Caught in the middle, the dutiful young emperor has plenty of troubles of his own. Imagine a mother-in-law bold enough to come along on the honeymoon-and then insist on spending time with the bride while her groom goes off to work each day! This is what Sisi must live with under the cold eye of Archduchess Sophie, the crown mother. The wedding gown is surprisingly heavy, and Sisi does her best to carry its weight even as she learns that jewels, gifts, and adulation from the empire’s subjects are poor substitutes for privacy, autonomy, and her groom’s attention.

She’s young and in love, but it soon becomes clear that all is not well in the palace. Before the two can marry, she must train in conversation and dancing, whiten her teeth, upgrade her wardrobe, tighten her corset, and tame her spirited ways. She arrives at the palace bringing energy and charming simplicity, and steals the heart of her sister’s intended groom: Emperor Franz Josef.įrom the moment young Franz declares his love, Sisi’s life is not her own.

At 15 years old, Elisabeth-called “Sisi” by her adoring family-outshines her eldest sister in everything but bookishness and piety. In 1853, Elisabeth, the beautiful daughter of the feckless Duke of Bavaria, is whisked off to the emperor’s country estate with her older sister. Set against the lush, epic backdrop of Viennese splendor, the glitter of the Hapsburg Court, and the political chaos of an empire about to erupt, this immensely readable novel is the true story of Austria’s last empress-“a girl who, having seen nothing of people or the world, had believed that love was all one needed to be happy.” THE ACCIDENTAL EMPRESS, Allison Pataki’s stunning jewel of a novel, does just that. I’m a sucker for smart historical fiction that dives into the heart and mind of a woman who fights to become the heroine of her own life.

The accidental empress series