Finding a way to weave an alternate plot into established history is no easy task, and often historical fiction finds greater freedom by looking at minor figures, on the fringe of history, to find the wiggle room to invent. But, as HG Parry so recently showed with her Shadow Histories duology, tackling the major figures can be hugely satisfying, and magic is a powerful way to open up our ideas about these imposing characters and offer up clever ways to adapt history without breaking it too much.

Heartfield succeeds spectacularly with her hidden, magical war in the lives of sisters Charlotte and Antoine, who grow up to be Maria Carolina, Queen of Naples and Marie Antoinette, Queen of France.

The embroidered book of the title is a book of spells the sisters discover as little girls, previously the property of their murdered governess, a rogue magician. The young archduchesses, daughters of the Empress of Austria, Marie Therese, decipher the spells within and use them to navigate the limited world of marriages and royal alliances they’ve been born into. But once married, as queens, they embrace a shadow world of secret magical societies and the power and influence they might enjoy by becoming ever more adept at magic. The shadow politics of this magical world soon bring the two queens into an invisible war for control of magic worldwide, between a privileged brotherhood of magisters who wish to keep magic contained, focussed on controlling the courts of Europe, and rogue factions of rebel spell casters, keen to bring magic into the open in the name of freedom abd revolution. The sister queens find themselves on different sides of this shadow conflict, where even their love for one another cannot protect them both from the ramifications of war.

All of this weaves seamlessly into the established lives of Maria Carolina and Marie Antoinette, masterfully reimagining the motivations of both women and looking at the ways in which even the most priveleged women of their age were oppressively restrained and yet found ways to take and create power. The two sisters are beautifully realised characters, and the ways in which sacrifice informs the whole of their lives is elegantly explored through the mechanics of the magic they engage in.

I genuinely adored this book and will be looking forward to Heartfield’s next. If you’re a fan of HG Parry, Alix E Harrow, Jeanette Ng or Susanna Clarke, this is absolutely for you. Stunning fantasy.

It is 1768, and two sisters, both Austrian archduchesses, are separated when they are married off to two Habsburg heirs, one in France and one in Naples. Unknown to their husbands, the sisters share a secret, a powerful skill to help them succeed in their new roles. With the help of an embroidered book, discovered as children, they can perform magic. With issues such as crop failure and revolution facing their countries, the sisters try their best to control what they can with their powers, but they risk alerting others... some who would be friends, but others far more dangerous...

This book is perfect for fans of Bridget Collins (‘The Binding’ and ‘The Betrayals’) and V E Schwab (‘The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue’). It skilfully combines real historical events with the world of magisters, spells and enchantments. I enjoyed the prospect that the fates of these two women, plus their countries, were actually down to their use of magic and, later in the story, the use of magic by others, too.

There is no need to know much about eighteenth century history to enjoy ‘The Embroidered Book’, but for those with a little historical knowledge of the period, real historical events take on a fresh new twist with the influence of magic. There’s a particularly poignant part where the availability of one spell holds the possibility to change the course of history as we know it for one character. I don’t know about other readers, but I found this part of the plot surprisingly affecting.

It is also fascinating to hear the thoughts, desires and decisions of the sisters themselves, queen consorts to kings, but bearing a great deal of responsibility and expectation to look, behave and reproduce to the satisfaction of their husbands, their court, and even their subjects. It is interesting to consider whether, after 250 years, have things really changed all that much in that regard...?

What a stunning, truly epic novel from Kate Heartfield! I absolutely loved it. My review rating is 4.5 stars, rounded up to 5.

Many thanks to the publishers, Harper Fiction, and to NetGalley for the advance copy on which this review is based.

Maria Carolina aka Charlotte and Marie Antoinette are two champion of Ancient Regime, two women dead set against any change in the government.
This is what history says and I'm not a fan even if I can see how they were pawns in a political game.
That said I liked this book and this alternate history in a world where magic is real and it's part of a political game.
It's a fascinating and compelling story, I liked the magical system and the historical accuracy.
Neither Charlotte nor Antoine are two likeable characters, they're involved in their games and playing the game of power like most of the character in this book.
The author did a good job in developing the characters and how they lived.
The plot is about intrigue, magic, and power. It's fascinating, detailed, and unusual.
It made me think of a book I loved, A Declaration of the Right of Magician, another alternate history set in the same timeframe.
One note: the book is very long and some cut would have made it very exciting.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Utterly, utterly mesmerising. A stunning stitching together of history and magic, powerful women and court intrigues, romance and rivalry. So evocative and enthralling, it’s a cliche but this truly transports you to eighteenth century Europe with all its turmoil and turbulence. Stunning.

