Game of Crowns: Elizabeth, Camilla, Kate, and the Throne

by Christopher Andersen

A moving and compulsively readable look into the lives, loves, relationships, and rivalries among the three women at the heart of the British royal family Queen Elizabeth II, Camilla Parker-Bowles, and Kate Middleton—from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Good Son , These Few Precious Days , and The Day Diana Died .

One has been famous longer than anyone on the planet—a dutiful daughter, a frustrated mother, a doting grandmother, a steel-willed taskmaster, a wily stateswoman, an enduring symbol of an institution that has lasted a thousand years, and a global icon who has not only been an eyewitness to history but a part of it.

One is the great-granddaughter of a King’s mistress and one of the most famous “other women” of the modern age—a woman who somehow survived a firestorm of scorn to ultimately marry the love of her life, and in the process replace her arch rival, one of the most beloved figures of the twentieth century.

One is a beautiful commoner, the university-educated daughter of a flight attendant-turned-millionaire entrepreneur, a fashion scion the equal of her adored mother-in-law, and the first woman since King George V’s wife, Queen Mary, to lay claim to being the daughter-in-law of one future king, the wife another, and the mother of yet another.

Game of Crowns is an in-depth and exquisitely researched exploration of the lives of these three remarkable women and the striking and sometimes subtle ways in which their lives intersect and intertwine. Examining their surprising similarities and stark differences, Andersen travels beyond the royal palace walls to illustrate who these three women really are today—and how they will directly reshape the landscape of the monarchy.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Biography, Royalty, Audiobook, British Literature, Politics

12 pages, ebook

First published April 19, 2016

About the author

Librarian’s note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Christopher Peter Andersen is an American journalist and the author of 32 books, including many bestsellers. A graduate of the University of California at Berkeley, Andersen joined the staff of Time Magazine as a contributing editor in 1969. From 1974 to 1986 Andersen was senior editor of Time Incorporated's People Magazine. He has also written for a wide range of publications, including The New York Times, The New York Daily News, Life, and Vanity Fair.

While his early nonfiction books veered from psychology (The Name Game) to true crime (The Serpent's Tooth) to art collecting ('The Best of Everything', with former Sotheby's chairman John Marion), he is best known for his controversial biographies. Between 1991 and 2011, he published 14 New York Times bestselling biographies. Andersen wrote Mick: The Wild Life and Mad Genius of Jagger to mark the 50th anniversary of the Rolling Stones in July 2012. The book quickly became Andersen's 15th New York Times bestseller.

Reviews

[Sue Fernandez · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not sure why this is getting low reviews. I understand the reasoning, but I have to say I loved it. I've read similar information, but I felt like this had new twists, or perhaps the manner in which it was told. The only part I didn't enjoy was the part where it was as if the Queen had passed. I learned a lot about British royalty and the inner workings and decisions that might go into such things as abdication, etc. Yes, there were some gossipy type portions, but I liked them...they weren't in poor taste, and they kept me reading. This was a non fiction book that kept me reading like it was fiction. I loved it.

[Connie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is broken down into eight chapters. It studies the different personalities of Queen Elizabeth, Camilla, and Kate, their popularity with the people, and their feelings about one another.

In one chapter, there is a scenario that describes what would happen when Queen Elizabeth passes away. The funeral procession and then on to crowning the next King.

The people prefer Prince William over Prince Charles by a large margin. Charles has a reputation for being stuffy and out of touch with the people over whom he would rule. William, on the other hand, brings his mother’s caring, people-oriented personality to the throne. He is exactly whom the people want to lead their country into the future. In addition, the people love Kate and her genuineness. She is so much like Diana and has gained great approval.

And then, there is Camilla. The book appears to be honest in the background of Camilla and her long-time relationship with Charles. The book explains the history of the courtship, marriage, and divorce of Charles and Diana and how her tragic death changed the country. Charles’s long-time affair with Camilla left them both with the villain stamp of disapproval. The Queen Mother detested Camilla and refused to ever meet her. It took a very long time for Queen Elizabeth to finally consent to meet her. She tried her best to break them apart, but Charles professed to love her and refused. Their marriage has made many people quite angry. Camilla has stayed somewhat in the background, but more and more she is trying to steal the spotlight - and the crown - away from Kate. Descriptions of her shenanigans certainly leave the reader detesting her. The thought of Camilla being Queen makes many people very angry.

