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A Woman of Opinion
'I shall be a thousand different Marys and, in such manner, shall find the one I wish to be...'
Lady Mary Wortley Montagu longs for adventure, freedom and love, believing that only by truly living can she ever escape the stalking crow of Death... An aristocratic woman in 18th century England is expected to act in certain ways. But Mary has never let society's expectations stifle she writes celebrated poetry and articles advocating for equality, as well as endless, often scandalous, letters to her many powerful friends. However, Mary wants more from the world. Using her charm and connections, she engineers a job offer for her husband as ambassador to the Ottoman Empire. Travelling to Constantinople, Mary finally discovers the autonomous life she dreams of. And when she observes Turkish women 'engrafting' children against smallpox, she resolves to bring the miracle cure back to England. Despite this, Mary's reputation becomes increasingly tainted. Her inability to abide by the rules, her outspoken opinions on women's rights, and her search for love and desire at all costs gains her powerful enemies. While Mary tries to ensure her name will live on by arranging the publication of her diaries after her death, her own daughter works against her, afraid of what they might contain...
An illuminating and beautiful novel which gives a voice to the tragically unremembered yet extraordinary life of pioneering poet and feminist, Mary Wortley Montagu.
Lady Mary Wortley Montagu longs for adventure, freedom and love, believing that only by truly living can she ever escape the stalking crow of Death... An aristocratic woman in 18th century England is expected to act in certain ways. But Mary has never let society's expectations stifle she writes celebrated poetry and articles advocating for equality, as well as endless, often scandalous, letters to her many powerful friends. However, Mary wants more from the world. Using her charm and connections, she engineers a job offer for her husband as ambassador to the Ottoman Empire. Travelling to Constantinople, Mary finally discovers the autonomous life she dreams of. And when she observes Turkish women 'engrafting' children against smallpox, she resolves to bring the miracle cure back to England. Despite this, Mary's reputation becomes increasingly tainted. Her inability to abide by the rules, her outspoken opinions on women's rights, and her search for love and desire at all costs gains her powerful enemies. While Mary tries to ensure her name will live on by arranging the publication of her diaries after her death, her own daughter works against her, afraid of what they might contain...
An illuminating and beautiful novel which gives a voice to the tragically unremembered yet extraordinary life of pioneering poet and feminist, Mary Wortley Montagu.
400 pages, Hardcover
First published July 4, 2024
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1071 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 72 reviews
June 20, 2024
'...Mary is hungry for everything - for love, for sorrow, for adventure...Yet she also has a taste for conflict. Were she a man she would make a brave (though probably reckless) general, always ready to lead her troops into battle and never doubting the righteousness of her cause'.
Voltaire described her as a ‘woman for all the world’, Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, born in the late 17th Century, was a witty, articulate, forward-thinking woman who did not suffer fools. Her logical thinking and open-mindedness led her to form opinions that 'just made sense' - in spite of societal norms or religious parameters. It was during her time in Turkey, when her husband was ambassador, that she happened upon the local practice of engrafting against smallpox. Believing that every person had a right to this rudimentary form of inoculation, she worked tirelessly to promote the practice in England - eventually gaining some success, despite some powerful opposition.
'A Woman of Opinion', is a historical fiction novel based upon her life. Utilising her letters, poetry, and other writing, Sean Lusk strives to give voice to her legacy and bridge gaps in her history. Lusk's assimilation delivers a memior-like story that spans Mary's life from marriage until her death. As you may predict, such an outspoken woman was both lauded and libelled throughout her life. That she was a woman of opinion though, is indisputable.
'...to be celebrated as I have been means condemnation comes in equal measure...'.
Voltaire described her as a ‘woman for all the world’, Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, born in the late 17th Century, was a witty, articulate, forward-thinking woman who did not suffer fools. Her logical thinking and open-mindedness led her to form opinions that 'just made sense' - in spite of societal norms or religious parameters. It was during her time in Turkey, when her husband was ambassador, that she happened upon the local practice of engrafting against smallpox. Believing that every person had a right to this rudimentary form of inoculation, she worked tirelessly to promote the practice in England - eventually gaining some success, despite some powerful opposition.
'A Woman of Opinion', is a historical fiction novel based upon her life. Utilising her letters, poetry, and other writing, Sean Lusk strives to give voice to her legacy and bridge gaps in her history. Lusk's assimilation delivers a memior-like story that spans Mary's life from marriage until her death. As you may predict, such an outspoken woman was both lauded and libelled throughout her life. That she was a woman of opinion though, is indisputable.
'...to be celebrated as I have been means condemnation comes in equal measure...'.
June 25, 2024
4.5
Sean Lusk has given us another fascinating historical novel. This time he uses a real heroine - Mary Wortley Montagu who, had she been a man, would probably have been credited with smallpox inoculation which she championed. Mary was ahead of her time- a raconteur, a champion of women's voices and attempts to change women's rights.
Sean Lusk admits that very little written evidence is still available because Mary's family (particularly her daughter) were scandalised by her notoriety and destroyed many of her papers. He has however woven together a perfectly believable history of a strident woman who, despite making several powerful enemies, also had myriad supporters. She certainly had a fascinating life and could not be considered typical of women of that era. Of course coming from money and an advantageous marriage helped to get her voice heard.
I thoroughly enjoyed this historical fiction. It was interesting, fun, believable and entertaining- as imagine was Mary. I think I enjoyed this more than The Second Sight of Zachary Cloudesley. It should be noted that Aunt Frances from that novel was based on Mary Wortley and led (thanks to Lusk's then editor) to this fictional account. Thankyou Eloisa Clegg say I.
Thankyou very much to Netgalley and Random House for the advance review copy. Highly recommended.
Sean Lusk has given us another fascinating historical novel. This time he uses a real heroine - Mary Wortley Montagu who, had she been a man, would probably have been credited with smallpox inoculation which she championed. Mary was ahead of her time- a raconteur, a champion of women's voices and attempts to change women's rights.
Sean Lusk admits that very little written evidence is still available because Mary's family (particularly her daughter) were scandalised by her notoriety and destroyed many of her papers. He has however woven together a perfectly believable history of a strident woman who, despite making several powerful enemies, also had myriad supporters. She certainly had a fascinating life and could not be considered typical of women of that era. Of course coming from money and an advantageous marriage helped to get her voice heard.
I thoroughly enjoyed this historical fiction. It was interesting, fun, believable and entertaining- as imagine was Mary. I think I enjoyed this more than The Second Sight of Zachary Cloudesley. It should be noted that Aunt Frances from that novel was based on Mary Wortley and led (thanks to Lusk's then editor) to this fictional account. Thankyou Eloisa Clegg say I.
Thankyou very much to Netgalley and Random House for the advance review copy. Highly recommended.
July 29, 2024
3.5★s
“To learn one must have eyes to see, ears to listen and a heart that is open.”
A Woman Of Opinion is the second novel by British author, Sean Lusk. In 1712, twenty-two-year-old Mary defies her father’s instruction to marry Clotworthy Skeffington, instead marrying Edward Wortley Montagu, Whig for Huntingdon. Not for love, but because Skeffington is dull and lacking ambition, while she and Edward find each other interesting.
