A review by lizinthelibrary
Courtesans: Money, Sex and Fame in the Nineteenth Century by Katie Hickman

5.0

I found this book on the library shelves and picked it up on a whim. It is a portray of the "long 19th century" (mid 1700s to late 1800s) in England, the demi-monde, and five of the most famous courtesans. The courtesans overlap each other but not my much. The demi-monde was the "half-world" filled with courtesans, prostitutes, mistresses and other less-than-respectable women. In a time and a society that offered few options to women, these women owned their own property, made their own choices, and were independant in a way that could not be said of the majority of their gender. In addition to the detailed portrayals of the five courtesans, there was a great deal of information on the sex trade, courtesans, mistresses, and sexuality in general. Hickman did an excellent job of conveying history and rich detail to keep the reader interested and the material from being dry. I was completely engrossed in this book and highly recommend it to history fans, women's studies or history fans.

For a fun pairing, watch the movie The Duchess (starring Keira Knightly) immediately after reading this. I did so and found it interesting to see the same time period (even some of the same people) portrayed from the other side of teh coin.