I could tell this was very well researched and the author has a wide breadth of knowledge. I do feel like I was waiting too long for the story to get going.

The Last Empress of France: The Rebellious Life of Eugenie de Montijo, a biography written by Petie Klandstrup and Evelyne Resnick, brings Eugenie de Montijo center stage and reminds readers of her lasting legacy. I received an audiobook through NetGalley and found that both the book and narration done by Jilly Bond grew on me as the book carried on. The first few chapters felt a little tedious, but I pushed through and I am glad I did. Eugenie was a fascinating lady and I found myself impressed by her grit and glamour. I would most definitely watch a mini series about her life.
The authors clearly did their subject proud through through meticulous research.

Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin Audio for a chance to listen to this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

I don't know how I've gone my entire life with having never heard of this woman who is essentially the real life forest gump of her time, present at, involved in, or directly responsible for massive moments in history. Since I had never known anything about her I obviously learned a ton from this book, but in addition to learning about her I learned more about French history than i anticipated as well. This was a seriously good read and makes me want a movie and a factually accurate tv show about her in similar to The Great.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Audio for the ARC of this audiobook.

I listened to The Last Empress of France while on a long drive, and I was surprised by how much it grew on me. The early chapters were a bit slow for my taste—dense with names, dates, and political context—but by the fourth chapter, the narrative found its stride and I was hooked.

The book offers a fascinating glimpse into the life of Eugénie de Montijo, the last empress of France, a figure I knew nothing about going in. The authors do a great job of balancing historical detail with personal intrigue, and I appreciated the way her story intersects with major moments in European history. By the end of the book, I cried in appreciation for Eugenie. And, for days, I thought about all that she influenced. I would love to go on a European tour that visits all the places that touched her heart. Further, I would love for this book to be made into a series like The Crown. Clearly, there is enough content for at least 3 seasons.

Jilly Bond’s narration is smooth and well-paced, and she brings a confident elegance to the material that matches the tone of the book nicely.

This is a solid choice for those who enjoy biographies of lesser-known historical figures, especially women who influenced history from behind the scenes. A rewarding listen if you stick with it past the early chapters.

Note: I rarely give 5 stars to books. Petie Kladstrup and Evelyne Resnick researched and presented the material in the most gripping fashion. And, Jilly Bond's narration was superb. At times, I felt like the story/narration was being relayed to me over a long cup of tea.

#TheLastEmpressOfFrance #PetieKladstrup #EvelyneResnick #JillyBond #HistoricalBiography #AudiobookReview #NetGalley #StrongWomen

Not many knew about Napoleon III’s wife Eugenie de Montijo, and thanks to this work of non-fiction so wonderfully narrated by Jilly Bond the world is better for knowing now.

What a disservice to history that her story hadn’t been previously told. And this isn’t an American or English problem. Even my French born parter admitted to learning nothing of this time in history!

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy of the audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

This read was outside of my norm in terms of genres I usually pick up. I was really intrigued by the title and the book’s blurb. I majored in French in college and didn’t even know Eugénie. Overall I really enjoyed this book and the narration as I listened to the audiobook. Eugénie was quite the woman! We learn about her life and impact in a pretty linear format. I could tie in bits and pieces of French history and landmarks of Paris / the rest of France mentioned with what I already knew but still definitely felt like I learned a lot. Also very fascinated by the level of research that must have gone into the writing of this book. Well done. 👏🏼

Thanks Harlequin Audio & NetGalley for the advanced copy!

This read was outside of my norm in terms of genres I usually pick up. I was really intrigued by the title and the book’s blurb. I majored in French in college and didn’t even know Eugénie. Overall I really enjoyed this book and the narration as I listened to the audiobook. Eugénie was quite the woman! We learn about her life and impact in a pretty linear format. I could tie in bits and pieces of French history and landmarks of Paris / the rest of France mentioned with what I already knew but still definitely felt like I learned a lot. Also very fascinated by the level of research that must have gone into the writing of this book. Well done. 👏🏼

Thank you netgalley harlequinbooks hanoversquarepress to read this biography of Eugenia De Montijo the last empress of France. I really enjoyed this one and learned so much. My knowledge of France after the Revolution was pretty sparse and this absolutely helps to fill in gaps. Plus what an extraordinary woman brought into the light. She did not just stand still and look pretty. She was a fashion icon worked to change women’s right and was the first woman to ever lead France all on her own. She lived a long life and saw several critical points in history including World War I and the Mexican American War.
Jilly Bond does a fantastic job narrating this book and makes history fun and exciting.