Mary knows her love is dangerous to others: she has already lost three people she dearly loved, rejected an earlier suitor to save his life, and is wary of declaring the depth of her feeling for those she loves, sure death will follow. But her love for her younger sister, Frances moves her to oppose Fanny’s marriage to John Erskine, the vain and shallow Earl of Mar, to no avail.
Some time after the birth of her son, Eddie, Mary falls ill with smallpox and when she survives, declares “I had cheated Death once and resolved that having survived I was destined to live an extraordinary life.”
Life in Yorkshire is boring and Edward is decent, straightforward and trustworthy, virtues that, without craftiness, guile and agility, don’t serve to get him a decent position in the parliament, so Mary intervenes via influential friends. Edward may not initially be enthusiastic about taking up a diplomatic post in Constantinople, but Mary is delighted.
After the rush east to mediate, then a delay, Mary is fascinated by everything she encounters in Turkey. With the help of her loyal ladies maid, Nell, she manages to see much more than other Western ladies.
A willing pupil of the pasha, Achmat Bey, Mary learns Arabic: “It had perfect logic, even more than Latin, for a book became a library with a curl of a letter or two, and a library an author and an author a bookshop, and so it was also with a sword and a swordsman and a sheath and an armoury and so on. If English is a wild meadow, filled with flowers in gay disorder, and French laid out in geometric rows, its hedges low and clipped, and German a tall forest with paths crossing this way and that, Arabic is a river bank, the water gurgling and tumbling over rocks, bubbling and full of cheer” and has many philosophical discussions on the differences between their cultures and customs.
She notes the absence of pock-marked locals and learns about a practice of inoculation; wanting to verify its efficacy, she experiments and observes results before inoculating her son and is possessed of a fierce desire to bring this life-saving practice back home.
It would need to be endorsed by the Royal College of Physicians, but “since I was unlikely to ever gain the approbation of such men, I resolved to say precisely what I wished” and her friendship with the King and Princess of Wales eventually results in some royal inoculations against a “disease does not discriminate between the houses of the rich and poor or choose only the virtuous or the wicked.”
Alexander Pope, whom she considers a friend, confidante and collaborator, eventually steals her work and attributes his own poorer efforts to her. By this time her husband lives elsewhere, her son is a disappointment and her daughter critical of her actions. When Fanny is afflicted with mental illness, Mary has to fight for her inheritance and her freedom.
She becomes enamoured by a young Italian, takes on the role of a spy in Italy, gets on the wrong side of the Jacobites in France, and is swindled out of her funds in Brescia.
While Lusk tries to give the reader an interesting collision of reality and imagination, interweaving fact with fiction, and does include a lot of historical detail, his cast of real people and fictional characters lacks depth, his portrayal of Mary Wortley Montagu doesn’t much engender the reader’s empathy. and if some parts of the story are fascinating, other parts drag. Not as fascinating as Zachary Cloudesley.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Random House UK/Transworld.
“To learn one must have eyes to see, ears to listen and a heart that is open.”
A Woman Of Opinion is the second novel by British author, Sean Lusk. In 1712, twenty-two-year-old Mary defies her father’s instruction to marry Clotworthy Skeffington, instead marrying Edward Wortley Montagu, Whig for Huntingdon. Not for love, but because Skeffington is dull and lacking ambition, while she and Edward find each other interesting.
Mary knows her love is dangerous to others: she has already lost three people she dearly loved, rejected an earlier suitor to save his life, and is wary of declaring the depth of her feeling for those she loves, sure death will follow. But her love for her younger sister, Frances moves her to oppose Fanny’s marriage to John Erskine, the vain and shallow Earl of Mar, to no avail.
Some time after the birth of her son, Eddie, Mary falls ill with smallpox and when she survives, declares “I had cheated Death once and resolved that having survived I was destined to live an extraordinary life.”
Life in Yorkshire is boring and Edward is decent, straightforward and trustworthy, virtues that, without craftiness, guile and agility, don’t serve to get him a decent position in the parliament, so Mary intervenes via influential friends. Edward may not initially be enthusiastic about taking up a diplomatic post in Constantinople, but Mary is delighted.
After the rush east to mediate, then a delay, Mary is fascinated by everything she encounters in Turkey. With the help of her loyal ladies maid, Nell, she manages to see much more than other Western ladies.
A willing pupil of the pasha, Achmat Bey, Mary learns Arabic: “It had perfect logic, even more than Latin, for a book became a library with a curl of a letter or two, and a library an author and an author a bookshop, and so it was also with a sword and a swordsman and a sheath and an armoury and so on. If English is a wild meadow, filled with flowers in gay disorder, and French laid out in geometric rows, its hedges low and clipped, and German a tall forest with paths crossing this way and that, Arabic is a river bank, the water gurgling and tumbling over rocks, bubbling and full of cheer” and has many philosophical discussions on the differences between their cultures and customs.
She notes the absence of pock-marked locals and learns about a practice of inoculation; wanting to verify its efficacy, she experiments and observes results before inoculating her son and is possessed of a fierce desire to bring this life-saving practice back home.
It would need to be endorsed by the Royal College of Physicians, but “since I was unlikely to ever gain the approbation of such men, I resolved to say precisely what I wished” and her friendship with the King and Princess of Wales eventually results in some royal inoculations against a “disease does not discriminate between the houses of the rich and poor or choose only the virtuous or the wicked.”
Alexander Pope, whom she considers a friend, confidante and collaborator, eventually steals her work and attributes his own poorer efforts to her. By this time her husband lives elsewhere, her son is a disappointment and her daughter critical of her actions. When Fanny is afflicted with mental illness, Mary has to fight for her inheritance and her freedom.
She becomes enamoured by a young Italian, takes on the role of a spy in Italy, gets on the wrong side of the Jacobites in France, and is swindled out of her funds in Brescia.
While Lusk tries to give the reader an interesting collision of reality and imagination, interweaving fact with fiction, and does include a lot of historical detail, his cast of real people and fictional characters lacks depth, his portrayal of Mary Wortley Montagu doesn’t much engender the reader’s empathy. and if some parts of the story are fascinating, other parts drag. Not as fascinating as Zachary Cloudesley.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Random House UK/Transworld.
July 3, 2024
I absolutely loved A Woman of Opinion! A five star read and one of my favourite books of the year; go and read it now!
This is a must-read for all fans of historical fiction or women’s stories.
I have never read a book so brilliantly written, and that so vividly brings a person to life. Poet, writer, medical reformer, friend to the literati, adventurer, and so much more, Lady Mary Wortley Montagu is clever, bold, witty, eloquent, entertaining, and full of life. I fell in love within pages. What an incredibly talented writer Sean Lusk is.
A woman who eloped to avoid marrying a suitor whose brains she compared to that of a pineapple, she was eager to travel, and I couldn’t help but admire how she skilfully maneuvered her husband into a position as an ambassador to Constantinople. After having suffered badly from Smallpox herself, I found her work on engrafting (think inoculation) fascinating. The sheer joy of her experiencing life in Turkey and her later travels was one of my favourite parts. Her thirst for experience, knowledge, life, and her keen curiosity created such a vivacious read. Whilst I loved that Mary was an adamant feminist, I was disappointed that her drive for equality didn’t extend to the classes.
