Kate Williams Books in Order

Williams follows Victoria’s unexpected path to the British throne and her efforts to exercise power after inheriting it at eighteen. Family ambitions, court intrigue, and conflicts with advisers and Prince Albert reveal the pressures surrounding a young woman’s rule.

In 1840s Spitalfields, Catherine Sorgeiul becomes fascinated by murders terrorizing London's East End while living with her uncle. Her interest draws her into a dangerous web of deception, where secrets about her own circumstances complicate the threat.

This biography follows Elizabeth II's early life and unexpected path to the throne, including her wartime service and first years as queen. Williams examines how a young monarch developed her role amid twentieth-century social and political change.

Williams traces Josephine Bonaparte's journey from Martinique through revolutionary France to marriage with Napoleon. The biography explores survival, personal ambition, political influence, and the tensions between their emotional partnership and the demands of building an imperial dynasty.

This biography examines Josephine's survival of revolutionary imprisonment and her rise through Parisian society to become Napoleon's wife. Williams considers her ambition, relationships, and political circumstances, placing her experiences within a world that sharply constrained women's choices.

The wealthy de Witt family's comfortable English life unravels when World War I exposes their German origins to suspicion. Young Celia joins the war effort under a false age, entering dangers that threaten her family as well as herself.

After World War I, the de Witt family struggles with bereavement and the deterioration of its country estate. Celia leaves for London, seeking independence and romance in the twenties while painful family secrets continue to shape her life.

This illustrated exhibition book reexamines Emma Hamilton as a model, performer, and influential celebrity, alongside her association with Nelson and Romney. Contributions explore her artistic achievements, changing fortunes, and legacy within the restrictions placed on women of her era.

Williams examines the intertwined careers of Mary, Queen of Scots, and Elizabeth I, exploring political rivalries, religious divisions, and opposition to female rule. Their relationship unfolds amid espionage, plots, and betrayals that made royal authority precarious.

In 1920s New York, Celia de Witt searches for the son taken from her at birth while building a food business. Economic upheaval and her family's endangered English home complicate her effort to preserve their future.

Williams explores thirty British royal residences, tracing the secrets and scandals concealed within famous palaces and lesser-known castles. Stories of disastrous marriages, assassination attempts, court favorites, and hidden treasures connect these buildings with the people who inhabited them.

Williams traces Emma Hamilton’s rise from poverty and prostitution to celebrated model, ambassador’s wife, and lover of Horatio Nelson. Her pursuit of fame and consuming relationship with the naval hero unfold amid the political upheaval of the Napoleonic Wars.