This book is beautiful, something completely different to anything I have read before, A book that embroiders a story involving real historical characters with magic is something that shouldn't work, but the author pulls it off brilliantly, so well in fact that you cannot help wondering, is this possible?

Set in 1768, we join two sisters who are sent away from home, to marry men they do not know, but who will enable them to become the most influential women of the period, Marie Antoinette, and her older sister Maria Carolina, Queen of Naples and Sicily.

Brought up by a Governess who teaches them magic and gives them the Embroidered Book, a book full of spells, which teaches the girls that every spell demands a sacrifice, and each time they are granted access to magic it eats away at them just a little bit.

As each sister lives in a world of plots, deceit and deals, they use their skills to create the lives they desire for themselves and their families, but at what cost?

The book is compelling, I loved the descriptions of court life, the way power was won, lost and retained and the danger of living in a world where you are never quite sure who your enemies are.

The characters are very well developed throughout the book, and whether you love them or hate them, you cannot ignore them. The knowledge that the French Revolution is approaching means we know how it will end for at least one of the characters...

I loved this book, and have pre-ordered the beautiful sprayed edged edition from Waterstones, because I need this book on my shelf.

Thank you to the author, Harper Voyager and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for a honest review.

"Women find their power where they can, and remember it in twisted threads. Misheard whispers. Embroidered and disguised."

1767 and two young Hapsburg Princesses discover a book left by their governess filled with spells and magic. A year later the eldest, Charlotte, finds herself on the road to Naples to meet her husband to be, with her she carries the book, hoping the spells inside will protect her and ensure she becomes the Queen she was destined to be. Two years later, Antoine, now Marie Antoinette travels to France with her own copy of the book. Both sisters have big plans and ideas for their rules, but, before long, they find themselves on opposite ends of a magical war. A war that will have consequences world wide, bringing about a revolution that will bring both sisters to their knees.

You may think that, knowing how this story will inevitably end, it would get a little boring in parts... I can say with 100% certainty that is not the case. Apparently historical fiction with the addition of magic is my new jam and, between this and the Shadow Histories series, I've found a new favourite sub-genre. The Embroidered Book may span continents and multiple years but it is told solely from the POV's of Charlotte and Antoine Hapsburg who become Maria Carolina, Queen of Naples and Marie Antoinette, Queen of France. Their bond as sisters was strong and, as with all young people, seemingly unbreakable, but unfortunately life and the running of Kingdoms worked to tear them apart. Charlotte is the older sister, the seemingly wise, the more shrewd, cunning and less trusting. She has never needed to be loved, she simply wants her Kingdom to survive, to make her mother proud and keep up the Hapsburg legacy. Antoinette on the other hand thrived in the spotlight, was desperate to be loved by her family and her people. She is the luxurious Queen of France, wearing her fancy clothes and expensive jewels, something that was expected of her. But also something that ensured she fit in with the French royalty and was hated by the French public.

We get a wide depth of side characters, some who get slightly more page time than others, but all make a significant impact on the book. The scope of the side characters was truly immense and to help us, we get a handy character guide at the front of the book that I found myself referring too on more than one occasion and it massively helped me keep them all straight in my head. The author brings in historical figures who I recognised and others that were new to me, and I loved trying to work out who was friend and who was foe, who knew about magic and who didn't. Heartfield has an ability to write characters that end up almost feeling like family to you, mainly thanks to the over 600 pages you spend alongside them, but also because of the amount of time she spends letting us see the inner workings of her characters minds, their hopes, wishes and goals for life.