I enjoyed the counterbalance of Franny’s point of view chapters. Their bond as sisters was one of the parts I most admired. Franny also sees Mary as only a sister can – with love and admiration, but perceiving her foibles.
Rest assured, I will read everything Sean Lusk ever writes – and you should too!
This is a must-read for all fans of historical fiction or women’s stories.
I have never read a book so brilliantly written, and that so vividly brings a person to life. Poet, writer, medical reformer, friend to the literati, adventurer, and so much more, Lady Mary Wortley Montagu is clever, bold, witty, eloquent, entertaining, and full of life. I fell in love within pages. What an incredibly talented writer Sean Lusk is.
A woman who eloped to avoid marrying a suitor whose brains she compared to that of a pineapple, she was eager to travel, and I couldn’t help but admire how she skilfully maneuvered her husband into a position as an ambassador to Constantinople. After having suffered badly from Smallpox herself, I found her work on engrafting (think inoculation) fascinating. The sheer joy of her experiencing life in Turkey and her later travels was one of my favourite parts. Her thirst for experience, knowledge, life, and her keen curiosity created such a vivacious read. Whilst I loved that Mary was an adamant feminist, I was disappointed that her drive for equality didn’t extend to the classes.
I enjoyed the counterbalance of Franny’s point of view chapters. Their bond as sisters was one of the parts I most admired. Franny also sees Mary as only a sister can – with love and admiration, but perceiving her foibles.
Rest assured, I will read everything Sean Lusk ever writes – and you should too!
January 26, 2025
3.5 stars.
What an interesting reading experience! In the middle of this book I was struggling to continue and thought I might give it away, but then I couldn’t put it down for the last 150 pages.
Lady Mary Wortley Montagu is truly a fascinating woman that commanded respect from the world around here even when it didn’t wish to give her her rightful portion of it. As a medical visionary, poet, and voice of political influence, she led a varied and interesting life.
I’ve been inspired to read her “Turkish Embassy Letters” as I much desire to see the world through her eyes.
However, this book has left me with a lingering strong sense of melancholy along with the inspiration it provided. I’m not sure if I’ll re-read it, but I’m glad I read it in the first place.
What an interesting reading experience! In the middle of this book I was struggling to continue and thought I might give it away, but then I couldn’t put it down for the last 150 pages.
Lady Mary Wortley Montagu is truly a fascinating woman that commanded respect from the world around here even when it didn’t wish to give her her rightful portion of it. As a medical visionary, poet, and voice of political influence, she led a varied and interesting life.
I’ve been inspired to read her “Turkish Embassy Letters” as I much desire to see the world through her eyes.
However, this book has left me with a lingering strong sense of melancholy along with the inspiration it provided. I’m not sure if I’ll re-read it, but I’m glad I read it in the first place.
Read
July 30, 2025Giving up a third of the way through. It’s in no way a bad book, and I like the Jane Austen-esque style of speech that Mary has, but I’m just not interested in it.
July 2, 2024
Enlightenment
If you vaguely remember the name Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, but can’t quite recall how or why, then allow Sean Lusk to enlighten you. He vividly and justifiably illuminates this bold woman in his latest novel ‘A Woman Of Opinion‘, due out on 4th July 2024.
She certainly deserves to be remembered and plaudits should reign down upon her for her life’s achievements, adventures and yes, for her forthright and prescient opinions and actions. She lived in the Age of Enlightenment, when beliefs were challenged, where science ruled over superstition and blind faith. Yet it appeared women’s voices were still unheard and under represented.
Lusk announces prior to the prologue that this novel is ‘inspired by the life, letters and lost diaries‘. There is also a timeline of known events at the end to clarify where the author has ‘adjusted’ episodes to suit the narrative. So although it is a biopic of the woman, there is some artistic licence and fiction to emphasise her character.
However it is Lusk‘s skill in binding these factual pieces together into a credible storyline, which makes the novel so enticing. His style of writing and his choice of language is eloquent and fitting for the times, the early 18th century.
Told from her and some chapters from her sister, Frances’ voice, we are up close and personal to what must have been how they lived, felt and endured the suppression of contemporary society. When only some letters and her infamous Turkish letters still exist, this is a tremendous achievement by Lusk. Mary‘s daughter burnt her diaries shortly before her death, which would have contained her more intimate thoughts.
Death
Mary is plagued by Death, as if a shadow haunts her life. She bargains with Death to keep away from those she loves. By NOT loving she believes she can cheat Death out of another victim. This must surely have outwardly affected her bonds with lovers and family.
Feminist
As a staunch feminist, Mary is also vocal with friends and family about the restrictions placed upon women of the day. In one exchange with Alexander Pope, a poet and satirist of the Enlightenment era, she states:
‘And for a woman, Mr. Pope, the rules are always harsher than for any man, for we may not be lawyers or priests or surgeons, we may not sit in parliament and I may not write and publish a piece with my name attached to it, or not without attracting great odium.’
These things alone I can do today, in a small part thanks to women like Mary who stood up to such injustices.
Her defiance is admirable given such societal female suppression.
‘I shall be a thousand different Marys and, in such manner, shall find the one I wish to be…‘
She challenged the status quo and was unafraid of the consequences. However, in ridiculing her former friend Alexander Pope‘s work, she made a lifelong enemy. Perhaps her comments were in retaliation for him claiming sole credit for their joint poetry.
A Modern Arrangement
Although her marriage was unconventional, both Mary and Edward Wortley Montagu shared a mutual respect and warmth even living apart. Lusk describes them as the moon is to the earth. It was a modern relationship at the time however Edward was, it seems, tolerant and supportive of this arrangement.
Inoculation
Most surprising to me was Mary’s work in the progress of early forms of inoculation. During her life in Turkey, a society she adored, she noticed how little people were scarred by smallpox, a disease she herself had suffered with and left its evidence on her skin. And yet in Turkey this was often not the case. She learnt about the process of ‘engrafting‘, which involved making a small incision in the arm, inserting a small sample of pus from a smallpox victim into the incision, which then mixed into the bloodstream. It was the precursor to Jenner‘s work with cowpox and smallpox vaccinations. Ridiculed for her notion that she knew how to prevent smallpox by ‘engrafting‘, she forged ahead with advocating its success. It is claimed that her own daughter Mary was the first person in this country to be inoculated, so confident was she in the process. Even the royal children were ‘engrafted‘ but only after trials on prisoners and orphaned children.
Thanks to Lady Mary, no doubt many thousands of lives were eventually saved.
A Force Of Nature
As another woman of opinion (so my husband tells me!), I feel grateful to this force of nature that was Lady Mary Wortley Montagu for forging a pathway many of us have been able to follow, now well trodden, far more accepted and encouraged than in the early to mid 18th century. How many more female voices were lost to the male collaborator, who gained sole acknowledgement for joint efforts?
At least now thanks to Sean Lusk, Professor Isobel Grundy, author of Lady Mary Wortley Montagu; Comet of the Enlightenment and Jo Willett, author of The Pioneering Life of Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, Scientist and Feminist, Mary‘s voice can be heard at last!
If you vaguely remember the name Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, but can’t quite recall how or why, then allow Sean Lusk to enlighten you. He vividly and justifiably illuminates this bold woman in his latest novel ‘A Woman Of Opinion‘, due out on 4th July 2024.
