Library Journal - Audio
06/01/2022
At 13, Veronique Roux is sold into service by her impoverished mother. Veronique believes that she is destined for a life of domestic service in a grand Parisian home, but she and other young women are being groomed to serve as mistresses to King Louis XV. When Veronique becomes pregnant, she is banished—but not before she realizes the identity of her child's father. When her daughter, Marie-Louise, is born, she is taken away and Veronique is married to a wealthy merchant. Years later, revolutionary fervor seizes France, and Marie-Louise, now a midwife, knows nothing of her parentage. When the dangerous secret of Marie-Louise's birth comes to light, it threatens her family's safety. Ell Potter's crisp narration complements Stachniak's (The Winter Palace) lush, detailed story. Potter handles the French names fluidly, embodying the various characters and their struggles and passions. It can be difficult to follow the point-of-view changes during the book's early part, when perspective shifts frequently, as there is no extended pause or other indication that listeners are entering a different thread of the story, but this is a minor distraction in an otherwise excellent production. VERDICT Listeners who enjoy descriptive, immersive historical fiction will be drawn into Veronique and Marie-Louise's world.—Nanette Donohue
Publishers Weekly
01/31/2022
Stachniak (The Winter Palace) offers an impressive if schematic story of Versailles and Paris in the years leading up to and following the French Revolution. In 1755, 13-year-old Véronique Roux is surrendered by her widowed mother to an aide of King Louis XVI, who transports her to Deer Park, where underage girls are groomed to sexually service the king. After Véronique gives birth to the king’s daughter, Marie-Louise, the newborn is taken away and Véronique is married off to a wealthy merchant. As a girl, Marie-Louise is shuffled from household to household into the care of various guardians, first in Versailles and then in Paris, always wondering about her origins. She trains as a midwife, marries, watches the dissolution of the monarchy and, eventually, learns about her lineage. Stachniak has clearly done her research on life both in the royal court and on the streets of Paris, and though the fictional characters often seem too passive, the author smoothly integrates their stories with those of historical members of the royal family, as well as revolutionary George Danton. Overall, Stachniak successfully immerses readers in a tumultuous era of French history. Agent: Helen Heller, Helen Heller Agency. (Feb.)
Bookreporter.com
"A riveting story of two incredible women living in a tumultuous, dynamic era of revolution...a scintillating and vibrant addition to literature on the French Revolution, and a reminder that women — even when silenced and hidden — have always been brave, powerful and important parts of history."
Washington Post
At the same time baroque and intimate, worldly and domestic, wildly strange and soulfully familiar, The Winter Palace offers a flickering glimpse of history through the gauze of deft entertainment.
Ann Mah
A sweeping tale of tumult and tragedy set against the backdrop of revolutionary France — intricate, absorbing, and impeccably depicted, The School of Mirrors will linger in your imagination long after you turn the last page.
Cara Black
A riveting epic, keenly observed and shining with lush historical detail. You’ll never forget this journey.
Minneapolis Star-Tribune The Winter Palace
A thrilling point of view . . . Readers are treated to a firsthand account of the young princess’s slow ascent to the throne, a path deliciously strewn with discarded lovers and sanguine court intrigues.
Allison Larkin
"Riveting! The School of Mirrors is historical fiction at its finest. Eva Stachniak gives agency to women who lived in the shadow of the king, showing us the true nature of their bravery and strength.
Booklist (starred review) on The Winter Palace
[A] brilliant, bold historical novel . . . This superb biographical epic proves the Tudors don’t have a monopoly on marital scandal, royal intrigue, or feminine triumph.
Shipli Somaya Gowda
"With beautiful prose, Eva Stachniak brings to life the lush detail of Versailles, weaving together the stories of women who dare to step out against their fate against the backdrop of the French Revolution. I was captivated by this book."
Beth Powning
"Boldly sweeps the reader to 18th century France. Exquisitely realized, Stachniak’s women—courtesans, midwives and revolutionary citizens—mirror a country’s anguish as they bear royal betrayal and heartbreaking secrets. Haunting, illuminating."
Washington Post
At the same time baroque and intimate, worldly and domestic, wildly strange and soulfully familiar, The Winter Palace offers a flickering glimpse of history through the gauze of deft entertainment.
Minneapolis Star-Tribune
A thrilling point of view . . . Readers are treated to a firsthand account of the young princess’s slow ascent to the throne, a path deliciously strewn with discarded lovers and sanguine court intrigues.
