Book Review of
The Windsor Affair

Lynn's Review

The Windsor Affair by Melanie Benjamin is a historical fiction book about Wallis Simpson and Edward, who was heir to the British throne. It is told from the perspective of the Queen Mother and Wallis Simpson. It focuses as much on the relationship between Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, and Wallis Simpson as it does on the affair involving Edward, the Prince of Wales. 

Elizabeth, known as the Queen Mother, was the mother of Queen Elizabeth and was the Duchess of York before becoming Queen. 

Wallis Simpson was an American who had been divorced twice and had an affair with Edward, the Prince of Wales. 

I decided to read this book because I read great reviews from people who had read similar books. I was looking forward to reading a historical fiction book about two people I did not know a lot about. 

I did learn quite a bit about England and the British Empire pre-WWII and during WWII. 

I also learned a lot about Queen Elizabeth’s family that ruled before she did. So much of what I know about royal life is modern royal life, so I found the history interesting. 

However, I struggled with all the fiction mixed in with all the facts. I feel like this book was heavy on fiction and light on facts.

The book also felt very gossipy. I have read other historical fiction books about the royals, and none of them felt as gossipy as this one. I think that might be because the book revolved around an affair and Edward’s abdication, but I still felt it could have been told better. 

I know this book has great reviews on Amazon and other places, and I can see why people would love it, it just wasn’t quite the book that I was expecting. It was also a little more PG-13 than I like, but I kind of expected it to be since it is about an affair. 

This is the first book by Melanie Benjamin that I have read, and I liked her writing enough that I will definitely try her other books.