She certainly deserves to be remembered and plaudits should reign down upon her for her life’s achievements, adventures and yes, for her forthright and prescient opinions and actions. She lived in the Age of Enlightenment, when beliefs were challenged, where science ruled over superstition and blind faith. Yet it appeared women’s voices were still unheard and under represented.
Lusk announces prior to the prologue that this novel is ‘inspired by the life, letters and lost diaries‘. There is also a timeline of known events at the end to clarify where the author has ‘adjusted’ episodes to suit the narrative. So although it is a biopic of the woman, there is some artistic licence and fiction to emphasise her character.
However it is Lusk‘s skill in binding these factual pieces together into a credible storyline, which makes the novel so enticing. His style of writing and his choice of language is eloquent and fitting for the times, the early 18th century.
Told from her and some chapters from her sister, Frances’ voice, we are up close and personal to what must have been how they lived, felt and endured the suppression of contemporary society. When only some letters and her infamous Turkish letters still exist, this is a tremendous achievement by Lusk. Mary‘s daughter burnt her diaries shortly before her death, which would have contained her more intimate thoughts.
Death
Mary is plagued by Death, as if a shadow haunts her life. She bargains with Death to keep away from those she loves. By NOT loving she believes she can cheat Death out of another victim. This must surely have outwardly affected her bonds with lovers and family.
Feminist
As a staunch feminist, Mary is also vocal with friends and family about the restrictions placed upon women of the day. In one exchange with Alexander Pope, a poet and satirist of the Enlightenment era, she states:
‘And for a woman, Mr. Pope, the rules are always harsher than for any man, for we may not be lawyers or priests or surgeons, we may not sit in parliament and I may not write and publish a piece with my name attached to it, or not without attracting great odium.’
These things alone I can do today, in a small part thanks to women like Mary who stood up to such injustices.
Her defiance is admirable given such societal female suppression.
‘I shall be a thousand different Marys and, in such manner, shall find the one I wish to be…‘
She challenged the status quo and was unafraid of the consequences. However, in ridiculing her former friend Alexander Pope‘s work, she made a lifelong enemy. Perhaps her comments were in retaliation for him claiming sole credit for their joint poetry.
A Modern Arrangement
Although her marriage was unconventional, both Mary and Edward Wortley Montagu shared a mutual respect and warmth even living apart. Lusk describes them as the moon is to the earth. It was a modern relationship at the time however Edward was, it seems, tolerant and supportive of this arrangement.
Inoculation
Most surprising to me was Mary’s work in the progress of early forms of inoculation. During her life in Turkey, a society she adored, she noticed how little people were scarred by smallpox, a disease she herself had suffered with and left its evidence on her skin. And yet in Turkey this was often not the case. She learnt about the process of ‘engrafting‘, which involved making a small incision in the arm, inserting a small sample of pus from a smallpox victim into the incision, which then mixed into the bloodstream. It was the precursor to Jenner‘s work with cowpox and smallpox vaccinations. Ridiculed for her notion that she knew how to prevent smallpox by ‘engrafting‘, she forged ahead with advocating its success. It is claimed that her own daughter Mary was the first person in this country to be inoculated, so confident was she in the process. Even the royal children were ‘engrafted‘ but only after trials on prisoners and orphaned children.
Thanks to Lady Mary, no doubt many thousands of lives were eventually saved.
A Force Of Nature
As another woman of opinion (so my husband tells me!), I feel grateful to this force of nature that was Lady Mary Wortley Montagu for forging a pathway many of us have been able to follow, now well trodden, far more accepted and encouraged than in the early to mid 18th century. How many more female voices were lost to the male collaborator, who gained sole acknowledgement for joint efforts?
At least now thanks to Sean Lusk, Professor Isobel Grundy, author of Lady Mary Wortley Montagu; Comet of the Enlightenment and Jo Willett, author of The Pioneering Life of Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, Scientist and Feminist, Mary‘s voice can be heard at last!
August 10, 2024
A fascinating story set in the 1600s based on Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, an extraordinary woman raised by her grandmother and self educated who became a writer, poet and medical pioneer.
The author Sean Lusk has created a captivating account of her life, clearly well researched and beautifully written.
This book will take you on a journey with Lady Montagu, a clever, witty, humorous woman who had many youthful love affairs, a well respected Courtier with a knowledge of politics, well travelled and a writer to boot.
A wonderful emotional story told with charm and warmth.
An absolute delight!
The author Sean Lusk has created a captivating account of her life, clearly well researched and beautifully written.
This book will take you on a journey with Lady Montagu, a clever, witty, humorous woman who had many youthful love affairs, a well respected Courtier with a knowledge of politics, well travelled and a writer to boot.
A wonderful emotional story told with charm and warmth.
An absolute delight!
July 19, 2025
Dit is een prachtig boek over Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, een in 1762 in het hedendaagse Verenigd Koninkrijk geboren vrouw die trouwde met een man die ambassadeur werd in Turkije. Ze is de eerste vrouwelijke seculiere bron die volop geschreven heeft over het leven in een moslimland.
A Woman of Opinion houdt het midden tussen een geromantiseerd historisch verslag en een historische roman: de data kloppen en wat er bekend is van Lady Mary Wortley Montagu klopt ook, maar dit is rijk aangevuld met hoe het geweest zou kunnen zijn. En dit levert een waanzinnig beeld op van een liberale, vrijgevochten vrouw die niet bang is voor de wereld, er juist nieuwsgierig naar is. Een waardeloze moeder, maar een geweldige avonturier.
Het levert ook een prachtig boek op, zeer leesbaar en geschreven op een manier waarop het karakter van de hoofdpersoon echt op een hele mooie, levendige manier wordt weergegeven. Zeer regelmatig wordt de lezer getrakteerd op mooie spitsvondige zinnen. Lady Mary Wortley Montagu beschikt over ontzettend veel ingetogen humor.
Haar leven wijkt zeer sterk af van wat toen (en nu!) als gemiddeld zou worden betiteld. Ik denk dat ze voor velen (man en vrouw) een voorbeeld kan zijn in hoe autonoom ze is en op welke wijze ze haar dromen najaagt en haar weg vindt in een door oorlogen verscheurd Europa. Aanrader om te lezen! Vier sterren.
A Woman of Opinion houdt het midden tussen een geromantiseerd historisch verslag en een historische roman: de data kloppen en wat er bekend is van Lady Mary Wortley Montagu klopt ook, maar dit is rijk aangevuld met hoe het geweest zou kunnen zijn. En dit levert een waanzinnig beeld op van een liberale, vrijgevochten vrouw die niet bang is voor de wereld, er juist nieuwsgierig naar is. Een waardeloze moeder, maar een geweldige avonturier.
Het levert ook een prachtig boek op, zeer leesbaar en geschreven op een manier waarop het karakter van de hoofdpersoon echt op een hele mooie, levendige manier wordt weergegeven. Zeer regelmatig wordt de lezer getrakteerd op mooie spitsvondige zinnen. Lady Mary Wortley Montagu beschikt over ontzettend veel ingetogen humor.
