There’s a lot more to famed society beauty and one-time mistress of the future Edward VII than I had ever realised. That was the sum total of my knowledge in fact – and that she also went on the stage. But as this comprehensive and balanced biography makes clear she was a truly remarkable woman, ahead of her times in so many ways. Yes, she was Edward’s mistress – but also well received by Alexandra. Yes, she was an actress – not just an amateur one, but a very successful and acclaimed professional who toured all over the world. She was also an astute business woman and property tycoon, a racing aficionado, who had success on the race track with her own horses, and a gambler at Monte Carlo who usually came out ahead. She had an illegitimate daughter but managed to launch her into high society. So much to intrigue and entertain the reader here. Originally published in the 1970s, the biography shows its age a bit. We are used, perhaps, to more revealing biographies these days, and Gerson had access to very little of Langtry’s personal papers – if indeed there are any – so a real sense of interiorly is lacking. We only read what she wanted published. However, I thoroughly enjoyed the book and found myself more and more interested in Lillie as the pages went by. A great read about a really fascinating woman.

An entertaining look at the life and times of a woman who defied all conventions and lived her life they way she wanted. Noel Gerson has done an excellent job of presenting Lillie in a true light, without censure or prejudice. Lillie Langtry was one of the most celebrated actresses in an age when women were expected to live their lives according to rules set by the men in their lives. The book is so well written, it's more like watching a movie than reading a book.

Lille Langtry tells is a biography of the mistress of Edward VII. After reading many biographies on the infamous royal mistress, I thought this book provided very few details I didn’t already know. Still, this was a balanced and comprehensive biography. I recommend this fans of the royals.

This biography is excellent for those who only have a vague idea of who Lillie Langtry was and want to find out more without getting heavily into research about her life, the times, and theories of scandals. Occasionally repetitive, particularly toward the end, it seems to skim the surface of Lillie's life without digging deeply. There are no references to diaries, journals, letters she may have written- rarely a word from Lillie herself that is not a public interview from her public persona. Whether those personal words no longer exist I don't know, the author doesn't tell us- except to say occasionally that referenced letter such as those between Lille and King Edward VII no longer exist. That was a bit disappointing, but if something doesn't exist there isn't anything you can do about it. It does keep the biography feeling more surface and more like Lillie's public persona than her behind the scenes feelings, but you learn a great deal about her and how she helped her friends, her family, and change the course of women's fashion, theater, and society.

A fascinating woman who should be more known today than she is, I definitely think this is a book that would interest people- Lillie was a more modern woman than the title here suggests and lived a fascinating life.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Kind, generous and extremely smart. Lillie was all three, but everyone remembers her as the beautiful mistress of Edward VII, unfortunately. Lillie was much more than that, and Noel Gerson does her justice in this fascinating biography, although he leaves out some of her famous affairs. This is one of the best biographies of Lillie that I've read. Some were a bit dry and dull, surprisingly.

Captivating and artistic, Lillie became an excellent actress - she was even helped by Sarah Bernhardt - and successful in the English and American theatres. She was also a good businesswoman. This book delves into her relationships with her lovers and husbands, her friends (who included Oscar Wilde) and her rather sad relationship with her daughter. Gerson analyses the character of the very likeable, but sometimes ruthless Lillie, but doesn't fall in love with his subject. Almost!

This is a great read for anyone interested in Lillie and the Edwardian era.

I received this free ebook from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

My thanks to the publisher for an advanced review copy of this biography of the celebrity influencer of her age, Lillie Langtry. What a pity she lived her extraordinary life before the internet was invented. - she would have enjoyed it.

In her time, she bewitched countless men in public life from President Theodore Roosevelt and Prime Minister Gladstone to Roy Bean, self styled hanging judge of Texas, who named the wild town of Langtry after her. She is best known, of course, for her relationship with the future King Edward VII and also perhaps for her long term friendship with Oscar Wilde, who she supported through his persecution and imprisonment.

Mark Twain found it astonishing that she had a genuine talent on the stage, a view shared by Sarah Bernhardt, perhaps the best known actress of her age.

Improbably, Emilie Charlotte Le Breton’s father was an Anglican clergyman on the island of Jersey. She shared this birthplace with William the Conqueror.

