
Synopsis
Once a C-list actress with a fading career and now known throughout the world; she split a family apart and turned a husband’s world upside down to get there. How did she do it?
Meet Meghan Markle’s alter ego, Ms Madison Mountebank. This is the tale of Ms Mountebank’s calamitous romp through the royal family of Britannia. How she met Prince Harry, lured him into her world and turned him from a soldier with a sense of humour who liked to have fun into a walking, talking, crying, whining, living doll re-programmed to do her will.
See Harry’s family watch in dismay as he changes before their eyes, while Meghan/Madison is hard at work making them dance to her tune. Watch her fury when they don’t cooperate, her jealous rage when she realizes she’s only part of the supporting cast, and her growing determination to get the star billing she craves, whatever it takes.
This is a picture of how the Meghan Markle saga unfolded, non-fiction re-imagined as fiction, a satirical insight into the people involved and how Meghan/Madison worked her sparkle.

Review
I was looking forward to reading this book due to the contemporary nature of its contents – a satirical, fictional reflection of the current British monarchy and Harry and Meghan’s departure from royalty. While I would highly recommend it to readers who enjoy satirical humour, I found this genre was simply not for me. The below review will reflect my personal opinion but is in no way a reflection of the book itself.
Admittedly, I think the difficulty here was that this was my first toe-dip into satirical writing. I could certainly appreciate the humour, sarcasm and wit that oozed from each paragraph, in particular from the newspaper clippings, but I thought this came across at times as slightly disrespectful (such is the nature of satire itself). I also struggled slightly with the over-the-top character development; Harry as a little lost puppy aiming to please, and ‘Madi’ a spoilt brat who constantly wanted her own way. The only character I felt had any essence of royalty was William. I believe this was done purposefully, and I think that such a short story needs its characters to make a punch as quickly as possible within only a fragment of pages. Again, this is part and parcel of the nature of satire as a genre but not something I felt particularly appealed to me as a reader.
That being said, I finished the book within 24 hours. The split in narrative between the main characters alongside the newspaper reports kept the story moving and allows the reader to gain the perspective and feelings of all parties involved. There are clear links between real life events and their fictional counterparts which meant, although the story didn’t have a particularly strong plot line, it was clear from the get-go which commentary referred to which events.
On a personal level, I would rate this book 3 stars as it didn’t suit my personal reading tastes or preferred genres, perhaps because I am of the generation where satirical humour has taken a backseat. However, I would definitely recommend this as a work of satirical fiction to those who enjoy this style of writing and therefore it earns a solid 4 stars within this genre.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this e-Arc in exchange for an honest review.
