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Her Heart for a Compass
Her Heart for a Compass: A Novel | Sarah Ferguson
19 posts | 9 read | 1 reading | 13 to read
"A brilliant and glittering jewel of a novel. I was wholly swept away by this story."--Allison Pataki, New York Times bestselling author of The Queen's Secret From one of the most famous former members of the British royal family, Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York a mesmerizing novel of a young noblewomans coming-of-age that richly details both high society and low in Victorian England. Queen Victorias close friend, the Scottish Duke of Buccleuch, Lady Margaret Montagu Scott is expected to make an advantageous marriage. But Margaret is an impulsive and outspoken girl in a repressive society where women are, quite literally, caged in corsets and required to conform. When Lady Margarets parents arrange a society marriage for her, she tries to reconcile herself to the match. But shortly before her betrothal is announced, Margaret flees, leaving her parents to explain her sudden absence to an opulent ballroom stuffed with two hundred distinguished guests. Banished from polite society, Margaret throws herself into charitable work and finds strength in a circle of female friends like herselfwomen intent on breaking the mold, including Queen Victorias daughter Princess Louise. Margaret resolves to follow her hearta journey of self-discovery that will take her to Ireland, America, and then back to Britain where she finds the life she was always meant to lead. A bold and thoughtful story about a rebellious woman finding herself and her voice in an age of astounding technological change and great social unrest, Her Heart for a Compass is a delicious costume drama rich in atmosphere, history, and color.
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Sara_Planz
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Pickpick

What a smart work of historical fiction! Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, based this on an actual relative of hers, Lady Margaret Montagu Douglas Scott. Ferguson worked on this for nearly two decades, doing research, digging into that time period, and you can hear Sarah's voice in the character. Margaret is such an inspiration. She is not afraid to speak up even if it costs her dearly, as she will never compromise what she wants.

43 likes2 stack adds
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Librarybelle
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Discussion questions are posted for this month‘s #LiteraryCrew #BuddyRead !

So sorry - I could not find discussion questions, and I didn‘t finish reading (🤦🏻‍♀️), so I know I‘m missing a lot of aspects of the storyline. Please feel free to share your thoughts. Hopefully life will be better next month, and I will be better prepared for the discussion!

Thanks for reading! I know some did not finish, but participate however much you can!

PurpleyPumpkin Yes, life had a way of taking over this month. Unfortunately, I wasn‘t able to read the October pick. Hopefully, I can join in next month!🤞🏽 1y
Librarybelle @PurpleyPumpkin I‘ll make sure you‘re on the tag list for next month: 1y
PurpleyPumpkin Excellent!😉 1y
34 likes3 comments
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Librarybelle
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5. What other elements would you like to discuss with the group? #LiteraryCrew #BuddyRead

CoverToCoverGirl I loved how atmospheric it was. The historical details were also well done. 1y
6 likes1 comment
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Librarybelle
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4. Discuss Margaret‘s relationship with her parents. #LiteraryCrew #BuddyRead

Jerdencon Her father made me angry! But I guess i understand his position based on the times. Im glad her mother was more a voice of reason - somewhat. (edited) 1y
Deblovestoread Her father was awful. I was glad her mother came around to appreciate her. 1y
CoverToCoverGirl Her father was awful even considering the social norms of the times. Her mother was at the mercy of her father‘s dictates but she redeemed herself in the end by finally standing up to him. 1y
5 likes3 comments
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Librarybelle
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3. Think about Margaret‘s journey. For you, what was the most exciting part of her story? #LiteraryCrew #BuddyRead

Jerdencon I loved reading about her time in New York and her first true experience of independence 1y
Deblovestoread Same as @Jerdencon Her time in NYC and digging into helping the children. 1y
CoverToCoverGirl All of it. It was great to watch her character growth. I admired her courage and strength. 1y
7 likes3 comments
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Librarybelle
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2. Let‘s talk about the friendship/acquaintanceship between Louise and Margaret, which is a fictional aspect of the story. Do you think the two women similar? Dissimilar? Any thoughts to share on Princess Louise? #LiteraryCrew #BuddyRead

Jerdencon Honestly at the end didn‘t really feel like a real friendship anymore - because Louise was so constrained by her life and Margaret was able to flee it the friendship was kind of forced to become superficial to me. 1y
CoverToCoverGirl I felt they were very different. For me Louise was not likeable from the start. It felt like Margaret was a true friend to Louise but Louise was a fair weather friend to Margaret. 1y
Deblovestoread I am not a Louise fan either. She wasn‘t a very good friend to Margaret. 1y
6 likes3 comments
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Librarybelle
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1. Ferguson, descended from the Duke and Duchess of Buccleuch, chose to focus on their daughter Lady Margaret, as she felt connected to her. Do you feel Ferguson and her co-author Kaye tell Margaret‘s story? How do you feel about their choice to combine fiction and fact in the telling of Margaret‘s story? #LiteraryCrew #BuddyRead

