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The Sphinx
- The Life of Gladys Deacon - Duchess of Marlborough
- Narrated by: Hugo Vickers
- Length: 11 hrs and 51 mins
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The Sphinx
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Summary
The Times Best Biography Audiobook of the Year 2021.
One of the most beautiful and brilliant women of her time, Gladys Deacon dazzled as much as she puzzled the glittering social circles in which she moved.
Born in Paris to American parents in 1881, she suffered a traumatic childhood after her father shot her mother's lover dead. Educated in America, she returned to Europe, where she captivated and inspired some of the greatest literary and artistic names of the Belle Époque. Marcel Proust wrote of her, 'I never saw a girl with such beauty, such magnificent intelligence, such goodness and charm'. Berenson considered marrying her, Rodin and Monet befriended her, Boldini painted her and Epstein sculpted her. She inspired love from diverse Dukes and Princes and the interest of women such as the Comtesse Greffulhe and Gertrude Stein.
It wasn't until she was 40 that she achieved the wish she had held since the age of 14 to marry the 9th Duke of Marlborough. Divorced from fellow American Consuelo Vanderbilt in 1921, she became his second wife. Now her circle included Lady Ottoline Morrell, Lytton Strachey and Winston Churchill, who described her as 'a strange, glittering being'. But life at Blenheim was not a success. When the duke evicted her in 1933, the only remaining signs of Gladys were two sphinxes bearing her features on the west terraces and mysterious blue eyes in the grand portico.
Gladys became a recluse. The wax injections she'd had to straighten her nose when she was 22 had by now ravaged her beauty. She was to spend her last 15 years in the psycho-geriatric ward of a mental hospital. There she was discovered by a young Hugo Vickers, who visited her for two years - intrigued and compelled to unmask the truth of her mysterious life.
In his fascinating and revealing biography, drawing on Gladys's personal archive and his own research all over Europe and America, Hugo Vickers uncovers a beguiling, clever, independent woman who was the brightest star of her age. He once asked her, 'Where is Gladys Deacon?' She answered him slowly, 'Gladys Deacon? ...She never existed.'
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Angelcritique
- 14-01-20
An indepth account
Hugo Vickers writes well and gives us a comprehensive and detailed account of the Duchesses' life. The strange pronunciation of her name 'Glay-dis' as opposed to the usual 'Glad-is' is irksome. In her youth she may have been a beauty but this book recounts a wasted, selfish life peppered with episodes of mental ill health. The main characters all appear to exhibit abnormal behaviour of one form or another. A sad slow decline which required her removal to psychiatric hospital concludes her long life. Hugo does a brilliant job of the narration.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Madelaine
- 21-03-21
Amazingly well written and narrated.
This is the best audiobook I've ever heard, and I try to listen to at least three a month! Fascinating, surprising and grippingly researched. Highly recommend.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Christian
- 27-12-20
enjoyable
Very enjoyable and interesting piece of history. audio version pleasant to listen to as read by the author.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- Campesque
- 11-02-20
Revealing portrait of an interesting and misunderstood woman.
From a previous review, I started this book fully expecting to dislike the main protagonist - how wrong I was!
Hugo Vickers takes us on a fascinating journey into the lives of those in the upper echelons of society from the late Victorian era to the mid twentieth century. The focus of our attention is Gladys Deacon, born to wealthy US parents leading a life of luxurious leisure in Europe. The marriage of the parents implodes in infidelity and murder... and that's just the beginning of Gladys' story.
The portrait, lovingly painted by the author, is that of a prodigiously intelligent woman and a born survivor, who struggles to fit in and conform to society's expectations of her. Today she would perhaps be diagnosed with high functioning Autistic Spectrum Condition - unheard of at the time, it presents differently in girls.
I thoroughly enjoyed the story of this remarkable woman, made even better by the fact it is narrated by Hugo Vicars. It gives it a very authentic feeling.
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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- Amazon Customer
- 21-09-20
Interesting
Could have done with more being made of the fortune teller to bind it all together. Generally a very interesting biography of an eccentric “British” duchess and made me think of what could have been and how getting what you want doesn’t always make you happy. She was a character that made me think of others who have since left this world and made it all the more boring for doing so.
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2 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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- caroline
- 29-08-20
Fascinating story very well read
I found this story fascinating and the performance by the author who read it was excellent .
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3 people found this helpful
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- Amal Mugerwa
- 25-09-21
1900s aristocracy
Such a delight to emerge yourself into this story … pure escapism and a history lesson all the way through.
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- Jenny Cutler
- 26-02-20
Pretty extraordinary story.
About an exceptionally capable, forgiving and privileged yet abused person. A true survivor who lived to triumph over her life. A sort of unusual role model for people stuck in very strange relationships with someone they love.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Amazon Customer
- 14-05-21
Great audio book
I loved this audiobook. I don’t normally leave reviews but I enjoyed it so much, it was really interesting to hear the life story of someone so unique. I appreciated the fact that the author himself was reading the book it made it much more meaningful.
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- chris
- 28-07-23
The sphinx
Lovely book. Excellent reading by Hugo vickers. Enjoyed story immensely, and will read again. So hopefully will be just as rewarding.
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