Robert Harris as always delivers creating a story from the known facts and making a novel feel like you are present as the events unfold. HH Asquith was Liberal party prime minister from 1908 until 1916 at a very turbulent time in European History. During that period he befriended a young lady of noble birth; Venetia Stanley. He proceeded to meet her on numerous occasions and openly discussed government secrets with her sharing details of troop movements and government war strategy, amongst other cabinet talks. The author informs us that the letters from Asquith to Stanley were not destroyed and he was able to use them as source material for his book and therefore the story behind Precipice is built on truth. This fact alone is unbelievable as is the attitude of Asquith who used his position to not only befriend young ladies, but to sexually abuse them (he was 35 years older than Stanley and professed undying love to her) She was happy to act as his chaperone ( it is debatable whether their relationship was sexual, although Harris believes it was) and then to effectively end the affair when she grew tired of his constant whining and promises of a future together….Asquith’s wife Margot was an Aristocratic socialite and free spirit, they both lived separate lives, in separate rooms leaving her husband to pursue and indulge his sexual fantasies. He used to meet Stanley in a “bedroom on wheels” hence the author’s assumption that the relationship was sexual in nature is well founded…
This is an astounding story told with the author’s flamboyant style, it makes a riveting and surprisingly informative read. I highly recommend and regard Precipice as one of my all time favourite reads.
