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Princess in Love
An account of the alleged love affair between Diana, the Princess of Wales, and Major James Hewitt.
320 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1994
46 people are currently reading
314 people want to read
About the author
Anna Pasternak
12 books58 followersAnna Pasternak is an author, columnist, and journalist. She writes regularly for Sunday Times Style, Condé Nast Traveler, Harper’s Bazaar, and others. She lives in Oxfordshire, England, with her husband and daughter.
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
August 27, 2019
Isn't it funny how Charles cheating with Camilla is a terrible sin, an abomination of his wedding vows and truly disgusting to some people, yet Diana's frequent affairs are written about as romantic love stories? Tell that to the wives of the married men whose relationships Diana broke up despite her wails about Camilla wrecking her marriage! But I digress. Charles and Diana should never have married as they had nothing in common. Diana lied to get her Prince by saying she loved country life and sports and told her husband the truth after the wedding. I can understand why she did it but it did get things off to a bad start. She was suffering from bulimia, mental health issues, and stress before the wedding, results of a chaotic upbringing where she got everything she demanded and no behaviour limits were set by her parents going through a messy divorce, and was unable or unwilling to seek help for those issues for many years. By then both were unhappy and seeing other people and it was too late for them.
Hewitt felt no guilt at bedding Diana and actually claims that by bedding her and restoring her self esteem, he was doing his bit for Crown and Country! Oh please! You had an affair because you fancied her and it appealed to your ego mate! He congratulates himself smugly for single handedly curing all Diana's problems which is pure tosh but when word gets out about their affair and Diana calls it off, James suddenly decides that Diana is just a user who didn't love him and has destroyed his life with the affair, threatening his military career, social standing and circle of friends. There was even the self pitying crap about feeling suicidal in the Gulf War because there was no future with Diana-which he knew from the start. The only bits of this book that I felt were true were when he described how demanding Diana could be-sulking when he was too tired for sex, giving him the cold shoulder for two years because he was posted abroad as if it was him abandoning her, and her demands for compliments all the time. I imagine with her medical issues that she could be hard to live with, as books written by royal experts about her and Charles have indicated.
This is a pure whinefest from a man who risked everything for an affair then moaned that it finished the way everyone could have predicted. His pretense to know every thought and feeling Diana ever had seems unlikely and I found this book to be an exercise in self pity, self obsession and cashing in by Hewitt. The writing was nauseating and over the top and it really isn't worth anyone's time!
Hewitt felt no guilt at bedding Diana and actually claims that by bedding her and restoring her self esteem, he was doing his bit for Crown and Country! Oh please! You had an affair because you fancied her and it appealed to your ego mate! He congratulates himself smugly for single handedly curing all Diana's problems which is pure tosh but when word gets out about their affair and Diana calls it off, James suddenly decides that Diana is just a user who didn't love him and has destroyed his life with the affair, threatening his military career, social standing and circle of friends. There was even the self pitying crap about feeling suicidal in the Gulf War because there was no future with Diana-which he knew from the start. The only bits of this book that I felt were true were when he described how demanding Diana could be-sulking when he was too tired for sex, giving him the cold shoulder for two years because he was posted abroad as if it was him abandoning her, and her demands for compliments all the time. I imagine with her medical issues that she could be hard to live with, as books written by royal experts about her and Charles have indicated.
This is a pure whinefest from a man who risked everything for an affair then moaned that it finished the way everyone could have predicted. His pretense to know every thought and feeling Diana ever had seems unlikely and I found this book to be an exercise in self pity, self obsession and cashing in by Hewitt. The writing was nauseating and over the top and it really isn't worth anyone's time!
March 6, 2024
Honestly this was an okay read.I just didn't care for the writing.It was a lot of psycho analyzing of James Hewitt.His home life,his family,his career,his affair with the Princess of Wales.It was all a bit too much for me.Even though Hewitt seems to have endorsed the book himself I still would have preferred to read his own book on the subject.
November 22, 2024
Me gusto, fue entretenido. La autora logro que empatizara con los protagonistas, me hubiera gustado leer alguna de las cartas que le manda Diana a James mientras que estaba en la guerra.
December 9, 2021
The story of marital infidelity, or more precisely how Lady Diana actively "takes" the lovers James Hewitt, is presented sweetly sentimentally as romantic pure love. Probably against the author's will, Diana reveals herself as a completely unstable personality - naive, hysterical, believing in astrological prophecies, spiritualism, suffering from bumilia, self-confident and demanding that the man next to her constantly confirm how attractive, desirable, loved she is. Living a double life herself, Diana accuses others of lying. The portrayal of James as a romantic - hopelessly in love - hero seems completely unconvincing to me.
