Title: In the Shadow of a Queen
Author: Heather B. Moore
Publication: October 3, 2022
Publisher: Shadow Mountain Publishing
Genre: Historical Fiction
Pages: 384
SYNOPSIS: (From Goodreads)
Princess Louise’s life is upended after her father’s untimely death. Captive to the queen’s overwhelming mourning, Louise is forbidden to leave her mother’s tight circle of control and is eventually relegated to the position of personal secretary to her mother—the same position each of her sisters held until they were married.
Already an accomplished painter, Louise risks the queen’s wrath by exploring the art of sculpting, an activity viewed as unbefitting a woman. When Louise involves herself in the day’s political matters, including championing the career of a female doctor and communicating with suffragettes, the queen lays down the law to stop her and devotes her full energy to finding an acceptable match for her defiant daughter.
Louise is considered the most beautiful and talented daughter of Queen Victoria, but finding a match for the princess is no easy feat. Protocols are broken, and Louise exerts her own will as she tries to find an open-minded husband who will support her free spirit.
REVIEW:
**A copy of this book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.**
This book was in an email that I received from a publisher asking me if I wanted to read any of their fall-release books. I read the description and knew that it sounded like something that was up my alley to read. I couldn’t wait for the physical book to come in the mail.
Louise was just 12 years old when her beloved father died. Her mother went into a deep period of mourning and remained that way until she died. Louise tries to navigate the waters of growing up without her father. She discovers sculpting and manages to convince her mother to allow her to take classes at the local school. She manages to allow her mother to remain unmarried until she is in her early twenties. At that time her mother finally allows her to come out of mourning to find a suitor. If you didn’t grasp it, Louise is one of the daughters of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Louise spends most of her life in mourning for her father at her mother’s request. Victoria stayed in a period of mourning for Albert until the day that she died. I absolutely loved this book. I loved the character of Louise. She was a true pioneer of woman’s rights. She knew what she wanted and she may have butted heads with her mother but that didn’t stop her front trying.
Granted, I did have a physical copy of this book but I found it on Audible and listened to it instead. I figured I should probably get a review done and with my schedule I should do it soon. However, I loved the writing style it flowed easily. I loved how each chapter opened with a non-fiction thing. Be it a letter or personal diary from Queen Victoria or Louise. It made it that much more interesting in my mind. Each of those letters or diary entries was usually what the chapter was based on. I didn’t realize that Louise was a accomplished sculptress in her own right. She actually has statues of her mother that she carved and they are on display outside of Kensington Palace. I loved the fact that she married a “commoner”. I have always been fascinated with Queen Victoria, having read the book by Daisy Goodwin and the watching the resulting TV show on PBS. I will definitely keep an eye out for this author in the future especially if she writes books like this one!
