This was a narrow-minded, stilted long drawn out rehashing of why Queen Elizabeth Bowes Lyon detested Edward, known as David to the Royal Family, the Duke of Windsor and his wife, Wallis Simpson. I slogged through; Poor Bertie, hateful David, oh me, oh shall I ever share the truth of what happened, or shall I keep it all to my poor brave self? Oh, what a trial, oh what a slog.

There are far better books regarding the events of World War II during the reign of King George and Queen Elizabeth. Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins Publishers for a copy.

Thank you for the ARC of The Queen's Secret. I really enjoy books about the royal family and this one will definitely go on my favorite list. Karen Harper has a way of bringing history to life and transporting you back in time to relive history.

Vivid and Detailed.

Wow! While I was reading this I truly felt like I was transported to another time and place. Exactly what I want from a historical fiction novel. I will never tire of reading books about Queen Elizabeth. There is something so interesting about British Royalty- at least to me.

I felt Harper did an excellent job researching and a creating a rich and lush historical setting,

Recommended to anyone who likes books about Royal Monarchy.

I absolutely loves this book! I did not realize the Queen Mother was so fascinating. This takes you from the start of WWII to the end of her life. I don't think I have ever said "What the h***"" so many times while reading a book. This takes you on a roller coaster of a ride.

We hear so much about Queen Elizabeth and Queen Victoria, so this book was a rare treat. So much of British history during this time revolves around Bertie or Churchill, and it was enlightening reading about a female in a leadership role in the country. The dialogue was striking with the tone of stiff royalty. The only thing they took me out of the story was the continual mention of the "secret", which when revealed, was somewhat anticlimactic. Overall, a great story about a person often left out of historical fiction dealing with the time period.

During World War II, the Queen consort played a vital role in advising King George VII and Winston Churchill. On top of her royal engagements, she is a mother to the future Queen Elizabeth and Princess Margaret and has to deal with her own secrets that she has refused to tell the King. These secrets sometimes keep her from making appropriate decisions for the family and England. With the book being historically accurate about World War II, Karen Harper provides an interesting new story for Queen consort Elizabeth with three major secrets that internally conflict her every day that could possibly ruin her marriage and the face of the Royal family.

I absolutely loved this book! Many books and/or tv shows based of the Royals do not discuss the major roles that the spouses played while in reign. This book showed how important the Queen consort was for the King and throughout World War II. The Queen also had her own internal conflicts with secrets that she has kept hidden from the King for years. The author does an amazing job on providing an accurate timeline about WWII and the role England played, while focusing on the Queen, her roles as a mother, wife, and Queen, and on her secrets that she worries will become known.

I really struggled with this one, but it might be an issue I have as a reader. I have a hard time with historical fiction told in the first person- I can't immerse myself in the story. This felt like a retelling of events more than a story I could get lost in. I generally love Karen Harper, and I think this will be a great book for someone with more interest in royalty; I wanted to read this because I like the author so much, I've never been able to get into the monarchy.

Hitler referred to her as "the Most Dangerous Woman in Europe." Wife to King George VI, Elizabeth presents a smiling face for the world to see, and endears herself to the people of Britain. But she has secrets in her past that might damage all she has worked for if they were to come out.

With each secret, I went to the computer to discover the veracity of them: Was she illegitimate? Rumor. Did she conceive her daughters with artificial insemination? Rumor. Was there a China Dossier to ruin the reputation of Wallis Simpson? Rumor. It seems like the author took every unproven rumor and put them together for this novel.

As a work of fiction, it was interesting, though it did get repetitive and tiresome. Queen Elizabeth, who would become the Queen Mother, was a forceful character to follow. She was determined to support her husband and care for those in her household. She worried over her husband learning her secrets, eventually confessing to one.

For readers who like more fiction in their historical reads, I would recommend this.

I received and ARC from @netgalley. Super thankful on many levels as it helped to pull me out of my reading slump. I enjoyed the perspective of the Queen/Wife during this period. Seeing how she endured during the war, how the stress and war affected her and her girls, including our current queen. I was waiting for a huge bombshell as I felt like the story built it up, but then it just fizzled out. Overall it was an enjoyable read from Karen Harper. If you've enjoyed Karen's other books, you will enjoy this one.

I really enjoyed this story. It follows Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother during WWII. We get to see an inside look at the difficulties of being in a leadership role during such a hard time. Hitler is quoted as calling her "the most dangerous woman in Europe"! She was often included in meetings between the King and Winston Churchill and asked her opinion on important decisions. I enjoyed getting a glimpse of the war and the struggles through a new viewpoint. As the title suggests she had a few secrets she struggled with throughout as well, but I really found those to be more of side storylines. They were important in understanding some of the choices she made, but I felt the story was full and interesting without those added in. As is true with many of these type of stories I'm reading during this time, it definitely puts perspective on our current difficulties. I would definitely recommend this book if your a fan of historical fiction and WWII, and especially if you want a different perspective.
#ARCReading #NetGalley #TheQueensSecret #CurlyBookReviews

