EXCLUSIVE: 'Rebel of the Regency' Cover Reveal!

Britain's uncrowned queen finally gets her due in Ann Foster's debut book

Today, I have the immense pleasure of revealing the cover for Ann Foster’s forthcoming book: Rebel of the Regency: The Scandalous Saga of Caroline of Brunswick, Britain’s Uncrowned Queen.

If you’ve listened to Vulgar History, you already know that Ann Foster has a rare gift for breathing life (and modern sense) into women’s stories, even when history has tried its damndest to forget them. If you haven’t yet met Caroline of Brunswick…prepare yourself. She’s messy. She’s magnificent. She’s the original royal disruptor. In Rebel of the Regency, Ann brings her back into the spotlight with wit, empathy, and the full force of feminist historical storytelling.

Sir George Hayter, Princess Caroline of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel (c. 1820). National Portrait Gallery, London.

If you loved Philippa Gregory’s Normal Women or Hayley Nolan’s Anne Boleyn: 500 Years of Lies—or have ever found yourself rooting for the royal underdog—this is the book for you.

Scroll down for the official first look at the cover, as well as a personal introduction to Caroline from Ann herself. And while you’re here, don’t forget to pre-order your copy! (Psst - Barnes & Noble is giving Rewards and Premium Members get 25% off all pre-orders until the end of the day TODAY, July 11th.)

This uncrowned queen is finally getting her due. You’ll want to be first in line when the royal tea is spilled.

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Ann Foster here! Like many of you, I'd never heard of Caroline of Brunswick before. I've read lots of Regency history (and Regency-set novels!) but her name never caught my attention. But even just skimming through her Wikipedia entry made me fall in love with her story. Caroline was a huge book reader (she lived when Jane Austen's books were new!), a big dreamer who longed to travel, and a bold experimenter with fashion and beauty trends (she LOVED hats and statement blush).

She also wound up in an impossibly toxic marriage. It began with hate-at-first-sight (like Anne of Cleves and Henry VIII), but because divorce wasn't allowed, they remained married and it curdled like (dare I say it?) Princess Diana and Prince Charles.

The cover design is by Mary Luna, who touched up an original portrait to make it pop. I love this portrait of Caroline by Sir Thomas Lawrence (one of her rumored lovers!). Caroline always had a strong idea of how she wanted to be portrayed, and this image of her looking directly at the viewer feels so contemporary.

Even more contemporary? The font, that looks like lipstick on a mirror. This connects to the RuPaul's Drag Race quote that begins the book... but you'll need to grab a copy to see how that connects!

— Ann Foster, author of Rebel of the Regency

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The portrait you see on the cover—elegant, expressive, and just a bit defiant—was painted by Sir Thomas Lawrence in 1798. That’s just two years after Caroline’s separation from her husband, the future George IV. IMO, that intimate, painterly touch perfectly captures both Caroline’s grace and her grit. Depictions of Caroline have long fascinated historians and art lovers alike, but in Rebel of the Regency, Ann gives us the deeper story: not just how Caroline looked, but how she fought. For herself, for public opinion, for a place in a system that was rigged against her from the start.

While it’s tempting to keep Caroline’s plight firmly in the past, there’s no denying that some of the dynamics she faced (the media spectacle, the palace PR spin, the treatment of “outsider” women) still play out today. Most historians won’t say it (and I get why…) but lucky for you, Ann and I will.

Sir Thomas Lawrence, Princess Caroline of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel (1804).

Caroline walked so modern rule-breaking royals could run. Ann’s Rebel of the Regency is her long-overdue redemption arc.

Thank you so much to Ann for trusting me with this cover reveal! You can keep up with her here: