Product Description

Alongside his brilliant naval career, Lady Hamilton was Nelson's other great obsession, and this intimate portrait of their love affair illustrates how England's most celebrated admiral was captivated by this vivacious, strong-minded and passionate woman, who began life in poverty yet rose to marry an aristocrat and to consort with kings. But it is the complex relationship between Horatia and the woman she believed was only her godmother that forms the heart of this poignant, absorbing novel. Shifting between the idyll of Horatia's childhood before Nelson's death at Trafalgar and the gloom of Emma's Calais rooms nine years later, Nelson's Daughter offers a vivid and beguiling vision of Nelson's most personal legacy.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1216681 in Books
• Published on: 2005-02-14
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 288 pages

Guardian
'Hearn keeps up an invigorating pace in an atmospheric slice of capital history reminiscent of Rose Tremain's RESTORATION.'

The Oxford Times
'A touching tale, steeped in Nelsonian history, and a desperately honest... account of the relationship between mother and daughter.'

About the Author
Miranda Hearn was born in Darlington, grew up in Dorset and now lives in London. Her first novel, A Life Everlasting, was published by Sceptre in 2003.

Customer Reviews

Interesting, but not a 'page turner'.
Having spent my childhood in the Portsmouth area where HMS Victory is berthed, I have frequently heard the story of the heroic Lord Horatio Nelson. Less has been said of his mistress, the glamorous Emma Hamilton, or his illegitemate daughter, Horatia.

By the time we join this book Emma is less than glamorous. She has become a progressively heavy drinker, living on credit and with little to offer Horatia, her 'godaughter', who is with her in her exile in a farmhouse in France (a strange choice for the mistress of a man famous for his battles against the French).
The story is told by Horatia, who has been brought up to believe that Lord Nelson is her godfather and that her father was a sailor who drowned at sea. She has only sketchy memories of Nelson and sadly it is only when he dies that she is told of her true relationship to him.
She has little respect for the alcoholic Emma and even when she is told of Emma's identity as her mother, again, after her death, she refuses to believe the evdence.

It's a harrowing tale, all the more so for being based on truth. I thought it a bit of a slow read and did not enjoy the confusing switching between past and present. I would have liked more emphasis on the glamorous times and less on the struggles of the ageing Emma. Horatia, however was an interesting character who later grew up to have a full and rounded life. (See Epilogue)