Exit the Actress
A Novel
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5.0 • 2 Ratings
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- $24.99
Publisher Description
From the critically acclaimed author of Vanessa and Her Sister, the debut novel hailed by New York Times bestselling author Philippa Gregory as “a vivid imagining of the restoration London of Charles II with Nell Gwynn as a powerful and engaging heroine.”
While selling oranges in the Theatre Royal, Covent Garden, sweet and sprightly Ellen "Nell" Gwyn impresses the theater’s proprietors with a wit and sparkle that belie her youth and poverty. She quickly earns a place in the company, narrowly avoiding the life of prostitution to which her sister has already succumbed. As her roles evolve from supporting to starring, the scope of her life broadens as well. Soon Ellen is dressed in the finest fashions, charming the theatrical, literary, and royal luminaries of Restoration England.
Ellen grows up on the stage, experiencing first love and heartbreak and eventually becoming the mistress of Charles II. Despite his reputation as a libertine, Ellen wholly captures his heart—and he hers—but even the most powerful love isn’t enough to stave off the gossip and bitter court politics that accompany a royal romance.
Telling the story through a collection of vibrant seventeenth-century voices ranging from Ellen’s diary to playbills, letters, gossip columns, and home remedies, Priya Parmar brings to life the story of an endearing and delightful heroine.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Part epistolary and part faux memoir, Parmar's debut brings a lesser-known bit of English history to life. Nell Gwyn's name has come down through history as an actress who became Charles II's mistress. Despite her humble beginnings, Nell rises quickly with a gift of mimicry, talent for dance, and a unique loveliness. Charles's charisma, meanwhile, is matched only by his reputation as a libertine, and once he realizes Nell wants him as a man and not a king, he falls for her, though their love must survive his scheming ex-mistresses, Nell's love of independence, and a tumultuous political backdrop. What separates this from other royal mistress tales is the real-feeling relationships between Gwyn, Charles, and Queen Catherine: Parmar resists the easy way out of polarizing the reader against either the cheating husband or the cuckolded wife, and Nell is a thoughtful protagonist and narrator. While the epistolary passages can feel contrived, this is a solid debut from a writer readers will want to see more from.
Customer Reviews
Exit the Actress
Loved how this royal romance in 1600's was told by the author through this delightful heroine's diaries and the playbills, and the letters by others, and the gossip columns of that day. As Ellen sold oranges in Covent Garden Theatre, she impressed the right people enough to be moved up in the Company enough to capture the heart of royalty.