Kingmaker

Pamela Harriman's Astonishing Life of Power, Seduction, and Intrigue

By: Sonia Purnell

Narrated by: Louise Brealey

From the New York Times bestselling and award-winning author of A WOMAN OF NO IMPORTANCE, an electrifying re-examination of one of the 20th century’s greatest unsung power players

When Pamela Churchill Harriman died in 1997, the obituaries that followed were predictably scathing–and many were downright sexist. Written off as a mere courtesan and social climber, her true legacy was overshadowed by a glamorous social life and her infamous erotic adventures. Much of what she did behind the scenes–on both sides of the Atlantic–remained invisible and secret. That is, until now: with a wealth of fresh research, interviews and newly discovered sources, Sonia Purnell unveils for the first time the full, spectacular story of how she left an indelible mark on the world today.

At age 20 Churchill’s beloved daughter-in-law became a “secret weapon” during World War II, strategically wining, dining, and seducing diplomats and generals to help win over American sentiment (and secrets) to the British cause against Hitler. After the war, she helped to transform Fiat heir Gianni Agnelli into Italy’s ‘uncrowned king’ on the international stage and after moving to the US brought a struggling Democratic party back to life, hand-picking Bill Clinton from obscurity and vaulting him to the presidency.

Picked as Ambassador to France, she deployed her legendary subtle powers to charm world leaders and help efforts to bring peace to Bosnia, playing her part in what was arguably the high-water mark of American global supremacy.

There are few at any time who have operated as close to the center of power over five decades and two continents, and there is practically no one in 20th Century politics, culture, and fashion whose lives she did not touch, including the Kennedys, Truman Capote, Aly Khan, Kay Graham, Gloria Steinem, Ed Murrow, and Frank Sinatra. Written with the novelistic richness and investigative rigor that only Sonia Purnell could bring to this story full of sex, politics, yachts, palaces and fabulous clothes, KINGMAKER re-asserts Harriman’s rightful place at the heart of history.

* This audiobook edition includes a downloadable PDF of Pamela Harriman's life through images.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2024 Sonia Purnell (P)2024 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“This is a deliciously seductive read. Sonia Purnell escorts readers behind the scenes, beneath the covers, and between the lines in an enthralling and exhaustive portrait of Pamela Harriman, whose life and legacy have long deserved the kind of insightful treatment that someone with Purnell’s storytelling talents can provide. Harriman stands fully and uncompromisingly on her own, a testament to Purnell’s sumptuous prose and unrelenting investigative talents—Kingmaker is masterfully wrought.”—Denise Kiernan, New York Times bestselling author of The Girls of Atomic City, The Last Castle, and We Gather Together

“A completely fascinating and revelatory biography, written with great aplomb, insight and shrewd analysis. A triumph.”—William Boyd, Booker-nominated author of Any Human Heart

“With Kingmaker, Sonia Purnell emerges as one of the most accomplished biographers of our time. Once again, she gifts readers with a vivid, glittering, sexy, scintillating, beautifully written portrait of a woman who drove twentieth-century history even as history was driving her. Wife, courtesan, hostess, muse, mistress, social climber, fundraiser, ambassador: The English language has no single word to describe an ambitious female whose fate (across generations) depended on her skill at connecting, cajoling, wooing, and winning over. Today, of course, we'd call her a politician. Kingmaker is a rich and nuanced study of power—its allure, its perils, the gratifications and the great cost of its pursuit."—Liza Mundy, New York Times bestselling author of The Sisterhood: The Secret History of Women at the CIA

A detailed & sympathetic look at a singular, dazzling life.

I was riveted by this story of Pamela Harriman’s ambitious, glamorous and eventful life spent achieving dazzling highs in powerful company while darting past enemies at every turn. I appreciated that - unlike previous biographies of PCH by Bedell Smith and Ogden (whose dislike of their subject was obvious) - Purnell gives a balanced, sympathetic portrait.

I wish I'd been the one to read this

I would have prepared an accent closer to that of the subject herself, and this I could have provided along with correct pronunciation of all foreign names and titles of nobility

An amazing life of an amazing woman.

I appreciated the balance the author brought to a courageous woman who was often underestimated.

You Go Girl!

As a student of history, I was intrigued when Averell Harriman was my college commencement speaker in 1980. However, after reading this book, I wished it had been Pamela instead. This story is a vital piece of history that will most likely not be taught in class or even remembered in years to come. In her later years, when she focused on her role in the US government, it was so interesting to learn what an Ambassador can do both at home and abroad. And Pamela was SOME BROAD! Kudo's to the author.

All other World War II history books are now rubbish.

I am so disappointed that other books just hinted at her impact on World War II. Her influence at the beginning of World War II was stunning with helping to convince Harry Hopkins and Averell Herriman that Britain was worth supporting. I cannot understand how other historians have overlooked her continuing importance to Winston Churchill. I guess that almost all historians have some streak of Puritanism and decided that she could not be taken seriously.
It is disappointing that a recent book by Douglas Schoen does not mention her help with Democratic politics that included elevating President Bill Clinton’s profile. She was able to make a critical difference as ambassador to France during the war in Serbia. President Clinton promised, but did not award her the presidential mental of freedom. France did not overlook a woman and awarded her the Legion of honor.

Surprisingly interesting

Harriman's life was amazing and she was a formidable woman. An excellent biography about a remarkable woman

I loved it.

It’s about time someone wrote a book about Pamela that embraced and acknowledges exactly what she achieved. I wish the author’s pronunciations were a little better.

Pamela Harriman’s life

Loved the reader. Enjoyed the book. History, elegance, glamour and sexiness in one woman. Prominent for more than fifty years.

Fascinating reset

Wonderfully written and detailed reexamination of a pivotal, underestimated figure on both sides of the Atlantic. I really enjoyed it and was sorry in many ways for the story and the life to have ended The narrator’s voice is appropriately plummy but it is a shame that there are so many mispronunciations. In a biography of someone who was so famed for her attention to detail, it’s disappointing.

A View of the 20th Century

As an Anglophile, I’ve run across Pamela Churchill Harriman’s name more than a few times. With marriages into two prominent families—one British, one American, it’s clear that she lived a fascinating life. The tragedy of Pamela Harriman is that if she had been born in the 21st century, no one would have blinked an eye at her sexual exploits. The fact that she turned sexual commerce into political commerce was farsighted and smart. Was she purely selfless? Of course not, but who is? Did she sleep around in advantageous manner? Of course, but how else could a woman in her position maintain a life that included a child? She lived her life, a fascinating one, and she made a contribution, many in fact. It’s about time that Harriman received her due.