Thank you NetGalley for the advanced readers copy of The Queen's Secret by Karen Harper. I found this book to be a great read. I have always favored that era and to read a book from the Queen's point of view was an interesting take. I found the book easy to follow, and a very enjoyable read.

It’s been a minute. But. Exciting news for my #readerfriends I have THREE books to review ❤️ first up we have #thequeenssecret by #karenharper. What starts off as her royal birthday we are taken back to her life with Bertie. When World War II was happening. We get to see through the Queens eyes the happenings of then. When #queenelizabeth was still a child quickly becoming a woman. Princess Margot. I am a sucker for the #royalfamily and I couldn’t get enough of this book. It’s a bit of a sad read with war and bombings. To see and feel how people must have felt. The author brings this book to life and I have become a fan. #netgalley #netgalleyreads #netgalleyreview #bookreview #bookstagram #bookwormsofinstagram #booksofinstagram

I enjoyed reading about the parents of Queen Elizabeth ll. I have read very little about this time period in the English monarchy. It made me want to read more about Queen Mary and others of this time period. I received a copy of this book from edelweiss and Netgalley for a fair and honest opinion that I gave of my own free will.

I had high hopes for this book. Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon was a fascinating woman. She married Albert Frederick aka Bertie, after several proposals.. She became Queen as Bertie became King George VI when David/Edward VIII abdicated for his 'love' Wallis Simpson. She helped Bertie work on his stutter, encouraging him to work with a speech therapist. Her strong dislike for David and Wallis is said to have impacted where they were allowed to live quite a bit,. This book could have delved into so much more but focused on WW II. The secret alluded to in the title isn't even occurring in the time period of WW II. I would say 2.5
Thank you Netgalley for the ARC.

I really enjoyed this book. I haven't read a lot of books that go into detail about the life of Elizabeth, who was queen during WWII and became known as the Queen Mother.

It brought up a lot of theories and ideas about her that I'd never heard before, and as I researched I found out that some of them were rumors only, but as this is a work of fiction the author could present them however she thought appropriate. I liked reading about her life and activities during WWII, she was an inspiration to the people of London during the Blitz.

This is a great book for historical fiction or royalty lovers and I recommend it.

Thanks to HarperCollins Publishers and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I wanted to love this book as I love all things British history. Since I hadn't read a book from the point of view of the Queen mom before she was the queen mom, but I couldn't handle reading the book from her point a view. I don't know if it was her voice or the way she was written but I couldn't get into the book. I made it halfway through before I DNF'd it.

I received a copy of this title via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
This was an intriguing story. Queen Elizabeth (the Queen Mum) is portrayed as both a stalwart leader and a confused haunted woman. While the rumors behind her birth allow for some entertaining drama, it was the story line surrounding her supposed relationship with David, Prince of Wales (later King Edward VIII) that was most disturbing. The alleged relationship that took place between David and Elizabeth haunted Elizabeth for her entire life and led her to make choices she may not have made. Historical fiction is an enjoyable genre because of the freedom authors have in creating memorable characters based on historical events/people. This was an interesting book and it kept me engaged because of that literary license.

I should have known. When an author feels a need to outline the who’s who of a novel, even if it involves the royal family, the reader knows that they are in for a long drawn out narrative with overlapping names, this time nicknames, locations, and repetition. With historical fiction, the reader never knows what to believe. Did Elizabeth, The Queen Mother, keep a life-long secret from her husband regarding his brother, or was it the dossier that may not be truthful, or even the secret surrounding her birth, or was there something else that the reader lost sight of when the repetition took over?

Covering Elizabeth Bowles Lyon’s marriage to King George IV, the abdication of her brother-in-law, the raising of the future Queen, and living through WWII, Karen Harper takes the reader through the treachery, rewards, and battles that surrounded the royal family and the country. As the woman behind the man, Elizabeth with the help of Winston Churchill, takes on the role of a soft-spoken spine of steel matriarch that guided the King, and the country, to victory.

I wouldn’t call the book riveting or even fascinating, but it did bring a character, which I had dismissed, to the forefront and presented facets of her life that I had never known existed. Elizabeth was a woman of strength and secrets that was feared by the most powerful men of her day and who could hold her own during the most trying of times.

The Queen's Secret by Karen Harper launches you into the world of the Royal family, through the eyes of the Queen Mother, during WWII.

In this story she reveals a hidden secret (or two), her feelings on family, England and the war which combined became the guiding force in her decision making.

Whether you know a little of the Queen Mum or nothing at all, this tale is ultimately that of a woman's strength and love of country in the worst of times.

As a self proclaimed Anglophile and lover of historical fiction, this was an enjoyable read and an interesting viewpoint of a Royal during wartime.

Thank you to GoodReads, NetGalley and William Morrow for the advance readers copy.

I have recently read a number of novels about the British Monarchy and WWII.  Some of the books that I enjoyed are Lady Clementine, Before the Crown, The Other Windsor Girl, Another Woman's Husband and The Woman Before Wallis.  All have been immersive reads.  To that group I will now add The Queen's Secret. 


The Queen of this novel is the current Queen's mother, Queen Elizabeth who was married to Bertie aka George the VI.  This book is told from her perspective.  Elizabeth had more than one secret from what I could see.  She also had her own voice and point of view in this novel on everything from David and Wallis, to how her daughters were raised to the way that she wanted to conduct her relationship with her husband.  She comes across as very human with a love of sweets and drinks.  I found her story to be well-told here as the Queen shares everything from her childhood to her figure to working with Churchill and more.