Jerdencon I found it interesting and wondered a few times how much was actually based on Sarah Ferguson actual life experiences. 1y
CoverToCoverGirl I knew going in that little was actually about Lady Margaret, thanks to Google. And as I read I realized the story line had recognizable similarities to Sarah‘s real life fortunes and misfortunes. I enjoyed this reimagining of Lady Margaret‘s life. 1y
Deblovestoread I knew nothing of Sarah‘s lineage so hadn‘t heard of Lady Margaret. As I was reading I did wonder how much was factual. They wove a decent story around very few actual facts as shown in the afterword. 1y
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Deblovestoread
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The tagged book is not my cup of tea but I was curious about the DOY‘s writing. A bit long but an easy listen #literarycrew. Both Ex Hex and A Psalm were #Roll100 picks and were ok. Still leaning into lighter reads but hope to pick Empire of Pain back up for #NonFictionNovember.

Need to finish The Christie Curse for #LMPBC Group M and also The Ninth House for Group B

LeahBergen I‘ve wondered about her writing, as well! 1y
Cinfhen At least you gave the Duchess a chance 😁 1y
Librarybelle Thanks for trying the Duchess‘s book! 1y
40 likes3 comments
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Sargar114
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Bailedbailed

Tried the audio version of this for #literarycrew and got a couple chapters in and it‘s just not for me. Not really paying attention and not feeling invested so didn‘t want to spend the time on it. I‘m sure if you like this sort of story it‘s fine but not my preferred genre.

Librarybelle Thanks for trying! 1y
19 likes1 comment
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LitsyEvents
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Repost for @Librarybelle

October starts the next #LiteraryCrew #BuddyRead …a historical fiction by the Duchess of York!

Read the book at your own pace, with discussion on the 31st!

All welcome to join! If you would tagged in periodic posts throughout the month, comment on her post!

Librarybelle Thanks for reposting! 1y
29 likes1 comment
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Librarybelle
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October starts the next #LiteraryCrew #BuddyRead …a historical fiction by the Duchess of York!

Read the book at your own pace, with discussion on the 31st!

All welcome to join! If you would tagged in periodic posts throughout the month, comment below!

Tagging those who have expressed interest in this selection.

PurpleyPumpkin Yes please! 👍🏽 1y
megnews Not this time around. Thanks for checking! 1y
See All 17 Comments
Librarybelle Not a problem, @megnews ! 1y
Deblovestoread I really hope to get to this one 🤞🏼 1y
BethM I‘m going to try to get this one squeezed in! 1y
Librarybelle I hope you‘re able to join, @Deblovestoread @BethM ! 1y
CoverToCoverGirl Yay! I‘ve been waiting for this one. 🙂. I can‘t imagine that it will be as good as 1y
Librarybelle @CoverToCoverGirl Dictionary is a hard act to follow! 1y
Desha Please add me to the tags for this one! Thank you! 💛 1y
Librarybelle Of course, @Desha ! Yay! 1y
CarolineLovesToRead Add me too please. 😀 1y
Jerdencon Im reading this one too! 1y
CarolineLovesToRead October has not been a good month for me as well. I haven‘t been able to get into this one. So sorry but I‘m definitely starting Beheld for next month‘s read 1y
Librarybelle @CarolineLovesToRead So sorry to hear about your month too! 1y
55 likes3 stack adds17 comments
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LitsyEvents
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repost for @Librarybelle:

Here are the remaining titles for this year‘s #LiteraryCrew #BuddyRead . If you would like me to tag you in periodic posts for any or all of the books above, let me know!

Comment on the original post:
https://www.litsy.com/web/post/2469897

Librarybelle Thanks for reposting! 2y
35 likes1 comment
review
Cathyloves2read
Pickpick

I didn‘t know what to expect of this historical novel written by a very famous author, Sarah Ferguson. It is April‘s selection for a book club I belong to. It was actually very good, and kept me interested throughout. I grew to admire the main character, Margaret. She was the pillar of strength, and never gave in to others. The work she did for the orphan children was admirable. I am looking forward to this months discussion with the author.

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KristiAhlers
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Pickpick

I quite fancied this book. Strong historical fiction and Ms. Ferguson knows how the aristocracy works. Loved the characters and storyline. #100readschallenge #wintercosy @PuddleJumper

PuddleJumper Awesome! 2y
37 likes1 comment
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Born.A.Reader
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My #bookhaul from the weekend. The tagged book and Betrayed are signed from B&N. The rest were $10 from my fav used bookstore. 📚 📖 😍

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limada
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Pickpick

I wasn't sure what to think when I found out Fergie had written a novel. But I was intrigued. And especially on learning that it has background in her personal history. This is a delightful novel, in the style of a classic Victorian, but much easier to read.

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Sara_Planz
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My very first royal autographed book.

LeahBergen How cool! 3y
36 likes1 comment