The Queen has not actually said whether or not she would like to see Charles passed over in favor of William being King. However, it is thought that there might be some secret agreement that Charles, provides he lives long enough, would be King for only 15 years and then abdicate in favor of William.

It is believed that Australia and Canada have remained a part of the UK due to their devotion and respect for Queen Elizabeth. But certainly. should Charles become King, we would expect them, and others, to break away and become their own Republics. Time will tell what the future will be for the monarchy.

I really enjoyed this book which lays out the possibilities of how Charles and William will rule. I’m sure everyone will have a personal opinion on this and I urge readers to read the book and discover where their opinion falls.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

This audiobook was good but not great. It felt at times like I was listening to a gossip paper. I felt alternatively sorry for and angry at the Royals. Having never really read anything but the glowing reports, I was somewhat shocked to hear of how the Royals acted at times. Nevertheless, I still find myself fascinated by the House of Windsor. Three to three and a half stars.

[Eileen Granfors · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oh, my friends. Save your money. Or get a subscription to People. Lists upon lists, notes, and photos.

[BonnieL · Rating 1 out of 5]

Inaccurate. Fiction in parts - particularly where he writes his little fantasy about how the Royal Family would reaction when Queen Elizabeth dies - right down to their purported dialogue, the description of their bedrooms, all leading (he hopes) to the complete collapse of the monarchy. This is a compendium of innumerable tabloid stories augmented by the author's own spin on the few facts contained in the book. The bulk of the book is speculation, prejudicial adjectives used liberally for those members of the Royals he doesn't like, fawning gushing adjectives for those of the family he does like and, of course, numerous quotations (apparently memorized and communicated verbatim) from people "who have asked to remain anonymous" How convenient.
A complete waste of time unless the reader wants to wallow in his adoration of Diana and his perception of plots, sub-plots and machinations that make Machiavelli look like an amateur.
A complete waste of time.
EDIT - the most glaring inaccuracy was the author giving another of his blow-by-blow, word-by-word descriptions of a fight between Prince Charles and Diana, resulting in him walking away from her as she threatened to throw herself downstairs - as the Queen (supposedly) looked on horrified, the author tells us that "Charles' wife of two years, three months pregnant with their first child, hurled herself down the stairs". So dramatic, so tragic, so bogus - Prince William was born within their first year of marriage. A simple fact that could have been checked in seconds. Like so many tabloid writers, he never let facts get in the way of a great smear.

[Caress Go · Rating 1 out of 5]

Catty and shallow...yet I' ve read it til the end..what's wrong with me?

[Lois · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.75 stars rounded up
I read this on vacation earlier this year.
I find gossip about the British Monarchy unbelievably relaxing lol
Mostly gossip rag tittle-tattle
And I enjoyed every word.

[Sarah - All The Book Blog Names Are Taken · Rating 4 out of 5]

I mean, I kind of hate that I just plowed through this gossip in 3.5 hours, because these are real people's lives and so much of the story is just so sad for William and Harry, but how could I not? Full review to come. (Camilla sucks)

+++++++++++

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This really is not a book that needed to be written. It is full of all the usual gossip we have been hearing about for years all the crap about Camilla (barf) and Charles (double-barf) carrying on with their affair, Harry not being Charles' son, Elizabeth and Philip being cold and unloving parents, etc. On the other hand, it is exactly what you would want and expect if you are obsessed with the House of Windsor. It is every tabloid article ever, condensed into a book. I am kind of embarrassed to say that I plowed through this one in about three and a half hours, I just could not put it down. That does not mean the content is academic, or that it is a great literary work, but if you love to read about the royal family, it does serve its purpose. Unfortunately I am part of the problem, as if people would stop reading this kind of stuff, then there would be little incentive to publish it. And perhaps William and Harry especially could be regarded as real people, instead of being gawked at all the time.

Basically, the book looks at Elizabeth II, Camilla, and Kate, comparing the women and how they are shaping the future of the throne. Elizabeth, of course, is the longest-reigning monarch in British history. Camilla is a home-wrecking devil, and Kate is the one everyone would actually want to become queen after Elizabeth. Time and again the author addresses several facts regarding Camilla and Charles; how many would rather see William become king next, that Charles said Camilla would never be crowned but has since gone back on his word, etc.

