All opinions expressed here are my own. This post may contain affiliate links that we may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. Disclosure here.
“Amazing, eye-opening, and compelling.“
Reading age
12+
Genre
Historical fiction
Publisher
HMH Books for Young Readers
My brief summary of the book
Maria Antonia, an archduchess of Austria, is preparing to become the dauphine of France. Everything must be perfect. After months of getting ready, Antonia finally makes the journey from Vienna, Austria, to Strasbourg, France. When she soon met up with the dauphin, he wasn’t what she expected. Oh well, this can’t be any worse, right? Wrong, there were so many rules in the French court that Marie Antoinette couldn’t keep up with. When King Louis VI died, Marie Antoinette became the queen of France, and she wanted to do whatever she wanted to do as queen.
My thoughts
This historical fiction book is terrific! This book helped me see who Marie Antoinette is, a spunky and rebellious queen. To others, she is often misrepresented as a selfish and lavish queen. First, she had no idea how to rule because she never had the time to learn how to be a queen. She was more obsessed with fitting in the French court. Second, she wanted to lead her life, not letting others tell her what to do. I loved that the author named the chapters “rules.” Carolyn included lots of details about the journey, the dressing, etc. King Louis, the spouse of Antoinette, is a timid man who is an albeit weak-willed king; I had mixed feelings about him.
My rating
About the author
“Carolyn Meyer is the award-winning author of more than forty books for young people, including ANASTASIA: THE LAST GRAND DUCHESS; WHITE LILACS; MARIE, DANCING, a Book Sense Pick; and the Young Royals series. Meyer lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico.” – Amazon.
More by the author
- Mary, Bloody Mary; Please read my review.
- Beware Princess Elizabeth; Please read my review.
- Doomed, Queen Anne; Please read my review.
- Anastasia: The Last Grand Duchess, Russia, 1914; Please read my review.
- The Wild Queen: The Days and Nights of Mary, Queen of Scots; Please read my review.
- Duchessina: A Novel of Catherine de’ Medici; Please read my review.
- Victoria Rebels; Please read my review.
