Untold Love Story: Marie Antoinette and Count Fersen

Rating:
Summary: Delightful read, if not entirely accurate
Review: As the author of two novels and the creator of the award-winning website, Marie Antoinette: LET THEM EAT CAKE, I am a die-hard fan of the fallen Queen. I am also a stickler for facts and for dispelling myths. I enjoyed this book, for the colorful cover and the engaging "story", but I was bothered by the copious use of conjecture and supposition. The author makes a lot of unsupportable statements. This concerns me. The myths that surround Antoinette are fierce and hard to shake. Many still believe she said, "Let them eat cake." It concerns me that an author writes an historical book about Antoinette but adds a spin that, while romantic, can not be backed up with proof.

That being said, Evelyn Farr is a superb writer. I enjoy her descriptive style and her clear voice.

Leah Marie Brown

Rating:
Summary: Written for a Market
Review: I agree with the sentiments of reviewer who wishes that publishers would take a vacation from publishing M.A. books for awhile...sadly I am sure we will see more...

They will push authors in their stable to crank out yet another rehash...

This book is also indicative of another lamentable trend...editors are spell checkers not fact checkers...while this is not as bad as Schom's book on Napoleon which lists both dates Josepine died in the index (both are wrong) it would be nice if they could have people who know the subject give it a fact read.

I agree with the sentiment that the Fatal Friendship by Stanley Loomis is a good book, however I suggest Le Notre's biography of M.A. as a more balanced and better researched book than some of those mention...what gives Loomis balance is that he has written some "essays" (I can't say he is a biographer)in his book Paris in the Terror. It is also what gives Le Notre balance. He has done excellent biographies of Robespierre and a misnamed biography of M. F-Tinville which goes into great detail on the trial of M.A.

Castelot and Cronin are journeymen who certainly do an adequete retelling...but they were written for the popular market...as were their other biographies of Napoleon, Louis XVI, etc.

Le Notre is definately the person you want to discover...no really good library is complete unless you have a complete collection of the Le Notre books of time period...I also suggest his books on the September Massacres and the Noyades of Nantes.

Michael La Vean
Fellow, International Napoleonic Society

Rating:
Summary: ** Don't waste your money **
Review: The best thing this book has going for it is the Bibliography - because if you read that you will be enlightened as to some other books which you would be far better off investing in. Apart from that the book has a 'pretty' cover - so if you want to waste your money on a 'pretty' picture & a good Bibliography then go ahead & buy this book. Do yourself a favour - skip this one & invest in something like Joan Haslip's 'Marie Antoinette' or 'The Fatal Friendship' by Stanley Loomis, or even 'Louis and Antoinette' by Vincent Cronin.