Really, this review is about to become a diatribe against Charles and Camilla and cheating. This book just reiterates the fact that they're both terrible people who deserve each other, and unfortunately Diana suffered as a result. Not only that, but William and Harry suffered greatly as well. Can you imagine, week in and week out, your family's personal affairs being splashed all over the pages of every newspaper and magazine around the world? Is anyone surprised that Harry acted out the way he did? He had the luxury to do so, something William was never afforded - being third in-line and all. Diana and Charles' whole marriage was just so heartbreaking, and Camilla and Charles seemed to enjoy the game, it is just insufferable. And then to try and make Diana look as though she was crazy? I know Diana was not perfect and she certainly had her own flaws, but how much of her behavior was brought on by the way Charles treated her? Ugh, just yuck.

I wish once an for all this whole issue of who Harry's father is could be put to rest. The author points out at least twice when Harry was looking "less like a Windsor and more like a Hewitt". We get it, Diana had affairs too. It's a big deal because Harry is 5th in line to the throne. But there was reportedly a paternity test done - though of course whatever results they wanted to report could be stated as truth and we would never know for sure. I'd like to think at this point however, the truth would be out. And perhaps it does not even matter. Or perhaps Harry knows the truth and Hewitt is his father. Really, it is not our business. It's just not fair to Harry, either way. He's had this hanging over him his whole life and probably will forever. I'd like to think he knows for certain, so at least he has some kind of closure and peace of mind.

While the book as a whole is pretty tacky, one part I truly thought was weird was the imagining of Queen Elizabeth's death. It was weird and I did not like it. This author did the same thing in one of his books about JFK Jr., imagining the last moments of his life before his small plan crashed in the ocean. It's creepy and weird. We get it, Elizabeth will (likely) have to pass on for either Charles or William to become king, but it is not something we need to plan out. That's the kind of thing that would get you executed in Henry VIII's day. As an aside, the idea of abdication is an interesting one. It would be fabulous if Charles would abdicate. William is much more popular, and younger, and Kate is far more queenly than Camilla. I mean, as queenly as a 'commoner' can be of course, right? And seriously, no one wants to see Camilla as queen. No one. Nor do I really want to see Charles crowned king. The author insinuates should this happen, it might mean the end of the House of Windsor. That would not be such a great thing.

So, in the end, this is nothing more than gossip at both its best and worst. It's a very new publication (my library system just got it this month), so it is the most up-to-date as can be, outside of daily and weekly gossip publications. Please though, do not spend the money on it. If you are, like me, part of the problem and have to read it, check it out from the library instead. Everyone is manipulating and conniving (except William and Harry - there's actually very little mention of Harry at all), even Kate's family. You'll thank your lucky stars time and again to not be born into the House of Windsor.

[C · Rating 4 out of 5]

I probably shouldn’t have enjoyed this trashy book so much, but it was so good and I wolfed it all down. I learned that it is really sad how the press vilifies all the girlfriends/wives as scheming climbers, and that nonetheless, Camilla really sucks.

I hadn’t spent much time thinking about the British monarchy before this book. The whole concept of it seems so strange and antiquated (the Queen being the head of the Church of England, William and Harry each being the duke of an actual dukedom, etc. etc.). I’m embarrassed to say that I didn’t even know that Canada, Australia, and New Zealand are all still part of the Commonwealth until relatively recently. I’m really curious about how people our age who grew up in the UK feel about the Queen (indifference? adoration? loyalty?) and the monarchy as a whole.

Anyway, I’m all caught up on royal family gossip now and am finding myself doing things like lying in bed on Saturday morning trying to google what kind of dogs Meghan and Harry have!

[Erin L · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm giving this 5 stars for gossipy, completely readable goodness. Add to that I know little about the monarchy overall other than looking at the odd picture in the grocery store line and, of course, Diana. So it was interesting learning more about Charles and Camilla and others in the royal family. Including the story of Kate and William. It's an interesting life, but one I wouldn't want to have. I had no idea how back-stabby and ladder-climby it is.

[Zosi · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Fantastic pace, I absolutely flew through it. Provides very basic information and is a good starting point for people who don’t know a lot about the most recent generations of royals (like me). At times it read like a gossip rag and I’m not sure how much of the tidbits shared weren’t over exaggerated the way these things sometimes are, but it was a thoroughly enjoyable read.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was trashy and ridiculous and I loved every second of it.

