Paul Spicer (2)

The Temptress was written in the same vein as "The Bolter: Edwardian Heartbreak and High Society Scandal in Kenya" by Frances Osborne. It tells the story of another of Kenya's Happy Valley femme fatales - in this instance Alice Countess de Janze.

We follow Alice's tempestuous life from her beginnings as a young American socialite to French Countess, and then to one of the leading ladies of the Happy Valley set.

This was a woman who certainly did not adhere to the mores of the time nor the show more accepted social norms, but was a woman who did as she pleased - a reckless, courageous pioneer for feminism or a selfish, spoilt, temperamental young woman in the mould of Veruca Salt.

"I always get my own way. I always take what I want and throw it away when I don't like; don't forget this ever."

Here was a woman at the heart of the "White Mischief" murder of Joss Hay, earl of Errol in 1941. And whilst many have theories as to the identity of the killer, this author, whose mother knew Alice and lived amid the cast of colourful characters, proposes his own theory.

An intriguing read. show less

Quick, salacious read about the irresponsible goings-on of the British elite in colonial Kenya. Interesting not so much for the particular who-dunnit of Lord Erroll's murder but for an overall tone and feeling.

This was okay. Since Alice, the subject, didn't leave any letters or journals, however, it's hard to get a sense of how she really viewed things. The author is left to recycle other people's descriptions of places Alice went and make comments like, "Alice would have seen X and she would have been really impressed by it." It has some interesting comments about the Errol Hay murder. "The Bolter" by Osborne was better and covered the same period.