The American Adventuress: A Novel

"No one writes bright, bold, bad, and beautiful women of history like C.W. Gortner, and he outdoes himself with his latest heroine: Jennie Jerome, American heiress, royal mistress, and mother of Winston Churchill. The American Adventuress shines on every page with Jennie's irrepressible thirst for adventure, love, and everything else life has to offer!" -- Kate Quinn, New York Times bestselling author of The Rose Code The story of Jennie Jerome Churchill, mother of Winston, a New York born heiress who always lived life on her own terms. Daughter of New York financier Leonard Jerome, Jennie was born into wealth—and scandal. Upon her parents’ separation, her mother took Jennie and her sisters to Paris, where Mrs. Jerome was determined to marry her daughters into the most elite families. The glamorous city became their tumultuous finishing school until it fell to revolt.  Fleeing to Queen Victoria’s England, Jennie soon caught the eye of aristocrat Randolph Spencer-Churchill, son of the Duke of Marlborough, one of Britain’s loftiest peers. It was love at first sight, their unconventional marriage driven by mutual ambition and the birth of two sons. Undeterred by premature widowhood or society’s rigid expectations, Jennie brashly carried on a lifelong intimate friendship with Edward, Prince of Wales—a notorious bon vivant—and had two later marriages to younger men. When her son Winston launched his brilliant political career, Jennie guided him to success, his most vocal and valuable supporter. By turns scandalous, tragic, and exciting, Jennie Jerome lived an unconventional life full of defiance—one that enshrined her as an American adventuress.

About the Author :
C. W. Gortner is the author of many bestselling historical novels-including Mademoiselle Chanel-which have been published in more than twenty countries. He lives in San Francisco.

Review :
"No one writes bright, bold, bad, and beautiful women of history like C.W. Gortner, and he outdoes himself with his latest heroine: Jennie Jerome, American heiress, royal mistress, and mother of Winston Churchill. The American Adventuress shines on every page with Jennie's irrepressible thirst for adventure, love, and everything else life has to offer!" — Kate Quinn, New York Times bestselling author of The Rose Code “Well-written and historically accurate . . . An homage to a couture icon whose influence is still powerful today.” — Kirkus Reviews on Mademoiselle Chanel “Gortner brings history to life in a fascinating study of one woman’s unstoppable ambition.” — Booklist on Mademoiselle Chanel “Sucked me in by the pearls and never let go . . . equal parts grit and glamour . . . if you can’t afford to visit Paris in peak springtime season, reading this book with a glass of wine is a decent substitute.” — Glamour on Mademoiselle Chanel “In a novel as brilliant and complicated as Coco Chanel herself, C. W. Gortner’s prose is so electric and luminous it could be a film, and not just any film, but one of the grandest biopics of our time. Divine!” — Erika Robuck, bestselling author of Hemingway's Girl “In this deliciously satisfying novel, C.W. Gortner tells the epic, rags-to-riches story of how this brilliant, mercurial, self-created woman became a legend.” — Christina Baker Kline, New York Times bestselling author of Orphan Train, on Mademoiselle Chanel “From her heart-wrenching early years through her decades of struggle and glory, Gabrielle Chanel was fascinating—as is C.W. Gortner’s Mademoiselle Chanel. Coco lives again in this rich tale of brilliance, determination, and fierce self-creation.” — Ania Szado, author of Studio Saint-Ex “A richly imagined, deftly researched novel, in which the ever fascinating Coco Chanel comes to life in all her woe and splendor, her story unfolding as elegantly as a Chanel gown.” — Cathy Marie Buchanan, author of The Painted Girls “Enticing . . . well-researched and well-crafted historical novel that leaves the reader satisfied on many levels. ” — New York Journal of Books “Gortner brings to life a woman who was as alluring and captivating as her signature scent. ” — Historical Novels Review