Haar leven wijkt zeer sterk af van wat toen (en nu!) als gemiddeld zou worden betiteld. Ik denk dat ze voor velen (man en vrouw) een voorbeeld kan zijn in hoe autonoom ze is en op welke wijze ze haar dromen najaagt en haar weg vindt in een door oorlogen verscheurd Europa. Aanrader om te lezen! Vier sterren.
April 28, 2024
A fascinating account of a woman and period of history that I was pretty ignorant about!
As with Zachary Cloudesley, the writing is superb - there are similarities such as the obvious link to Constantinople and description of journeys across Europe, but this is far more of a historical novel, mixing fiction and biography. I was most interested in the smallpox / inoculation part of the story and was disappointed there wasn't more of that in the book, although Mary's life was so full and interesting, especially for a woman of that time, that I understand why it played a fairly minor role in the plot.
Altogether another outstanding success from this brilliant author.
Thank you #netgalley for this ARC
As with Zachary Cloudesley, the writing is superb - there are similarities such as the obvious link to Constantinople and description of journeys across Europe, but this is far more of a historical novel, mixing fiction and biography. I was most interested in the smallpox / inoculation part of the story and was disappointed there wasn't more of that in the book, although Mary's life was so full and interesting, especially for a woman of that time, that I understand why it played a fairly minor role in the plot.
Altogether another outstanding success from this brilliant author.
Thank you #netgalley for this ARC
December 10, 2024
Another brilliant fictional take on a fascinating woman from history who I hadn’t previously heard of, this time Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, who seemed rather ahead of her time!
I adored Sean’s debut novel, and this one was equally exquisite to read - rich in language, character and setting, especially when we got to travel to Constantinople. Mary is a captivating character, and I loved exploring her possible life and loves, but especially admired the way she refused to back down about the smallpox “vaccination”. What an incredible and strong spirited woman, even in the face of ridicule!
If you love historical fiction that’s beautifully written and gives a voice to an overlooked woman from history, then definitely add this one to your list.
I adored Sean’s debut novel, and this one was equally exquisite to read - rich in language, character and setting, especially when we got to travel to Constantinople. Mary is a captivating character, and I loved exploring her possible life and loves, but especially admired the way she refused to back down about the smallpox “vaccination”. What an incredible and strong spirited woman, even in the face of ridicule!
If you love historical fiction that’s beautifully written and gives a voice to an overlooked woman from history, then definitely add this one to your list.
April 27, 2024
In 2022 Sean Lusk entered the literary world with the magical wonderful Dickensian The Second Sight of Zachary Cloudesley.
His new novel A Woman of Opinion feels that it takes a nod towards the world of Thackeray and Austen.
This is the story of Mary Wortley Montagu ( 1689- 1762)- a pioneering woman ahead of her time. A woman who battled against a society where women should be 'seen and not heard' and staying at home with children was considered the expectation. Mary shattered this convention
This novel is based around the life of the real life person and is a mix of fiction and biographical.
A strong character who from her an early age was not to be forced into a marriage of status but disobeyed her father to marry Edward Wortley; although a rich man Wortley lacked the drive and ambition of Mary who in her own machiavellian way instigated his move in to politics and to become an Ambassador in Austria and Turkey.
The best parts of the novel are when Mary flaunts convention to pursue her need for knowledge, battles for acknowledgement particularly in the world of poetry and writing letters, fights for the development of smallpox inoculation and tries to protect her sister. Occasionally her wealth and the assumption that she can live so freely does grate- money can solve all woes courtesy of her husband's funds
Her move to Italy broadens the story with intrigue between kingdoms and duchies (the currency of gossip prevails ) but also shows her fallibility as she finds herself a victim of fraud and love.
Mary is a fascinating character. This is an historical read opening up a readership to a relatively unknown 'society' figure.
Fav quote: "Diplomacy is the skill to weave the flights of many arrows into a single purpose, to make a truth, as it were, from many untruths and one that is irresistible to all"
Nothing changes 3oo years later in the world of scrupulous politics
His new novel A Woman of Opinion feels that it takes a nod towards the world of Thackeray and Austen.
This is the story of Mary Wortley Montagu ( 1689- 1762)- a pioneering woman ahead of her time. A woman who battled against a society where women should be 'seen and not heard' and staying at home with children was considered the expectation. Mary shattered this convention
This novel is based around the life of the real life person and is a mix of fiction and biographical.
A strong character who from her an early age was not to be forced into a marriage of status but disobeyed her father to marry Edward Wortley; although a rich man Wortley lacked the drive and ambition of Mary who in her own machiavellian way instigated his move in to politics and to become an Ambassador in Austria and Turkey.
The best parts of the novel are when Mary flaunts convention to pursue her need for knowledge, battles for acknowledgement particularly in the world of poetry and writing letters, fights for the development of smallpox inoculation and tries to protect her sister. Occasionally her wealth and the assumption that she can live so freely does grate- money can solve all woes courtesy of her husband's funds
Her move to Italy broadens the story with intrigue between kingdoms and duchies (the currency of gossip prevails ) but also shows her fallibility as she finds herself a victim of fraud and love.
Mary is a fascinating character. This is an historical read opening up a readership to a relatively unknown 'society' figure.
Fav quote: "Diplomacy is the skill to weave the flights of many arrows into a single purpose, to make a truth, as it were, from many untruths and one that is irresistible to all"
Nothing changes 3oo years later in the world of scrupulous politics
July 8, 2024
In his new novel, A Woman of Opinion, Sean Lusk tells the story of Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, based closely on her own published letters. Montagu, whom I previously knew almost nothing about, lived from 1689 to 1762, and was an English writer, poet and medical pioneer. She led a fascinating life and I enjoyed seeing it unfold through the pages of this novel.
A Woman of Opinion begins in 1712 with Mary eloping with Edward Wortley Montagu in order to avoid being pushed into marriage to her father’s choice of husband, the Irish nobleman Clotworthy Skeffington. Edward is a Whig politician and the two settle in London for a few years until, growing impatient with her husband’s lack of ambition and desperate to see more of the world, Mary manages to engineer a job offer for him as ambassador to Constantinople.
While Edward is busy trying to negotiate an end to the Austro-Turkish War, Mary gets to know some of the local Turkish women and is intrigued when she observes them inoculating their children against smallpox, through the method of ‘engrafting’ – taking pus from an infected person and introducing it into the arm or leg of an uninfected child. Mary, who has suffered from smallpox herself and been left with scarring to the face, is so impressed by the results of this procedure that when she returns to England she becomes determined to inoculate as many children as possible.
Most of the novel is narrated by Mary herself – in a formal, eloquent style that fits the 18th century setting, with no glaringly anachronistic language – but some chapters are narrated by her sister, Frances. Unlike Mary, who is the strong, independent ‘woman of opinion’ of the title, Frances has a gentler, more trusting nature. She is easier to like than Mary but her story is much less interesting and I didn’t feel that her perspective really added anything to the book.
Although the Constantinople episode is the most engaging part of the novel, Mary’s life continued to be eventful after her return. She formed a friendship and then a rivalry with the poet Alexander Pope, travelled to Italy where she began an affair with Count Francesco Algarotti, and produced a number of poems and essays. She also left behind her collection of letters, which were published in three volumes after her death as Turkish Embassy Letters (and are still in print today). Her other lasting legacy – her role in the development of the smallpox vaccine – has been overshadowed by Edward Jenner and I’m pleased that this novel has been able to raise some awareness of her contributions.