[Diana · Rating 2 out of 5]

There were so many issues with this book that I don't know where to start. The book focuses on what could happen when we lose Queen Elizabeth II. Anderson focuses on rumor and supposition on how the British people will act if Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall would be named Queen since of course, everyone still thinks that only Diana, Princess of Wales could ever hold that title even though she was divorced from the Prince of Wales and we lost Diana many years ago. Truthfully she will be Queen if that happens, and I do not believe most of the British people will really care if she takes the title of Queen Consort. It also goes into the belief that Prince William Duke of Cambridge and Catherine the Duchess will fight to take the throne away from Charles if he allows Camilla to be named Queen in any form. The book does show a possibility however small it may be, has very little fact to it and should have been better researched.

[Jackie Sande · Rating 1 out of 5]

tacky rehash of every tabloid article on the planet. Embarrassed I bought this book. Doesn't even qualify as a beach read.

[farmwifetwo · Rating 3 out of 5]

The news will tell you most of the book . I haven't read the other books he wrote nor Diana's. Very little I didn't know or assume. Good, readable summary of the Firm.

[The Audiobookworm · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.75★ Audiobook⎮Game of Crowns was one of the more entertaining biographies of the British royal family that I’ve read. By selecting three members of the royal family as the central figures, Andersen set Game of Crowns slightly apart from other works of royal nonfiction. Prince Charles, Prince William, and the late Princess of Wales (Diana) are also prominently featured, although primarily in relation to Elizabeth, Camilla, and Catherine.

Although the majority of the book’s broad strokes were common knowledge, Andersen provided plenty of new details, seemingly derived from “insiders”. Game of Crowns kept my interest far better than my most previous royal reads. No one subject was concentrated on for too long and a number of approaches were taken to tell the story. There were a number of personal quotes from and about members of the royal family that enhanced the underlying significance of what Andersen said.

He broached the subject of abdication (the queen stepping down) with more seriousness than most other royal commenters. Andersen purported that this is a very real possibility, especially if the Duke of Edinburgh passes before the queen. He pointed to the long list of “nevers” that Her Majesty has already overturned (paying taxes, opening her homes to tourists, decommissioning the Brittania, and so on) as evidence that an abdication is still possible, no matter the refusals.

I especially enjoyed Andersen’s projection into the future of the monarchy, beginning with Elizabeth II’s passing. He painted a realistic, if somewhat cynical, picture of a post-Elizabethan monarchy. Andersen made it clear that he believes Charles’ accession and Camilla’s subsequent crowning as queen could very well lead to the end of the British monarchy.

My largest criticism of other royal-themed works of nonfiction has been that they seemed glaringly propagandized. I learned long ago that all royal biographies are biased, albeit some more heavily than others. Game of Crowns maintained a façade of professional journalism longer than most, while including juicy tidbits one might find in a tabloid. It was initially hard to tell whom exactly Christopher Andersen was favoring, as nearly everyone seemed to be painted in an unflattering light at one point or another. Diana, the late Princess of Wales, was neither wholly romanticized, victimized or villainized. This was incredibly refreshing. Most royal biographies tend to harp on Diana for much too long, all the while offering an incredibly skewed viewpoint of her.

Unfortunately, any pretense of overall fairness or objectivity was abruptly dropped each time The Duchess of Cornwall (Camilla) was mentioned. She was undeniably painted as the villain in Game of Crowns. So much that I found myself almost involuntarily empathizing with her. In that respect, Andersen’s plans seem to have backfired. To be clear, no one was exactly written as a “sympathetic figure”, but Andersen definitely came down on Camilla the hardest. His somewhat nasty attack on her caused me to question the reliability of Andersen’s other information. He was pushing the reader so hard in one direction (the anti-Camilla direction) that it came across as extremely imbalanced and nearly personal.

Most other figures were given a more balanced and seemingly fair covering, with the possible exception of Prince Harry. Harry was not mentioned very often, but when he was, it was mostly just to bring up a past indiscretion. The infrequency, at least, is understandable as Harry was not portrayed as a central figure (surrounding Elizabeth, Camilla, and Kate). He was unapologetically given the “Spare” treatment. Fans of Prince Harry, skip this one.

Narration review: Simon Prebble’s narration lent an air of respectability to what could have come off as another tabloid-fueled tale. His posh accent suited this audiobook perfectly and made the listening experience most enjoyable. Prebble caused the nearly 9 hours to fly by. I wouldn’t hesitate to pick up another of his works. ♣︎

[Mansi Jain · Rating 5 out of 5]

After long I have a found a book that is so irresistible and so riveting. Best part of this book is that it doesn't revolve around queen. Almost every royal member has been given due share of importance which has made this book so interesting. This book is not written for the praises of 'The Firm'. It almost conjures up the real personalities of the royals and tell us they are humans too. Not all authors will dare to write about the infamous marriage triangle of royals but Christopher has done full justice to it. Parallels have been drawn between their commitment towards personal life and their duty towards the world.
This book deserves multiple read. Once is just not enough.

