Top

Reviews

Anita Singh, Telegraph
Lively . . . peppered with entertaining lines. One of [Low's] skills as a journalist is an ability to sift through mountains of archive material and pick out the gems.
Sean Coughlan, BBC
Eminently readable . . . eye-catching anecdotes
Robert Jobson, Standard
well-researched; flashes of brilliance . . . Where the book succeeds is in tone: brisk, clear, never reverential. Low is a lovely writer.
Tessa Dunlop, Spectator
Valentine Low is an old-school royal journalist . . . It is his disarming charm . . . that has guaranteed him access to the great and occasionally ghastly in the higher echelons of British society. Low's gilt-edged gossip would not eventually disappoint . . . Even [his] musings on monarchy's historic power games proved a pleasure.
Waterstones Best Politics Books of 2025
Based on extensive interviews with civil servants, royal aides and politicians, Low's hugely entertaining account of the vexed relationship between Buckingham Palace and Downing Street is awash with gossip, anecdotes and revelations.
Robert Hazell, Literary Review
A serious and nuanced analysis which is also a rollicking read, spiced with plenty of good stories