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The Accidental Empress

By: Allison Pataki
Narrated by: Madeleine Maby
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Publisher's summary

New York Times best-selling author Allison Pataki follows up on her critically acclaimed debut novel, The Traitor's Wife, with the little-known and tumultuous love story of "Sisi", the Austro-Hungarian Empress and captivating wife of Emperor Franz Joseph.

The year is 1853, and the Habsburgs are Europe's most powerful ruling family. With his empire stretching from Austria to Russia, from Germany to Italy, Emperor Franz Joseph is young, rich, and ready to marry.

Fifteen-year-old Elisabeth, "Sisi", Duchess of Bavaria, travels to the Habsburg Court with her older sister, who is betrothed to the young emperor. But shortly after her arrival at court, Sisi finds herself in an unexpected dilemma: she has inadvertently fallen for and won the heart of her sister's groom. Franz Joseph reneges on his earlier proposal and declares his intention to marry Sisi instead.

Thrust onto the throne of Europe's most treacherous imperial court, Sisi upsets political and familial loyalties in her quest to win, and keep, the love of her emperor, her people, and of the world.

With Pataki's rich period detail and cast of complex, bewitching characters, The Accidental Empress offers a captivating glimpse into one of history's most intriguing royal families, shedding new light on the glittering Hapsburg Empire and its most mesmerizing, most beloved "Fairy Queen."

©2015 Allison Pataki. All rights reserved (P)2015 Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved
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What listeners say about The Accidental Empress

Average customer ratings
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    5 out of 5 stars

An extremely interesting historical fiction!

Allison Pataki writes a beautiful historical fiction. At times it is heartbreaking to hear how Cici was treated and how little control she had if her life. I found it extremely interesting, especially when I learned at the end how much of the story is based on historical facts. I hope to be able to read more about Cici if Allison Pataki writes a sequel.

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    5 out of 5 stars

One of the most interesting historical novels !!

Well researched and I especially liked the explanation at the end of what was documented and what was additional fantasy!!

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The Accidental Empress

I know Ms Pataki does endless research as this is one of several books of hers I have read and checked out. I enjoyed this book thoroughly.

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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Lets get started

Very slow start the story tellers male accents could be improved on.
About half way through book the reading got a lot more interesting. By the end it was a good read .

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Well written

The history one gets with a great story is very entertaining and interesting- this book was slightly over dramatized but the characters are believable-

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    4 out of 5 stars

Great book, terrible narration

Narrator’s pronunciation of Hungarian names is incredibly co fusing and inconsistent. Takes away from the listening experience

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2 people found this helpful

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Thoroughly Fascinating

An amazing time that led to both WW 1 & WWII, yet not well known history anymore in modern America. Such a great story !!

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Entertaining

While a lot of it is based on true history, it’s more entertaining than informative

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A must read if you are going to Vienna!

I loved it, particularly when I realized how much of it really is based on true events. I read it because I was traveling to Austria and Hungary, and reading historical fiction is more fun than history. I’ve also read the second, which could stand alone, but I suggest reading both.

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

read with caution

Any additional comments?

This book is really a 2 star book for me (where 5 stars is only awarded to the best books I have ever read in my life, so 4 stars is really good for me) but I bumped it up to 3 stars for its historical element. It certainly sparked my interest in the Hapsburg Empire. The book reads like a literary harlequin to me, and I was constantly frustrated with the main character's meager ability to take other perspectives to navigate her way through the Court. Pretty much for the whole book, I disliked Sisi, but when I read the comments at the back of the book (interview with the author, book club questions) I was reminded that being a young girl of 15 with almost no political or cultural education (she was born to minor royalty but allowed to roam free in the countryside reading Goethe and composing verse) would have been very difficult, and perhaps her lack of theory of mind was appropriate for her age. I read this book for a local book club I recently joined; it will be interesting to see what the discussion will be like tomorrow afternoon. Regardless, pick this one up with caution; it will not blow your socks off.

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13 people found this helpful