If you're looking for a historical fiction that is unique and fresh in the genre, this book is for you! The Mitford Affair takes place in between the World Wars, leading up to WW2. The book follows the Mitford family, whose lives I was utterly intrigued by and invested in almost right from the start. I loved this compelling read about their lives during this time in history and the story of family, scandal, and society that followed. I've read several of Marie Benedict's books and this was once again a memorable read by her in which I learned so much. Definitely not a book to be missed!

Many thanks to Sourcebooks Landmark and Netgalley for the gifted e-copy!

The Mitford Affair by Marie Benedict

Synopsis:
Between the World Wars, the six Mitford sisters dominate the English political, literary, and social scenes. Though they've weathered scandals before, the family falls into disarray when Diana divorces her husband to marry a fascist leader and Unity follows her sister's lead, inciting rumors that she's become Hitler's own mistress.

The Mitford Affair was an intriguing and interesting read. I didn't realize that this is based on a true story and the Mitford sisters were real people. That in itself made it much more interesting!

I have read a lot of historical fiction that takes place during World War II and I found it refreshing that this book took place in the years leading up to the war. I found it fascinating that the world was so captivated by the Mitford family. I think that the fact that they were so famous allowed them to get away with things that far less famous people would have been tried for treason for. At times I felt rather sick to my stomach reading about just how involved with Nazism they became and just HOW close to Hitler they were. It just felt icky for lack of a better word knowing how much death and destruction would follow after the book was over. I wish that the book had had an epilogue where the reader could find out just how the whole family had faired after the war- if society accepted them again or if they were forced to move away..

Having heard of the Mitford sisters before--and generally loving this particular time period in history--I was so drawn to this novel from the moment I read the synopsis.

A story of a large family, at its core, I found myself immersed into the lives of the six Mitford sisters during the rise of WWII. The story revolves around three of the sisters; Nancy, Unity, and Diana. It was fascinating reading about their lives during this time and how each of their choices led to incredible outcomes. Fascism, scandal, intrigue, danger--the story was full of it all. 

This was truly an incredible story.

There are not enough words or phrases for me to use to describe almost every story by #MarieBenedict as I am bias to her writing! Her style and prose are always endearing and entertaining for me...I have yet to be disappointed by her choice of characters and her turn of phrases. She has many stories Readers so please venture to read all her novels ladies and gents, hopefully you enjoy them!

3.5 stars. Good book with fascinating characters. I’d never heard of the Mitford sisters before. A bit slow going though and nothing really halogens for about three-quarters of the book. Thank you to the publisher and Net Galley for the arc.

I was excited about the new Marie Benedict book but I found the Mitford Affair a bit boring. I am normally a fan of historical fiction but I didn't find this story particularly compelling and I am not sure that I would really recommend it. I fear readers will be disappointed.

Thank you @netgalley for the Advanced Reader Copy of The Mitford Affair by Marie Benedict. I typically like Marie Benedict's historical fiction, but I did not finish this one. I did not like the characters, and the depiction of their interest in the Nazi party was tough to read as well. It is possible I'll go back to this one at another time, but it was not for me right now. I'm sure it's a great book overall. #themitfordaffair #mariebenedict #bookstagram

I could not finish it. I hated the characters and their actions. To be fair, it's a testament to the skills of the author to honestly depict these real-life people. They just aren't people I want to spend any time with.

Benedict continues her run of tremendous storytelling with the Mitford Affair. Interestingly, in her author's note, she mentions that her interest in writing about the Mitford sisters was peaked when she was writing about their cousin, Clementine, Winston Churchill's wife. Similarly, after reading Lady Clementine, I went down a deep Google rabbit hole, reading about this fascinating family.

With the Mitford Affair she does a superb job of what I imagine was a difficult task - helping you understand how Unity and Diana fell under the spell of Hitler and nazism - portraying him as a person they had lunch, watched movies, and connected with - compared to the monster he was. I wish there had been a bit more about Decca (Jessica) and her love of communism, just as such a great balance to Unity and Diana - with Nancy, the rational voice in the center.

Overly long and plodding, without any likable characters. I held on hoping it would turn around, but now I kind of wish I had DNFed it.

I learned so much in this fascinating, fun book. Benedict is a great historical novelist and this may. E her best yet.

Thank you to #NetGalley, #sourcebooks #Marie Benedict for the free eARC.

I love historical fiction and Marie Benedict is one of my favorite authors. I try to ever one of her books. This book did not disappointment. The research was done well and included many details that felt gleaned from quality research. I love the story of how the author became interested in the Mitford Sisters. I had not heard of them prior to reading this book.

