The 22nd October 1789: I shall never forget that day. I shall never forget the decision I made.
I was seventeen and so ill prepared for life that I hardly knew how to dress myself, let alone how to board a mail coach or even how to purchase a loaf of bread. When I fled my home at Melmouth Park, I left those who both loved and hated me behind. I threw myself upon the world, dear reader and see what trouble has come of that.
Do read my tale closely, for the warnings of your mamma and your governess were correct; there is much to be learned from a woman of my sort. I fell for every snare and trick of fate, so that you might not. My tale is not for the faint of heart – the prude, the high-minded and moral are likely to take offence. You have heard the lies and slander from others. Prepare now to hear the truth.
Set during a period of revolution and turmoil, Mistress of My Fate is the first book in the series, The Confessions of Henrietta Lightfoot. In her candid and eye-brow raising memoirs, Henrietta seeks to set the record straight about the events that shaped her into the woman she became.
Audiobook can be downloaded here.
Praise for Mistress of My Fate
Daily Express : “Rollicking good read…A remarkable picture of a fascinating age which combined extraordinary bawdiness with silky sophistication (think Hogarth and Gainsborough)”
Independent: “A full-blooded historical romp – two parts Lizzie Bennett and Tom Jones’s Sophia Western to one part Moll Flanders – with a splash of Fanny Hill”
Read the review in The Independent
Easy Living :”A vibrant coming of age story…ricochets with bawdy energy, witty observation and rollicking pace between brothels, theatres and the corridors of political power. Lots of fun”
The Good Book Guide “The first installment in Hallie Rubenhold’s sparking 18th-century fictional memoir series, This enticing novel, written with charm and originality, is full of period detail and historical insight”
