, where class is important and people below your class aren't as good as you are. While I liked Kit, I didn't love her, I could see she struggled to find who she was and where she belonged in this new world, but it took her a long time to fully realise that the class system was systemically wrong and to make a decision to follow her heart.

I did love Zeke, a young man from Canada who has, just as Kit has, come to London to be on stage, while at the same time running from his past and supporting his mother financially. Zeke was a lovely guy, who was down to earth and completely loyal to Kit and his friends. He struggled with his feelings, believing himself to be not of the right social class for Kit. I really felt for him in his struggle.

The Scandal that happens between Kit and the Prince, was so innocuous it was hard to fathom that the palace would make such a big thing of it, but I guess that's royalty, or at least it was back then. I didn't like the way kit was forced to pretend to be stepping out with Lord Henry, who I didn't like much at all. Being pulled into this social scene even further only made Kit's struggle with who she was and where she fit in harder to work out.

I enjoyed getting a behind the scenes look at the acting and dancing scene in the 1920s, it was also fun seeing the social scene that they got to be part of, Fred and Adele Astair and Noel Coward and the friendships they forged, I'd of loved to have been a part of that scene. The way the titled people behaved was not a surprise, but I would never want to be a part of that scene.

An enjoyable read full of decisions and moral dilemmas. I hoped all the way through that Kit would make the right decisions and see how wonderful Zeke was.

Thanks to NetGalley and Hachette Australia for a digital copy of this novel in return for an honest review.

What an interesting book The Charleston Scandal has been. It’s the first time I’ve read anything by Pamela Hart but based on this book I’ll be back for more. I loved lead characters Kit Linton aka Katherine Scott and Zeke Gardiner. Both were beautifully drawn and positively bursting with life when performing their song and dance routines. You could hear their energy bursting off the page. The setting in 1923 London provided for fascinating side stories with plenty of famous names gracing the pages. I thought the glimpse of the lifestyle of the royal princes, particularly the Prince of Wales, was very well written, providing just enough suggestion of the drink, drugs and adultery that seems to have been prevalent among members of that set. Kit has been raised to obey all the rules of etiquette, to understand just how an aristocratic household should run and just how to behave when mingling with the aristocracy. I thought her defence of her profession in the face of aristocratic disdain and enjoyed the way author Pamela Hart highlighted the social prejudices prevalent a ross all levels of London society at the time. This story sparkles with fun and I found myself zipping through the pages. It was pure entertainment.

This was my first Pamela Hart book, and I loved it.

Kit is an emerging actress/dancer from Sydney, partnered with Zeke (another Colonial – he’s Canadian) on the West End in a play – which is a dream for both. On a night of frivolity, rubbing shoulders with the likes of the Astaires and other “well-born” people Kit is snapped in a photograph dancing the Charleston with the then Prince of Wales.

To divert the attention of a Royal behaving badly, and prevent rumours of a burgeoning romance with a non-royal, non-high-born actress from the Colonies, the Palace float the idea that Lord Henry Carleton and Kit are in fact a romantic couple. There are few things I love more than royal intrigue and while a photograph of a Prince dancing, is likely to barely raise an eyebrow today (or not, celebrity "news" today is not really any better), it may have done slightly more in the Jazz Age. The scandal is not the point of the story though, so if you are going to read it for that reason alone, you will be disappointed.

You will not however be disappointed with the real story – the fun and frivolity of London in the Jazz Age, when your star is on the rise and you are being exposed to nights of excess, money, pomp and celebrity. The story however also contrasts the lows of the era, the naivety of those whose star is on the rise, the class divide and being exposed to nights of excess, money, pomp, and celebrity……

I love Kit and Zeke. Their backstories, relationship, and their ability to cope in a time of change was so well written. There are so many great supporting characters who only increased my enjoyment of this read.
I loved this book.

Thank you to Hachette Australia and Netgalley for the opportunity to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Kit Scott, daughter of a Dean in Sydney, Australia, was in London prepared to work hard and become a success. It was the 1920s and the West End play, opposite Canadian Zeke Gardiner was a dream come true for the two rising youngsters. Kit had fought with her parents before she left Australia – dancing and acting was all she’d ever wanted to do. But although they hadn’t wanted it for her, they were still loving parents, there for her if she needed them.

Kit’s life changed dramatically once the play’s season was under way. London’s high society included dancing at clubs and dining out, in the company of royalty no less. Meeting Fred and Adele Astaire, Noel Coward and more; but it was the night a group of them were dancing the Charleston with Kit beside the Prince of Wales on one side and Lord Henry Carleton on the other, that trouble started. A photographer who captured Kit with the Prince made headlines in all the papers – the royals went into damage control.

Acting, dancing, being in Zeke’s company constantly during working hours meant they became firm friends. But the scandal from the Charleston dance meant Kit also had to keep company with Lord Henry. Kit had been very naïve when she arrived in London, she still was to a degree – but things were changing. And Kit was changing as well. She knew what she wanted, she was only twenty-one after all – but could she maintain her discipline in the face of the richness, the money, the pomp and pageantry that was in front of her?

The Charleston Scandal by Aussie author Pamela Hart was fabulous! The shows, the dancing, the music, the fun they all had. I would have loved to be in the audience for several of them; the gaiety, the laughter, the sheer entertainment – they knew how to have a good time in the Jazz Age! It wasn’t all fun though and the author depicts each and every emotion perfectly. There were lots of wonderful characters in The Charleston Scandal, Kit and Zeke of course, but Perry, Val, Susan were but a few. Highly recommended.

With thanks to Hachette AU for my ARC to read in exchange for an honest review.

Kit Scott left her stuffy family behind in Sydney Australia to follow her dream and become a star of the stage in London’s West End. The war has just ended, the lucky young men to survive want to have fun, and this includes going out to the theatre, attending parties, drinking, listening to jazz music and dancing.
Zeke Gardiner is a Canadian actor from British Columbia, he’s good looking and he can sing and dance. The couple's cast together in a play, they spend a lot of time close together on stage and their relationship is only a professional one.
Kat and Zeke meet members of England’s high society, including Royalty, Fred Astaire and his sister Adele. When a photographer takes a picture of Kit dancing the Charleston with the Prince of Wales, it receives a lot of unwanted attention and the palace isn't happy. They introduce Kit to Lord Henry Carleton; of course she was dancing with him and not the future King.
The Charleston Scandal portrays what life was like in the roaring twenties in London, it was a time of daring change, fashion, society, music and dance played at huge part. I really liked reading about Kit and Zeke, and they had to decide if they wanted to be professional actors or give into temptation and be led astray by the frivolity, fun and excessive partying going on around them in 1920’s England! I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review; I loved The Charleston Scandal and five stars from me.

Really enjoy Pamela's books and this was no exception.

Set in 1920's London, aspiring actress Kit Linton meets numerous famous people including Fred Astaire and the Prince of Wales on her journey from Australia to the West End.

Thanks Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book.

Pamela Hart is a master storyteller. Once again she has delivered a unique story drawing us into a world of theatre and privilege. A love story lead by a strong woman following her true heart.