The Queen’s Secret by Karen Harper centers on the reign of King George VI (Bertie) and his wife, Elizabeth, during WWII. Elizabeth, the Queen Mother of Elizabeth II, is the focal point of the first person point-of-view. She is a determined, opinionated, and secretive force in the Windsor family. Throughout her husband’s reign, Elizabeth is a known advisor/aide to the king, and Prime Minister Churchill values her opinions. Most importantly, she is a fierce, loyal ally of the English people.
Harper’s use of setting makes the war come alive for the reader. Hitler’s seemingly never-ending bombings of London are described so vividly the reader feels like he is there looking at the destruction and ruins of the historical landmarks. The bombings’ effects on the people of the East End and other areas touch the Royals on a personal level. It seemed as if the Germans wanted to destroy Buckingham Palace when the firings damaged the building and grounds. However, when the family visited or lived in the outlying castles, the countryside offered safety and peace from the war.
The subsidiary characters play an important role to the plot. Winston Churchill, the second Prime Minister of Bertie’s reign, and Elizabeth, the Queen Mum, develop a close working relationship. The safety of their daughters, Lillibet and Margot, are of utmost importance to the Royal parents. Even though Bertie’s brother and his wife are not actually in the story, they are continually talked about and added tension to the household. Elizabeth’[s hatred for “that woman” is intense.
I thoroughly enjoyed learning about the Queen Mother and her influence on her husband’s reign and her daughters’ home environment. This is a story of historical fiction at its finest!

I actually really enjoy Karen Harpers books but for some reason this one did not hold my attention the way I though it would.

I love watching The Crown on Netflix, and this felt like the prequel to me, since it focused on current Queen Elizabeth's mother and her reign with her husband the King. I really enjoyed this book. It was heartfelt, fast paced, and really let you feel the humanity of the royals. I have never read a book by this author before, but it will definitely not be my last! I would definitely recommend this book.

I'm not super knowledgeable of or obsessed with the royal family, as others are, but the premise seemed very interesting. Unfortunately, the queen's secret(s) were revealed very quickly, definitely much quicker than I anticipated. This meant that, well...I lost the incentive, the excitement to keep reading.

The Queen’s Secret tells the story of HRH Queen Elizabeth II’s mother (also named Elizabeth) during the Second World War. It’s a character driven novel about the importance of good leadership during trying times and making peace with one’s past. Despite being a public and much-admired figure, Elizabeth has some major secrets that could ruin her if they get out. In fact, she makes every effort to suppress the less-than-happy memories that accompany these secrets. The book is told from Elizabeth’s first-person point of view, so sometimes she inserts her backstory to attempt to explain why she behaves and reacts to situations the way that she does. The line between backstory and actual plot is at times blurred, but Harper does a good job at not simply dumping a bunch of information about Elizabeth on the reader all at once, instead working it into the story when needed to flesh out her as a character. I learned a lot about 20th century British history, but The Queen’s Secret never turns into a long-winded history lesson, which in my eyes is the marking of a well-written historical fiction novel.

The Queen’s Secret features a large cast of characters as well as cameos from some well-known historical figures from this era, including Winston Churchill and Eleanor Roosevelt. Harper excels at drawing connections between these various seemingly unrelated people, and in particular highlights the alliance between the US and the UK during World War II. I’ve read a lot (and studied a lot in school) about this landmark war and the people involved in it, so I knew that the Americans and Brits had joined forces against the Axis Powers, but never really understood the extent to which they collaborated until now. The Queen’s Secret is a surprisingly quick read for being nearly 400 pages long; the short chapters are engaging and keep the story moving. Overall, I think that The Queen’s Secret will be a valuable addition to both the World War II and royalty-centered fiction genres.

Absolutely wonderful. The writing was impeccable, the storytelling was well-thought out, and the Queen Mother so perfectly characterized.

I had hoped Karen Harper would have improved her grasp of the royal family. She CAN tell an engaging story. But the mistakes!! Even in the "Note on Names" there are mistakes!! Edward VII was ALBERT Edward, Prince of Wales, not Edward. George, Duke of Kent naturally became Prince of Wales after his father became Edward VII.

The Queen Mother's brothers were known as: Patrick, Jock (John), Alec (Alexander), Fergus, Mick (Michael), and David.

Princess Margaret was never called "Margaret Rose' by anyone in her family. She was "Margaret" or "Margot"

Good grief--I could go on and on.

I am not finishing or reviewing this one. I'm sorry but she needs to learn about the family in greater depth.

<I> "I had waged a silent war against her for years and I would not let up now. Like the strong but caring American general from Kansas, I would pick my battles and somehow win my secret war." </I>

*An advanced e-book was provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

<b> The Queen's Secret </b> follows Queen Elizabeth during the Blitz in World War Two. The novel follows her personal struggles and secrets, as well as her public image.

This was a solid three stars for me, maybe 3.5. It wasn't an awful book by any means. I simply found some parts more intriguing than others and some that didn't capture my interest. I definitely enjoyed the book and it got me through a couple quarantine days, which was good!!

Rating (on a scale of 1 to 5, 5 being excellent)
Quality of writing: 4
Pace: 3
Plot development: 3
Characters: 4
Enjoyability: 3
Ease of Reading: 3

Overall rating: 3 out of 5

3.5 stars

I received a complimentary e-book copy of this book from William Morrow through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. Thank you to Karen Harper William Morrow, and, NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

This book is about the Queen Mother Elizabeth during WWII. The queen's secret is really "SECRETS" and it is repeated throughout the book over and over. Honestly, the "secrets" didn't seem that bad, but it was a different time. Also, these "secrets" seemed to be VERY gossipy which bothered me, but thankfully this was historical FICTION. The repetition of these "secrets" really dragged the book down and didn't allow time to focus on what was really happening in Great Britain during this time.

I really enjoyed the historical information and what it was really like during the war. The political intrigue was interesting especially the FDR, Churchill, and the King. I loved that so much! Even though, none of this can be verified anymore.

Recommend if you like historical fiction!