First of all, thank you to Netgalley, HarperCollins, and Harper Audio for gifting me an audio ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

My Contrary Mary is the beginning of a new series within a larger series by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows. What started with My Lady Jane, and continued through My Plain Jane and My Calamity Jane, now continues here. This series is all about alternative (read, fake) takes on well known historical or fictional characters. I love the others and this new installment is no exception. If you like crazy adventures, pop culture and historical references, and don't mind historical inaccuracies, you'll probably really enjoy this.

Mary Queen of Scots is such a well-known character, beloved or hated depending on which historian you ask. This book is closer to the CW's Reign than to actual history, but I don't turn to fiction for history lessons. In this story, she's still a teenager, having fun with her ladies in waiting, ahead of marrying the French dauphin, Francis. So far, probably so true. However, in this story, she's also an Eðian, aka someone with the power to turn into an animal. In her case, a rat. And that's where the similarities with history end, as far as I know, Mary was no rodent. She's supposed to be a Verity, aka someone who cannot turn into animals. These two groups hate each other and persecute each other. This is the fun way in which the authors avoid discussing the Protestant and Catholic wars. Why be a Catholic when you can be a shapeshifter, right? (I can hear my Grandma in Heaven berating me for my cheek. "Less of the cheek, girl").

Mary's caught in a complicated web of complots and power struggles involving French Queen Catherine de Medici, deliciously villainous as always, the French King Henry, her De Guise uncles, her mother who's ruling Scotland for her, and Queen Elizabeth of England. Or as we knew her in My Lady Jane, Bess.
Prince Francis, Mary's betrothed, is another POV. He's in love with her, but thinks he's not corresponded. They are best friends, and that's a great part of the story. He's also quite meek and whiny and entirely too naïve. Very green (if you get it, you get it). He gets caught in his mother's grand plans to retain power and grows a bit as a character, but not much. He was by far my least favorite POV.

A fictional addition to our three main characters is Ari, or Aristotle, daughter of Nostradamus, seer of Queen Catherine. Ari is spunky and has her own powers of foretelling and potion-making. She's also a spy, not going to tell you for whom. And she's also in love with one of Mary's ladies, who is also in love with her. LGBTQIA+ representation in historical fiction is always refreshing to see.

I really enjoyed the little cameos of characters from My Lady Jane, the adventures, and all the fun references. It was a fun read, a perfect escape from this longest of Januaries.

Why not give it 5 stars, then? Honestly, I'm sure it'd be a 5-star read in physical form. The audio suffered from, in my humble opinion, miscasting. The narrator read in quite a monotone, and often times, the pop culture references, or cheeky asides were said in a way that missed the mark. Those fun references are half the magic of these series.

I'll definitely be buying this book and re-reading it when it comes out.

*Audio arc provided by Netgalley and Harper Audio in exchange for an honest review."

Queen Mary of Scots has got a fair bit of problems in her life. As if living in France with her future in laws and their very messy lives isn't stressful enough, there's the infamous Nostradamus and his daughter seeing all sorts of crazy things, and a rival political leader trying to steal her throne back home in Scotland. Think that's enough to stress a person out? Now add in that Mary is also part of a group of people who can change into an animal form, a super useful skill for spying on the French court, but also a death sentence if she's caught.

This book is like a history lesson combined with a touch of pop culture mixed together with comedy. Obviously the story isn't 100% historically accurate but that doesn't make it any less fun. This is the perfect book for fans of loosely adapted history and anyone who liked The CW show Reign. At least in my case anytime I heard those familiar names that cast is who I pictured especially Greer. A great book if you're looking for something a little less serious in this crazy world we live in.

My first journey with these writers but won't be the last. I really enjoyed the writing style and their take on the characters. Lots of fun.

This book will be eaten up by historical fiction fans who like a little fantasy! YA readers will especially enjoy this take on Mary Queen of Scots. If the reader is familiar with the history, or was a fan of the tv series, the beginning will seem repetitive but the author does a wonderful job recapturing the strong essence of Mary and adding a twist. Fun read! (Thank you for the ARC to Edelweiss+, NetGalley and the publisher!)

**** ARC provided in exchange for an honest review******
I really enjoyed this retelling of the history of Mary Queen of Scotts. I am very much into both history and fantasy so adding the Edian angle had me hooked from the start, so if you are the same this is a must read!
I very much enjoyed the relationship between Mary and Francis and how it all bloomed from a childhood friendship. (Friends to lovers is a favorite genre of mine) Being a High school English teacher I would recommend this to my students especially those who also have an interest in history. I did not realize the author had more books like this and look forward to reading those she has already written and those to come.
I enjoyed the voice that was used for the audiobook as well and it was very easy to listen to and follow along which is not always the case with audiobooks.

Thank you so much to Harper Audio and Netgalley for providing an ALC of this book (synthesized voice).

The Lady Janies did it again with a hilarious and charming retelling of well known historical events! If you've read My Lady Jane, you already know about the world of Verities and Edians that these authors have concocted, further complicating the historical setting with an extra layer of politics and fantasy! This time, instead of focusing on England we are focusing on France and Scotland during a time soon after the events of My Lady Jane.

