"The Embroidered Book" was a creative book about historical stories and magic, it was hard for me to connect with the characters and connect with the story. I gave it my best shot, but I just couldn't fall in love with it. I recommended my sister read it because it seems right up her ally and she really loved it, so I just don't know if I was the target audience.

3 of 5 stars

Thanks to Netgalley and Harper 360 for the opportunity to get an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I got bored. There was little that engaged me. It started out good and then became far fetched. Apparently only people famous in history could be Magistrates. Really?
Thank you to Netgalley for this ARC. All opinions are my own.

Twisting the tragic tale of the Habsburg dynasty (which gave the world Marie Antoinette), The Embroidered Book throws potent magic into the existing pile of family tensions, political chess playing, and romantic complications. A few clunky turns of phrase, awkward pacing and a weak magical subplot keep this one from a higher grade, but the worldbuilding is fun, with characters worth caring for.

Empress Maria Theresa of Austria plans on using marriage instead of never-ending war to ensure the safety – if not the happiness - of her thirteen living children. She is not doing this out of altruism of course; she wants Austria to regain its land and political favor, and believes her children will be the perfect pawns in achieving this objective. Thus, two of her girls – Maria Antonia and Charlotte (Maria Carolina) – are destined for politically delicate foreign marriages. In these girls’ cases, however, that destiny is blighted by change – the unexpected death of their sister, Johanna, which means that Charlotte must fill in for Johanna in Naples and France must settle for Antonia instead of Charlotte.

Iron-willed Charlotte’s marriage to the merry, womanizing Ferdinand, King of Naples, is awkwardly forged. They are not attracted to each other, and he demands non-stop procreation. Charlotte will go through eighteen pregnancies during her lifetime, producing seven children who make it to adulthood, and will live to see Napoleon’s invasion – but first she will take on a daring affair and try to gain entrance a secret magical society, along with her lover, Sir John Acton, as well as leading Italy to enlightenment.

The problems of Maria Antonia – redubbed Marie Antoinette by the French - are well known to even history neophytes. While Charlotte had been trained her whole life to participate in the French court, Marie was not; she is only fifteen and not prepared for the harsh spotlight cast upon her, she suffers from homesickness, divided loyalties, scorn and gossip. She becomes a notorious scandal and has an impassioned affair with Count Fersten.

It seems as though both women are destined for unhappy lives, but a secret binds them together. In their childhood, they discovered the titular embroidered book, which belonged to their governess. Using the spells within, the sisters teach themselves the dark sacrificial magic it holds, creating, among other things, enchanted portraits through which they can speak. But magic has a price. Are they willing to pay it?

This is a solid piece of historical fiction that perhaps binds itself too strongly to the movement of history. Sadly, the most disappointing facet of The Embroidered Book is its use of magic. The magic the sisters practice is incredibly painful and sacrificial; important artifacts, memories and even blood itself must be sacrificed to encourage the existence of magical artifacts or a piece of good luck. The problem with that is that the inclusion of magic does little to sway the bend of history in any unique way. The sisters cannot save others with it, rewind time, or poison their enemies. The most interesting use of it surrounds the secret magical society Charlotte encounters.

Much of the book is about Charlotte, whose story is lesser known, and although, by the mid-point, the narrative lean becomes more evenly distributed between the sisters, hefty chunks of Antoinette’s life story are skipped to get to the Big Sweeping moments (the birth of her son, the affair of the necklace, the storming of the Bastille, the execution). But the sisterly connection – close in real life – remains paramount.

Also - points off for some too-modern turns of phrase. I doubt either princess used four-letter words in courts where their every word was attended to. But The Embroidered Book is worth a read due to its strong historical research. Perhaps it would have worked better without the magical components, but it’s still compelling.