This biography of Napoleon III’s wife, Eugénie de Montijo, reveals her to be more than an empress. She was a visionary who championed women’s rights, advanced education, and shaped modern France.

The book is engaging and informative, bringing Empress Eugénie to life. She was an amazing leader and ahead of her time, wielding her power with a feminine style that won hearts during a chauvinistic age. The narration by Jilly Bond is outstanding.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

This book is perfect for lovers of France, women's studies, and history!

I adored this book. It put so much of what I've seen while traveling through France into context, and I loved being able to make connections between the sites, art, and museums I've seen with the impact of Empress Eugenie.

Learning about Eugenie's accomplishments and passion for social issues was inspiring. The way the book was written was engaging, intriguing, and addicting! I couldn't stop listening! I loved hearing about Eugenie's impact on women's rights, education for young girls and women, and the way she influenced French politics for the better. I can't believe how overlooked her legacy is! I would love to read more from these authors - I had so much fun while learning about Eugenie and her stamp on history.

Colleen Chi-Girl at GoodReads
4 **** STRONG STARS
The Last Empress of France
by Petie Kladstrup and Evelyne Resnick, female authors; narrated by Jilly Bond

This novel on audiobook is such an important subject for French and world history, as well as for women's history in general. It is well-researched and well-written by the two female authors Kladstrup and Resnick.

This is the amazing biography of Eugénie de Montijo, 1826-1920, who was from Spanish aristocracy and married Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte III in the beautiful Notre Dame Cathedral. They had one son together also named Louis-Napolean. Eugénie became Empress of the French until 1873 and is considered the "forgotten woman" because her story isn't one generally found in French history according to the authors.

Eugénie is important for her own rights, not just for being married to the famous Napoleon III. She fought for women's rights, opened France's schools to underprivileged girls (so they too could be educated and have future means to care for themselves). Eugénie also created haute couture and ruled France as its last empress. She was a complicated person and is not without faults, which the authors don't shy away from and we get a considerable background on this woman who was a feminist before her time.

I enjoyed this rich biography for its historical value and for all the enlightening moments in women's studies, as well as for all women in our history who deserve to have their stories told.

Thank you to the authors, the publisher Harlequin Audio for publishing this important audiobook, and of course to NetGalley!

The life story of Empress Eugenie, written and read in a way that is accessible but detailed. I regularly accredit much of who we are and how we live to Queen Victoria, and was unaware that Empress Eugenie was equally as influential, simply much less well known. An interesting woman who fought for women's rights while still defending the Catholic Church, who outlived her much older husband and all her children, who created couture and befriended suffragettes.

Thank you Harlequin Audio and NetGalley for the advanced electronic audio review copy of this book. This highly engaging and informative book is about Eugenie de Montijo, wife of Napoleon III, a complex Spanish-born noblewoman who became the last Empress of France. Through her long life, she witnessed as well as contributed to many historical events and was way ahead of her time on many issues. This book reads more like a story than a biography and the audiobook narration is wonderful.
It is a shame we’re just finding out about this fascinating woman and her amazing accomplishments and hoping that she would take her well deserved place in history books and history courses.

Wow, what a phenomenal life of Eugénie de Montijo! I was unfamiliar with details of Eugénie prior to starting this read. However, I was quickly engaged from her upbringing in Spain to how she influenced so many different sectors of French life and how she navigated international relations. Her innovations in France came to inspire many others abroad as well. I was most surprised with her connections to the United States throughout her life and involvement in Mexico as well.

This was my first Petie Kladstrup and Evelyne Resnick book. I appreciated their ability to create a balance of providing context on the current events at the time with how they related to Eugénie’s life and actions. Their writing style was easy to follow and engaging. I also greatly enjoyed the narration by Jilly Bond.

I am very grateful that I had an opportunity to review this biography and highly recommend to all!