Note that you do not have to have read the 3 My Jane books in order to read and enjoy this one, but it will be a richer reading experience if you have read My Lady Jane in particular.

Mary, Francis, Aristotle, and their friends have to navigate courtly intrigue, deadly uncles, grief, and ruling in a world where everyone wants a piece of the throne...all while hiding the fact that Mary is....a mouse?

This book was quite charming and I really enjoyed the characters. I loved Ari and Liv the most and was so happy to see the queer representation in this book. I also enjoyed Mary and Francis' story and watching them grow together, apart...back together.

Sometimes I feel like the authors are trying a little too hard with the amount of modern day references and fourth-wall breaking they cram into this book. I think it would be funnier if they went for these humor devices less frequently.

I enjoyed this book and look forward to seeing what The Lady Janies come up with next!

Pub Date: June 22, 2021
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Kidnapping, and Grief

I really wanted to like this book. I love the idea of this story, it's a great concept but I am just not a fan. This is the second book from Hand, Ashton, and Medows and their writing style are just not for me. I always go into these expecting historical fiction and it's more like historical make-believe (Doesn't help that I am a historian). I personally don't like the addition of modern pop culture wedge into the story in spots where it does not belong like someone keeps having visions of modern movies.

However personal opinion aside it is a good story I will give it that, though moved really slow until the halfway point, and then it sprinted to the finish. I think if you can go into the story without feeling like this will be a historical fiction retelling and see it all its own story I think you'll enjoy it. Again I like the idea of these stories and I think it could be great it isn't my cup of tea, however.

I am however very thankful to Netgalley for this adance audiobook of My Contrary Mary only asking for my honest opinion of the story.

It physically hurts me to write this because I LOVED the other books. I mean LOVED LOVED them!! This one just fell short, and I pushed myself until I gave up at 70%. I feel like it didn't have as many pop culture references as past books (aside from Ari's premonitions which left me in stitches), I didn't fall in love with the characters, and I got annoyed that the main focus for a good chunk of the book was about sex (I wanted more of a plot).

With that being said, please please please pick up any of their other books, and you will be amazed! They are so funny! These girls write the best books (aside from this one). I am still looking forward to the other books they will put out, and I secretly hope they never stop writing these masterpieces (as long as they mimic their other books)!

What an interesting and original take on the historical romance format. I really enjoyed the strong female lead and the supportive strong no need to press down the queen male lead. I loved how all the people managed to work together despite the older generations press for discord and destruction with their selfish short sighted goals. This is a book I would want my child to read. One I would encourage others to read. Thank you for the chance to read this.

My Contrary Mary is truly the author team known as the Lady Janies really hitting their stride in being the most ridiculous and the most magnificent. Choosing to return back to the time frame and magic system from their first joint venture of My Lady Jane was truly an inspired decision. Equal parts irreverent and amusingly anachronistic as ever, My Contrary Mary tells the story of Mary Queen of Scots against the backdrop of the struggle set up in My Lady Jane of the Verities versus the Eðians instead of the Catholics and protestants of our history which is much more fun because Eðians are people that can transform into animals. My Contrary Mary sees the faithful and witty narrators try to give Mary and her husband Francis a better and happier ending than what they got and honestly adore that that is their standard mission statement.
I'd been a little disappointed with My Plain Jane by the same author team but that was mostly because I'd loved the book Jane Eyre and I'd not been as fond of some of the changes but in this case, I welcomed their meddling with open arms and joy in my heart. I had such a good time with this book, it was fast-paced, exciting, and funny.
I particularly enjoyed Ari Nostradamus who I believe was a character the author's made up. She was funny and to my extreme delight, queer! it meant a lot to me to have her queer storyline and relationship in this book and it made me very happy. Ari is the daughter of famed prognosticator Nostradamus who really excels at potions but, without giving anything away, her visions were one of my favorite parts of the book. It was such a fun touch that was so on-brand with what I've come to expect from this team of wonderful writers. They also did a good job at balancing all the various characters who had such similar names (like 6 different Marys, at least 2 Francis, and so on) and managed to keep them fresh and distinct. Also my hearty thanks for giving us that cameo with some certain familiar characters. I squealed with delight when I realized.
Even if it was only a synthetic galley, I was so happy to have been granted access to this audiobook arc, it was such a fun time and just what I needed after my last disappointing read. My Contrary Mary was a certified good time full of romance and laughs and adventure and one I definitely recommend.

3 STARS

So, I'm new to these authors and these books, so maybe this wasn't for me. BUT, I like the overall concept of taking a historical figure such as Mary, Queen of Scotts, and making the story fun and relevant for young adults today. There were a lot of pop culture references sprinkled in this book and I found that kinda cute. However, making Mary, Queen of Scotts a shapeshifting teenager was a bit bizarre to me. The overall book seemed like a historical tabloid - it didn't really seem very believable. I did also find myself rolling my eyes sometimes...sorry guys.