I enjoyed A Woman of Opinion much more than Sean Lusk’s debut, The Second Sight of Zacahary Cloudesley, which I felt had an unnecessary magical realism element and lost its way halfway through. However, I discovered from Lusk’s author’s note at the end of this book that one of the characters in Zachary Cloudesley was also based on Mary Wortley Montagu. If you’ve read both books, I’ll leave you to guess which one!
A Woman of Opinion begins in 1712 with Mary eloping with Edward Wortley Montagu in order to avoid being pushed into marriage to her father’s choice of husband, the Irish nobleman Clotworthy Skeffington. Edward is a Whig politician and the two settle in London for a few years until, growing impatient with her husband’s lack of ambition and desperate to see more of the world, Mary manages to engineer a job offer for him as ambassador to Constantinople.
While Edward is busy trying to negotiate an end to the Austro-Turkish War, Mary gets to know some of the local Turkish women and is intrigued when she observes them inoculating their children against smallpox, through the method of ‘engrafting’ – taking pus from an infected person and introducing it into the arm or leg of an uninfected child. Mary, who has suffered from smallpox herself and been left with scarring to the face, is so impressed by the results of this procedure that when she returns to England she becomes determined to inoculate as many children as possible.
Most of the novel is narrated by Mary herself – in a formal, eloquent style that fits the 18th century setting, with no glaringly anachronistic language – but some chapters are narrated by her sister, Frances. Unlike Mary, who is the strong, independent ‘woman of opinion’ of the title, Frances has a gentler, more trusting nature. She is easier to like than Mary but her story is much less interesting and I didn’t feel that her perspective really added anything to the book.
Although the Constantinople episode is the most engaging part of the novel, Mary’s life continued to be eventful after her return. She formed a friendship and then a rivalry with the poet Alexander Pope, travelled to Italy where she began an affair with Count Francesco Algarotti, and produced a number of poems and essays. She also left behind her collection of letters, which were published in three volumes after her death as Turkish Embassy Letters (and are still in print today). Her other lasting legacy – her role in the development of the smallpox vaccine – has been overshadowed by Edward Jenner and I’m pleased that this novel has been able to raise some awareness of her contributions.
I enjoyed A Woman of Opinion much more than Sean Lusk’s debut, The Second Sight of Zacahary Cloudesley, which I felt had an unnecessary magical realism element and lost its way halfway through. However, I discovered from Lusk’s author’s note at the end of this book that one of the characters in Zachary Cloudesley was also based on Mary Wortley Montagu. If you’ve read both books, I’ll leave you to guess which one!
May 16, 2025
Mary Wortley Montague was incredible and beyond being academic, an author, a polyglot and political influence, she helped to pioneer vaccination.
It is so sad to be reminded that we are the same as women through history and are no more clever (frankly, many of us are less so) than women who lived a few hundred years ago. It brings out immense sadness in me because they can be understood because they are just like us. And to know that we haven't really made much progress in equality is awful.
Women are still beaten, objectified, and belittled. Ideas stolen or mocked. Demanded to be everything and nothing at the same time.
"She had told me with conviction of doors she had walked into, and falls she had had about the farm, but there is not a woman in the world who ever walked into a door who was not also beaten by her husband."
There was another line about how a woman who is known in an academic realm must be truly magnificent because she must know the subject in a hundred times more detail than her male counterparts to even be recognized, yet alone exalted.
This book does a service to Mary Wortley Montague by bringing her name back into circulation.
It is so sad to be reminded that we are the same as women through history and are no more clever (frankly, many of us are less so) than women who lived a few hundred years ago. It brings out immense sadness in me because they can be understood because they are just like us. And to know that we haven't really made much progress in equality is awful.
Women are still beaten, objectified, and belittled. Ideas stolen or mocked. Demanded to be everything and nothing at the same time.
"She had told me with conviction of doors she had walked into, and falls she had had about the farm, but there is not a woman in the world who ever walked into a door who was not also beaten by her husband."
There was another line about how a woman who is known in an academic realm must be truly magnificent because she must know the subject in a hundred times more detail than her male counterparts to even be recognized, yet alone exalted.
This book does a service to Mary Wortley Montague by bringing her name back into circulation.
May 23, 2024
A well written historical novel featuring Mary Wortley Montagu. Set in the early decades of the nineteenth century, the story follows Mary's marriage, travels in Turkey and Europe, her political affairs and her personal relationships. The story is mostly told from Mary's viewpoint with occasional chapters told from her sister, Frances's, perspective. Mary was clearly an independent, strong minded and remarkable woman for her time. This certainly comes across in the novel. The research behind the novel is good and it is well-written. There were many interesting historical points, particularly in relation to the smallpox inoculations.
Unfortunately, I found the book very slow-paced and unexciting. Mary did lead a remarkable life but she was wealthy and this gave her more freedom than most to do the things she did. At first I found her an endearing character but by the second half of the book I didn't care for her or her lifestyle.
I received a free review copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for my honest and unedited review.
Unfortunately, I found the book very slow-paced and unexciting. Mary did lead a remarkable life but she was wealthy and this gave her more freedom than most to do the things she did. At first I found her an endearing character but by the second half of the book I didn't care for her or her lifestyle.
I received a free review copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for my honest and unedited review.
October 16, 2024
( 3.5) How did I know so little about Lady Mary Wortley Montague? She certainly was a ‘Woman of Opinion’ and so much more too - a writer, poet and medical pioneer; both notorious and revered in her time. Here the author combines history and historical fiction to bring Mary to life. Mary isn’t always an empathetic character and as the structure is based on historical events, the pace varies. As a result, I didn’t find it as engaging as the fictional ‘ Zachary Cloudesley’ but it certainly made me want to learn more about this oft overlooked character.
July 2, 2024
A fascinating piece of historical fiction based on a real life heroine. Mary’s diaries are full of pluck and courage, daring and adventure and I loved travelling with her through Europe.
The story of the small pox inoculations was really interesting and showed how brave she was fighting for a cause in such a patriarchal England.
Her disregard for behaving properly and remembering her status was to be applauded- she was ahead of time in so many ways - even if her actions resulted in being mocked by some in society and disregarded by her family.
Sean Lusk does a wonderful job in bringing her story to life.
The story of the small pox inoculations was really interesting and showed how brave she was fighting for a cause in such a patriarchal England.
Her disregard for behaving properly and remembering her status was to be applauded- she was ahead of time in so many ways - even if her actions resulted in being mocked by some in society and disregarded by her family.
Sean Lusk does a wonderful job in bringing her story to life.
January 14, 2025
3.5 ⭐️
[review to come]
[review to come]
July 23, 2025
I had high expectations for this book based off my enjoyment of the author’s first, but unfortunately this did not meet them
November 23, 2024
I am glad I read this despite overall not quite feeling it is a 4 star book.
June 20, 2025
An intriguing historical novel!!! I will search another book from this author …
July 4, 2024
3.5
This was such an interesting read, I loved Mary's character so much. She went against the norm and did what she wanted/had to do. The book was mainly told through Mary's POV but we had the occasional chapter from her sister Frances and I liked that. The different locations Mary ventured during her time were such a delight to read about.
