Sex with Kings is educational gossip at its finest. It covers scandalous relationships from the past through the semi-present (the book was published in 2004, so the Charles and Camilla info is a little dated). Herman uses what little recorded information she can get her hands on, mostly personal correspondence, to paint an extremely entertaining portrait of what royal sex lives were like over the last 500 years. What I've learned from this book is that mistresses were an extremely powerful force at their zenith. After that they were usually exiled, sent to covenants, beheaded, publicly derided, and subjected to the merciless gossip of those once fawning courtiers. Some, of course, laughed all the way to the bank - raking in millions upon millions in titles, estates, and pensions. Some, on the other hand, as I previously stated, were not so fortunate.
If your desire is to write a research paper about the sexuality of the past royals, this probably isn't the book for you. The content is somewhat disorganized, jumping back and forth between kings, their mistresses, and time periods. If you're looking for an entertaining and sometimes hilarious read - this will do the job. I found the stories to be really interesting, especially the focus on the mistresses' fall from grace. Not to mention the money! Oh, the money! Oh yeah - how could I forget the queen? The poor queen. Being queen stinks (apparently). Give this book a read if you need to relax and enjoy.
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