Hello, I’m back again with another historical novel review for your weekend – continuing the theme I’m feeling at the moment of the cosy weather coming in and wanting to curl up in the evenings with a good book! Thank you to Austenprose and Shadow Mountain Publishing for gifting me a copy of Heather B. Moore’s new novel, In the Shadow of a Queen. Like the previous book I shared with you on Friday, The Belle of Belgrave Square, it is also set during the Victorian period with a strong heroine.

However, Moore’s novel follows the story of the young Princess Louise, daughter of Queen Victoria – I love a fictional take on a real person, especially when it is as well-researched as this is. Something I really liked was that each chapter began with an epigraph that was an extract from a letter, or a diary, of the real people who featured in the novel.

Now, this may be a generalisation, but I’d always kind of had the understanding that Queen Victoria loved her husband, Prince Albert, so much, but her love for her children was…

Not lacking, per se, but she was very stern with them and very strategic with how she married them off to much of Europe. (Not unlike a lot of monarchies, to be fair).

So I was really fascinated to read Moore’s novel, which follows the young princess finding her own place in the world as the daughter of Queen Victoria.

I didn’t know much about Princess Louise before I started reading, but now I’m fascinated with her – I love it when a novel does this, and sparks a desire to go research more.

The novel begins in 1861, when the young princess was twelve years old, and Prince Albert was still alive. Louise is playful, but caring, looking out for her other siblings and aware of her royal duties – what is quite sweet is how desperate she is to do better at speaking German because of her father.

It follows her through her teen years, and Moore does an excellent job at showing how the death of Prince Albert affected all the different members of the family. In particular, her portrayal of Bertie, the future Edward VII, is very sympathetic. Queen Victoria is a stern woman whom the other characters tiptoe around, but there is something about her that is likeable, particularly when it comes to trying to find a husband for Louise. Louise declares herself not ready, and though Victoria is of course trying to make the most dynastically advantageous match for her (I still find it hilarious that the royal family’s definition of a “commoner” here is somebody who is not royal, therefore still includes the highest members of the aristocracy, who are hardly common), she sees that her daughter still needs time.

I enjoyed the eventual romance for Louise, but what I think I liked best in the book was the exploration of her as an artist. Louise was a talented sculptor (amongst other things), and it was interesting to see her character attend an art class with other students, and how she might have thought and felt about the push and pull between her position as a princess and the beliefs and passions she had.

Alongside this, women’s suffrage was frequently addressed. It is fascinating to think about how women such as Louise responded to calls for women to get the vote, and even more so the thoughts of her mother Queen Victoria, who believed it unnecessary. (Quite easy for her to say, really, when she was the most powerful person – not even woman – in the country at the time.)

For those of you who might want to find out more about the real history behind the novel, Moore begins with a family tree (very useful considering Louise was one of nine) and a list of historical characters. Her epilogue is also very interesting when considering the different things the real Louise achieved, and it is easy to imagine the character she sketches out on the page becoming that woman.

It is always a privilege to be part of a book tour and be given a chance to share a review with you, but this book I genuinely sat down and read in two sittings: it was highly enjoyable and I really recommend it. It is now officially published as of four days ago, so I hope, if my review has inclined you to pick up a copy, that you enjoy it!

Thank you to Austenprose and Shadow Mountain Publishing for gifting me a copy of the novel in exchange for review.