As this is a Historical fantasy that, as far as I could tell, sticks fairly well to true historical events you would assume that there would be no real plot twists, and because I knew the outcome of at least one sister, I did think it would lack any true emotional punch... boy was I wrong. I think it helped that, although I knew the outcome for Marie Antoinette, I knew very little of her journey, and little to nothing about Charlotte. And, with the addition of magic, Heartfield managed to make a story that, though historically accurate, still manages to grip the reader to the pages. The magic system itself added an emotional component to the book that I just wasn't prepared for. As we all know, magic comes at a cost, and in this book magic normally costs you something physical be it hair, blood etc, as well as your memories, you love for things and people and objects you hold dear. It was heartbreaking at times, seeing what the characters were willing to give up to ensure the safety of themselves, their family and their people.

One of the big themes in this book is power and this is largely shown through the differing ways both Charlotte and Antoinette use magic to gain it. Ever practical Charlotte has always used her magic, her power to secure her own. She doesn't want to be ruled by her husband and used everything within her power to make sure that when people mentioned the power of Naples, they were talking about her. Through force of will she enters the Order, an ancient group of magic users, cementing herself as both Queen and magister, something that was previously unheard of. Antoinette, however, finds herself at odds with the Order. She believes magic should be freely available, especially when it has the ability to save lives. So she recruits and she teaches and she creates her own little order of magister's who live and work outside the rulings of the Order. Heartfield ensures we know that there was no right or wrong way to deal with magic, both sisters have their own ideas, and both end up backfiring on them in different, but heartbreaking ways.

I loved this book, and I especially enjoyed that it focused on the women who are so often overlooked in this period of history. Heartfield gives Marie Antoinette the story she deserves and shows her, not as the spoilt and brattish Queen, but as someone so desperate to be loved, doing everything she could to fit in only to have it all come crashing down on her, and with me knowing absolutely nothing about Charlotte before going into this book, I absolutely devoured their stories. Now I will say, if you aren't a big fan of historical books that spend a lot of time talking about politics, it might be worth giving this one a miss. But if, like me, you love a story with scope, both in characters and time, a story you can really dig your teeth into and almost feel like you become part of it yourself, well then look no further. Historical fantasy is apparently my jam, and I can't wait to see what the author has in store for us next.

A hugely enjoyable foray into the world of the Habsburgs, particularly into 18th century Naples and revolutionary France. This book is an interesting mix of historical fiction and fantasy - Kate Heartfield really melds the two together and has made a completely believable story weaving together real history and a story of enchantments.
The result is a magical realism centered around two of the most intriguing queens of the era: Maria Carolina, Queen of Naples and Sicily; and her sister, Marie Antoinette; the much maligned Queen of France. We follow the sisters from their early days together as archduchesses of Austria until they are separated and married off to gain the most important political alliances possible by their mother, the Holy Roman Empress Maria Theresa. The sisters are thus portrayed as pawns in a political game of which they are not in control, and much of the magical thrust of the book comes in to play as a way in which these women can take their lives into their own hands and try to influence the places they’ve been put; and trying to overcome that lack of choice in order to be powerful women in their own right. Their success is varied, but with loving skill Heartfield has shown these women as well rounded and real characters, in a unique way. An enchanting spell of a book and one I will be recommending to my magical-realism loving friends.

My thanks to #NetGalley and HarperVoyager for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

I have to admit that at the start I did struggle but gradually I could not put the book down as I was totally absorbed. The characters were very well described and though initially I thought that the Magic was not in keeping with the characters it was certainly a part of the civilisation of the time. The story was focussed on the two sisters who both become queens in their own right but the period of history was so well described. The fashions of the time, the jewellery, the way the coourtiers behaved and how poorly women were treated in general all added up to a fascinating read. With the final twist not being expected. It was a dark read but this was a very dark period, especially for France The research into European history was excellent and went further than the Storming of the Bastille, the French Revolution, the Knights Templar and the Free Masonry as secret societies that were producing so called magic. Throughout the read I questioned that with todays knowledge would the magisters be called scientists.
A long book but very well written.

1768 - Two Queens with a powerful secret will enchant the age.