A comprehensive, chronological biography of Eugenie de Montijo, wife of Napoleon III and Empress of the Second French Empire. This is more of an overview than an in-depth analysis, but that's great for a famous figure who you normally read about in terms of her relationship with her famous husband and not as her own person. Eugenie ruled France from the 1850s to the 1870s and didn't pass away until 1920, meaning that she was a witness to most of the changes of the 19th century. Recommended if you're interested in this time period and want a clear, straightforward description of it from this specific perspective.

I tandem read and listened, which was a great choice for me. Narrator Jilly Bond has a cut glass, upper crust British accent, which was probably a great choice to depict Eugenie's aristocratic circles.

This objective review is based on a complimentary copy of the book.

An interesting and fresh narrative structure that centers underappreciated historical heroine. Despite being a student of history, I had never heard much of Eugenie de Montijo's story prior to this novel. I really enjoyed the context the authors provided on her fascinating family as well. It really gave me so much more insight for Eugénie and her motivations. Additionally, the narration was excellent.

thank you again to netgalley, as well as harlequin audio for the audiobook arc read of this book, the book comes out july 8, 2025-catch this soon.

i don’t know about you, but i am constantly chasing a good historical book, one that i can get lost in, this is absolutely that. this was a subject and person i was not very aware of and less so aware of their massive impact and unique story in the story of eugene de montijo.

the audiobook was highly engaging as well and i enjoyed it highly. i do recommend this format based on my own personal read.

Thanks to NetGalley for sharing the audio version of this book with me!

The Last Empress of France is a vivid and engaging biography that gives Empress Eugénie the attention she deserves. Petie Kladstrup and Evelyne Resnick breathe life into the story of this overlooked monarch, charting her path from a spirited Spanish noblewoman to the last empress of France. This isn't just a book about palaces and gowns—it's about a badass woman who shaped history, defied convention, and refused to fade into the background.

What’s truly infuriating—is how a woman this fascinating barely got a mention in history class. We learned about Napoleon Bonaparte ad nauseam, but not about Eugénie!

This book does a fantastic job of showing the history being made at the time, while keeping Eugénie at the center. It’s informative without being dry, making it perfect for both history buffs and newcomers who just want to know why this woman was so important. Spoiler: she really, really was.

Eugenie was such a fascinating empress. I would say I know a lot of history. I have a bachelors in history and I had never heard of her before. She was a fashionista. She did a lot of things for women, science and politics. A feminist and lgbtq supporter. She questioned things and caused chaos. I’m glad I listened to this audiobook but found it hard to listen at times. The narrator was not my favorite. Maybe for shorter books but this audiobook was long. The content felt very much like a textbook at times but I still found it interesting. The audio was clear. I didn’t have any issues with each chapter.

This book is chockfull of information, my goodness! (Random but what even is the word "chockfull?" I have never typed or written that word before and that is a crazy word. Anywhooo...)

This really did have so much information in it, but I was kind of surprised how it didn't really feel like it focused on Eugenie all that much. It was kind of strange. A situation would be explained with so much detail but it would have nothing to do with Eugenie. Or if Eugenie was mentioned, it was an afterthought. There was this one section about Napoleon's health issues and Eugenie was not involved in that section at all, it had no relation to her. And then that section ended with something along the lines of "and that's when he finally told Eugenie." Okay, she never knew about it, so why is it in this book? It has nothing to do with anything?

Those moments were really weird for me.

But I definitely did learn a lot about this period of French (and European) history, I just wish there was more Eugenie. She really wasn't that involved in much, not the way I was expecting her to be. And that's not to insult her, I think that may be an error in writing style.

I found this writing style to be quite flat. And I find that to be common in non-fiction books, but this was done in a different way. It was just a flat linear telling, there was never any change of pace or crescendo.

Overall, this was a decent book. If you have a fascination in this period of history, definitely check it out. I think that I just prefer a little more pizazz and intrigue to the writing style of the non-fiction books I enjoy most.

Thanks to NetGalley for the audiobook ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review! My Goodreads review is up and my TikTok (Zoe_Lipman) review will be up at the end of the month with my monthly reading wrap-up.