A tasteless book.
Vedybinės neištikimybės istorija, o tiksliau — kaip ledi Diana aktyviai “ima” į meilužius Jamesą Hewittą — pateikiama saldžiai sentimentaliai, kaip romantiška tyra meilė. Turbūt prieš autorės valią, Diana atsiskleidžia kaip visiškai nestabili asmenybė — naivi, isteriška, tikinti astrologinėmis pranašystėmis, spiritizmu, kenčianti nuo bumilijos, nepasitikinti savimi ir reikalaujanti, kad šalia jos esantis vyras nuolat patvirtintų, kokia ji patraukli, geidžiama, mylima. Pati gyvendama dvigubą gyvenimą, Diana kitus kaltina melu.
Džeimso vaizdavimas kaip romantiško — beviltiškai įsimylėjusio — herojaus, man atrodo visai neįtikinamas.
Neskoninga knyga.
April 22, 2019
When I heard that James Hewitt authorized a biography about his affair with Princess Diana it made me furious. Decent men don’t kiss & tell.
But after reading this book, there is so much from Princess Diana’s perspective that she either provided the information or the author took tremendous literary license.
In the end, I had to feel sorry for James because his heart was broken so badly.
That’s still not an excuse to burn Princess Diana, but then again, she wanted her own house burnt down to get out of her horrible marriage. She also wanted to get even with Charles for spurning her.
The only thing is that she never acknowledged her participation in writing this book. She owned up to everything else, so there’s a big question mark.
Now I hear that James is selling his letters from Diana. So sad. So pathetic.
I think she broke him.
But after reading this book, there is so much from Princess Diana’s perspective that she either provided the information or the author took tremendous literary license.
In the end, I had to feel sorry for James because his heart was broken so badly.
That’s still not an excuse to burn Princess Diana, but then again, she wanted her own house burnt down to get out of her horrible marriage. She also wanted to get even with Charles for spurning her.
The only thing is that she never acknowledged her participation in writing this book. She owned up to everything else, so there’s a big question mark.
Now I hear that James is selling his letters from Diana. So sad. So pathetic.
I think she broke him.
September 1, 2021
Anna Pasternak, the granddaughter of Doctor Zhivago author Boris Pasternak's brother, wrote about Princess of Wales's romantic affair with Captain James Hewitt. I learned things about Princess Diana which I hadn't heard before. I felt sorry for the Princess for all the things she went through. A marriage only for public opinion where a person is denied his feelings, actions, being free. I can’t imagine what she went through being with Charles and his rejection. I'm very glad that her son is free today and he married the woman he loves. I have always seen the Royal Family as a suffocating thing that doesn't let you breathe. I felt very sorry that the story of Diana and Captain James Hewitt was over, I wish it had continued and they were both married together. But of course the Royal issue destroys everything.
August 6, 2019
James Hewitt, an expert horse rider, was asked to help Princess Diana learn to feel confident about riding a horse again after bad experiences. What developed over time was a passionate love affair between the two. Mr Hewitt gives his side of the story to the author Anna Pasternak, and it's compelling reading indeed.
February 20, 2023
belongs in a super market
Sad, bodice-renting cheap novel of misguided love. Waste of time. Don’t bother. I am disappointed in this book. Nothing more to say.
Sad, bodice-renting cheap novel of misguided love. Waste of time. Don’t bother. I am disappointed in this book. Nothing more to say.
April 3, 2021
Il titolo di questo libro descrive perfettamente la storia narrata: la principessa innamorata. Diana Spencer, principessa del Galles, sposa nel 1981 il principe Carlo, il primogenito della regina Elisabetta II. Lei afferma di essere innamoratissima, lui le risponde "qualsiasi cosa voglia dire l'amore" e da qui inizia la loro vita insieme. Diana, una ragazza di 19 anni, timida e ingenua si ritrova da un momento all'altro un personaggio pubblico appartenente alla famiglia reale con un rigido protocollo da seguire. Chi immagina questo matrimonio come una favola, sbaglia: Diana era troppo innamorata e ingenua da immaginare cosa poteva succedere e Carlo non aveva mai dimenticato il suo grande amore, Camilla Parker Bowles. Ma in questo libro, l'uomo di Diana non è Carlo, bensì James Hewitt, ora ex ufficiale di cavalleria britannica. Si conobbe con Diana nelle vesti del suo istruttore di equitazione per diventare il suo amante ma non solo. Divenne il suo amico più fidato, colui che la sosteneva, la amava, la incoraggiava, la faceva sentire apprezzata, tutte cose che Diana voleva che facesse il marito Carlo.
