Paul French’s latest work Her Lotus Year examines Wallis Simpson’s transformative year in 1920s China, offering a compelling counter-narrative to the scandal driven accounts that have long overshadowed her life. Through meticulous research and a sharp focus on providing a historical context, French challenges the tabloid portrayals of Wallis and her activities there. Instead, he offers a nuanced portrait of a woman navigating the challenges faced by foreign women in China, the struggles of escaping an abusive marriage, and her journey of personal reinvention during a turbulent era. This book follows her footsteps “…discovering her experiences of Hong Kong’s Kowloon district, Canton’s Shameen Island, the Shanghai Bund, or Peking’s ancient hutongs.”

Studying the history of China in the 1920s is crucial for understanding the political and social upheavals that shaped the country's trajectory toward revolution and modernisation. This period, marked by the decline of the Qing dynasty and the rise of the Nationalist and Communist movements, laid the foundations for many of the key events in 20th-century Chinese history. At the heart of French’s narrative is a provocative question: was Wallis Simpson a courier for the U.S. Office of Naval Intelligence? French explores the plausibility of this claim, tracing her movements through incredibly dangerous situations and her meetings with important officials. He carefully considers how such connections were crucial in explaining her ability to secure available hotel rooms, afford it, and receive special treatment, including being welcomed and escorted by both American and British officers. He dismisses prior biographers for indulging in gossip and scandal rather than serious inquiry, deftly reconstructing her journeys across a China rife with banditry, warlord conflicts, and disease. By situating Wallis within the vibrant but precarious colonial enclaves of the time, French illuminates a world of treaty ports, crumbling governance, and cultural convergence often overlooked in royal histories.

One of the book’s central themes is the deeply ingrained misogyny and Orientalism that shaped perceptions of Western women in Asia. Wallis’s story underscores how stereotypes of expatriate women—rooted in "yellow peril" fears and moralistic judgments—led to absurd accusations, such as claims linking her to pornographic photos supposedly taken by Sir Victor Sassoon, a Jewish businessman who wasn’t even in China at the time. French reviews these Sino phobic and anti-Semitic narratives, contrasting them with evidence of Wallis’s resourcefulness and adaptability in funding her travels. The secretive nature of her work only allowed accusations of sex work and drug abuse to flourish. Her possible role as an unpaid or underpaid courier for U.S. intelligence highlights the often-overlooked contributions of women to military and diplomatic efforts, even as societal norms relegated them to supporting roles. While not the main focus of this biography, French also profiles many other Western women who live and worked (sometimes publishing under a male name!) in China at the time.

French sensitively examines the gendered constraints of Wallis’s time. Her abusive marriage to a U.S. Navy officer exemplifies the limited agency afforded to diplomatic and military wives, whose lives were inextricably tied to their husbands’ careers. Through empathetic storytelling, French celebrates Wallis’s resilience and eventual escape to the intellectual and cultural vibrancy of Shanghai and Beijing. Her ventures into (successful) gambling and art sales, reveal her determination to carve out a sense of autonomy in an environment where formal employment for foreign women was scarce. Wallis’s later relationship with Alberto da Zara, an Italian naval officer, was brief but significant in her social trajectory. Similarly, the book outlines the wealthy friends who were happy to provide her with accommodation and a living while she attempted to sort out an American divorce from within China. I particularly enjoyed the vivid descriptions of how her courtyard home was decorated. The later sections which include numerous dinner parties, provide an excellent introduction to Chinese writers and intellectuals, offering a glimpse into life in the more affluent hutongs.

