Charles: Victim or Villain

by Penny Junor

Book Overview

Charles, Prince of Wales, has long been the subject of intense scrutiny and speculation. Everyone assumes that they know the story of the Prince's life and his failed marriage to Diana. Diana herself... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0060193867
• ISBN13: 9780060193867
• Release Date: November 1998
• Publisher: Harper
• Length: 304 Pages
• Weight: 1.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.4" x 9.6"

Customer Reviews

Definitely A Page Turner !

This book is very interesting! The author is obviously a GREAT fan of Prince Charles! From interviews that I have seen with the author, I fully expected a Diana-bashing book and I wasn't far from the mark! Just the mere fact that the Princess of Wales is not here to defend herself against these so-called "facts" of Ms. Junor's shows you what kind of diabolical mind the author has! Ms. Junor herself is making quite alot of money writing about the misfortunes of the Prince & Princess of Wales. I should hope that the proceeds for this book would go directly to royal charities and those who are TRUE victims all around the world! Surely Ms. Junor would not want to line her own pockets with this scathing book - or would she? Think on, Ms. Junor!

A good read.

I thought it was quite an interesting and enjoyable read despite some of its minor copy-editing problems.It seems pretty clear that Diana was an immensely difficult and fragile young woman. What a pity for her -- and for HRH Prince Charles.

Another correct portrayal of the truth

This book amplifies the themes brought out in The Real Diana by Lady Colin Campbell, If Diana had not died when she did, it may have been a long, long time before the truth came out. I am glad this book was written. Some people may stubbornly refuse to believe the truth, but here it is in black and white.

Finally! Someone to set the record straight!

I was delighted to finally read something that didn't deify Diana or rant about the coldness and cruelty of Charles. This book does not, however, portray Charles as a hero; the author is more interested in showing where much of the fault lay in the failure of this marriage. There is too much information in here that coincides with 'The Real Diana' by Lady Colin Campbell for it to be mere gossip. Evidently, there were enough people close to the royal couple that did not care for Diana or her famous tantrums. This is a woman who managed to alienate almost every friend she ever had. And when it came to embarassing or humiliating Prince Charles, there was no level to which she wouldn't stoop. She was an incredibly jealous, insecure, sneaky woman who did not deserve the adulation she received. Penny Junor was not afraid to come forward and say that Charles was the better of the two, and I applaud her for it.

Charles and His Predicament

Years ago, as the story of Charles and Diana was unfolding, some of my friends and I knew that what the public generally believed about their relationship was not true. All of the chaos of their marriage was familiar to us -- the suicide gestures and threats, the self abuse, the obsessive fantasies of abuse and abandonment, the wild mood swings, all of the signs were there. We knew that the marriage of Charles and Diana could only end in one way, with her leaving Charles, whom she would inevitably began to hate without reason or bounds. There was nothing that Charles could have done that could have changed that outcome. From the moment he married her he was doomed.My friends and I also knew that the truth of their relationship and Diana's nature would never come out. It did not surprise us that Diana was generally regarded as a victim of the heartless Charles, so effective was Diana's portrayal of herself as such. But, as it turns out, we were wrong. Finally, someone has had the courage and intelligence to tell the truth about Charles and Diana, and that truth is revealed in this remarkable new book.No new facts are brought up in the book, but the author interprets the facts in a very novel way. The public cry of outrage from Diana's fans about this book is predictable -- Diana's fans did not really know her. Only a person who lived with her and has lived with people like her, day in and day out, could even begin to understand her and her Charles' predicament.