I had a hard time putting the book down, even when my eyes were indicating that some sleep would be a good idea. What fascinating characters - too bad Downton Abbey didn't include more of the background of Lady Almina and Lord Carnarvon when scripting the fictional characters. Several revelations here about Lady Almina's origins that weren't explained in the PBS one-hour documentary on Highclere. The writing seemed to me very clear and well-structured, although I admit to occasional confusion about which nicknamed aristocrat was being referred to in a couple of places.

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Well written history by the woman married to the current Lord Carnarvon who lives in the 'castle' used in Downton Abbey TV program. Lady Almina was Countess during the time period when D.Abbey is set. Includes a good bit about WWI and her involvement in running a hospital/convalescent home, and about her husband's fascination with Egypt. She was the illegitimate daughter of Sir Alfred Rothschild (who had more money than God), and he was fascinated with Egypt and spent huge amounts sponsoring expeditions/looking for Egyptian artifacts with Howard Carter. After the war they returned to Egypt and found King Tut's tomb.

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Honestly, it took me a long time to finish this book. Not because it was boring, or hard to read, but because it was JUST dry enough that other books kept pulling me away from it. But I kept coming back to it. I'm a huge fan of the show Downton Abbey, and it was so awesome to me to see where the show's creators/writers pulled some of their inspiration for the show from.

Lady Almina and the Real Downton Abbey is the story of the triumph of one English family through some of the massive trials and tribulations of the late 18- early 1900's, including a world war, and an influenza epidemic. It is a very nice read, and history lovers of the time will be enchanted by the detail of the different problems that the people of the family faced.

Fans of Downton Abbey, or British History fans, I would highly recommend this book to.

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I really enjoyed this book. The current Countess of Carnarvon is a great storyteller. The story of Almina is an amazing one and is a page turner. Once I started reading I couldn't stop until I read the last page. I am a big fan of Downton Abbey and was surprised how much of the story was based in history and that Julian Fellows is a family friend. A great book, a must read!

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I enjoyed the history behind the fascinating Carnarvon family and the famed Highclere Castle. I am also interested in historical subjects, so I very much enjoyed the English perspective and stories about the tragic years of WWI. I highly recommend this book to Downton Abbey fans like myself and all those who are interested in the history of English aristocracy and life during the Edwardian and Georgian periods.

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Very interesting book if you are a fan of the Downton Abby show. But even more interesting due to the historical facts the book shares relative to the actual family and the part they played in history with their excavations.

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This book was akin to a sleeping pill! It was more of an information dump than a story about Lady Almina and Highclere Castle.

Boy am I glad I gave the TV series a try before picking up this book for book club! If I'd read this first, I would never have been interested in watching the show!

The writing style was about as engaging as watching paint dry. So I had to move on after struggling through the first 50 pages. I have far too many other books in waiting. Sorry.

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