[Patty · Rating 3 out of 5]

Discovered at a book sale and written in 2016 this behind-the-scenes account of Buck House maneuvering by American Christopher Andersen doesn't add much to the history of the House of Windsor. Prince Harry is barely referenced (rendering him truly a "spare") and Megan hasn't entered the equation. So most of the intrigue focuses on Prince (now King) Charles' effort to raise Camilla's standing in the hearts and minds of his family and citizens and Camilla's apparent love/hate relationship with rising star Kate Middleton and her "working class" family. The speculation on how events will unfold when the Queen dies doesn't completely hold up and the monarch's and future Queen's cancer diagnoses are factors Andersen didn't foresee when he predicted several Commonwealth nations would rush to become republics. Still, for Royal-watchers Game of Crowns is an enjoyable entry into the ever-increasing collection of books that try to dissect Britain's ancient institution.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I whipped through this one last night after I finally gave in and checked out the physical book from my local library. I'm a fan of the British royal family, and recently read the new biography of Prince Charles and another of Elizabeth II, so there's not much new here. But it is well written and quite the page-turner which kept me reading much later than I had intended. If you are a royal family fan, you'll enjoy this one, but I'm glad I checked it out from the library rather than paying full price fore it. If it ever goes on sale for $1.99 I'll jump on it.

[Sharon Faircloth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book definitely deepened my understanding of the complexity of the Royal Family!

[M. Langlinais · Rating 3 out of 5]

More like 2.5 stars. I find a lot of it infuriating. And most of it seems culled from newspaper clippings. Plus, it begins with a supposition of what will happen when Elizabeth II passes, and I found that a bit tacky.

[Alicia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating look into the three woman at the helm of the world’s most famous family and how another woman, Diana, the world’s most famous woman, still influences so much.

[Nick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating.

[Madeleine]

am i trash? yes

[Morgan · Rating 3 out of 5]

felt like the play "Charles III" Which isn't bad, just not what I normally look for.

[Catherine · Rating 1 out of 5]

A tremendous work of speculative fiction. Not worth the effort for anyone with even a passing respect for history or journalism.

[Catherine Wetzel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Explains everything in regards to the British monarchy, how the line of ascension of the crown works. Very interesting read. Especially in regards to Prince Charles & The Duchess of Cornwall. Princes William/Harry and Kate

[Amy Cohen]

I stayed up late to finish this one.

As a student of history, I've always been fascinated with Britain, royals and particularly, Tudor England (Henry VIII, Elizabeth I and all that). I've also always been interested in the younger royals, Princess Di and such. I picked this book up on a whim at Sam's club, curious about Camilla and how all of the players fit together. I assumed that much of the book would be about the backstabbing and social clawing and climbing that went on, and there was certainly much of that.

I was about 1/3 of the way through when I read several reviews, some of which were not kind. The most glaring problem that I found was highlighted in one of the reviews. The writer mentions an alleged interaction between Di and Charles and says that it took place 2 years into their marriage, but that she was pregnant with their 1st child. Simple fact checking shows you that William was born within the first year of marriage. That error affected how I read the rest of the book, as I caught various spelling and grammatical errors. It became frustrating after a bit. Another review likened the book to People magazine or trashy tabloids. It was a bit of that as well.

I might call this a "beach" read, but I'm not sure it is even that. It was interesting enough for me to finish it, but I found that it barely scratched the surface of some of the stories and I wanted more. It was also a bit hard to follow, with the author jumping around from story to story and time frame to time frame a bit. If you're curious and find the book on sale, it could be a good pick-up. Not sure I'd pay full price for this one though.

[Cathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not one who typically actively follows any of the Royals, and had my book club not selected this as their summer read, I probably never would have heard of the book, much less ever read it, but it was pretty interesting. It makes me know without a doubt that the Royal life is not for me, and helps me appreciate my own life, and acknowledge the right to privacy of others normally in the public eye.

[Lorraine · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am very shocked that this book, Game of Crowns by Christopher Andersen, was released with all the blatant mistakes that I found as I read this book. I am so sorry that I wasted my time reading this book. Was it not proofread? Did the author really agree to the book's release with all these errors? I am also trying to figure out just what the author's point is. Very disheartening! I do not recommend this book at all.