When sisters Charlotte and Antoinette were just young girls, they found a book. A book that would not only change their lives, but the lives of everyone around them. A book of real, powerful magic that could do amazing thing but came with terrible consequences. As they grow up, Charlotte is sent away to marry Ferdinand of Naples and Antoinette is sent to France to marry the man who will one day become Louis XVI. Now known as Marie Antionette, her and her sister soon rise in power to become Queens of their new countries but as the times turn to unrest and revolution, the sisters soon find themselves opposed for the first time ever, and their rivalry could prove to be more dangerous than any war.

"Power is not something you are given. Power is something you take."

A stunningly visceral retelling of a pivotal moment in human history, Heartfield has blurred the lines between beautifully real 18th century Europe and spellbinding magic, reality and fantasy melting into one.

This story is pushed ahead at full speed by the strong characters and their impeccably intricate settings, both sisters exuded power and strength and I couldn't help but to love and fear both of them. And of course, if you're already a fan of French History you'll know some of the tragedy that took place which made every page you turn hurt just a little more as you're wondering just if their power will let them escape the history we know.

At around 700 pages, this book might look a little daunting when you first see it, but immediately the reader is enchanted and each character and place comes to life before your eyes - there isn't any 'filler' chapters as everything moves the story along and shows the characters as the evolve.

Aside from the beautifully rich storytelling, this story also shows us insights into live in 18th century high society that we might not have known - from how the courts work, to the important and etiquette about wigs.

This truly is a magical book.

Brimming with romance, betrayal, and enchantment, The Embroidered Book reveals and reimagines a dazzling period of history as you have never seen it before.
‘Power is not something you are given. Power is something you take. When you are a woman, it is a little more difficult, that’s all’

1768. Charlotte, daughter of the Habsburg Empress, arrives in Naples to marry a man she has never met. Her sister Antoine is sent to France, and in the mirrored corridors of Versailles they rename her Marie Antoinette.

The sisters are alone, but they are not powerless. When they were only children, they discovered a book of spells – spells that work, with dark and unpredictable consequences.

In a time of vicious court politics, of discovery and dizzying change, they use the book to take control of their lives.

But every spell requires a sacrifice. And as love between the sisters turns to rivalry, they will send Europe spiralling into revolution.

Overall this was a fun, exciting book that gave me several hours of escapism and enjoyment. Id definitely read other books released by this author.

There is only one way to describe this book and that is to say it is pure magic! I knew from the minute I opened it I was going to love it and I did. It is the history of 18th century Europe told with magic. It is so beautifully written with so much detail and with all the power and intrigue of history but dusted with a layer of dark magic too. It is just perfect.

To sum up, before I even start: a magical book.

This novel follows the lives of two Austrian princesses who grow up to be queens: Antoine, who as Marie Antoinette was the Queen of France guillotined after the fall of the Ancien Regime, and her sister Charlotte, or Maria Carolina of Naples.

And that's ambitious enough. Now add an embroidered book containing spells which the girls use, first in childish ways, then, after their (arranged, of course) marriages, for the good of their people. Or that's the plan, anyway.

It's such a bold idea that I was enchanted straight away. And the first part of the book, as Maria Teresa of Austria's daughters learn their craft, with the prospect of marraige always hanging over them, is funny, imaginative and vivid. They're delightful, and their love for each other and the spells they share seem likely to help them make the best of unpromising starts as royal brides.
(to be continued)

Thank you Harper Collins and Nettfor the e-arc of The Embroidered Book by Kate Heartfield.

Described as a sweeping historical epic with a thread of magic 🪡 The Embroidered Book plunged into eighteenth century historical fact and draws the reader into the lives, loves and losses of Marie Antoinette and Maria Carolina, the Hapsburg sisters who became queens of France and Naples.

Throw into this turbulent time a fiendishly clever and well developed magic system that draws on sacrifice for reward, and then merge the two to retell history, politics, religion and turbulence of the era from the perspective of these two women, queens and magisters.

From an early age Antoine (M.A.) and Charlotte have been raised to marry rulers and thus protect the Hapsburg family, they have been taught that is their role in life, but following the murder of their governess they discover her personal book of spells in the sewing basket. A nondescript book protected by an unfinished embroidered cover, which Charlotte completes triggering the discovery of the book’s content.

