I loved the combination of fantasy and historical fiction. I found the magic a little bit confusing in places. I loved the historical elements. A captivating book

I was excited a out the ideas from this book, but unfortunately it did not live up to my expectations.

The Embroidered Book by Kate Heartfield. Hi, my names Char, I thought this would be my fantasy book that would get me into fantasy, it wasn’t. Marie Antoinette (yes that one) and her sister can do magic and use that magic to try and sort their mad husbands out. The history was good, it was very well written from that point of view but I just cannnoooottttt get on board with the magic. Although how the magic works in this was enjoyable, the notion of the bigger the sacrifice the better the magic was really interesting but I’m just not built for this. I think my biggest problem with this are the historical subjects chosen. If you’ve ever heard anything at all about France, shit goes so badly wrong for Marie Antoinette, I wouldn’t have written her as a woman in charge of her own hairstyles, never mind magic. The magic just feels a bit silly when you know it can’t be that good because she’s getting her head cut off in the end. My take away from this is your head is coming off whether you like it or not

Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience

Kate Heartfield's novel - The Embroidered Book is set against the backdrop of the French Revolution, the novel transports readers to the world of two Hapsburg Empresses - Charlotte and Maria Antonia - who later becomes Marie Antoinette.
The girls' murdered governess left an embroidered book which holds the key to magic - this book helps them to navigate the world of politics, drama and family.
The historical novel is thoroughly researched and it portrays Marie Antoniette in a different light. It is full of magic and intrigue and it leaves the reader wanting more.

This is an unusual read because it mixes real life historical characters with a fantasy magical theme.

I love historical novels, but tend towards British based history, so this was something different, which I really enjoyed. I have to confess, it took me a while to realise that Antoinette was Marie-Antoinette and her ending is well known. I was shocked to realise how rarely high-born females would be able to see each other once married - as this often involved power alliances and the need to move away from your childhood home.

The sisters use magic to overcome their distance - and it is used for both good and evil. Magic that brings power and destruction in equal measures. The magic that required them to relinquish memories to power its success. How much would you give to retain your power? Charlotte and Marie Antoinette are tested to their limits. This is a novel that binds these two sisters through love whilst always challenging the expectations of their position in their adopted country,

This didnt really work for me- I think it would have been better as a straight historical fiction novel. I found it impossible to get into and actually quite boring. Many thanks to Netgalley for an arc of this book.

My ARC is running out, yet I'm still only at 45%—I can't seem to be able to finish it. The book is very dense and the pacing is slow. It's just not vibing with me right now. Hopefully I'll come back to it in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an e-ARC copy of this book, in exchange for this honest review.

This take place in the late 1700’s. Empress Maria Therese of Austria is actively making alliances with other kingdoms to marry her children into other countries. There is a lot of court intrigue and detail about politics of the time. The story centers around Antoine (who becomes Marie Antoinette) and her sister Charlotte who is married off to the King of Naples. The sisters have an embroidered book of magic and spells left by their murdered governess. There is mysticism in the book as they try to cast spells. Since Masterpiece Theatre just did a series on Marie Antoinette, it was easy to picture the characters. Even though there were so many characters, it was easy to keep track of them.

I was intrigued by this title after reading the blurb. I went into this not expecting much and I don’t know why that was but I enjoyed it so much more than I thought I would!
A very imaginative take on history as we know it and I found it powerful.

4,5 stars out of 5.
I have to say, I enjoyed immensely reading this book. While I am a huge fan of historical fiction, I haven't encountered this well-researched book with endearing magic woven into it and covering quite a wide part of Europe. Not to mention, that England was not even close to the centre of attention of it. Just fabulous. Sensitive read about life, close up and personal of the Habsburgs, and Bourbon dynasties and a very curious idea of magic right in the middle of it. It is all subtle, to begin with, and the pace picks up the speed halfway through the book at this point book gets a proper grip on the reader, demanding to finish it before doing anything else. Just excellent - exactly what I expect from this kind of book.
Also, loved the ending - it's so very fitting.
However, I do have to add, there is a little inaccuracy in terms of naming the countries of the time. Since this is historical fiction, and the story is about the real people in real countries that existed in the described period, I would prefer them all to be named their right names. Poland stuck out to me the most. Now, at the given time, there was no just simply Poland. There was the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth more formally known as the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. It was a very interesting political and historical situation on that side of Europe, which was touched on just briefly in this story - which is absolutely fine. However, I do love accuracy for such, one would think, simple things, such as country names.

3.5 stars rounded up

This is a slow-paced and interesting character-driven rewriting of 18th century European court politics with bonus magic, but didn’t live up to its full potential for me.

I really loved the historical side of this book - meticulously researched and rich in detail, the story was grounded in material reality and brought these (often caricatured) figures alive. Both Antoinette and Charlotte are products of and subject to the strictures of monarchical expectations but in different ways: Antoinette is severed from her Habsburg roots and remade as a Frenchwoman, only to find herself ridiculed and disliked, while Charlotte becomes a powerful force in Naples despite the scorn of her husband and her increasing disconnection from friends. This was a new take on a period and events that have been frequently depicted, and it was an enjoyable read for that.

