Shadows of a Princess: An Intimate Account by Her Private Secretary

From someone who knew her well, this book is one that should be read. It shows the two sides of Diana that people have been told existed. She was sweet, however, she was manipulative, too, and her private secretary does a great job explaining the two sides of Diana.

I have read them all for a screenplay I am writing and none made me guffaw like PDJ's; he writes of the travel set pieces with the wit of Moliere or the farce of Faydeau. Diana was a character from Central Casting and he puts her in her proper place, revenge perhaps for an employer (boss) who was awful to work for. This makes monarchy truly ridiculous and the author is to be thanked for his effort.

This is the best book about Diana that I've read, and I've read a lot of them. I'm very surprised to see all the negative reviews here. True, Jephson does not idealize Diana; instead he portrays her as a complex, often difficult, person. I have no trouble believing this to be true, and I found it refreshing to see her characterized as a real, believable person. Although he had his troubles working for her, Jephson presents in a compassionate and believable way the pressures that made Diana what she was. A clear message of the book: put any of us in a situation like Diana's, and we would become "difficult" too. Jephson's writing style is a bit academic, and probably hard for some people to read. This is not light reading, and this may explain the complaints of some other reviewers. But the style suits the subject: a complex, balanced, and thoughtful analysis of Diana, neither extolling her as a saint or condemning her as a monster. This is the closest thing I've read to a description of Diana as a real person. While I understand her sons' anger about the book, I actually think Jephson has done a service to her memory by presenting her as the complex person she undoubtedly was.

I know this may sound strange, but I laughed, a lot, while reading this book. Mr. Jepson is very real, VERY intelligent, and a great story teller. He presents an extremely human princess, with strengths and flaws, and does so with respect and great affection. His asides detailing his thought processes as events ensue are hilarious. I've read most of the Diana literature, and I'm SO GLAD that this author chose to write this. A beautifully rounded portrait of the Princess as a professional, and as a person.Thank you, Mr. Jephson!(Note -- I'm 55 years old. The only choices present on the form were ages 1 through 12. Something wrong here!)

Oh, how how her private secretary must have hated her ! A woman with all this potential -- all this glamour and public relations mystique -- who was by turns capricious, undisciplined, vengeful, manipulative, self-deceptive and self-destructive. Ouch. It is a good book because it destroys any illusions of Britain's fairy tale princess. It is a bad book because it leaves very little room to be sympathetic to the radiantly lovely well-dressed Diana, Mother of two Princes, and we all need our fantasies and role models untanrnished, lest we become all to cynical... Charles deserves some grudging admiration for keeping his mouth shut (through his friends) until after her tragic -- yet avoidable if she had kept her royal protection officers -- death several years ago.. On the whole, Patrick J. had an extraordinarily difficult job. This fascinating highly detailed book is his revenge. May he profit from it, and not have regrets in the years ahead... Do unto others, dear Patrick.