The New Countess

November 1, 2013
Weldon (Long Live the King, 2013, etc.) completes her Edwardian trilogy, a lightweight amalgam of Downton Abbey and her own Upstairs Downstairs, as Lord and Lady Dilberne prepare for a visit from King Edward VII. Three years have passed since the last installment. Edward, now king, has invited himself and his entourage, including his mistress, to the Dilberne estate for a hunting weekend, much to Lady Isobel Dilberne's chagrin. Since Lord Robert is actively involved in the government now, not to mention with his new mistress, she is the one who is burdened with installing new plumbing and heating and completely redecorating their large but antiquated home. At the moment, son Arthur, the car enthusiast, is living at the estate with his wife, Minnie, and their two young sons. Arthur married Chicago-born Minnie for love, not the money she stands to inherit from her rich but crude Irish-American parents, and despite knowing she was an "experienced" bride. But, devoted to his auto manufacturing company that has yet to produce a commercially viable vehicle, Arthur now takes Minnie for granted. Lonely, homesick for the United States and oppressed by Lady Isobel's interference in her children's upbringing, Minnie assumes the worst when she walks in on Arthur with a female journalist in an apparent state of undress. Minnie decamps to stay with Arthur's sister Rosina. Recently returned from Australia a wealthy widow, with her finished manuscript on the sexual habits of the Aborigines ready to publish, Rosina has joined the literary and sexually liberated set on Fleet Street, Weldon's satiric swipe at the Bloomsbury crowd. Will Minnie succumb to the temptations of Fleet Street or reunite with Arthur? Will Rosina find passion with her editor's sister? Will Lady Isobel become romantically involved with the handsome, much younger police inspector assigned to arrange security in preparation for the royal visit? Will that visit end in triumph or disaster or both? Funnier and nastier than the two earlier volumes but still lukewarm and without much fizz.

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October 15, 2013
Weldon concludes her excellent Dilberne Court trilogy as Lord Robert and Lady Isobel prepare for a visit from King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra. As the frenzied preparations by both family and staff members shift into high gear, things are not running as smoothly as they ought to be on either the domestic front or in the financial arena. Fraught with multiple plotlines that bridge the gap between the servants and the served, the entire affair is delightfully Downtonish. Weldon, the writer of the pilot episode of the original Upstairs, Downstairs, has dipped her toes into the Edwardian pool before, with great results; this time she dives right in and readersespecially those who have already enjoyed the exploits of the Dilberne dynasty in Habits of the House and Long Live the Kingwill be eager to plunge in, too.HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: By publishing all three books in this delightful Edwardian trilogy within the same calendar year, Weldon has deftly capitalized on the Downton Abbey momentum. Expect historical-fiction fans to be poised and ready for the grand finale.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2013

Grand of Weldon to have dreamed up an Edwardian-era story that has held fans in between bouts of Downton Abbey. Here she wraps up the trilogy with Lord Robert and Lady Isobel Dilberne's household preparing for a visit from Edward VII and Queen Alexandra. With a reading group guide.

Copyright 2013 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

December 1, 2014

Weldon, who wrote the pilot episode of the original Upstairs Downstairs, returns to the Edwardian era with the tale of the Dilbernes, a once-grand family striving to regain former glory. Poor investments and rising expenses have left the Earl of Dilberne with no choice but to marry off one of his sons to an American heiress, but this infusion of new money has unanticipated consequences. Weldon's return to her roots is as enjoyable as those early episodes of Upstairs Downstairs, mixing high drama and historical accuracy with humor.

Copyright 2014 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.