Tessa Arlen

Tessa Arlen writes historical fiction shaped by British social life, women’s work, and the private pressures surrounding public institutions. Born in Singapore to a British diplomatic family, she lived in several countries before settling in the United States. Her earlier Lady Montfort mysteries explore an aristocratic household and its wider community during the early twentieth century. In Royal Service to the Queen shifts attention to Marion Crawford, the Scottish teacher known as Crawfie who became governess to Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret. Published by Berkley in 2021, the novel follows her entry into royal service and the difficult balance between personal independence, loyalty, and obligations that accompany intimate access to the royal family. Arlen uses a figure positioned between household employee and trusted companion to examine changing expectations of duty. In Royal Service to the Queen extends her established interest in women whose labour remains partly hidden behind formal titles, ceremonial routines, and the better-known lives of the people they serve.