Waiting on Wednesday - Rival to the Queen by Carolly Erickson

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted at Breaking The Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:

 

 

Title: Rival to the Queen

Author: Carolly Erickson

Available: September 28, 2010 by St. Martin's Press

 

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Last Wife of Henry VIII comes a novel about the bitter rivalry between Queen Elizabeth I and her fascinating cousin, Lettice Knollys, for the love of one extraordinary man Powerful, dramatic and full of the rich history that has made Carolly Erickson’s novels perennial bestsellers, this is the story of the only woman to ever stand up to the Virgin Queen— her own cousin, Lettie Knollys. Far more attractive than the queen, Lettie soon won the attention of the handsome and ambitious Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, a man so enamored of the queen and determined to share her throne that it was rumored he had murdered his own wife in order to become her royal consort. The enigmatic Elizabeth allowed Dudley into her heart, and relied on his devoted service, but shied away from the personal and political risks of marriage. When Elizabeth discovered that he had married her cousin Lettie in secret, Lettie would pay a terrible price, fighting to keep her husband’s love and ultimately losing her beloved son, the Earl of Essex, to the queen’s headsman. This is the unforgettable story of two women related by blood, yet destined to clash over one of Tudor England’s most charismatic men.

 

 

I loved books set in Tudor England, and Queen Elizabeth I is a particular fascination of mine.  I know a little bit about Lettice, but she always has such a small part in books about Queen Elizabeth I.  I think this one sounds great!

 

 

The Hidden Diary of Marie Antoinette by Carolly Erickson

Title: The Hidden Diary of Marie Antoinette
Author: Carolly Erickson
Published: August 2006
Pages: 368
ISBN: 9780312361501
Source: personal copy

Description: Imagine that, on the night before she is to die under the blade of the guillotine, Marie Antoinette leaves behind in her prison cell a diary telling the story of her life—from her privileged childhood as Austrian Archduchess to her years as glamorous mistress of Versailles to the heartbreak of imprisonment and humiliation during the French Revolution.   Carolly Erickson takes the reader deep into the psyche of France’s doomed queen: her love affair with handsome Swedish diplomat Count Axel Fersen, who risked his life to save her; her fears on the terrifying night the Parisian mob broke into her palace bedroom intent on murdering her and her family; her harrowing attempted flight from France in disguise; her recapture and the grim months of harsh captivity; her agony when her beloved husband was guillotined and her young son was torn from her arms, never to be seen again.  Erickson brilliantly captures the queen’s voice, her hopes, her dreads, and her suffering. We follow, mesmerized, as she reveals every detail of her remarkable, eventful life—from her teenage years when she began keeping a diary to her final days when she awaited her own bloody appointment with the guillotine.

I Give This Book 3 Stars!

I'll be the first to admit that I don't know much about Marie Antoinette.   And, what I do know probably comes from the movies.  She usually isn't portrayed very kindly there.  I had built this image of a young women who liked parties, clothes, and basic extravagance.  This book took an extreme opposite view.  It touched on the rumors surrounding the Queen, but I never got a good feel for how the Queen felt about this.  The book seems to down play all of that, when in fact that malicious gossip eventually made the people of France hate her.  She had to have realized that but she seems really detached from her people and her country.  I'm sure the truth lies somewhere in the middle.  Although, I'm sure we will never know the whole truth surrounding all the gossip. 

I did really enjoy the format of the book.  The diary entries made it seem like more of a possibility that this was who the Queen really was.  I learned a few things I did not know.  Plus, it made me want to read more historical fiction about Marie Antoinette.  Some seem to complain about some characters being made up, but I able to take that in because I know it is historical fiction.  I know that not everything is fact.  Overall, and interesting read, but I feel it's steeped more in fiction than in fact.