The
Viceroy was Lord Curzon, a smart and ambitious aristocrat who married a beautiful American heiress.
When she died, at the turn of the last century, she left him with a lot of money and three
attractive, willful daughters.

These three daughters-Irene, Cimmie and Baba-never did that much
in their own rights (they were no Mitford sisters) but they did circulate in very interesting
crowds. IN addition, their wealth gave them a tremendous sense of independence and ability to pursue
their interests.

Irene, the eldest, never married. Her life was filled with men, foxes, and drink
(not necessarily in that order). Cimmie, the middle, married the British fascist Oswald Mosley. She
was deeply devoted to him and his causes-campaigning in her furs for fascism, for socialism, for
whatever cause captured him-despite his many infidelities. She, like her mother, died young while
her husband was embroiled in an affair with the beautiful Diana Mitford Guinness. Her two surviving
sisters took her death as an excuse to wage out all war against Diana Mitford and her family.
(Mitford did eventually marry Mosley.)
Irene basically raised Cimmie's children. And Baba, the
youngest, well she took her place in Cimmie's bed with Mosley despite her own marriage to the Duke
of Windsor's best friend.

Much of the charm of the book lies in seeing certain historical
figues-the Duke of Windsor, Wallis Simpson, Mosley-through the eyes of these sisters. These women
certainly had interesting if not overly consequential lives.

I would recommend this book to
Anglophiles, to lovers of social history, and to fans of the interwar period (if you liked the movie
Gosford Park, you'll love this book). If you're looking for a serious examination of the time and
the history, well look elsewhere. But if you want an interesting read that will give you a "feel"
for the times-then "The Viceroy's Daughters" is your book.

The book reads easily and it does provide a fascinating insight into the glamour filled days of
1930s London. Contrasting with the parties, lunches and extravagance is the political evolution of
Mosley and his wife. Their shift from the Conservatives to Labour and finally to the British Union
of Fascists highlights the problems faced by working class Britons during the depression.

Although not as well written or researched as Robert Skidelsky's biography on Mosley, this is a
nice introduction to the world of the British aristocracy in the 1930s.

This is the sort of book that you have to read in the
right sort of company so that you can shout out updates: "Okay, now she's sleeping with her
brother-in-law! Wait... now it's the other one! Oooh, now the family's telling her to do it!...
Okay, now her husband's following the prince of Wales around like a puppy! Now the other one's
sleeping with that pianist guy!... My God, he slept with her stepmother? What is up with these
people?"

A lot of sex, a lot of scandal... Basically, it's like a really long Vogue article. If
that's your cup of tea, you'll love this.