I liked the characters. Each one had their own distinct personality, ideas, inspirations, and goals for the political endeavors. All the while dealing with the lemons they had been given, how different they were, I often wondered if the family could survive the turmoil with their relationships intact especially since they were so politically divided.

I also liked the fact the chapters were short . Each chapter a sister gave their story adding that led me to like them more and more or not so much. I did like the characters, but also wondered if the sisters were believable in their storytelling.

I would recommend this book for those who like WWII, sisters and family relationships, fascism, communist, drama, being involved in the war, relationships with war leaders,, and dealing with trauma.

This was an easily readable historical fiction told from the perspective of 3 sisters. Well, not really the perspective because it was all third person POV, but each chapter followed one sister's story at a time in a different point in the year. The story was told chronologically even though each chapter followed a jump in time.

I think I found Unity's story the most interesting to follow for the sheer fact that it was ludicrous. To me, at least. However, it's important to remember that during that time, it was not at all unbelievable to imagine women becoming besotted and infatuated with Hitler. Even today, we hear stories of celebrity stalkers who seem completely out of touch with reality. I think this is a perfect parallel of Unity - someone who wants to impress someone else so much that they're is no shred of themselves left to hang onto. At the end, who was Unity other than a Hitler groupie he used as propaganda to appeal to the citizens of Great Britain?

Although I enjoyed this story, I found myself bored with Nancy's story, even though that's who I should have been rooting for. Her inaction to move against her sisters and her unwillingness to get out of a terrible marriage made her such a passive character that it was hard to like her. I understand she's a real person in history and that acting against family you love must be difficult, but it doesn't change the fact that her chapters bored me. Hence the 3 stars.

I hadn't heard of the Milford sisters before this and I'd be curious to read some nonfiction about them. Such division in a family - socialism, communism, fascism, Nazism - is fascinating.

Thank you to the publisher for my copy - all opinions are my own.

I really deeply enjoyed this story, and it remined me why I love reading historical fiction when it is this well done. Everything about this book is wonderfully crafted from the dynamic and fascinating characters, to the beautifully descriptive surroundings and the drama of the plot in the middle of it all.

This is one not to be missed by historical fiction lovers.

I wanted to like this book, but I finally gave up about halfway through. While the premise is good, and I usually find historical fiction fascinating. In addition, this book covers a time period and topic that I had not learned about -- the rise of Fascism and communism in England between the World Wars. Unfortunately, the plot is rather boring and the characters are confusing. I had a great difficulty identifying and relating to the characters, in part because each of them had several names often used interchangeably. There are several sisters, each with a distinct name and then a distinct nickname. Add to that all the family members and colleagues who also have names and nicknames, I just lost interest with the effort to distinguish between the characters. Plus, nothing really happened much. There was one incident of a near riot at a rally, but most of the narrative seemed to be exposition and political rhetoric. I have other books waiting, so I've just put this one aside.

I have rarely met a book where I could not like at least one character. The Mitford Affair is a rarity. None of the sisters, as portrayed by the author, are lovable or even likeable.
You get to hear their stories. You might end up hating them all and each one in turn.
A very interesting take on the whole family.

I always enjoy reading about the Mitford family and Marie Benedict's writing and storytelling is immersive and engaging.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this digital ARC.

i usually enjoy Benedict’s books, but this one was tough for me. i think it was the lack of connection i felt to the main characters, aristocratic sisters from England, a few of who are Nazi sympathizers in the 1920s and 30s. i did like the drama and scandal aspects but it was just meh for me.

The Mitford Affair is written by one of my favorite authors, Marie Benedict. It is a historical novel about a topic and family I had never heard of before. So that combined with the fact that it is just written to pull the reader in, the subject material is also fascinating.

The Mitford family lives in Britain in the 1920-30s. The Mitford sisters are well liked and are part of the best social circles. The oldest sister, Diane is beautiful and married to a very important and wealthy man. Then she divorces her husband and gets involved with a fascist leader. Unity is the most quiet and plain sister, with questionable political views. She becomes enamored of the German chancellor rising to power, Adolf Hitler. Sister Nancy is clever and an author, who watches her sisters becoming more and more involved in the atrocities happening in Germany. She writes a novel using her sisters and their friends in a thinly veiled call to action.

This novel shows the power of words to hold sway over people. Also the need for love and attention to draw people together and pull them apart. A look at how the people were drawn in by Hitler and Mussolini.