“Power is not something you are given. Power is something you take. When you are a woman, you must find a way to summon it... “

Charlotte and Antoine begin their lifelong journeys as magisters, unbeknownst to them, learning to perform spells, which they discover require personal sacrifice to complete. These first steps into magic have long-reaching consequences for them, their relationship and those around them.

Kate Heartfield has obviously spent a lot of time and effort researching the history, politics, society, fashion and culture of the period, because this book is brimming with detail, but pleasingly it is not delivered in the form of a lecture, but woven into the storyline.

From the importance and symbolism of Marie Antoinette’s hair styles and dressing to the details of the Versailles’ customs and standards, and the palace moves and tunnels of Naples. There us no flinching from the impact if the eruption if Mount Vesuvius and of course the horror of the French Revolution.

This book is long, but it doesn’t feel overwhelming and is told beautifully and poignantly, with the perspective of the female protagonists at the forefront. I found this book fascinating, moving and engrossing, and I irrespective of whether your genre of choice is historical fiction or fantasy, highly recommend it.

I loved this book. it was well written with great characters and an intriguing and vividly rich in detail storyline that left me breathless. I loved that it contained real historical figures with an alternative story making up their history. It was gripping and I was living their story with them on the page. I loved it.

At almost 700 pages long, this was quite an intimidating read. I did find the quantity of characters a little overwhelming to start with, but they soon start developing their own nuances and then it becomes easier to distinguish who is whom.

I found the mix of witchcraft and magic, and the time period of the 1700s fascinating. In a time where women seemingly didn’t hold much power, it is interesting to read about this secret power they held.

It is a bit mind bending at times, which I wasn’t necessarily expecting from a book starring characters such as Marie Antoinette, but it gave a nice twist to well-known figures. I don’t know much about Antoinette and what happened during that time period, so it’s hard for me to say the book is rooted in truth, but it’s fair to say the magical elements are fictional. But it’s so brilliantly woven in to everything else that it all feels so real and true. If I’m honest, I don’t think it matters if you’re a history buff or are completely ignorant, you’ll get so much enjoyment from this book.

It’s expertly written, with Kate perfectly blending the characters, countries, and time periods; reality, fantasy, history, and magic.

I’ve seen some reviews that say it’s possibly a little too long, maybe 100 pages or so could be cut, and whilst I understand their logic (700 pages is a lot to commit to), I couldn’t possibly choose any of it to cut as it is all so feral to the plot and character development. It wasn’t necessarily a story I thought I would be interested in, but it was really informative, exciting, and thrilling.

Book review: The Embroidered Book by Kate Heartfield 5⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I ended 2021 with a bang because OMG this book was good. Thank you so much to @harpervoyager_uk and Netgalley for this e-ARC.

This story is set in 18th century Europe where the Austrian Habsburgs are spread around the continent under the lead of their mother and Empress Maria Theresa. During this time she used her children to secure the monarchy, which is why our two main characters are being send off to marry. These two daughters are Charlotte and Antoine, later Marie Carolina and Marie Antoinette.
We follow them as they are little children discovering the Embroidered Book🪡📖 that their governess left behind before she was found dead. Inside the book are spells, and the two sisters are using the spells to get little control over their lives.
When they are old enough they are send off to their respective marriages. Charlotte becomes Queen of Naples and Antoine Queen of France.

This book is very character driven which I loved. Both sisters have very different characters and I really rooted for both of them. In addition I love Marie Antoinette.
Learning this part of European history in school I immediately knew where the book was going: The French Revolution. Meaning one of our main characters will get beheaded, so feeling attached to her is going to be painful. And man I dreaded the ending, because I loved these stubborn women.

"Power is not something you are given. Power is something you take. When you are a woman, it is a little more difficult, that's all."

The way magic was integrated in the novel was amazing! It alsmost felt as if it was actually part of our history. The sisters follow very different paths as Charlotte becomes part of a secret society⚖ of magicians, whereas Antoine becomes very close with the "rogues". These two settings as well as the beautiful writing style made the story feel magical and the tragedy more real.

