Antoinette's Sister Audiobook By Diana Giovinazzo cover art

Antoinette's Sister

Preview

Try for $0.00
Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Antoinette's Sister

By: Diana Giovinazzo
Narrated by: Marisa Calin
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $21.83

Buy for $21.83

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel

About this listen

As Marie Antoinette took her last breath as queen of France in Paris, another formidable monarch - Antoinette’s dearly beloved sister, Charlotte - was hundreds of miles away, in Naples, fighting desperately to secure her release from the revolutionaries who would take her life. Little did Charlotte know, however, that her sister’s execution would change the course of history - and bring about the end of her own empire.

“You are the queen. You are the queen that Antoinette wanted to be.”

Austria 1767: Maria Carolina Charlotte - 10th daughter and one of 16 children of Empress Maria Theresa of Austria - knows her position as a Habsburg archduchess will inevitably force her to leave her home, her family, and her cherished sister, Antoinette, whose companionship she values over all else. But not yet. The Habsburg family is celebrating a great triumph: Charlotte’s older sister, Josepha, has been promised to King Ferdinand IV of Naples and will soon take her place as queen. Before she can journey to her new home, however, tragedy strikes. After visiting the family crypt, Josepha contracts smallpox and dies. Shocked, Charlotte is forced to face an unthinkable new reality: She must now marry Ferdinand in her sister’s stead.

Bereft and alone, Charlotte finds that her life in Naples is more complicated than she could ever have imagined. Ferdinand is weak and feckless, and a disastrous wedding night plunges her into despair. Her husband’s regent, Tanucci, a controlling and power-hungry man, has pushed the country to the brink of ruin. Overwhelmed, she asks her brother Leopold, now the Holy Roman Emperor, to send help - which he does in the form of John Acton, a handsome military man 20 years Charlotte’s senior who is tasked with overseeing the Navy. Now, Charlotte must gather the strength to do what her mother did before her: take control of a country.

In a time of political uprisings and royal executions and with the increasingly desperate crisis her favorite sister, Queen Marie Antoinette, is facing in France, how is a young monarch to keep hold of everything - and everyone - she loves? Find out in this sweeping, luxurious tale of family, court intrigue, and power.

©2022 Diana Giovinazzo (P)2022 Grand Central Publishing
Family Life Romance Royal Romance Royalty Fiction Italy France King
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Critic reviews

"The political landscape of Southern Italy during the period of the so-called Kingdom of the Two Sicilies is one of the most complex and daunting in the history of the Italian peninsula. But Diana Giovinazzo weaves a clear path for us through the historical minefield in her latest historical novel, Antoinette's Sister. Though the eyes of Maria Carolina Charlotte, queen and de facto ruler of Ferdinand I’s kingdom, we experience the personal struggles, tragedies, and triumphs of one of the most remarkable women of the eighteenth century. A fascinating biographical portrait as well as an engrossing, bittersweet tale." (Laura Morelli, art historian and USA Today best-selling author of The Stolen Lady)

"A sweeping tale of power, love, and the bonds of family, Antoinette's Sister is a compelling coming-of-age story set to the backdrop of one of the most volatile periods in Europe. Giovinazzo has deftly weaved fascinating and rich details through the narrative, and in Maria Carolina Charlotte, created an endearing yet strong protagonist who must learn the demands of a monarch to save her country from ruin. I couldn't put it down!" (Heather Webb, USA Today best-selling author of The Next Ship Home)

"Diana Giovinazzo's Antoinette's Sister is a fast-paced, dramatic retelling of the life of Maria Carolina Charlotte, Queen of the Two Sicilies. Giovinazzo deftly brings to life this fierce and brilliant Queen, who uses her prowess to become a savvy leader of Naples while trying desperately to save her beloved sister, Marie Antoinette, from disaster in Revolutionary France. With uprisings, love affairs, and plenty of court intrigue, this juicy historical story is like a rousing Philippa Gregory novel, only set under a warm Italian sun." (Stephanie Storey, best-selling author of Oil and Marble and Raphael, Painter in Rome)

What listeners say about Antoinette's Sister

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    159
  • 4 Stars
    91
  • 3 Stars
    37
  • 2 Stars
    4
  • 1 Stars
    1
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    178
  • 4 Stars
    55
  • 3 Stars
    22
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    3
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    149
  • 4 Stars
    77
  • 3 Stars
    32
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    0

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

This was awesome!

I usually am hesitant when a book is new and doesn’t have many reviews yet and I am unfamiliar with the author’s work but I took a chance on this because it was suggested to me based on my historical fiction interest, especially in Marie Antoinette, and I’m glad I did! It was really interesting learning about her sister, who also had a very intriguing life, and to have parts of the story woven in from Antoinette’s timeline that I was already familiar with. I recommend!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great Great Book!

Best Book ever!! I learned so much about the history of that time period!! The author is Fantastic! The narrator is wonderful!! I highly recommend this book!
Leslie M

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Full of glamor and intrigue

A peak behind the curtain of royal courts in the 1700s. Full of manipulation and maneuvering this book was interesting and enlightening.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Enchanting!!

I was hesitant to purchase as this author is new to me, but I am so glad I did! I loved the storyline, the characters, the history interwoven throughout, and the narration was beautiful. 10/10 recommend!! I was entranced by the story and did research into the characters. I had no idea how powerful Austria was at the time, nor did I know much about the two Sicilys.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Started off good, but I lost interest as time went

I'm a huge historical fiction fan and I was so interested in this book because I didn't know anything about Maria Charlotta of Naples. The author did a great job of explaining the history. I guess, however, as it went on, I just started to lose interest I hate to say this, but once Marie Antoinette was executed, it just went on too long. That may be unfair of me. Interesting... but pretty good- not great.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

22 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

New perspective on history. Engrossing.

Definitely a different slant on both Charlotta and Antoinnette. A new appreciation for monarchy lineage.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great one!

One of the most interesting stories of duty, love, war and royal families long ago.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Phony accents made listening painful

The narration ruined this book for me. The phony accents were painful to listen to. In some instances the Italian accent sounded more like a count Dracula than Neapolitan ruler.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Very interesting

This story was an interesting look into other members of this famous family. Though I won't read it a second time, it inspired me to go deeper into research.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

As smart and sexy as the cover

I admit it, this cover absolutely drew me in, but the voice captured me immediately. And thank goodness, for I really didn’t know how spicy and capable Antoinette’s sister was. Love learning something new while being entertained—and this story well qualifies. It’s just such a damned shame that women’s stories like this have lain so hidden. Not anymore—well done Diana Giovinqzzo! Also, the audio really adds to the story, excellent narration.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

22 people found this helpful