Thank you to NetGalley, Harper Teen/Harper Audio, and the authors for providing me with an ARC copy in exchange for a review. This book will be available on June 22, 2021.

I am so sorry I did not mean to request the audio of this title. We will be covering the eARC of this title soon.

I liked all of the Jane books and looked forward to getting my hands (and ears) on the first in the Mary series. Although there are a lot of liberties taken in these books, they are still loosely based in facts and give an inside look at how these people might have been. Unfortunately for me, I felt like this book, though still entertaining, drifted too far from history.

As always, the characters were well developed and had great voices. Each point of view that was given was unique and easy to switch between. The characters themselves were mostly believable and preformed expectantly in each situation.

The fantastical storyline and a happy ending put me off in this book. I was alright with the magical beings in the previous book, but, for a reason I can’t quite put my finger on, it bothered me here. Maybe it was just used to much. The happy ending? It just seemed to forced and an what pulled the story forward rather than the story leading to an ending.

I did enjoy this story and will still look forward to the next two books in this series, but I hope that they are more like the originals than this. I also would have liked so historical references at the end.

The audio was well done, even though artificial. It was a bit grainy, but clearly audible and paced well.

I enjoyed My Contrary Mary. It is just as fun and quirky as the other books by these authors. I loved the Princess Bride references. This book made me laugh out loud. It is a fun twist on history. This book is full of historical references, puns, mystery, action/adventure, romance, friendship, deceit, I thoroughly enjoyed it and can't wait to recommend it to my students.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and Net Galley for an audio ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The first in a new series of books from the team that brought us the Jane series. This book tells the story of Mary, Queen of Scots with some fantastical elements brought in. Mary is an E∂ian with the ability to turn into a mouse. which is not in the history books. I do like like it when writers take actual historical events and weaving in fantastical elements to create new stories. This book was a great example of that. The version I am reviewing was a Voice Galley version which turn out much better that I expected as far as expression of emotion and pacing.

"Imagine if you will, dear reader, the Louvre in Paris, France in the days before it became a museum. An enormous marble palace stretching along the banks of the Seine. Then imagine a garden behind that palace; a large expanse of meticulously upkept greenery, fountains, and courtyards. In the back of one such courtyard was a... butt. No, dear reader, not a backside type butt, but an archery butt, which is the thing with the bullseye on that archers shoot arrows at" -page 1.

My Contrary Mary is absolutely filled with just the right sort of humor. It's loosely based on the story of Mary Queen of Scotts, but brings new life and a much more interesting ending to this highly-romanticized tale. I loved how key historical facts sneaked into the magical realism, which led me to do more research myself. I was already recommending this one to my book club before I'd even finished it, and my recommendation still stands. It includes themes such as growing up, choosing what's right, judging people by their character rather than looks or reputation, discovering what true love is, and recognizing that racial and sexual diversity has a place even in formal societies. It's rather amazing how all of this is wrapped into one little book and pulled off with humor and style without resorting to inappropriate or gory scenes. this might be one of my favorite books of the year and I can't wait for the sequel.

This audiobook had a synthetic voice robot narrator so it's not the final version yet. I kind of liked the robot voice though because it made all the sarcastic humour in the book so much better. There were so many little quips and jokes that made the story very entertaining to listen to. However, for some reason it felt like the audiobook dragged on forever so I ended up listening to it at 1.5X the speed. The plot seemed a little bit like a slice-of-life manga with lots of big events happening throughout. It fit together well but felt so long and dragged out. There was a ton of plotting and intrigue though which is typical of the location and time period. I wasn't a huge fan of Mary, Francis, and Ari but I guess they all went through some character growth and redeemed themselves by the end? My favourite character was definitely Flem though. Overall this was a pretty interesting story but just felt really long.

This book was fun, engaging, and enjoyable. It was a great twist on history and the life of Mary Queen of Scots. The magical elements give the story a fun and exciting twist. I would definitely recommend this book to my students!

I really enjoy these books. the author team has a very seamless flow, and their pacing on the stories is always great. I love hearing alternative history retellings, and if you want to throw in some shapeshifters, I'm down with that!! adds more fun :)
the way these books are written make me feel like I know more about the historical events and people, but also makes me want to investigate more. thanks to Netgalley for an opportunity to listen to this audiobook

We all know the story of Mary Queen of Scotts, and My Contrary Mary adds a fantasy shapeshifting twist. Think Muggles vs. Marauders. There is a war within the castle walls. Our omniscient and modern narrators add tongue-in-cheek humor and joy to this story. It is self aware and does not take itself too seriously, knowing that it is toying with history. I laughed aloud a hundred times. I had a few issues with the pacing, and one of the narrator's choices were so infuriating that it took me a long time to get through the story. This was almost too effective in its execution. Yet, the ending was both tantalizing fun, and fulfilling.

Thank you to NetGalley, the authors, and Harper Audio for allowing me to read this voice galley in exchange for an honest review.