Her Heart for a Compass

Her Heart for a Compass
AuthorSarah Ferguson, Duchess of York
LanguageEnglish
GenreRomance novel
PublisherMills & Boon
Publication placeUnited Kingdom
Pages560
ISBN978-0-00-838360-2

Her Heart for a Compass is a 2021 romance novel by Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York. The novel is a semi-fictional story about the Duchess's great-great-aunt, Lady Margaret Montagu Douglas Scott.[1]

Plot

Margaret's hair is frequently featured, it's variously a "rebellious red mop", a "sodden mass of rebellious curls", a "scarlet flag, wild curls whipping around her face", and "burnished autumn leaves".

Drawing on many parallels from the authors life for the historical tale, Lady Margaret Montagu Douglas Scott was pictured in a Victorian-style floor-length outfit, complete with high-necked blouse, jacket and gloves, sitting on a stone bench gazing at a compass she held out in front of her, the Lady – although her family, the Duke and Duchess of Buccleuch, were close friends with the Queen and the Prince Consort, the Duke's ex-wife and the Queen's former in-law – struggled to come to terms with the rigorous disciplines of royal life after marrying, and that their second daughter, Margaret, was a redhead with a birthday "within a few days" of her own.

The real details of Margaret's own life are scant; described in gossip rags as a "Titian-haired breath of fresh Scotch air", was "15 years in the making". Beginning when she discovered romance, her heroine's 'rebellious' red hair is much more of a feature, that depicts her as a woman who is initially the toast of London in the Duchess' historical novel, than sex. The Fleet Street papers initially loved her raunchy edge but eventually decided it was more vulgar than charming. "It was always that I was portrayed as the sinner," she says.

An act of rebellion costs Lady Margaret Montagu Douglas Scott her place in society, leading to her needing to count on, and testing her own courage and resilience.

The novel follows Lady Theodora Grosvenor as she navigates the expectations of Victorian high society and the marriage market. After becoming the subject of public scandal and criticism in the press, she leaves aristocratic society and experiences financial hardship. The story traces her journey from the royal court and country houses in Scotland and Ireland to the slums of London and, later, to New York City in the 1870s, where she seeks greater independence and a new direction in life.

Margaret embarked on a journey of self-discovery where she met her companions who shape her world.

It follows the Lady Margaret Montagu Douglas Scott, "who desires to break the mould, follow her internal compass – her heart – and discover her raison d'être – falling in love along the way". She is described as a spirited, Titian-haired, freckled beauty.

The novel veers around somewhat in tone, from archaic – Margaret's priest informs her that "you cannot have imagined I would have kissed you in such a manner unless my intentions were honourable" and one admirer opines: "She was very naive but, by heavens, she had real spirit, too, no one could doubt that."

Well-researched, and a glimpse into the strictures of life as a pampered, rich, upper-class woman. It wears its research lightly, with intriguing forays into topics such as Victorian bathing dresses, and the Queen's predilection to "pour her tea from one cup to another until it was adequately cooled". Margaret realising that she doesn't need to "conform to the rules set down by society", that a Buccleuch woman doesn't need a strategic marriage, and that her despairing cry, "no one seems to care that underneath I'm an actual person", isn't altogether true.

Characters

Production

The publishing rights were acquired by Mills & Boon.[2] The book is published by William Morrow and Company in the United States.[3] Ferguson worked with Scottish romance author Marguerite Kaye on the novel.[4]

Reception

The novel placed 10th in the United Kingdom's hardback fiction bestsellers chart, after selling 1,079 copies in the week ending 14 August 2021.[5] In the novel's first week it sold 1,241 hardback copies.[5]

Critical reception of the novel was generally mixed.[6] The Times's Sarah Ditum called the novel a "thinly veiled wish fulfilment fantasy" that "is more slog than seduction" and rated it two out of five stars.[7] The Daily Telegraph's Hannah Betts described the novel as "underwhelming" and also rated it two out of five stars.[8] The Guardian's Alison Flood praised the work as "chaste good fun".[9] The Independent's Roisin O'Connor rated the novel three out of five stars.[10] The Evening Standard's Melanie McDonagh recalled the novel as "amiable tosh" and "a perfect example of the genre".[11]

References

  1. ↑ Dibdin, Emma (27 July 2021). "Sarah Ferguson In Talks to Turn Her Debut Novel Into A Bridgerton-Style Series". Town & Country. Archived from the original on 4 August 2021. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
  2. ↑ Chandler, Mark (13 January 2021). "Duchess of York's debut novel scooped by Mills & Boon". The Bookseller. Archived from the original on 25 January 2021. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
  3. ↑ Yossman, K. J. (26 July 2021). "Duchess of York Sarah Ferguson Enters Talks to Turn New Novel Into 'Bridgerton'-Style Period Drama". Variety. Archived from the original on 30 July 2021. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
  4. ↑ Goldman, Andrew (26 July 2021). "Inside the Reinvention of Sarah Ferguson, the Ultimate Royal Rebel". Town & Country. Archived from the original on 2 August 2021. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
  5. 1 2 Flood, Alison (17 August 2021). "Sarah Ferguson's Mills & Boon novel edges on to UK bestsellers chart". The Guardian. ISSN 1756-3224. OCLC 900948621. Archived from the original on 17 August 2021. Retrieved 17 August 2021.
  6. ↑ Stolworthy, Jacob (3 August 2021). "Sarah Ferguson book review round-up: What the critics are saying about Duchess of York's Mills & Boon novel". The Independent. ISSN 0951-9467. OCLC 185201487. Archived from the original on 3 August 2021. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
  7. ↑ Ditum, Sarah (3 August 2021). "Her Heart for a Compass by Sarah Ferguson review — a rather sexless affair". The Times. Archived from the original on 3 August 2021. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
  8. ↑ Betts, Hannah (3 August 2021). "Her Heart for a Compass: Sarah Ferguson's Mills & Boon book is an interminable door stopper". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 3 August 2021. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
  9. ↑ Flood, Allison (3 August 2021). "Her Heart for a Compass by Sarah Ferguson review – Mills & Boon debut is chaste good fun". The Guardian. ISSN 1756-3224. OCLC 900948621. Archived from the original on 2 August 2021. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
  10. ↑ O'Connor, Roisin (3 August 2021). "Her Heart for a Compass by Sarah Ferguson review: Duchess of York's Mills & Boon debut is endearing, but won't set pulses racing". The Independent. ISSN 0951-9467. OCLC 185201487. Archived from the original on 3 August 2021. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
  11. ↑ McDonagh, Melanie (3 August 2021). "Her Heart for a Compass by Sarah Ferguson review: amiable tosh from Sarah, Duchess of York". Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 3 August 2021. Retrieved 3 August 2021.
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