Sarah Ferguson’s career has suffered another major blow as her latest book has reportedly been “withdrawn from sale”.
Here is everything we know about Sarah Ferguson’s latest title being shelved…
Sarah Ferguson suffers major blow to career
Flora and Fern: Kindness Along The Way, has been officially withdrawn from sale amid renewed scrutiny surrounding her ex-husband Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s ties to Jeffrey Epstein.
According to analytics firm NielsenIQ BookData, the title was initially slated for publication on October 9. However, it has now been marked “withdrawn from sale” at the request of the publisher.
The book had been briefly available for pre-order on Amazon with a new release date of November 20, but has since disappeared from the retailer entirely.
Sarah Ferguson’s new book ‘withdrawn from sale’
“You have to imagine it’s to do with the current controversies,” Neill Denny, editor of trade outlet Book Brunch, told the BBC. “It’s not the right time to release a book by Sarah Ferguson.”
Meanwhile, Waterstones previously confirmed that the release of the book had been postponed, but said they had received no further updates on a revised publication date. Now, it appears the title has been shelved indefinitely.
No official reason has been given for the withdrawal. But publishing insiders say the decision is likely tied to the fallout from Andrew’s Epstein scandal.
“[It] makes total sense commercially,” Denny added. “It’s not the sort of book that’s going to age. You’re not risking a lot of money by holding it back.”
The book was to be part of Sarah Ferguson’s ongoing children’s series, following a long line of titles in her literary career, including Budgie the Little Helicopter and Little Red. She has written more than 70 books, spanning genres from children’s fiction to historical romance.
The timing of the withdrawal of the book aligns with heightened scrutiny on Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly Prince Andrew.
Andrew has lost all his royal titles over his connection to Epstein and the sexual assault allegations brought by Virginia Giuffre. Guiffre claimed she was trafficked by Epstein and forced to have sex with Andrew when she was just 17. Andrew has always denied all allegations.
He reached a financial settlement in 2022 but admitted no wrongdoing. King Charles later stripped him of his Duke of York title and all remaining royal honours. He is now due to vacate his Windsor residence, Royal Lodge.
Sarah Ferguson ‘not doing great’
Sarah also lost the courtesy title of Duchess when Andrew gave up his dukedom. She now faces uncertainty about her own living arrangements.
The Daily Mail reported she may move to Portugal with her daughter, Princess Eugenie. However, this has not been confirmed.
The Sun recently revealed an email from 2011 in which Sarah referred to Epstein as her “supreme friend”. This is despite publicly vowing to cut ties with him around the same time. The revelation sparked renewed backlash and resulted in several charities dropping her as a patron or ambassador.
According to royal biographer Robert Jobson, the former duchess is under considerable strain.
“[She’s] not doing great,” he told HELLO! on A Right Royal Podcast.
In the same episode, historian Andrew Lownie speculated that Sarah may quietly relocate overseas in order to retreat from the spotlight.
“A stronger possibility is that she goes [to Switzerland] and he goes somewhere else, possibly without extradition treaties to the UK,” he suggested.
Royal Insider has contacted Sarah Ferguson’s representative for comment.
Read more: King Charles could ‘seize’ Queen Elizabeth’s corgis from Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor in new twist
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