Thank you NetGalley for an audio ARC of this book. This book is not like a Philippa Gregory or an Alison Weir. This book is much more factual and is told as such. These three women Catherine de’ Medici, Elisabeth de Valois, and Mary Queen of Scots had the opportunity to rule Europe in their lifetimes. They are tied to each other through marriage and have benefitted from those alliances. They do put up with men, but you get the feeling that they could do so much more. This is a heavy book. I recommend it in small doses, and I did learn things, that is always a plus. It MAY be the right book for a particular book club. You will know once you start reading. Enjoy

Amazing book! I had a fantastic time listening to this one, even though historical non-fiction is not something I usually gravitate towards. Not only were the lives of these three queens incredibly interesting due to the political and religious complications of their time, but the author's prose is very accessible and she is able to humanize them and empathize with them in a way that really makes the reader connect with the content. And the narrator did an incredible job, too—I loved her voice and accent.

#netgalley ARC Audiobook review.

Move over SIX - this could be the source material for Broadway’s next royal hit Young Queens!

Starring:
Catherine, Queen of France (née Caterina de’ Medici)
Mary, Queen of Scots (née Marie Stuart)
Isabel de Valois, Queen Consort of Spain (née Elisabeth of Valois)

Author Leah Redmond Chang’s third book, Young Queens, is ambitious and well-researched but above all else it’s engaging. Her books are “biography and literary non-fiction, with a focus on women’s history” as stated on her website.

Excellent audiobook narration by voice artist Olivia Dowd. She has a lovely, English accent that warmly delivers scholarly information clearly and confidently including the occasional French pronunciations. The nearly 18 hour audiobook moved along quickly, as the author’s passion for the subject matter is palpable within the narrator’s voice.

Redmond Chang renders this coterie of women vividly with a full register of emotions. A former tenured professor of French Literature and Culture as well as a literature scholar she expertly mines nearly five hundred year old archival material and brings forth literary gold that feels contemporary and urgent.

In pondering the emotional lives and gender expectations of these women alongside the realities of the 1500s the author gives us access to these distinct, female voices. The pawns of Popes, Kings and sometimes Queens, groomed to be noble girls, are revealed to be multi-dimensional women.

I particularly enjoyed the verbal descriptions of royal portraits commissioned from Catherine of her children by artist Francois Clouet. I was delighted to find visual examples of this artist’s works on the Royal Collection Trust’s website.

Very interesting look into the lives of three powerful women in the early modern era. I had heard of this book on a podcast I listen to so I was looking forward to reading it. And recently I read Nancy Goldstone's, Rival Queens, about Catherine de Medici and her daughter, Margot. This gave a little more insight into the relationship between Catherine and Mary, Queen of Scots. If found the fact that Catherine did little help Mary after her return to Scotland very interesting. She was practically raised as a daughter but was left to deal with her troubles on her own. Catherine is definitely a woman who made some bad choices but also did much good for the people of her adopted country. Elizabeth's story was so tragically sad. I knew nothing of her so I learned a lot about life in the Spanish court during this time. Philip is always the king who married Mary I of England. I did not think much about his life after other than the armada. It was very informative about his life with his new young wife and the struggles to produce an heir for his kingdom much like Henry VIII.

We take it as a known fact that the families of European royalty were all closely connected and related, but I don't think we give a lot of thought to just what exactly that means aside from inbreeding and exclusionary politics. We certainly don't think about how the monarchies of four countries (England, Scotland, France, and Spain) could be told in the narrative of one person and her children, but that's exactly what Young Queens puts forth, in a much more engaging way. The reality of life for a woman born to a royal household was one of diplomacy and either being used by the system or trying to use the system to her advantage. The timeline of Young Queens really only spans about 60 years, but the amount of intertwined and dramatic events feels like centuries worth.

Chang does a fantastic job of pulling together history through letters and other records, keeping things interesting without assumptions or fictionalizations, and reminding us that while these women may have lived 400 years ago, there's a human element to these global politics that endures throughout the centuries and that these familial and political ties affected the world we live in now, bringing to life connections and context to stories that we may have only heard pieces of.

Young Queens by Leah Redmond Chang
(Narrated by Olivia Dowd)

This is the longest audiobook I have ever listened to, and yet, one of the most enjoyable one.

Young Queens is about the story of Catherine de’ Medici, Elisabeth de Valois, and Mary, Queen of Scots back in the 16th century. They all intertwined with each others. The followed along from their childhood, family and their adulthood. How their lives changed before and after married to the Kings.

I enjoyed the European History. Leah Redmond Chang did perfect research and smartly connect all the stories into not a dull but an incredibly interesting factual history. I highly recommend this to those who love European History.

In the sixteenth century, three queens from the French court—Catherine de Medici, Elisabeth de Valois, and Mary, Queen of Scots—navigate a male-dominated world. This engrossing, easy-to-read book tells their stories. Orphaned Catherine rises to become queen of France. Her daughter Elisabeth marries the King of Spain. Mary marries Catherine's son, heir to the throne.

These women face the challenges of warring empires, religious conflict, defiant nobles, and rampant misogyny. Even though they hold royal authority, their power relies on the vicissitudes of politics, family alliances, and the sometimes frail human body.

The audio narration is well-done and adds to the enjoyment of the book.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

Posted on Goodreads: “Young Queens” delves into the lives of three European queens who lived during the 16th century. The book appears to be well-researched and written although it did become a bit dry in its last half. It’s a good book if you are not familiar with the era or family members since a great deal of backstory is included by the author. There were a few instances when the stories were briefly recalled/repeated, which I found frustrating, however, it would likely be helpful if I were reading at a leisurely pace. Perhaps by virtue of listening to the audiobook, I found myself looking up the names, places, and artworks since it was hard to visualize correctly, particularly when names are similar. I hope that the printed edition will include those references.

Thanks to RB Media and NetGalley for this ARC audiobook given in exchange for an unbiased review. #YoungQueens #NetGalley

Thank you so much RB Media, NetGalley and especially Leah Redmond Chang for allowing me the privilege of reviewing the audiobook of Young Queens. I enjoy history but the history of these three incredible women was awe-inspiring and Leah Redmond Chang did a wonderful job weaving their stories together into a tapestry of family and friendship that had me laughing, crying and in the end admiring them for their strength by the end. It follows Catherine de Medici, her daughter Elisabeth de Valois, and Mary, Queen of Scots. Catherine was a queen of France, widowed by 40, and became the Queen Mother behind her sons. Her daughter Elisabeth was destined to be the Queen of Spain. And of course young Mary was already the Queen of Scots when she lived with Catherine for several years. These women’s lives were entwined in every aspect and on top that you toss in all the civil unrest in that era and religious persecution due to the Catholic vs Protestant war. This book is full of historical facts and I love that. I’m quite happy to recommend this book to anyone who loves history especially feminine history.