Later chapters capture the breath-taking beauty and cultural richness of her surroundings, from morning rides atop the Tartar Wall to explorations of hidden temples and bustling markets. These moments of discovery and wonder are juxtaposed with the harsh realities of living in China during this time. I especially enjoyed the descriptions of the changing seasons in the countryside and what city life would have smelled and sounded like. The author took the time to verify the specific Black Dragon Temple that Wallis stayed in, greatly enhancing the historical accuracy and depth of the descriptions. While previous biographers seemed to overlook the importance of pinpointing the exact temple, this detail is crucial for understanding Wallis’ story and its connection to China’s history. Far from a period of moral decay, Wallis’s time in China emerges as one of profound transformation—a year that left her more sophisticated, worldly, and unshakably herself. I love a story of personal reinvention arising out of trauma, described here as:

“It was a year that would affect her in significant ways. She discovered she could mix easily in sophisticated international company, where the conversation was immeasurably more interesting than the middle-class Baltimore dining rooms or drab US naval base society she had known previously. Over the course of her stay, she would develop a lifelong appreciation of traditional Chinese style and aesthetics, developing the exquisite taste for which she became renowned.”

In revealing Wallis Simpson’s overlooked experiences, French critiques the enduring racism, sexism, and Orientalist tropes that have distorted her legacy. His narrative is not just a biography, but also a broader commentary on the privileges enjoyed by wealthy Western women in China, as well as the challenges they faced. Closing on a bittersweet note, Her Lotus Year reflects on Wallis’s sumptuous highs and harrowing lows, offering a compassionate and richly textured account of her life.

Some may critique his reliance on secondary sources for descriptions, but as someone who has also visited and lived in the locations described in the book a century later, I found the contrasts fascinating. It was intriguing to imagine how Wallis might have travelled, dined, or explored compared to the present day. While much has changed, elements like the historic hotels and iconic treats such as "candied hawthorns on sticks" or "boiled sweet potatoes" continue to resonate with modern travellers.

French demonstrates extensive knowledge of the fiction and memoirs from the time of Wallis's stay, skilfully weaving these elements into the narrative to provide added context, vivid descriptions, and a touch of humour. For readers interested in royal history, expatriate life, or China’s history, this is an essential read. Her Lotus Year stands as both a corrective to lazy historical stereotypes and a celebration of Wallis’s resilience, intelligence, and enduring complexity.

I must admit to never thinking much of Wallis Simpson. I confess, I’d bought into the public portrayal of her being ‘that woman’: crass, double divorcee who, once she lured Edward to her web, she dominated and manipulated the poor sap….So, I was drawn to this book to learn more about this oddly, individual lady, who would have been queen if the public allowed it.

Her Lotus Year, follows Simpson from her time in Hong Kong with her soon to be ex-first husband, up the coast to Shanghai and finally to Peking (Beijing). Along the way French addresses and debunks many of the falsehoods trumped up by the British in order to malign her character. He provides interesting possible points on how events could have been embellished and misconstrued, as well as theories on how Simpson supported herself after leaving her husband.

This book is very readable and full of evocative descriptions, depicting how Simpson may have been so captivated by a place- despite the political turmoil, threat of kidnapping and continued fighting amongst vying warlords. Although I didn’t feel that I got to know more about Wallis Simpson per se, I did learn more about how embellished and pervasive the hate campaign was against her - much of the misinformation stemming from this exotic year. I also loved reading more about this time in China’s history - between the two world wars.