Nel libro conosciamo l'animo più profondo di Diana, la sua parte più nascosta dal sorriso smagliante che aveva sempre in pubblico, la sua più grande maschera per non svelare quello che sentiva nel suo cuore. Le descrizioni dell'autrice sono molto accurate e coinvolgenti fino al punto di sentire le emozioni di Diana e James come proprie. La loro storia è stata speciale ma anche qui la stampa e i pettegolezzi hanno la loro colpa: quella di distruggere i momenti più belli delle vite delle persone. Perché la storia narrata non è la storia della principessa del Galles e dell'ufficiale di cavalleria britannica. E' semplicemente la storia di Diana e James, due persone che si sono trovate in un periodo particolare della propria vita e hanno avuto l'aiuto reciproco.
James è stata la persona più vicina a Diana in un periodo difficile di piena indifferenza verso di lei da parte del marito, è stato colui che l'ha aiutata a rialzarsi e a credere sempre di più in se stessa.
Da questa storia emerge la grande importanza dei sentimenti umani, della nostra necessità di condividere la propria vita con persone che amiamo e fa capire che anche un "ben fatto" o un "sei fantastica" può aiutare ad andare avanti, a credere in se stessi e a sentirsi bene, sicuri di sé pieni di forza di fare sempre del proprio meglio. Emerge l'importanza delle piccole cose quotidiane che possono cambiare tanto e che avrebbero potuto cambiare la vita di Diana e soprattutto il suo matrimonio.
Nel libro conosciamo l'animo più profondo di Diana, la sua parte più nascosta dal sorriso smagliante che aveva sempre in pubblico, la sua più grande maschera per non svelare quello che sentiva nel suo cuore. Le descrizioni dell'autrice sono molto accurate e coinvolgenti fino al punto di sentire le emozioni di Diana e James come proprie. La loro storia è stata speciale ma anche qui la stampa e i pettegolezzi hanno la loro colpa: quella di distruggere i momenti più belli delle vite delle persone. Perché la storia narrata non è la storia della principessa del Galles e dell'ufficiale di cavalleria britannica. E' semplicemente la storia di Diana e James, due persone che si sono trovate in un periodo particolare della propria vita e hanno avuto l'aiuto reciproco.
James è stata la persona più vicina a Diana in un periodo difficile di piena indifferenza verso di lei da parte del marito, è stato colui che l'ha aiutata a rialzarsi e a credere sempre di più in se stessa.
Da questa storia emerge la grande importanza dei sentimenti umani, della nostra necessità di condividere la propria vita con persone che amiamo e fa capire che anche un "ben fatto" o un "sei fantastica" può aiutare ad andare avanti, a credere in se stessi e a sentirsi bene, sicuri di sé pieni di forza di fare sempre del proprio meglio. Emerge l'importanza delle piccole cose quotidiane che possono cambiare tanto e che avrebbero potuto cambiare la vita di Diana e soprattutto il suo matrimonio.
January 13, 2026
I don't see this as a love story. Despite the overheated prose by Anna Pasternak (a relative of Boris Pasternak, author of Dr. Zhivago), I came away feeling sorry for James Hewitt for having to put up with the bottomless neediness of Princess Diana. The book is supposed to testify to Hewitt's supposed "love" for Diana but what we really get is how burdensome and all-consuming her depression and low self-esteem affected their relationship. No amount of love and attention was ever enough for Diana and James Hewitt treats the act of "cheering her up" (whether through sex, humor or kind attention) as a challenge the way an athlete might approach the Olympics. Whenever he fails in raising her low spirits, he faults himself for not working hard enough, absolving Diana of any responsibility toward controlling her own moods. Real love doesn't require this much work and it's hard to see what he got out of it other than ego and some expensive presents from Diana. She doesn't go out of her way for him at all and just expects to be taken care of, with all the giving on his side. No wonder he had no issue selling their "love" story to the tabloids.
As a result, I came away feeling Hewitt was actually relieved when Diana dumped him. She seemed to have sucked all the energy out of him with her endless misery.
By contrast, Diana's much later affair with the Pakistani heart surgeon Hasnat Khan seems to have been much more fulfilling on both sides. Apparently she had matured after leaving Hewitt and Khan was never given the burden of elevating Diana's low moods. It sounds more like a relationship of equals where she was expected to give as much as take. So that relationship sounded much more healthy though it wasn't destined to last, either. Poor Diana!
As a result, I came away feeling Hewitt was actually relieved when Diana dumped him. She seemed to have sucked all the energy out of him with her endless misery.