The book begins with her rise as a ‘Professional Beauty’, a feature of an age thankfully long gone. Following an incident with a misplaced ice cube, she finds herself in need of a job, and what a career she makes of it!

From the tumultuous opening night of ‘She Stoops to Conquer’ in 1881, she wowed audiences on both sides of the Atlantic for well over 30 years. Apart from comedy roles, she played Lady Macbeth to acclaim. But this was by no means all. She was the first woman to use her celebrity to advertise a commercial product. She smoked in public. She disrobed on stage in a play. And all along the way, she fell in love from time to time and married probably the least talented of her consorts. She had a daughter but not by her husband of the time. She owned race horses and a stable, which bred several winners. She bought properties and sold them at huge profit in the UK and in America. She bought new wardrobes of clothes partly designed by herself in Paris. She bought a west end theatre and refurbished it entirely. And she made lots and lots of money. Enough to afford a flutter in Monaco where she lived in her retirement with the final lame duck husband placed a half hour drive away.

I’ve been intrigued by the name Lillie Langtry since my childhood in Bournemouth, where there is a hotel called the Langtry Manor. Her affair with the Prince of Wales may have taken her there. She was still a household name some forty years after her death in 1929.

It is not easy to capture her glamour or her modernity in a book with the position of women in society changed quite fundamentally from how it was in her time. The author does his best and has produced a book which gives some insight into Edwardian society in the UK and in the US and the place in it of one extraordinary woman.

A great read, very interesting. I did not really know who Lillie Pantry was before reading this book now I feel I have a good knowledge of her

I read this ARC for an honest review
All thoughts and opinions are mind

Fascinating, well researched, well written
A great read about a woman who could easily be lost to history unless books likes this are written

Another wonderful popular biography from the late American author Noel Gerson. Originally published in the early 70s, this delightful book takes us on a journey through the life of the great Lillie Langtry (the Jersey Lily) the Anglo-American actress & socialite that captivated the minds and the hearts of many on both sides of the Atlantic at the end of the 19th century & first part of the 20th. From her successful professional career on the London & NYC stages to her many love affairs (the most famous being with the future Edward VII) her adventurous life takes us from the heights of the Victorian Era through the American Gilded Age and the frivoulsness of the Belle Epoque. Celebrated for her beauty, her free spirit & her talent, Lillie Langtry left an indelible mark on her times. An incredible life told with brio by Noel Gerson.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Sapere Books for the opportunity to read this wonderful biography.

What a fascinating book about an intriguing woman! Lillie captivated the world with her outstanding beauty, incredible intelligence and her verve. She was compared with Helen of Troy, was athletic, an infamous actress, a reader, a horsewoman and international traveler which is extraordinary especially in Victorian times when women were nearly always dependent on men.

Beautiful, subtropical Jersey is the place of Lillie's birth. At the age of twenty she married Edward Langtry as her "escape" from what she considered a mundane life. Marriage enabled her to pursue what she loved and she certainly did. Her beauty soon caused a stir in the aristocratic circles and she and Edward were invited to parties, often several in one day! For the first year she was known to wear the same black dress to every single one but shortly after she began leading fashion trends so what she wore was quickly emulated. She was able to purchase hundreds of dresses at a fraction of full price. Later she became the best actress on the stage and her events sold out, even at triple the price. Her beauty and figure remained youthful well into her sixties and bewitched many. She is best known as Prince Edward's mistress and was friends with Oscar Wilde and Gladstone, amongst others. She made many wise investments and was brilliant with money until later in life. She was able to provide for her mother and daughter as well.

What a commanding personality! She knew how to garner attention and yet seemed to be self deprecating to an extent at times according to some of her quotes about her beauty and health routines. It seems she was a force to be reckoned with and not always likeable (who is?) but a huge presence nonetheless. This book prompted me to research her and her daughter...I discovered many photographs which are lovely indeed. Though her life was a constant whirlwind (she was high energy) she also suffered challenges, as we all do.

My sincere thank you to Sapere Books and NetGalley for allowing me the privilege of reading this enthralling book. I highly, highly recommend it.