Queen Bees cover art

Queen Bees

Six Brilliant and Extraordinary Society Hostesses Between the Wars - A Spectacle of Celebrity, Talent, and Burning Ambition

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Queen Bees

By: Siân Evans
Narrated by: Carole Boyd
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About this listen

Queen Bees looks at the lives of six remarkable women who made careers out of being society hostesses, including Lady Astor, who went on to become the first female MP, and Mrs Greville, who cultivated relationships with Edward VII, as well as Lady Londonderry, Lady Cunard, Laura Corrigan and Lady Colefax.

Told with wit, verve and heart, Queen Bees is the story of a form of societal revolution and the extraordinary women who helped it happen.

In the aftermath of the First World War, the previously strict hierarchies of the British class system were weakened. For a number of ambitious, spirited women, this was the chance they needed to slip through the cracks and take their place at the top of society as the great hostesses of the time. In an age when the place of women was uncertain, becoming a hostess was not a chore but a career choice, and though some of the hostesses' backgrounds were surprisingly humble, their aspirations were anything but.

During the interwar years, these extraordinary women ruled over London society from their dining tables and salons - entertaining everyone from the Mosleys to the Mitfords, from millionaires to maharajas, from film stars to royalty - and their influence can still be felt today.

©2016 Siân Evans (P)2016 John Murray Press 20th Century Europe Great Britain Historical Modern Women England Royalty Heartfelt Thought-Provoking Imperialism War King

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All stars
Most relevant  
My passion for history, society and strong personalities are all wrapped in this gift of a book. Just get it, and enjoy 😉

Superb

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Having just finished 'Flappers' it was interesting to me to explore the lives of the pre war hostesses who entertained some of the cast. I was amazed to discover that only one of them was nobly born most were rich parvenues who were ruthless in their climb to what they saw as the top.

Intriguing

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The research for this book and Part1 have been so extensive highlighting the world, the political, social and all aspects of their effect on our empire, prompting a desire to learn in more detail about this period of time in its history which produced such vast changes in such a comparatively short time.



Yvonne Oliver

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Very enjoyable and insightful biographies which provide a window on a time long gone. Excellently written concurrent accounts of the Queen Bees without diminishing any of them.

Entertaining and hugely informative.

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Will have to play it again. it is just so interesting. The readers voice is perfect.

fastinating

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Well read (with only a few mispronounce words) and with tremendous pace, this audiobook will keep you endlessly entertained as well as filling in gaps in historical knowledge. Well worth it!

Educational and Informative!

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best book yet interesting and informative amazing facts of the ladies of the past

5 stars.

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It's amazing how woman of basic background can have such an important effect on world history through entertainment.

Party and statue, power!

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Much more than party planners & social mountaineers.
Another reviewer heads his review ‘not a rounded view’! I really can’t imagine what s/he was listening to. I have previously read or listened to a number of works that have considerable insight into these women (not least 140+ hours of the diaries of Henry ‘Chips’ Channon!) and so I was keen to have them be the focus of the story rather than the ‘supporting players’ in men’s biographies etc. I found the book insightful and balanced. If anything the style is a little too journalistic and might have benefited from a few lyrical flights, given the milieu of History, Art, Jewels and Objet that these women inhabited and and used to mark their positions and describe their personal value.
Context is everything and especially relevant when looking at women’s achievements or otherwise in a male dominated culture. I found such context evident without being labored, and this and the well rounded portraits that include many voices and contemporary sources of evidence made for an enjoyable read.
I can only imagine that the other reviewers own prejudices blinded him/her from the outset.
In some ways this world (court/politics adjacent Society) is the most difficult to world for those of us who appear to live in more egalitarian and democratic times to comprehend. So much seems superficial and many of the values of this culture seem open to question by us. But the humanity of these women is evident here (good and bad if you will) if you can put aside inverted snobbery and potentially hypocritical distaste for the class ridden milieu and the social mountaineering it took to navigate a place to the top. Be under no illusion, there is always a ‘crème de La crème’ in society. It is only the criteria and the route to that spot that change. Scratch the surface and I doubt that either Britain or America are essentially better places today.

Much more than party planners & social mountaineers.

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Beautifully read by Carole Boyd, Queen Bees is a thorough, informative and enjoyable book that addresses 6 women whose roles and influence in the early 20th C may otherwise be too easily forgotten.

Thank you Sian Evans for a delightful ‘read’

History in a delicious form

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