Teddy is a wildly entertaining debut novel set in glamorous Rome, which follows the free-spirited wife of an American diplomat as she desperately tries to contain a scandal of her own making.
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In This Spotlight On Teddy
About Teddy
It is the summer of 1969 and Rome is awash with glamour and intrigue: the stars of Cinecittà are drinking and dancing along the paparazzo-lined Via Veneto, rubbing shoulders with royalty, American expats, and sometimes even Russian spies.
Teddy Huntley Carlyle is fresh off a plane from Texas with a new husband in tow and a new life on the horizon. She’s earned a fresh start. In Rome, Teddy will be good. She will wear the right clothes and the perfect lipstick, and she will charm her husband’s colleagues at the embassy.
And Teddy is good—until the Fourth of July, when her new life explodes alongside the fireworks above her head. She is caught on camera in the arms of the American ambassador just moments after spotting a man from the darkest corner of her past across the room. There it is, the evidence of her depravity, on film. Trying to recover the photographs and keep her reputation intact, she descends into the underbelly of the city . . . but is she in over her head?
Praise for Teddy
“Effervescent and cool, …the perfect read if your trip to Capri gets canceled and your La Dolce Vita itch needs scratching.”—Washington Post
“The glamour of La Dolce Vita and the repressive sexism of the 1960s pulse through this captivating exploration of the female psyche.”—People
“Descriptions of couture dresses, jewelry, and extravagant accessories provide enjoyable eye candy, and it is easy to visualize Teddy’s well-clad life in Rome on a big screen in this satisfying meetup of suspense, rom-com, family drama, and historical fiction. Make an Aperol spritz, get out the lounge chair, and enjoy this Roman holiday.”—Kirkus Reviews
“Revealed through tantalizing flashbacks, brimming with a delicious sense of malevolence and unease, Dunlay’s deeply atmospheric debut conjures the decadence of Rome, the duplicity of government officials, and the conflicting expectations of a young woman trying to come into her own.”—Booklist (starred review)
“Teddy is not just a fabulous historical novel—it’s a manifesto against the patriarchy, and a liberating experience of watching a woman free herself.”—Crime Reads
“As if Mad Men had a baby with The White Lotus, this novel has it all: atmosphere, glamour, danger, a heroine at the center of a web she doesn’t understand, so you want to protect her even as you cheer for her to escape. Teddy is the beautiful flaw, the ungovernable passion at the center of every woman that makes us perfectly imperfect, human, and real.”—Jenna Blum, New York Times bestselling author of Those Who Save Us and The Lost Family
“Teddy is an instantly arresting and electrifying read that’s not to be missed.”—BookPage
“Teddy is a luscious joyride of a novel, a portrait of a lady who’s a beautiful welter of lust, appetite, and longing. Teddy is Lily Bart with gusto and moxie, Isabel Archer with tenacious grit. I rooted for her gleefully until the surprise ending, which Dunlay pulls off with sly, masterful timing. Glamorous and suspenseful, this is a literary romp.”—Kate Christensen, Pen/Faulkner award winning author of The Great Man and Welcome Home, Stranger
“Teddy is a glitteringly glamorous and gossipy trip to 1960s Rome with a chaotically charming protagonist and a transporting setting, all with a mystery at its heart. Dunlay’s gorgeously immersive novel will fill a Lessons in Chemistry shaped hole on your shelf (and heart).”—Ellery Lloyd, New York Times Bestselling author of The Club
About Emily Dunlay, Author of Teddy
Born and raised in Dallas, Texas, Emily Dunlay studied English literature and creative writing at Princeton University, after which she trained and worked as a specialist librarian for antiquarian books. She currently lives in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Teddy is her debut novel.
You can connect with Emily Dunlay on their website, and on Instagram.
Source: Publisher
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN: 9780063354906
Pub Date: Jul 15, 2025
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