Priscilla Presley book review: “Softly, As I Leave You” addresses 40 years worth of rumors about her life with Elvis and beyond

When I first heard the title of Priscilla Presley’s new memoir, Softly, As I Leave You: Life After Elvis, I was confused as to why she chose that title. It was a song that Elvis performed in concert in the 1970s, and he introduced the song saying it was about a spouse dying. But it could also be interpreted about someone leaving a relationship. So, is Priscilla referring to her leaving Elvis in the divorce, or Elvis leaving her in death, or maybe both?

***WARNING SPOILERS***

But when reading the prologue to her memoir, the book title took on a new meaning. Priscilla starts off the book talking about seeing members of her family, who have all passed away, walking beside her, including her parents, her daughter, her grandson, and also her ex-husband, Elvis. As I was reading, I thought, is this a dream she had? Sadly, no. This is Priscilla, who just turned 80, anticipating her own death and reuniting with her loved ones in heaven. It will bring tears to your eyes.

As a researcher, author and music journalist, I am constantly torn between the two sides of Priscilla Presley (she is a Gemini, the astrological sign of the twins). I’ve always seen her as the charming spokesperson for Graceland and Elvis’ legacy, at least until the last few years due to the public controversy about the Priscilla movie. But the constant chatter among Elvis fans who point out negative things about her leads me to anxiously read what she has to say in her new memoir. 

In addition to Elvis, there is so much covered in Priscilla’s book. She discusses the other relationships she had after Elvis, and her son Navarone. She also discusses her association with Scientology, her acting career, her involvement with Elvis Presley Enterprises, Lisa Marie’s custody battle with ex-husband, Michael Lockwood, the controversy over the Priscilla movie, and the circumstances of Lisa Marie’s sudden death. Surprisingly, she only mentions her partner of 22 years, Marco Garibaldi, by name, only once in the book. But the most intriguing parts for Elvis fans are, of course, relating to her relationship with Elvis and Lisa Marie.

Priscilla Presley’s new memoir confronts most of the rumors and accusations made by Elvis fans that have been swirling around since her first book came out 40 years ago. It also addresses many of the negative statements of Priscilla made by Lisa Marie in her 2024 memoir, From Here to the Great Unknown. 

Immediately in the first chapter, which presents the context of why she left Elvis, Priscilla confronts their 10-year age gap. This has caused controversy on the internet with many people judging Elvis by today’s standards, and accusing him of being a pedophile.

“It wasn’t unusual in the South. It certainly wasn’t considered pedophilia,” Priscilla writes.

Many people who don’t know the facts think that Priscilla and Elvis’ relationship got serious when she was 14. She did meet Elvis when she was 14, but then Elvis was released from the army 6 months after they met. He returned to the US, but Priscilla stayed in Germany with her parents for another 3 years. In fact, Priscilla did not move in with Elvis at Graceland until she was just two months away from turning 18 years old. 

Priscilla addresses what was mentioned in Lisa’s memoir about her pregnancy. Priscilla admits she initially was not happy when she found out that she was pregnant with Lisa. She literally got pregnant on her wedding night, so the honeymoon was quickly over. But Priscilla explains that after Elvis suggested an abortion, that her views about the pregnancy changed. 

“Fear and dread were replaced by growing excitement and tenderness for our unborn child,” Priscilla wrote. “When we actually held Lisa Marie in our arms for the first time, we fell hopelessly in love with her. We could not imagine our lives without her.”

A lot of the negative talk about Priscilla started with certain things she wrote in her first book, Elvis and Me. In the second chapter of Softly, As I Leave You, she addresses the fact that she did not mean to say that Elvis forced himself on her, which she wrote about in her 1985 book. 

“Elvis made love to me forcefully, not forcibly,” she writes in her new book. She had also used the word “forcefully” in her 1985 book, but some people inferred that he forced himself on her. In her new book, Priscilla clarifies that was not the case.

She also stressed that she did not leave Elvis for Mike Stone, who she admittedly was having an affair with, but that he was a catalyst for her leaving her marriage. At the time of her divorce, she still loved Elvis but was unhappy with the inequality in their marriage.

Priscilla also indirectly addresses why she was still using the Presley name. She described saying goodbye to Grandma Minnie Mae, when she was divorcing Elvis. She was very close with Elvis’ grandmother, and she kept in touch with her and visited her after the divorce. 

“You don’t just marry a person; you marry a family. I remained married to Elvis’s family,” Priscilla said. “Lisa Marie and I were Presleys. That never changed.”

Priscilla also discusses the incident shown in the 2023 Priscilla movie where Elvis, in a fit of rage, threw a chair in her direction. The movie was based on her book, Elvis and Me. Including this incident in the film was one of the reasons that many fans did not like the movie because they believed it portrayed Elvis in a negative light. 