However it was the fantasy elements that I felt were underutilised. The magic system was very cool (I really loved the tangible cost of doing magic demonstrated by the emotions and memories that had to be sacrificed for a spell to work) and there was the setup for an interesting conflict between an organisation that wants to tightly control who can access magic and ‘rogues’ who believe magic should be practiced more freely… but it largely didn’t go anywhere. While it provided some great moments of tension between the queens (one aligned with the Order, the other with the Rogues) it wasn’t really resolved in any way that felt satisfying - it was superseded by (non-magical) issues of revolution in France and didn’t particularly matter anymore.
I received a free copy from NetGalley in return for an honest review.

I sadly could not get into this one and have (for the moment) dnf-ed it. It may be one I pick up in the future but as of right now I have no desire to continue.

This is definitely a 'me' problem as I liked the writing, I just didn't connect with the story.

So sorry!!

A sprawling example of historical fiction with every page obviously well-researched. It has its own meandering pace that rewards the invested reader.

I wanted to love this book but I really struggled to get through it. I don't love books that are written in third person present tense - it is so hard to get it right! And it really doesn't work for historical fiction in my opinion, even when it is a fantasy version. I thought the book could have been shorter without sacrificing the plot. I wanted to care about the characters, but I found Charlotte really irritating for most of the book. I did have some sympathy for Antoine, especially as the inevitable French Revolution approached. I did enjoy the Lafayette cameo.

I thought the concept of this book was intriguing and the magic system was clever, I just struggled with the writing style and didn't care enough about the characters.

There's a lot to love in this sweeping historical tale of revolutionary France, magic and sisterhood. Its Marie Antionette as I've never seen her before, a side that is incredibly close to her sister, who she misses a lot, and her new country. She's considerate and thoughtful, but not perfect. She's a woman trapped within the limited means of women of the time. I also really liked seeing more from Charlotte, the lesser known sister and to see the parallels both women face as foreign consorts far away from friendly faces and allies.

I think where my major issue lies is with the length. Its a very long book that easily could have been whittled down to around 400 pages without loosing its charm. The middle sections in particular definitely suffer from a very slow pace where not much happens, and at times I really had to drag myself through these sections to get to the end. I also didn't think that adding magic was entirely necessary, as the historical aspects of the story really stand up well in their own. It's like 'magic lite', sprinkled throughout and reslly it could have done with more 'oomph', and more background to establish it better. Go hard or go home with the fantasy in my opinion.

Beautiful writing and delightful historical characters, but this needed some harsher editing down and either more focus on the fantasy or cutting it out entirely for this to really work for me.

Thank you to the publisher for my eARC copy of this book. Unfortunately I didn’t love this book and therefore didn’t finish, I just didn’t connect with this one. Not for me, sorry.

completely enamouring and engaging.
Many Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Voyager for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Overview:
Charlotte is set to marry a man she has never met, her sister is sent to France to marry another- in the mirrored corridors of Versailles they have renamed this sister Marie Antoinette. As children they found a book on book of spells- spells that work with dark and unpredictable consequences.
Politics is vicious, and both girls are working to become women of the age, but each spell requires sacrifice and there are rivalries that could send Europe spiralling into revolution.

Review:
Plot- it was a fresh reimagining of the events leading up to the French revolution- which let’s face it is a pretty grim period of time. It was executed well, but this would have been rated higher if the book was maybe a little shorter. It was approx.. 600 pages, the last half felt a bit too slow pacing wise compared to the first half and could have potentially been made shorter to keep the pacing up. I struggled to get through to the end because of the pacing change and it may be a reason some people decide not to finish, which is a shame as overall it is a good story.

Generally loved the addition of magic to the story which is quite well known anyway, but honestly this novel would have made a great impact without it and as a historical fiction book on it’s own as opposed to fantasy. The overshadowing of the French Revolution was also extremely well seen throughout and I really enjoyed it.

World building- extremely heavy initially but honestly it was needed and once we got the initial start to the world completed, the build-up of this world was done very well.

Characters- This book is all about sisters, and that comes through very prominently through both their bond throughout the story and their development being a focal point and it was a genuine delight to read.

Final Thoughts,
If you like Historical Fiction, especially the French revolution era with a fantasy sub-plot woven in, then this is a book to definitely pick up!

The embroidered book was an absolute joy to read a historical fiction with many fantasy elements blended in. I adored Kate heartfield's take on the history of Marie Antoinette Queen of France and her older sister Maria Carolina, The way that the magic system was twisted into this story was so interesting.

Thank you so much to netgalley and the publishers for providing me with an earc.

This book spans the moment of Marie Antoinette's birth right through to the French Revolution and her brutal execution. It gives a fascinating insight into the potential personality and character of Marie Antoinette. Several of Antoinette's defining moments were present in the book, including the birth of her first child, a daughter, after 7 years of marriage. The famous line "A boy would have belonged to France, but you will belong to me" was also included. Also explored was the Affair of the Diamond Necklace which I'm so pleased was in there. I would have loved to have seen this author's interpretation of The Carnation Plot whilst Antoinette was in prison but, at already over 600 pages, it would have been a physical impossibility to include every aspect of Marie Antoinette's life.

This book was moving and epic and was a fascinating insight into the life and death of a massively misunderstood Queen. It did include Fantasy elements as this is a version of history that does include magic. Whilst this isn't usually my thing, it did provide some interesting sub plots to an epic part of European history and allowed the author to fully explore her interpretation of the relationship between Marie Antoinette and her favourite sister, Charlotte.

All in all, an highly enjoyable historical fiction novel with Fantasy elements that celebrates one of my favourite historical figures - loved it! Thank you to Netgalley, Harper Collins Publishing UK and Kate Heartfield for the opportunity to read and review this wonderful book.