If you love a character driven story, historical setting, tragedy, sisterly love and magic pick this one up!
I felt like this book was made for me.💗

Kate Heartfield’s The Embroidered Book is a massive tome – the ARC’s page count comes in around 650 pages – but it feels far less daunting while reading. The story is so captivating and the prose so immersive that I devoured it in a mere day. It follows the story of Antoine – Marie Antoinette – and her sister Charlotte – Maria Carolina of Naples – from childhood through to Marie Antoinette’s premature death at the hands of the French revolutionaries and Madame Guillotine. But this isn’t a mere historical novel – it heavily spins a fantasy element into this story, through a magic book that came into the hands of Antoine and Charlotte as children.

However, while this is the story of two queens, it is not a story about royalty. It is a story about two women, about sisterhood, about finding your own power within the constraints of society, about carving out a space for yourself. Setting The Embroidered Book within this royal family, within these powerful courts in a time where Europe – and many other places, for that matter – were in upheaval, mainly does one thing: it gives Kate Heartfield a bigger and more fun playground to play on. A similar story, a similar magic system might have worked just as well if based around two sisters born to paupers – but the impact that their actions and their experiments with the magic spells have on the world around them would have been less grand in scale. Still, ultimately, this is a character-driven story about the women Antoine and Charlotte more than it is about the Queens Marie Antoinette and Maria Carolina.

There is always something exciting going on and tension is kept high throughout. Despite the book’s length, it never felt like it dragged on or would have needed cutting down, which to me feels like a huge achievement (pun absolutely intended). And this despite The Embroidered Book being far more character-driven than plot-heavy. This really goes to show how stellar the writing that went into the story is. It is poetic without feeling overly descriptive and it is full of historical detail without overloading the reader with trivia. One of my favourite details was that I got to learn about eighteenth century orthodontristy, which was not something I knew existed in the period.

Readers who are wondering why we’re reviewing this on Grimdark Magazine, rest assured that The Embroidered Book is full of delightfully morally grey characters, twisty backstabbing and betrayals. Also, spoiler, the main character dies at the end. And that is pretty grimdark in my book. So really something for both you and your slightly less dead-on-the-inside fantasy loving friends.

This was an interesting take on the historical novel ,merging fantasy with fact.It’s about Marie Antoinette and Maria Carolina ,sisters who became queens of France and Naples, and their difficult relationship.However, thrown into this mix is the fantasy element ,imagining that these two queens were also magisters ,practitioners of magic and spells, who used the spell book they were left as children by a governess who was murdered.The spells involve making personal sacrifices and both queens have to face difficult choices in order to make the spells successful.
It’s a long book with a lot of detail- the author must have done an enormous amount of research.There are all sorts of fascinating details about hairstyles ,fashion and jewels ,and a large cast of characters which will be familiar to anyone interested in this period of history .The horror of the French Revolution and the treatment of Marie Antoinette and her family is covered extensively ,and I was very moved by the section dealing with their imprisonment and execution. I didn’t know so much about Maria Carolina but would like to find out more about her too ,as a result of reading this book.
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC in return for an honest review which reflects my own opinion.

I did struggle a bit to make it through to the end. The characters never really appeal to me and the story and its mixture of historical facts and magical aspects never managed to really capture my imagination. Not my cup of tea after all but one must command the author for her rigorous and impeccable research around the lives of the two Austrian archiduchesses and the Europrean court politics so prevalent at the
time. I will probably have another go at it before its publication date (February 22) and update my review. I just wasn't in the mood to fully appreciate it at this time.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Harper for giving me the opportunity to obtain this ARC prior to its release date.

I was offered this book as an ARC by NetGalley. It is set in the 18th century which was an incredibly turbulent time in globally so the premise of the book of throwing magic into that geopolitical mix was certainly intriguing. I found the book easy to get into but as the story developed, I found myself losing interest. I think the main reason for this was that as the main protagonists Charlotte and Antionette got older it became harder to distinguish between them. It is a completely personal preference, but I am not fond of books where the author essentially summarises the chapter at the beginning and I found myself skipping those lines. By the end it felt as though they were the author's notes of what was going to be in each chapter and they ended up being left in to help signpost the reader.

I did finish the book but was left a little underwhelmed after the promise of the premise.