From CNN's official royal historian, a highly praised young author with a doctorate from Oxford University, comes the extraordinary rags-to-riches story of the woman who conquered Napoleon's heart -- and with it, an empire.

Originally published under the title Josephine: desire, ambition, Napoleon in the United Kingdom by Hutchinson, a member of The Random House Group Limited, London, in 2013.

Prologue -- La Pagerie -- Sophistication -- "Beneath all the sluts in the world" -- Revolution -- "The height of good manners to be ruined" -- "What strange power you have over my heart" -- "The single object in my heart" -- A million kisses -- "I am so distressed at being separated from him" -- "All I have suffered" -- "He owes me everything" -- "The most beautiful thing in the world" -- Scenes with Bonaparte -- "My stepfather Is a comet" -- "Your imperial majesty" -- "The king of diamonds" -- "I have fulfilled my destiny" -- "I wish you would be more reasonable" -- "Cold and often embarrassed" -- "Like a wounded soldier" -- "More full of charm" -- Epilogue.