In a 2025 interview with People magazine to promote her book [see video below], Priscilla gave an explanation of what really happened, except this statement contradicts what she wrote in her 1985 book, which she also repeated in the new book. Originally Priscilla wrote that she and Elvis were listening to a stack of record demos for his next movie soundtrack. But Elvis got angry when Priscilla said she didn’t like the record Elvis had picked out.

“To my horror, a chair came hurtling toward me,” Priscilla explained in Elvis and Me. “I moved out of the way just in time, but there were stacks of records piled on it and one flew off and hit me in the face. Within seconds, he had me in his arms, apologizing frantically.”

However, in the new book, she took out any indication that Elvis threw the chair directly at her. “When I told him I didn’t like the song, he picked up the chair and threw it. One of the records flew off and hit me.”

Now, with this recent video interview, Priscilla is outright denying that she was the target: “The real story,” Priscilla stated, is “he’s talking on the phone. He got upset with Colonel Parker. He picked up something on his desk… he didn’t even look and I had just come in. He didn’t know I was there and he just lifted up and he just threw it…” 

Telling an alternate version of the story may be understandable considering that Elvis was known for having a really bad temper. He even admitted it. And this may be a way for Priscilla to play down a true story because fans don’t want to hear the truth. Or, on the other hand, it may be that she embellished certain incidents in her original memoir to make it more salacious to sell copies. We will never know for sure because Elvis is not here to give his side of the story.

But one incident as described in Lisa Marie’s 2024 memoir is hard to make excuses for. It has turned into a she-said/she-said about what really happened between Priscilla’s live-in boyfriend, Michael Edwards, and a young 10- to 13-year-old Lisa Marie Presley.

In Chapter 6, Priscilla addresses the accusation made by Lisa Marie in her 2024 memoir that she had been sexually abused by Michael Edwards. Priscilla claims that Lisa never told her that Edwards actually molested her, but just that he “pulled back the covers to look at her in her nightgown” which made Lisa “feel very uncomfortable.” 

Priscilla claims that, as a result, she decided to ask Edwards to move out, but that Lisa begged her not to do it. “She even wrote me a letter supporting Michael while I was away on business and Michelle [Priscilla’s sister] was staying with her. I still have it,” Priscilla writes. 

However, Lisa disclosed in her memoir that she did tell Priscilla about the abuse at least twice. She said that Priscilla would confront Edwards about it, and then make him apologize to Lisa. But Priscilla stayed in the relationship. “I would feel bad and forgive him,” Lisa wrote. 

According to Lisa, the relationship between Edwards and Priscilla was extremely volatile. During one incident, Lisa describes Edwards apologizing to Priscilla “begging her to go back to him. When she did, I was so pissed,” Lisa wrote. 

Prsicilla said in her new book that she didn’t find out about the abuse until after reading Lisa’s memoir in 2024: “I couldn’t understand why she had never told any of us,” Priscilla said. “I struggle to make peace with Lisa’s words. Because I didn’t hear them until after her passing, we never got to talk about it together. I know I will never have closure.”

On a lighter note, the 16-page photo section consists entirely of personal photos of Priscilla with her family. Her choice of photos reminds me of a sweet moment I saw when Priscilla was speaking at the opening of the Guesthouse at Graceland in 2017. She had just come out to join the discussion outside in front of the hotel. 

Before she joined in the conversation, she quietly asked the crowd, “Are my parents here?” For a 72-year-old woman, she seemed almost like a teenager looking to her parents for emotional support. It was a small flashback and reminder of the young, demure girl that Elvis fell in love with. 

There is no doubt that this book will inspire many more years of debate and antagonism about Priscilla among fans who don’t like her. But maybe the rest of us can take a cue from her granddaughter, Riley Keough. In the wake of that very personal and disheartening letter written by Riley to Priscilla in January 2023 where Riley confronts her grandmother about the lawsuit she filed against Lisa’s estate, Riley has chosen to take the high road. 

Instead of keeping score on who did what, on what is true and not true, Riley has chosen to rise above the disagreements and problems in Lisa and Priscilla’s relationship, and move on to the ultimate goal of preserving the Presley family legacy. Since the settlement of the lawsuit between Priscilla and Riley in 2023, Riley has made every effort to show her public support for her grandmother. [Watch video below]

In her book, Softly, As I Leave You: Life After Elvis, Priscilla Presley has had her final say. While several of Priscilla’s statements can be debated, as with any memoir, it is each reader’s personal choice on whether they accept her explanations or not. That being said, it’s a captivating read looking behind the scenes into the life of the ex-wife of The King of Rock and Roll. 

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This review was written by the Elvis News Examiner, Trina Young. She is the author of 4 Elvis books, including ELVIS Behind the Legend and ELVIS The Army Years Uncovered. Read free excerpts at ElvisBiography.net.

Read more details about when Elvis and Priscilla first met and their 10-year age gap: When 14-year-old Priscilla meets Elvis Presley for the first time they form a bond over something unexpected

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