That Churchill Woman by Stephanie Barron

Title: That Churchill Woman

Author: Stephanie Barron

Genre: Historical Fiction


Synopsis: Growing up with new money in the United States on the brink of the American Civil War, Jennie Jerome has been encouraged by her mother to meet and marry an aristocratic husband while the Jerome women are living in Europe. When young Jennie meets Lord Randolph Churchill, she admires how he seems more interested in her intelligence and opinions than her beauty, and in three days they are engaged. After they marry, Jennie realizes her marriage is not what she expected it to be, and that Randolph carries secrets of his own. In an effort to find fulfillment and happiness Jennie becomes infamous for her 'flirtations' with men in the aristocracy, while still being devoted to her marriage and the raising of her children Winston and Jack. 

My Thoughts

I was excited to find that this novel did not just encompass Jennie's adult life in England, but also shared about her young life in the United States. It was interesting to see how her upper-class family reacted to increasing unrest as the United States was on its way to civil war. 

This novel also highlights the inequity for all women in the standards society sets, but especially for women, like Jennie, who was under close scrutiny and was likely to end up in tabloids for every move she made. Seeing the difficulty of trying to maintain status but also wanting to be present for her children and support her husband makes Jennie a sympathetic protagonist, despite her infamy. 

I also enjoyed seeing a young Winston Churchill through the eyes of his mother. It provides the reader with an understanding of how the famous leader came to be the man that history remembers.  

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