Schoenbrunn Palace - 1767

The many daughters of the widowed Austrian Empress Maria Theresa contemplate their sad fates on the European marriage market. They've lost siblings and in-laws to smallpox, a governess to murder, and their father to a stroke, but still their domineering mother schemes, angling to marry the girls off to beastly grooms for the empire's benefit. Charlotte and Antoine, 15 and 11 years old and afraid of what their future holds, resort to an embroidered book of spells in order to somehow influence their fates. They swear to do no harm, but magic isn't an exact science as they quickly learn. Sincere good wishes for other produce unintended consequences for their own futures. Now, Charlotte is sent to Naples to replace her late sister Josepha, while Antoine will go to Charlotte's intended, the Dauphin of France. They promise each other not to do spells going forward, but life proves too difficult not to improve it with some magic and create allies when needs be. The inevitable "deal with the devil" performing magic represents impact the women and those around them more than anyone could ever anticipate and eventually sweeps them into rival factions.

This is an imaginative and more empowering version of two historical women's stories, which is always appealing. The tale is overly long, however, and feels heavy with telling and little action, which make many parts a slog. At nearly 700 pages, this could have been much tighter, with far more momentum. The magic feels rather silly in some circumstances and downright malicious in others. All in the all, the concept was solid, but the execution left a lot to be desired.

3.5 stars
Thanks to NetGalley for providing a free ARC in exchange for an honest review!

“The Embroidered Book” is a richly detailed, deeply researched accounting of the lives of Marie Antoinette and her older sister Charlotte, with fantastical elements added in. If you took the magical vibes of “Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell,” made it much more enjoyable to read, and incorporated a sister dynamic reminiscent of Jennifer Saint’s Ariadne and Phaedra, you’d get something like this book. Can two sisters who love each other and share secrets survive when their marriage alliances and magical allegiances place them on opposite sides of a war?
I found the magic system in this story truly fascinating: each spell requires a sacrifice, either of a memory, an emotion, or a piece of your body (blood, hair, etc). Characters frequently experience situations where there is information that they should know but don’t, and realize that they must have sacrificed it earlier. This, and the relationship between Antoinette and Charlotte, is what made me really enjoy this book. It could probably be 200 pages shorter, and there are definitely unnecessary passages and scenes; some more discerning editing probably could have made this book even more effective. If you like historical fiction and fantasy this book is a great read!

I thought the magical premise sounded neat, but I quickly became bored and impatient. I think the prose is good and if this had been a purely historical fiction book, I might have stuck it out. But there was a lot of repetition in only the first couple of pages, namely about Josepha being meant for Naples and Charlotte being meant for France, when that's obviously not how it will work out. It just seemed like there was a lot of this kind of drag ahead of me.

Wow. This book blew me away. The creativity of weaving magic into history was stunning.

I loved the way the author told the story of these two sisters, queens and magicians, falling apart and then falling back together. Heartbreaking, but beautiful.

I would not pass this book off to a young teen: too much of sex and marital disloyalty for me to be comfortable. The system of magic also relies upon sacrifices, which are often blood.

If we rank books on being brilliantly written, this gets a 5 star review. If ranking it on how well I liked the story, the rating would be lower. But I'm rating on brilliancy of the writing here, and giving the disclaimer: this book is sad and quite miserable. The writing is well done, and to be applauded. Again, I just was fascinated by the creativity with which Kate Heartfield wove magic into history!

I received a free ARC from NetGalley, all opinions are my own.

If you like 18th Century European Women, Court Intrigue, Historical Characters, and a sprinkle of magic this might be a fun read for you. I want to say this his a Historical Fiction, but its more like a Magical Historical Fiction. Almost like a retelling, but with whimsy! The Embroidered Book stars Marie Antoinette and her sister, Maria Caroline and a book full of spells and magic. Both women have big dreams for their futures but as we know… obstacles pop up all over the place. The story really becomes, about the sisters finding themselves on opposite sides of a conflict and they will make decisions that will determine the fate of many.

Kate Heartfield writes beautifully. That being said, this book felt so long. It’s a long read with a slow build. If you enjoy this type of content and especially historical fiction with magic, this might not bother you. I found myself skipping and skimming to get to the big reveals. The pacing was just too slow for me. I did enjoy the concept of this book, it just seemed like it was never going to end. I found myself almost anxious at times because i had so much book left.

I say this while also acknowledging how talented the author is. I think this might be a case of great book, wrong reader. I am grateful to NetGalley and the publishing team for an advanced copy of this book!

I loved the first 100 pages and the last 50. Everything in between could have been condensed more. The ending was pretty satisfying, obviously I already knew what was going to happen to Marie Antoinette, but I didn’t know how magic or Charlotte would play into this story.