Thank you to the publisher for my review copy.
This was such an interesting read, I loved Mary's character so much. She went against the norm and did what she wanted/had to do. The book was mainly told through Mary's POV but we had the occasional chapter from her sister Frances and I liked that. The different locations Mary ventured during her time were such a delight to read about.
Thank you to the publisher for my review copy.
July 8, 2024
Lady Mary Wortley Montagu longs for something that surely as a woman is far from her grasp. She longs for adventures most exotic, freedom unending, and love unlimited, believing that only by truly living can she escape the stalking crow of Death himself….
As an aristocratic woman of eighteenth-century England, Mary is expected to act a certain way, to be a particular person but Mary will never let society’s bland expectations stifle her: she writes celebrated poetry to stimulate the mind, articles advocating for equality, and of course the occasional scandalous letter may make its merry way to one of her powerful friends much to the surprise and delight of those watching her every move.
However, Mary demands more of the the world and using her connections finds herself in the Ottoman Empire, now wife to the British ambassador and in Constantinople, she finally discovers the freedom she has long-sought and upon observing Turkish women ‘engrafting’ children against smallpox, she is resolute to bring this miracle cure back to England for it shall surely saves thousands of lives, but it will not be an easy task for of course many oppose such a seemingly trivial act as nothing more than false hope.
Despite this, Mary’s reputation becomes tainted.
A flagrant inability to abide by rules, her opinions on women’s rights are leaving many people baffled, and her search for love and desire gain her many a powerful and fearful enemy, all while battling to ensure her diaries are published after her death with her own daughter trying to block such an outcome from happening yet Mary will fight with every last ounce of her heart to see that the world will know of her life. Of her loves. Of her loss. Of her dreams.
Fearless, witty, and inspiring, A Woman of Opinion is both highly entertaining and incredibly educational.
As an aristocratic woman of eighteenth-century England, Mary is expected to act a certain way, to be a particular person but Mary will never let society’s bland expectations stifle her: she writes celebrated poetry to stimulate the mind, articles advocating for equality, and of course the occasional scandalous letter may make its merry way to one of her powerful friends much to the surprise and delight of those watching her every move.
However, Mary demands more of the the world and using her connections finds herself in the Ottoman Empire, now wife to the British ambassador and in Constantinople, she finally discovers the freedom she has long-sought and upon observing Turkish women ‘engrafting’ children against smallpox, she is resolute to bring this miracle cure back to England for it shall surely saves thousands of lives, but it will not be an easy task for of course many oppose such a seemingly trivial act as nothing more than false hope.
Despite this, Mary’s reputation becomes tainted.
A flagrant inability to abide by rules, her opinions on women’s rights are leaving many people baffled, and her search for love and desire gain her many a powerful and fearful enemy, all while battling to ensure her diaries are published after her death with her own daughter trying to block such an outcome from happening yet Mary will fight with every last ounce of her heart to see that the world will know of her life. Of her loves. Of her loss. Of her dreams.
Fearless, witty, and inspiring, A Woman of Opinion is both highly entertaining and incredibly educational.
June 23, 2024
A Woman of Opinion by Sean Lusk is a historical fiction novel depicting the life of Mary Wortley Montagu in the 18th century. She is noted for being a poet and advocating for women’s rights.This book explores her life in detail and brings to life the adventures she had traveling the world with her husband, an ambassador.
I would recommend this book for readers who are interested in Montagu’s story, the most notable part for me being that she helped bring smallpox inoculation to England. The best part of the book for me was Mary’s travel adventures, I appreciated the descriptions of all the places she experienced. I found the rest of the book slow and cumbersome to read with alternating the story with Frances, her sister. Frances’ point of view did not add to the story for me.
Thank you Random House UK, Transworld Publishers and Netgalley for the advanced reader copy. All opinions are my own.
I would recommend this book for readers who are interested in Montagu’s story, the most notable part for me being that she helped bring smallpox inoculation to England. The best part of the book for me was Mary’s travel adventures, I appreciated the descriptions of all the places she experienced. I found the rest of the book slow and cumbersome to read with alternating the story with Frances, her sister. Frances’ point of view did not add to the story for me.
Thank you Random House UK, Transworld Publishers and Netgalley for the advanced reader copy. All opinions are my own.
June 10, 2025
An historical fiction novel which reads closer to a biography, moving from event to event without any real narrative structure. The story of the life of a progressive woman is interesting and educational, however this is too factual with little to no embellishment to merit fictionalisation. This novel also lacks the creativity and beauty of Lusk’s prose in Zachary Cloudesley. I guess that’s an inherent problem when reimagining real events into fiction, but I didn’t see the value in moving some events by a year or 6 months and this annoyed me as narratively the novel is so close to biographical I didn’t feel these time shifts added anything other than a method for Lusk to say “I have invented some things”.
July 21, 2024
I loved Mary’s story overall, and really enjoyed learning about her. I do think the book was a bit slow, however. I struggled to finish it, as it wasn’t holding my attention and felt more like a textbook than a historical fiction novel. I was more intrigued by Fanny’s occasional storyline, and was finding myself wanting more of that. I still found it to be a thorough depiction of Mary Wortley Montagu’s life based on the documents that managed to survive her daughter’s purge, and I’m glad I read this book to learn more about this amazing woman in history.
Thank you to @netgalley and the publishers for the copy.
Thank you to @netgalley and the publishers for the copy.
August 20, 2024
Sean Lusk follows his outstanding debut, The Second Sight of Zachary Cloudesely, with a fictionalised biography of Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, the inspiration behind the character of Aunt Frances in his first book. Mary is barely remembered and yet her life and accomplishments were astonishing; at a time when we have reassessed how so many public figures of the past are perceived, this enthralling retelling of her life brings a genuinely noteworthy, remarkable figure to our attention.
Mary's diaries were sadly burnt by her daughter, however, many of her letters and poems survive and form the basis for the first-person narrative, which mostly follows Mary's perspective. There are also chapters told from her beloved sister, Frances's point-of-view, which gives us another insight into the sheer force of Mary's personality. She observes early in the book,
'That Mary is hungry for everything – for love, for sorrow, for adventure – is something I always understood. Yet she also has a taste for conflict.'
Sean Lusk elegantly portrays every nuance of this multifaceted woman throughout his book and his evidently exhaustive research ensures this is a rich, utterly captivating character portrait.
The prologue introduces us to the ten-year-old Mary Pierrepont, who is already aware that being ignored is due more to her being a female than to her age. It quickly becomes apparent that this early awareness drove her to rail against societal expectations throughout her life. Highly educated and fiercely independent, she defied her father's wishes by eloping with Edward Wortley Montagu. However, the excitement of their clandestine affair and secret nuptials soon passed and within two years, she was disheartened by his unyielding stubbornness. She notes that she first knew him through his sister, and her best friend, Annie; Sean Lusk poignantly conveys the intimate closeness of the friendship and the tragedy of her premature death from measles within a few lines, and it's at this point we first become aware that she personified Death as a relentless pursuer of love. Having lost her mother, grandmother and friend at a young age, the fear that stalks her, preventing her from truly expressing her love for her children is one of the most heartbreaking aspects of the book.
