Lady Bette and the Murder of Mr Thynn: A Scandalous Story of Marriage and Betrayal in Restoration England

by N.A.Pickford

Lady Bette, the 14-year-old heiress to the vast Northumberland estates, becomes the victim of a plot by her grandmother, the Countess Howard, to marry her to the dissolute fortune-hunter Thomas Thynn, a man three times her age with an evil reputation. Revolted by her new husband, Lady Bette flees to Holland. Within weeks, Thynn is gunned down in the street by three hired assassins. Who is behind the contract killing? Is it the Swedish Count Coningsmark, young and glamorous with blond hair down to his waist? Or is it a political assassination as the anti-Catholic press maintains? Thynn was, after all, a key player in the Protestant faction to exclude the Catholic James, Duke of York, as his brother Charles II's successor. N.A. Pickford creates a world of tension and insecurity, of constant plotting and counter-plotting and of rabid anti-Catholicism, where massive street demonstrations and public Papal burnings are weekly events. The action moves from the great landed estates of Syon and Petworth to the cheap taverns and brothels of London, and finally to Newgate and the gallows - the sporting spectacle of the day. In the process, the book gives us a vivid and deeply researched portrait of Restoration society.

Genres: History, True Crime, Crime, 17th Century, Nonfiction

320 pages, Hardcover

First published March 13, 2014

Reviews

[LitReactor]

Lady Bette and the Murder of Mr Thynn is as wild a ride through Restoration England as one could hope to get in a non-fiction book. (Translation: no dialog, all telling-not-showing, and nothing too dirty. This isn't The Tudors or Game of Thrones.) Pickford pulls no punches in describing the cad-like ways of the foppish, arrogant upper class men. They reviled work. They frequented brothels. They drank. They partied. And then they all congregated in medical facilities to receive mercury treatments to keep their syphilis symptoms under control.

It's an ugly world, and a dangerous one for a girl like Lady Bette, who's little more than a bargaining chip. Used by her Dowager Countess (seriously!) grandmother to fund more gambling parties, her hand in marriage is given to the highest bidder. In the meantime, she's hounded by kidnapping plots and coerced into marriage with a total jerk. Reading Lady Bette is a lot like watching an episode of Jersey Shore: you hate to watch, but you can't seem to turn away.

The book is well-written and immersive. It's easy to lose yourself in the pages for hours on end, reading about this dandy's visit to a whorehouse and that one's visit to the country. Pickford painstakingly recreates a world based on letters, journals and memories, recording an intriguing, heartbreaking story set within an intriguing, heartbreaking world. If you're interested in the lives of British nobility in years past, you probably don't want to miss this book.

--

Review by Leah Rhyne

Check out more from this review at LitReactor (http://litreactor.com/reviews/booksho...)!

[Bridget · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a well paced and meticulously researched book. It’s not so much True Crime as a snapshot of London life during the 17th century, and it doesn’t sound much fun for anyone. A really good read.

[Anne Vaughan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Murder mysteries should be full of intriguing and unsettling detail - murky worlds illuminated, characters probed for motives. This book does all this and also unveils the 17th century in an extraordinary way. Meticulous research shows us a 'lying in' chamber "carefully prepared with an abundance of fresh white linen bleached in a solution of urine and beech ash" and Peter Lely's studio where art is manufactured for wealthy clients and the master craftsman flicks white highlights onto his subject with balls of bread. More than anything this is a book where places, houses, cities, even the weather, are carefully brushed into a narrative to become a chilling, lowering background to the events - a clumsy murder and the manipulation of a young girl for political purposes. It is highly readable immersion in a long ago century in the company of an author who knows the subject thoroughly. A wonderful read.

[Lucy Edgeley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book - it's a cracking good read, full

of the most extraordinary characters and of

intrigue and drama, but more than that it's a

wonderful way into the world of the late 17th

century and its society from the lowest levels to

the highest. The writing is so vivid that I found

myself walking through the squalour of 1680s

London, looking out over the great parklands of

Petworth, lurking in an alehouse or in a crowded

courtroom, as I followed the fortunes of Lady

Bette and the machinations of all those around

her.
N A Pickford's management of his material, the

clever way that each chapter is based upon a

location (so you always know where you are!)

and the weaving of domestic and personal detail

into the plotting and planning all make this book

absorbing, thoroughly enjoyable and fascinatingly

informative.

[Bev · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was unfamiliar with this notorious event in the reign of Charles II, so I was looking forward to reading it.
It was moderately well written, apart from the usual modern affectation of assuming the author has some insight to the thinking processes of the people involved ( "A" must have known, must have felt, must have wondered etc. etc.), but it wasn't really worth a whole book.
The actual murder and the things which lead up to it are enough to sustain an essay, but not a book.
A great deal of dull and unnecessary detail went into this in order to give it the required length. It is not a book I will return to.

[Rosemarie Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book! The author has managed to achieve a book that has a gripping narrative that is nonetheless an incredibly well researched piece of non fiction. N A Pickford drafts vivid characterisations of individuals and takes the reader on a fascinating journey through the era. I become absorbed in the characters as a result of the writer's skill in assembling relevant known details and educated inferences. It's a terrific read and one I thoroughly recommend- I struggled to put it down as I couldn't wait to see what happened next!

[Flora · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book hugely enjoyable. It's a gripping story which is all the
more fascinating because it's true. The plots and counter plots which
surround Lady Bette are well handled by the author in a very lively style,
and there is a huge amount of period detail which gives a really
authentic sense of the insecurity and violence of life in 17th century
London for rich and poor alike. Definitely recommend.

[Savina King · Rating 5 out of 5]

The things you can learn about the reign of Charles the second from this book are sometimes quite strange. The skin preparation made of roasted puppy is shocking, alas the way womens lives where formed and constricted is less of a shock. A bidding war for the estate of a young heiress and its consequences explained in this harrowing tale, a really good read!.

[Helen Carolan · Rating 5 out of 5]

this was such a great read. the true story of a murder during the reign of charles the first. lord Thynn is murdered but who did it, his estranged wife, her lover or a papist plot. they are all in the frame. interesting and wittingly told this had me gripped from the start.

[Stefanie Robinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoy these older true crime stories. I think it is because I have an interest in true crime, but I am also a historian. Books like this are the best of both worlds. This book was well written and dramatic. There were many twists and turns in this case that kept the pages turning. I wish I would have gotten around to this sooner.

[Sarah · Rating 1 out of 5]

Abandoned on page 18 of 266. Just jumps in without explaining anything or anyone. A short piece before you do some info dumping maybe to set the scene is acceptable but it’s going to be page 40 before any explanations looking at the part descriptions.

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn’t actually finish this book, the print was too small to read comfortably and i couldn’t find it in audio, LP, or ebook format.
I’ll recommend it based on the extensive research that the author has done, and his ability to turn the facts into a compelling story.