Truthfully, I have never read (or really cared much) about Wallis Simpson. Royalty and particularly its various scandals seems to me a sort of upper class celebrity nonsense that sells papers and little else.
I know the basics. Wallis was American, very thin, divorced and getting her claws into our King. Because of love and the Establishment he's told he can't marry her so he abdicates and off they trot to exile. Rich, pandered to as semi Royals and of course that bit about loving Hitler....
Well Paul French has done an incredible job in making me slightly come down on Wallis's side after the way the Queen Mother and (so it seems the Secret Services and Government) a dodgy 'China Dossier' circulated to make her out as some American geisha girl living a high life with many a man (and opium) in the years 1924/5 in China.
The 'Lotus Years; of the title come directly from Wallis who alluded to them in her memoirs 'The Heart Has Its Reasons' as they refer to Homer's group of Greek legend who live in a state of dreamy forgetfulness, never to return home. But Wallis did return to America as warlords and threats to British and American residents erupted in riots in the summer of 1925. 'Kill the Foreigners' was the call and the somewhat colonialist/idealised world of rich ex -pats was skewered by gunshots.
How did Wallis end up in Peking that summer (her 29th year)?
She was escaping an abusive husband - Commander Win Spencer (surely we can't pass over that surname without some link to Diana.....?)She had married young, somewhat naive. Her father had died at 27 of TB in 1896 when Wallis was 3 months old in Pennsylvania-she'd been called Bessie but hated it. She'd had a good education (mostly in decorum and not academia) and 'came out' in society in 1914. Then 2 years later met tanned and handsome navy man Earl Winfield 'Win' Spencer Jr -8 years her senior. He was a drunk, known it seems by all his navy colleagues and violent. often locking Wallis in bathrooms. Divorce wasn't an option so when Win went to Hong Kong she decided to give the marriage one more try.
She became a China Bird. But reality soon set in again with Win's drinking and violence. He often it seems trailed her to brothels and opium dens. The US Navy ships were 'dry zones' so when her husband was sent to Canton Wallis followed hoping again things might improve. Why did she then continue travelling, mostly alone? Here the story takes an almost Ian Fleming sort of turn....could she have been a secret courier for the US Navy across a country with warlords where communication was difficult and American women might easily transport documents without being noticed?
Surely this is the stuff of a great film? Wallis crosses the China continent by sea and train, avoiding pirates and military uprisings landing finally in Peking. There are a lot of rich and glamorous people she meets (or has known from America) who do pop up but the circle of US Legations (Embassies) allowed for this sort of society. Tiffin and pink gin, polo and bridge (of which Wallis was a great winner even gaining much money) saw her eventually be a single woman having to seek friends and decide how to end her disastrous marriage. The Chinese and Americans were busy making money and Wallis was inventive by buying and selling (for profit) Chinese curios (especially jade)
Did she sleep with lots of men and have scandalous affairs? Well some of her male friends were gay, married or seemingly bisexual. There did seem to be a strong love for an Italian naval man-which of course led to the gossip about her growing links with Mussolini. She did also have dodgy friends and supporters like Diana Mosley (never short of a Hitler sympathy) and of course the later flailing Edward VIII was notoriously suggested he would be made King if Hitler invaded and took over Britain.
But here in those 6 months in Peking where 'a stranger is always welcome' Wallis seemed entranced by the culture and the people and had to learn how to survive as a prospective divorcee and financially as a single woman.
In the end her lotus years ended and she had to face reality. She returned to America and married to become Mrs Simpson.
The rest as they say is history........well one interpretation of it of course.
Superb read. The author brought an unknown period of China to life for me and also how colonialism can often outstay its welcome in the end.

I’m not a royalist in any way, but I do enjoy reading about some of the more interesting characters in the royal circle. Wallis Simpson ticks that box; enigmatic in every way and an individual who changed the course of history. I was aware of her time spent in China but had read little about the detail. Her Lotus Year fills that gap, drawing on extensive research to recount her activities during that period in her life. I was certainly unaware of her diplomatic role and if true, it adds an additional perspective to her life. Rather like Pamela Harriman, Churchill’s daughter, Simpson was a lady much maligned throughout her life. Dismissed as a scheming social climber who brought the British monarchy close to breaking point, she was largely reviled thereafter, not least by the current royals.

This is an interesting and compressive read that adds a different dimension to the lady. I remain intrigued by her and it’s easy to see how she was able to influence and control a stupid and ineffectual monarch.

Before marrying former King Edward, Wallis Simpson spent a year in China. During this time, she struggled to get away from a bad marriage and find herself. I have to admit that this book was a bit of a yawn. I never really got to know the characters and found the story dry. I struggled to get through the pages before finally putting the book down halfway through. Overall, not a book I would reread or recommend.

Wallis simpson is a charcater that is both fascinating and intriguing,

I have always loved reading about Royal women and this historical account of her time in China is just amazing.

I loved the walk through her life while she was going through a troubled time with her husband before she became the Duchess of Windsor. .

Wallis had a love for China, the food, the culture and I loved how we learned how she became the woman that changed the world.

It is a fascinating insight and I adored reading..

I enjoyed getting to read about Wallis Simpson and her time in China, it was everything that I wanted and thought it worked as nonfiction book. Paul French was able to bring Wallis Simpson to life in this and was wonderfully written.