After her infant son almost died of scarletina, she tragically lost her brother to smallpox and then barely survived the illness herself and was left badly scarred. Her resilience is a feature throughout this account but perhaps never more so than here. Desperate for adventure and to escape the stultifying sanctimoniousness of London, she was able to manipulate her friendship with Robert Walpole to secure the position of His Majesty's ambassador to Constantinople. This heralds arguably the most fascinating section of A Woman of Opinion. Their protracted journey to Constantinople, followed by their time in Turkey is compellingly told; Sean Lusk has such a transportative way with words and brings each of her encounters vividly to life – from their stay in Vienna where by adopting the latest fashions and earning the approval of the most powerful women there, she was able to advise Edward on how best to negotiate for peace between Austria and Turkey, to her reckless courage in dressing as a man to visit the Hagia Sophia.
However, it was also in Constantinople that Mary noticed that unlike in Europe, the people there didn't bear the tell-tale scars of smallpox. Her interest in the process of engraftment – inoculation – and fervent belief in the practice perhaps defines her overlooked place in history more than any other. While most people can tell you that Edward Jenner was responsible for creating the smallpox vaccine, how many realise that Lady Mary Wortley Montagu imported inoculation against the disease from Turkey or that her daughter, Mary was the first person ever recorded as being inoculated against the disease in Britain? It is both inspiring and infuriating to learn how she battled the medical profession and that despite her claims being vindicated following tests run on prisoners in Newgate prison, her role in the story of vaccination has largely been forgotten.
If this was her greatest achievement, the rest of her life was no less eventful. Sean Lusk does a wonderful job of depicting the dichotomy between her spirited outspokenness and her more introspective side, which saw her desperate to feel truly loved and to fall passionately for the much younger Francesco Algarotti. Although A Woman of Opinion obviously positions Mary as the most riveting character, the secondary figures are also superbly rendered, with the fragility of Fanny, the feud which developed between Mary and a waspish Alexander Pope and the complex dynamics of her relationship with the duplicitous, Count Palazzi being just a few notable examples. Sean Lusk explains that he invented some characters for the sake of the story, including Mary's maid, Nell, who represents the close and often complicated relationships she had with a number of her servants. Aside from Mary, she was my favourite character in the novel and I would love to read a book about the life created for her here.
The politics, rivalries and beliefs of the time are woven into the plot superbly and I loved the extra little touches, such as the brief inclusion of Peter the Wild Boy. By the very nature of its extraordinary subject, A Woman of Opinion was always going to be riveting but Sean Lusk also captures the authentic tone of the period effortlessly and it's easy to believe that Mary guided his hand throughout. Truly exceptional, a book to savour – I loved it!
Mary's diaries were sadly burnt by her daughter, however, many of her letters and poems survive and form the basis for the first-person narrative, which mostly follows Mary's perspective. There are also chapters told from her beloved sister, Frances's point-of-view, which gives us another insight into the sheer force of Mary's personality. She observes early in the book,
'That Mary is hungry for everything – for love, for sorrow, for adventure – is something I always understood. Yet she also has a taste for conflict.'
Sean Lusk elegantly portrays every nuance of this multifaceted woman throughout his book and his evidently exhaustive research ensures this is a rich, utterly captivating character portrait.
The prologue introduces us to the ten-year-old Mary Pierrepont, who is already aware that being ignored is due more to her being a female than to her age. It quickly becomes apparent that this early awareness drove her to rail against societal expectations throughout her life. Highly educated and fiercely independent, she defied her father's wishes by eloping with Edward Wortley Montagu. However, the excitement of their clandestine affair and secret nuptials soon passed and within two years, she was disheartened by his unyielding stubbornness. She notes that she first knew him through his sister, and her best friend, Annie; Sean Lusk poignantly conveys the intimate closeness of the friendship and the tragedy of her premature death from measles within a few lines, and it's at this point we first become aware that she personified Death as a relentless pursuer of love. Having lost her mother, grandmother and friend at a young age, the fear that stalks her, preventing her from truly expressing her love for her children is one of the most heartbreaking aspects of the book.
After her infant son almost died of scarletina, she tragically lost her brother to smallpox and then barely survived the illness herself and was left badly scarred. Her resilience is a feature throughout this account but perhaps never more so than here. Desperate for adventure and to escape the stultifying sanctimoniousness of London, she was able to manipulate her friendship with Robert Walpole to secure the position of His Majesty's ambassador to Constantinople. This heralds arguably the most fascinating section of A Woman of Opinion. Their protracted journey to Constantinople, followed by their time in Turkey is compellingly told; Sean Lusk has such a transportative way with words and brings each of her encounters vividly to life – from their stay in Vienna where by adopting the latest fashions and earning the approval of the most powerful women there, she was able to advise Edward on how best to negotiate for peace between Austria and Turkey, to her reckless courage in dressing as a man to visit the Hagia Sophia.
However, it was also in Constantinople that Mary noticed that unlike in Europe, the people there didn't bear the tell-tale scars of smallpox. Her interest in the process of engraftment – inoculation – and fervent belief in the practice perhaps defines her overlooked place in history more than any other. While most people can tell you that Edward Jenner was responsible for creating the smallpox vaccine, how many realise that Lady Mary Wortley Montagu imported inoculation against the disease from Turkey or that her daughter, Mary was the first person ever recorded as being inoculated against the disease in Britain? It is both inspiring and infuriating to learn how she battled the medical profession and that despite her claims being vindicated following tests run on prisoners in Newgate prison, her role in the story of vaccination has largely been forgotten.
If this was her greatest achievement, the rest of her life was no less eventful. Sean Lusk does a wonderful job of depicting the dichotomy between her spirited outspokenness and her more introspective side, which saw her desperate to feel truly loved and to fall passionately for the much younger Francesco Algarotti. Although A Woman of Opinion obviously positions Mary as the most riveting character, the secondary figures are also superbly rendered, with the fragility of Fanny, the feud which developed between Mary and a waspish Alexander Pope and the complex dynamics of her relationship with the duplicitous, Count Palazzi being just a few notable examples. Sean Lusk explains that he invented some characters for the sake of the story, including Mary's maid, Nell, who represents the close and often complicated relationships she had with a number of her servants. Aside from Mary, she was my favourite character in the novel and I would love to read a book about the life created for her here.
The politics, rivalries and beliefs of the time are woven into the plot superbly and I loved the extra little touches, such as the brief inclusion of Peter the Wild Boy. By the very nature of its extraordinary subject, A Woman of Opinion was always going to be riveting but Sean Lusk also captures the authentic tone of the period effortlessly and it's easy to believe that Mary guided his hand throughout. Truly exceptional, a book to savour – I loved it!
July 7, 2025
This was a very interesting read. The notable historical events were fascinating to learn though the book was hard to get through in the beginning. Once the end came however I was captivated by the material. Would recommend but the beginning being so slow makes it a hard one to recommend or get through yourself. Great for history lovers.
November 12, 2024
I am supremely disappointed in this book. Having thoroughly enjoyed The Second Sight of Zachary Cloudesley, I was expecting a similar quality of narrative. A Woman of Opinion lives up to its title but not its hype. I have given up at page 274. Any more if this self-opinionated arrogance is more than I can endure
May 20, 2025
I wanted to love this so bad, but it was just kinda mid.
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