The beginning was more interesting because everything was still getting introduced. I found the Order fascinating and I liked how Charlotte and Antoinette went in different directions regarding their feelings towards the Order, yet they both had the same intention.

There were SO many characters in both Naples and Paris, and it was hard to keep track of how everybody was related. It was easier at the beginning of the book, as there were only a few side characters in each location, but as the book went on, more and more were added.

I don’t tend to read books about actual historical figures, so it was cool to read about the Queens of Naples and France. I got to learn more about a period in time I have only briefly learned about prior to reading this novel.

Overall, it was a pretty interesting book, but it did get a little boring at some points. If you are looking for a historical fantasy (with more historical than fantasy), I would recommend reading this book!

Thanks so much to the publisher and to Netgalley for providing me with an e-ARC copy of this book!

I have scheduled promotional posts around release day for this book and I will provide a full review on my Instagram once I am able to get to this read.

Rating 5 stars on Netgalley as a placeholder for me to update later once the review is complete.

Will also complete a review on Goodreads once read.

Thanks again!

Thank you Harper Collins and Netgalley for the advanced copy of this title in return for an honest review.

All opinions are my own.

Firstly I would say that this book is a whole lot more of a historical fiction type book than fantasy. The fantasy element of the book is there but could be removed without much harm to the story. That being said I did enjoy it. I wish there was more magic and more of a loser on the history element but that is totally personal preference from someone who reads primarily fantasy books.

I thought for a historical book there was a good balance between facts and story without it ever feeling like it was overexplaining or coming across like a textbook which some books ten to do. You can see the love the author poured into this story and that I loved to read.

Overall a good read if you like historical fiction, not as great if you are hunting for more fantasy.

I find myself in the position of being bored with the plot and, in particular, not as interested in the magical elements as I initially assumed I would be. Honestly, I’m just really tired of historical fiction where the women are always subjugated because men are always tyrannical pigs. Perhaps it’s a worldview issue but I don’t look at history, or our current times, that way; there’s more to life than “men are beasts and women should run the world.” I think this book has an audience but it’s not me; and at 25%, I am choosing to DNF “The Embroidered Book.“

I highly recommend this fiction tale. I love that there are elements of real names and real ways of history. Add a little sorcery and it's all you'll ever need in a book. Technically I feel like what's happening isn't really magic to me. Idk I can't make sense to you why I feel like it. Maybe because I associate magic with catch phrases 🤣🤣 I'm childish. Anyways I felt so horrible for these kids and how they couldn't be children and have a nice childhood. Being born out of obligation and your whole life has expectations! Just not what I would want to do. Every decision has a motive. An unending cycle. I like all the details about the siblings and side characters. Even the mother. Everyone has feelings but they don't show any feelings. It's crazy! When something happens (don't want to give spoilers) and someone meets someone the story gets even more interesting and things take a turn. At a point I realize these 2 are dangerously being foolish. I won't give spoilers but it's a good read and I highly recommend it. The cover is absolutely beautiful! Thank you. Netgalley!!

An attempt was made… I had such a difficult time getting into this book. It was a slower paced historical fiction with “modern” characters. I received this eARC from NetGalley for my unbiased opinion. Thank you.

The Embroidered Book, a historical fantasy, follows the Hapsburg girls, Maria Carolina and Marie Antoinette from childhood to becoming monarchs of Naples and France respectively. This is a well-researched volume which takes the history of these two women and binds it with the idea that magic is part of their world. As youngsters, they find a book of magic spells with an embroidered cover that belonged to their governess after she is killed in her bed. The two girls study the spells and gradually become magisters or mages.

As they assume their duties as royalty, Carolina works to suppress the actions of Ferdinand, her weak and profligate spouse. Marie Antoinette, whose husband Louis the XVI takes seven years to consummate their marriage, is prevented from doing much due to the rigorous protocols established by the Sun King, Louis XIV. They both try to deal with the growing use of magic in their countries with the old-school Order trying to keep magic to themselves and the rogues trying to free magic to be used by all.

