Feuding Windsor brothers and their wives --- some things, it seems, never change. Melanie Benjamin's latest work of historical fiction recreates the cataclysmic events that nearly toppled the monarchy and incited the power struggle between Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon and Wallis Simpson. Told from the perspectives of both women, the book propels readers into the fabulous world of the debonair Prince of Wales, café society of the 1930s, and the glittering private lives of the Windsors. The first novel to be dedicated to this infamous rivalry, THE WINDSOR AFFAIR brings us all the gossip and intrigue between the two very different --- yet perhaps more similar than they would admit --- wives of royals.

Southern California, 1960s. Carol Donnelly is a legendary female surfer struggling to compete in a male-dominated sport --- and her daughters, Mindy and Ginger, bear the weight of her unconventional lifestyle. The Donnelly sisters grow up enduring their mother’s absence, both physically and emotionally. To escape questions about Carol’s whereabouts --- and to chase her elusive affection --- they cut school to spend their days in the surf. From her first time on a board, Mindy is a natural, but Ginger, two years younger, feels out of place in the water. As they grow up and their lives diverge, Mindy and Ginger’s relationship ebbs and flows. But through it all, their sense of duty to each other survives, as they are forever connected by the emotional damage they carry from their unorthodox childhood.

The morning of January 12, 1888, was unusually mild, following a punishing cold spell. It was warm enough for the homesteaders of the Dakota Territory to venture out again, and for their children to return to school without their heavy coats --- leaving them unprepared when disaster struck. At the hour when most prairie schools were letting out for the day, a terrifying, fast-moving blizzard blew in without warning. Schoolteachers as young as 16 were suddenly faced with life and death decisions: Keep the children inside, to risk freezing to death when fuel ran out, or send them home, praying they wouldn’t get lost in the storm.

Blanche Auzello and her husband, Claude, the mistress and master of the Ritz, allow the glamour and glitz of the hotel to take their minds off their troubled marriage, and off the secrets that they keep from their guests --- and each other. Until June 1940, when the German army sweeps into Paris, setting up headquarters at the Ritz. Suddenly, Blanche and Claude must navigate a terrifying new reality. In order to survive, and strike a blow against their Nazi “guests,” they must spin a web of deceit that ensnares everything and everyone they cherish. But one secret is shared between Blanche and Claude alone --- the secret that, in the end, threatens to imperil both of their lives, and to bring down the legendary Ritz itself.

It is 1914, and 25-year-old Frances Marion has left her (second) husband and her Northern California home for the lure of Los Angeles. But the word on everyone’s lips these days is “flickers,” the silent moving pictures enthralling theatergoers. In this fledgling industry, Frances finds her true calling: writing stories for this wondrous new medium. She also makes the acquaintance of actress Mary Pickford, and they hit it off instantly --- their kinship fomented by their mutual fever to create, move audiences to a frenzy and start a revolution. But their ambitions are challenged by both the men around them and the limitations imposed on their gender --- and their astronomical success could come at a price.

Of all the glamorous stars of New York high society, none blazes brighter than Babe Paley. Her flawless face regularly graces the pages of Vogue, and she is celebrated and adored for her ineffable style and exquisite taste. But beneath this elegantly composed exterior dwells a passionate woman who is desperately longing for true love and connection. Enter Truman Capote. This diminutive golden-haired genius with a larger-than-life personality explodes onto the scene, setting Babe and her circle of Swans aflutter.

Melanie Benjamin pulls back the curtain on the marriage of one of America’s most extraordinary couples: Charles Lindbergh and Anne Morrow Lindbergh. Drawing on the rich history of the 20th century and featuring cameos from such notable characters as Joseph Kennedy and Amelia Earhart, THE AVIATOR'S WIFE is a vividly imagined novel of a complicated marriage --- revealing both its dizzying highs and its devastating lows.

Melanie Benjamin, author of ALICE I HAVE BEEN, shines a dazzling spotlight on another fascinating female figure whose story has never fully been told: a woman who became a 19th-century icon and inspiration --- and whose most daunting limitation became her greatest strength.

Few works of literature are as universally beloved as ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND. Now, in this spellbinding historical novel, we meet the young girl whose bright spirit sent her on an unforgettable trip down the rabbit hole --- and the grown woman whose story is no less enthralling.