Lovers of this period, the TV show The Crown and/or historical fiction may want to read this title.  I know that I am glad that I did.


By the way, I went back and forth between the audio and the book as I enjoyed this title.  The many voices that the narrator took on in the audio were so well done and added to the audio experience.


Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this title in exchange for an honest review.

thank you NetGalley for the digital ARC. I had also just read another book about the Queen so this almost felt like more of the same. I still enjoyed it. People like to know what happens behind the scenes of royalty

Thank you so much for the opportunity to read this book. I'll be posting my review on Goodreads and Amazon

It's WWII and we get the story in the eyes of queen mother, who is Queen Elizabeth and man it is such a ride in this book. King George is reigning after his brother has abdicated the throne so he could marry his American mistress and now both King George and Queen Elizabeth are facing the worst of their reign, a world war with the worst enemy ever, Hilter.

While the whole world is at war, England is now part of it and Elizabeth and George have to prepare not only themselves and their two daughters but the whole nation two. And it's not an easy task. Even though Hilter calls Elizabeth the "Most Dangerous Woman in Europe" she is terrified in multiple levels. She has to prevent Edward and his horrible wife to ever set foot in England again. And she, herself has secrets that has been troubling her mind more and more as the war last more and more. Should she tell George her secrets, should she keep them? How much should she tell him?

While everyone sees her a force of nature, deep inside she is just as troubled as everyone else. But for England she must and she will power through to the end.

It was...refreshing in way to read this book. Yes, it was during WWII and we read some troubling and devastating things, but at the same time? We got to see a different side of the royals in this book, it felt like they were just another regular family. Karen Harper did an amazing job with this book and I just want to read more of her books after this. She makes you closer to the characters in a way you don't think it would be possible, by the end of the book, you just don't have a choice but to fall in love with all of these characters.

4 out of 5 stars.

I really wanted to love this book! I'm a huge Windsor royalty fan and was looking forward to this rare glimpse into the life of Queen Mother Elizabeth as I was only vaguely aware of her history. I knew that she was known by Hitler as "the most dangerous woman in Europe' and love reading about strong women in history. That said, I was pretty disappointed in this book. I found myself slogging through it quite slowly and found the historic liberties that the author took with Elizabeth's life as a bit too far-fetched and even wildly unbelievable!

Thank you to Netgalley and Karen Harper for my copy of the Queen’s Secret: A Novel of England’s World War II Queen, for an honest review. Elizabeth the Queen mother is trying her best to support the king, raise her daughters and take care of herself. She has resentment for David who declined being King and his wife Wallace Simpson. She has secrets of her own. This story was very interesting but it read more like a biography and was a bit slow. There were some things that I didn’t know but overall this wasn’t my kind of book. I did recommend this to a few friends who love this type of book. This was a 3 star read for me.

As a lover of historical fiction, this was actually my first read centered around Elizabeth, the Queen Mother. I had high hopes for the book, but unfortunately it fell short. The attempts at making the dialogue realistic to the times felt forced. The constant revisiting of Elizabeth’s secrets that plagued her life came off as inauthentic. Harper no doubt did her research on the historical facts and dates surrounding the story, but overall the writing in this one didn’t do it for me.

First line: After all the grand celebrations leading to my one hundredth birthday, I had feared dreadfully that the calendar day itself would be a disappointment.

Summary: Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, also known as the Queen Mother, took on an important role during the Second World War. Hitler even called her “the most dangerous woman in Europe” because of her popularity and determination to stop the Nazi threat. Using her position she helped Londoners get through the hard years of bombings and rationing. Her support of her husband and Winston Churchill made her a force to be reckoned with. She knew and participated in the most important plans of the war. But even as she was keeping the countries secrets she was hiding a few of her own.

My Thoughts: I am not a 100% sure how I feel about this book. As a story it was a nice easy read. I learned somethings about the time period and the role of the royals during it. It was interesting to see what life was like for them. Elizabeth sounds like a fascinating woman. She lived to be over 100 years old. She saw the world change drastically. I really would love to read a good biography on her someday.

But I had a hard time believing some of the secrets she dealt with from her past. When searching for any confirmation on them I only found one source which was a tell-all book from a member of the aristocracy. I don’t know how accurate it is but it made for an interesting story plot. And since the queen mother is gone it will not be able to be truly known.

I immediately wanted to watch The King’s Speech and The Crown after finishing this!

FYI: This is perfect for fans of The Crown!

Another book for my royal lovers!!⁣
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Thanks to @netgalley and @williammorrowbooks for my review copy of The Queen’s Secret.⁣
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I don’t think enough is written about Elizabeth, the Queen Mother. She was a dynamic lady who was a guiding light for her husband, King George, as well as Queen Elizabeth. ⁣
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This book focuses on her work behind-the-scenes during WWII. We get an inside look at the issues between her husband and his brother, King Edward, who abdicated to be with Wallis Simpson. Churchill’s relationship with the then Queen consort is also examined.⁣
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I found it so interesting to learn more about what a powerhouse the Queen Mother was. ⁣
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This is perfect for historical fiction biographies lovers. If you liked #theothereinstein #theengineerswife #thegirlinthewhitegloves and #theageoflight , then you’ll like this book too!⁣

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC. Unfortunately, I did not finish this book. It seemed like a fictional retelling of Lady Colin Campbell's trashy, ridiculous tell-all of the Queen Mother. I couldn't care less about her "secret," nor her sex life.

Well, this didn't live up to my expectations. I hardly recognized Elizabeth. I felt she was far braver than what this book portrays. The secrets she was so worried about, well, I really think she had far more serious things on her mind.