This is a historical fantasy, but I found the fantasy elements kept me from being completely gripped by this book. I’ve found the French Revolution fascinating since reading Charles Dickens’s A Tale of Two Cities in high school. Since then I’ve read The Journey by Antonia Fraser, Abundance: A Novel of Marie Antoinette and The Fountain of St. James Courtby Sena Jeter Naslund, The Fatal Friendship by Stanley Loomis, and Becoming Marie Antoniette, a trilogy by Juliet Grey, so I needed no prompting to keep u[ with the vast cast of characters. Unfortunately, The Embroidered Book doesn’t fully live up to the others. Several times in the 655 pages I wondered if the book would ever end.

Big thank you NetGalley and to the publisher for the chance to review this book pre-release. I really enjoyed this twist on a historical fiction, even though it is not my normal genre. A more formal review will be available on my IG/TikTok and Goodreads.

This book is so amazing. I am still thinking about it. I loved the fact that Katie took real history and mingled it with fiction and fantasy so well. This was an absolute stunning book.
I just reviewed The Embroidered Book by Kate Heartfield. #TheEmbroideredBook #NetGalley
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The Embroidered Book was an interesting twist on the lives of two well-known daughters of the Habsburg empire, Charlotte, the Queen of Naples and Antoine, better known as Marie Antoinette, the Queen of France.

This novel follows Charlotte and Marie from the last few months of their childhoods in Austria through the events of the French Revolution which saw Marie dying by guillotine at the hands of the French people.

Seen as little more than pawns in the dynastic schemes of their mother, Empress Maria Theresa of Austria, Charlotte and Antoine are thankful for a mysterious book of spells left behind by their murdered governess. After Charlotte finishes the embroidery on the cover of the book, the spells become known to the girls who then begin to dabble in magic. As they are sent off to their prospective husbands, each sister will continue to grow and hone their magical knowledge, albeit in different ways, to both fantastic and devastating effect.

As time and differences in ideology pull the sisters further and further apart and the world's political climate changes, both are left to wonder if all the sacrifices their magic required were worth it.

Ms. Heartfield very clearly put a lot of time and effort into her research of the historical period covered by the events of the Embroidered Book. Her descriptive prose paints a stunning picture of this decadent era of history with a world on the brink of collapse. The swift changes of the political climate of the time form the perfect backdrop to this story of love, loss, and sacrifice. We see Charlotte and Marie each struggle with similar situations, choosing vastly different paths, and are forced to watch alongside them as the consequences of their actions play out on a global stage where we, the reader, already know the outcome.

However, this does not take away from the magnitude of the story. Although the fates of Charlotte and Marie are by now part of our history, I found myself living these events fresh through their eyes. There was never a dull moment while reading this book!

My only criticism would be the length of the novel. I don't think I went into this realizing just how expansive a tale I was taking on. This left me feeling a little like I would never reach the conclusion. That being said, I did read until the end and I am glad I did. This story will stay with me for a long time.

Thank you NetGalley, Kate Heartfield, and Harper 360 for the advanced copy of The Embroidered Book.

I really wanted to love this book. It featured Marie Antoinette, the use of magic, and was in the historical fiction genre. Honestly, this was not the book for me. The writing was underwhelming, the conversations didn't feel connected, and it was too long for what it was.

Kate Heartfield's The Embroidered Book is an enthralling work of historical fiction that follows the journey of Charlotte and Antoine, two sisters who use a spellbook to seize control of their lives amidst the treacherous court politics and societal changes of 18th-century Europe. Charlotte, the daughter of the Habsburg Empress, sets off for Naples to marry a stranger, while Antoine is dispatched to France and renamed Marie Antoinette. Although the spellbook they discovered in childhood proves to be a potent instrument, each spell exacts a price. Their love soon becomes a bitter rivalry contributing to Europe's descent into revolution.

Heartfield's prose is elegant and vivid, whisking readers away to the lavish courts of 18th-century Europe. The characters are intricately developed, with Charlotte and Antoine's sisterly bond being a particular highlight. The inclusion of magic lends a fresh and captivating spin to the historical fiction genre, and the consequences of each spell keep readers on tenterhooks.

Overall, The Embroidered Book is a spellbinding and gratifying read that will appeal to aficionados of historical fiction and magical realism.