Clare McHugh

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Clare McHugh

Goodreads Author


Born
London , The United Kingdom
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August 2012


I am a former newspaper reporter and magazine editor. In my fifties, I left behind those practical professions to write fiction, and my first novel "A Most English Princess," told the story of Queen Victoria's eldest daughter Vicky. It was published in September 2020. I have now written another novel about the Queen's family—featuring her granddaughters, Princesses Victoria, Ella and Alix of Hesse. Alix became Alexandra, the last empress of Russia. "The Romanov Brides" will be published in March 2024. I'm a historian at heart—having the luck and the privilege of excellent instruction both in high school and at college. I read fiction of all kinds, with a special love for Tolstoy, Dickens, Henry James, Shirley Hazzard, Alice McDermott, and T ...more

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Clare McHugh Hi Kaye!
Thanks for writing to me. I hear from a lot of Australian readers. I hope one day to come down under!
I am thinking about writing about Queen…more
Hi Kaye!
Thanks for writing to me. I hear from a lot of Australian readers. I hope one day to come down under!
I am thinking about writing about Queen Victoria’s other daughters Princess Alice or Princess Beatrice. I had such a wonderful time researching Vicky’s life.
Right now I am writing a novel set in the US, the sixties, seventies and eighties—more fictional. But I miss the history and hope to get back to it soon. If you are in a book club, I’m happy to Zoom with you guys. Let me know.
Best Clare (less)
Clare McHugh Thank you so much for you interest, Elaine. And please let me know what you think of Vicky's story. I am tempted to write a sequel, but the second hal…moreThank you so much for you interest, Elaine. And please let me know what you think of Vicky's story. I am tempted to write a sequel, but the second half of her life is very difficult and I am not sure I can make it a terrific read. I AM thinking about other women in history to write about....maybe royal maybe not...and I would like to try to write an American-based book---I have three drafts going! Thanks again, Clare

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Average rating: 3.78 · 3,340 ratings · 504 reviews · 4 distinct worksSimilar authors
A Most English Princess: A ...

3.75 avg rating — 2,370 ratings — published 2020 — 7 editions
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The Romanov Brides

3.84 avg rating — 968 ratings — published 2024 — 7 editions
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Las esposas de los Romanov

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really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 2 ratings
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All You Magazine

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* Note: these are all the books on Goodreads for this author. To add more, click here.

Thomas Cromwell, returning to the small screen

If you're like me you're excited by Thomas Cromwell (aka actor Mark Rylance) coming back to PBS, tomorrow at 9. Here's something I wrote about the real man for the BBC---
https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/2...
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Published on March 22, 2025 04:32

Clare’s Recent Updates

Clare McHugh wants to read
The Keepers of the House by Shirley Ann Grau
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Hild by Nicola Griffith
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The Corner That Held Them by Sylvia Townsend Warner
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The Transit of Venus by Shirley Hazzard
"Lily King recommended this book to me and it did not disappoint. I was fascinated by Hazzard's remarkable style, her use of images, her acute sensitivity to mood and motive. Sentence by sentence this is a book to savor. As for the plot, it's sweeping" Read more of this review »
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The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai
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JFK Jr. by RoseMarie Terenzio
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Best of the many books about JFK, jr. because of its comprehensiveness, and variety of voices and perspectives.
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This Is Not About Us by Allegra Goodman
This Is Not About Us
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Reviewed this book for the Washington Post. So good!

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Clutch by Emily Nemens
Clutch
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A Most English Princess by Clare McHugh
"RIP Vicky, you would have hated gentle parenting "
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Isola by Allegra Goodman
Isola
by Allegra Goodman (Goodreads Author)
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Extraordinarily good. What impresses me is the use of language. Goodman is careful to avoid current diction or vocabulary, lending the whole book a sense of authenticity. Also, and alone among the historical fiction I have read recently, Goodman appr ...more
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Quotes by Clare McHugh  (?)
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“Yes, but if you are convinced you know best, and believe you can constantly arrange matters to your liking while also enjoying the approval of others, you will inevitably be disappointed.”
Clare McHugh, A Most English Princess

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“His mind was freshly inclined toward sorrow; toward the fact that the world was full of sorrow; that everyone labored under some burden of sorrow; that all were suffering; that whatever way one took in this world, one must try to remember that all were suffering (none content; all wronged, neglected, overlooked, misunderstood), and therefore one must do what one could to lighten the load of those with whom one came into contact; that his current state of sorrow was not uniquely his, not at all, but, rather, its like had been felt, would be felt, by scores of others, in all times, in every time, and must not be prolonged or exaggerated, because, in this state, he could be of no help to anyone and, given that his position in the world situated him to be either of great help, or great harm, it would not do to stay low, if he could help it.”
George Saunders, Lincoln in the Bardo

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