By contrast, Diana's much later affair with the Pakistani heart surgeon Hasnat Khan seems to have been much more fulfilling on both sides. Apparently she had matured after leaving Hewitt and Khan was never given the burden of elevating Diana's low moods. It sounds more like a relationship of equals where she was expected to give as much as take. So that relationship sounded much more healthy though it wasn't destined to last, either. Poor Diana!
July 27, 2017
Hämmentävä kirja, niin kuin koko tarina/tarinat Dianan ympärillä. Helppo lukuinen kirja ja luin tämän tosi nopeaan. Mielenkiintoinen näkökulma asioihin, James Hewittin näkökulma vai Anne Pasternakin tulkitsema? Varmasti sekoitus tätä kaikkea. Kirjassa mielenkiintoista oli myös se, että kerrottiin Hewittin ja hovin elämästä muutenkin, tarina ei keskittynyt pelkästään Dianan ympärille.
Kirjassa hieman ärsytti tunteen palo sekä romanttinen höttö, mutta sellaistahan se on joidenkin satujenkin rakkaus. Tämähän rakkaus ei kestänyt todellisuutta. Jos tässä jutussa loppujen lopuksi oli edes rakkautta, vaan kaikki olikin vain kuvitelmaa?
Yksi kysymys jäi leijumaan kirjan jälkeen. Oliko Diana suloinen ja viaton vai tiesikö oikeasti, miten hän pystyy pyörittämään ihmisiä ympärillään miten tahtoi? Siihen tuskin saamme koskaan vastausta.
Kirjassa hieman ärsytti tunteen palo sekä romanttinen höttö, mutta sellaistahan se on joidenkin satujenkin rakkaus. Tämähän rakkaus ei kestänyt todellisuutta. Jos tässä jutussa loppujen lopuksi oli edes rakkautta, vaan kaikki olikin vain kuvitelmaa?
Yksi kysymys jäi leijumaan kirjan jälkeen. Oliko Diana suloinen ja viaton vai tiesikö oikeasti, miten hän pystyy pyörittämään ihmisiä ympärillään miten tahtoi? Siihen tuskin saamme koskaan vastausta.
April 7, 2022
This book is - not surprisingly - so painfully one sided. It’s team Diana all the way. Having read several other account of some of the stories in this book it’s obvious to see how the author has purposely told only half truths about some events.
There were also a few weird punctuation things going on which I didn’t like - for example, the question mark here: “Surely the lure of unknown places would spark his interest?”
But having said that, it was a light, easy read and does have some interesting info.
There were also a few weird punctuation things going on which I didn’t like - for example, the question mark here: “Surely the lure of unknown places would spark his interest?”
But having said that, it was a light, easy read and does have some interesting info.
June 27, 2017
Kitap, prenses Diana'nın yüzbaşı James Hewitt olan ilişkisini anlatıyor. Hewitt, bir gazeteciye (aynı zamanda kitabın yazarına) ilişkilerini anlatıyor. Bu nedenle, kitabı James'in bakış açısıyla okuyoruz. Bazı betimlemelerin fazla uzun ve anlaşılmaz olduğunu düşünüyorum. Birkaç kez tekrar tekrar okuduğum cümleler oldu. Bazı yerlerde de çeviri hatası var.. Eğer Diana'nın hayatını merak ediyorsanız, okuyabilirsiniz.
November 4, 2018
This is a very romanticized account of the love affair between Princess Diana and Major James Hewitt. Widely disparaged as a tasteless tell-all by a discarded lover, it destroyed whatever reputation Hewitt still had after the affair ended and was exposed. Seen as a way to make a quick buck (or British pound), it's hard to believe most of the stories. You can't help feeling sorry for the discarded Hewitt, but he really shouldn't have!
April 10, 2021
Learned some things about Princess Diana which I had no clue about....I felt sorry for her and how Prince Charles treated her. I can’t imagine what she went through & being shut out so to speak from the Royal Family. Having said that, I am not sure who I felt more sorry for, Diana or Captain James Hewitt.
October 4, 2024
More about Hewitt than Diana. Very sappy romantic and not much substance. Almost cringe in how blindingly pro-Diana this is. I kind of knew what I was getting into beforehand though. Only reas for the historical context.
September 6, 2023
Stunning representation of love
December 5, 2024
que feo ver como la paso lady di por un matrimonio de mierda, pero el otro medio que cuando se complicaron las cosas se RE borro, no te hagas el bueno vos tampoco
March 28, 2023
Must read!
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. This is a love story that needed to be told. Finally, Princess Diana found love when she needed it the most.
But sadly, not to last.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. This is a love story that needed to be told. Finally, Princess Diana found love when she needed it the most.
But sadly, not to last.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews