I always enjoy Fiona Davis' writing, and this book is no exception. Despite the time changes, I found this novel to be engaging and it maintained my interest. I'm always a little wary of Ancient Egypt themes because I find the exploitation of burial grounds kind of icky, but the story was still good.

Another Fiona Davis masterpiece! I love how she always effortlessly weaves a modern story in with a historical backdrop.

In this book, the "modern" was actually in the 70s, but it served the story well, as it allowed for two history-driven plots - 1930s Egyptian digs, and the 1978 Met Gala (and the Met overall). The author always gives wonderful background of her research and the facts vs. creative license, which I so appreciate as I always read her books and mentally keep a list of things I want to look up to learn more about.

The plot of this book is just as fantastic as the historical aspects; I enjoyed hanging out with Charlotte and Annie and rooting for them throughout their struggles. My one critique is that the last third of the book went way too fast. The current portion of the book mainly takes place throughout a month, so it's expected, but there was a lot going on and a big set up throughout the first 2/3-ish of the book and then boom, boom, boom. Decisions made, problems solved, over and done. And things just suddenly went way too smoothly. Like I said, I was cheering for them, but the realism started to fade away a bit when thing after thing just went so incredibly right.

In any event, I loved this book and look forward to the next historical adventure with Fiona.

Charlotte Cross worked as the associate curator at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City for 40+ years after having spent a brief time in Egypt when she was first starting out in The Stolen Queen by Fiona Davis coming out January 7, 2025. Her career at the Met had stalled since she was an Egyptologist who had not returned to Egypt since a tragedy had occurred when she was there in 1937.

Still, Charlotte was fascinated with Hathorkare, a fictitious pharaoh, inspired by the real ruler Hatshepsut, an Egyptian queen of the 18th dynasty. She had been developing a theory about Hathorkare for the last three years regarding the destruction of the pharaoh’s likenesses by her fictional successor Saukemet II, inspired by the true successor of Hatshepsut named Thutmose II.

When Charlotte sees a broad collar, a type of necklace worn by the royal women of Egypt, being put on display, she immediately questions her boss Frederick about it as she herself found it enclosed in the wall of the tomb of Hathorkare during her time in Egypt in the 1930s. The broad collar’s last whereabouts was likely at the bottom of the Nile River since Egyptian artifacts and passengers were lost in a shipwreck in 1937. Her attempts to learn the owner of the loaned piece are thwarted by the Met’s director.

As Charlotte’s story unfolds, it is interspersed with a narrative about Annie Jenkins, 18, who in 1978 landed a job with former Vogue fashion editor Diana Vreeland, who was responsible for organizing New York’s most famous party, the Met Gala. Vreeland, a demanding boss, charged Annie with nearly impossible tasks such as gathering butterflies to be released at the Gala.

Charlotte and Annie join forces at the Gala when Charlotte notices the fragment of a statue known as the Cerulean Queen is missing from its gallery. She and Annie chase a man in a dark suit carrying a bowling bag through the crowd at the Gala. While the thief gets away, Charlotte decides to chase the stolen piece to Egypt where she suspects it will be shipped by a group that has been stealing artifacts to return them to Egypt.

After being fired by Vreeland when moths were released at the Gala instead of butterflies—later discovered to be a diversion allowing the thief to steal the Queen--Annie decides to join Charlotte in Egypt. Together they attempt to solve more than one mystery, and Charlotte may be able to validate her theory regarding Hathorkare.

Packed with lots of information about the Met, archeology, art smuggling, and mummification, this is a book for those who love all things Egyptian. As always, author Fiona Davis has done her homework when it comes to the buildings that make up the Met with a special focus on the 1978 Metropolitan Gala directed by Vreeland.

Davis is a Canadian-born author who has made a career out of combining intriguing historical fiction plots with the stories of various New York buildings including the Barbizon Hotel, The Dakota, Grand Central Terminal, the Chelsea Hotel, the New York Public Library, and the Frick Museum. She lives in New York City.

My review will be posted on Goodreads starting July 23, 2024.

I would like to thank Dutton, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC, and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in return for an objective review.

A terrific book.. I am a big fan of Davis so I was not disappointed at all. The novel has an interesting storyline that was clever and mysterious. Ancient Egyptian artifacts and devious intentions always create wonderful novels. Fiona writes so effortlessly.. I raced through this book and loved every minute. I would not call it a mystery but a book about connections and finding one’s place in this difficult world.

The Stolen Queen, by Fiona Davis, is another fantastic novel by one of my favorite authors. This one, in particular, came at the perfect time for me. My daughter recently did a project on the history of the Met Gala for school in June and then attended a summer program at Vogue in July. So I thoroughly enjoyed this fly-on-the-wall POV of The Met Gala back in the 70's under Diana Vreeland's stewardship. And, of course, the story itself was absolutely enthralling- dual timelines, interesting mysteries, great characters- Highly recommend!!!!!!

Mark you calendar for the pub date for Fiona Davis’s forthcoming new novel. I think that this may just be her best book yet. I thoroughly enjoyed The Stolen Queen.

As is often the case, the story is told in two time lines and in two countries. Interestingly, both time lines have characters in common.

Readers first meet Charlotte Cross when she is a young girl embarking on an adventure of a lifetime. She has left her society family behind to be part of a 1930s dig in Egypt. So much happens to Charlotte there in terms of both her professional and personal life, but readers need to find out all of this for themselves.

The second timeline takes place partly in NYC right around the time of the famous King Tut exhibition. Now Charlotte is working in the Egyptian section of the museum when a necklace becomes part of an exhibit and leads to many events.

In this second time line, readers also meet Annie. She has been an enabler to her mother. Unexpectedly Annie secures a position working for the very well known Diana Vreeland just in time for a major fashion event. As was true for Charlotte, things don’t go according to plan.

It is not long before Charlotte and Annie travel to Egypt together. There is, again, much that happens while they are there.

Davis handles all of the plot elements flawlessly. It is also clear that she did her homework in order to give this book a real sense of its historical authenticity.

Anyone who has enjoyed a novel by this author will want to read this title. My guess is that this one will also bring her many new fans.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group-Dutton for this title. All opinions are my own.

Pub date: 07 January 2025

Fiona seldom disappoints! Here she explores the treasures of Egyptian art and the inner workings of New York City's Metropolitan Museum of Art.. Ms. Davis is true to form in adopting an iconic NYC building and a dual timeline featuring our heroines, Egyptologist and Met curator Charlotte Cross and Annie Jenkins, the young assistant to Diana Vreeland committed to preparing for the Costume Institute's Met Gala. The tale begins with an archaeological dig in 1936, and fast forwards to 1978 and the effects of a possibly cursed Queen and the difficulties posed by repatriation of arts and antiquities. Charlotte and Annie's paths collide in the 1978 timeline when an ill fated Gala becomes the scene of a heist which forces the two women to travel to Egypt in search of both personal and professional truths. Very satisfying.

Another excellent book by this author who writes such interesting historical novels. She has a specific style that never lets the reader down. This story about an Egyptian artifact that goes missing at the Met and is thought to have a curse. In her typical style the story jumps back from the past to the future with 2 main characters that intersect. I can not wait to read her next book and see the adventure that is told.

Masterful storytelling! My favorite book thus far of this author. An author once announced on her ‘show’ that she believes all authors should be rated 5 stars for the feat of finishing the book and having it published. What rubbish! 5 stars should be held for authors so honed in their skills as to take you by their imagination and weave you through the twists and turns of a story that leaves you both entertained and never the same for experiencing such story. Bravo Ms Davis!

This is my favorite Fiona Davis book yet - loved the drama in both the past and more current settings, the mysteries behind the artifacts. Will be highly recommending this to others. Would be a great book club pick!

Fiona Davis outdid herself with this book! The history. The romance. The mysteries. When you combine them all, you have a book you cannot put down! The story begins with a young Charlotte as a student working in an archaeological dig in Egypt when tragedy strikes. Her life is changed instantly and she ends up resettling back in New York City where she ends up working as an associate curator of the Met's Department of Egyptian Art. She becomes consumed with the research of Hathorkare, a rare and underrated female pharaoh. Until the night of the Met gala where she joins forces with the young Annie, who had been assisting a famous fashion designer. Both women join forces which takes them on a mission of a life time sending them both into danger and memories that were meant to be forgotten. A 10 out of 10! A must read!!

My reviews for Fiona Davis books are almost always the same.This is a good story with interesting/likable characters. She does her homework providing a rich historical context and I enjoyed learning more about The Met and Egyptian history. However in this book, as in her others, I found a few aspects of the book hard to believe - it required too large of a leap to reach her conclusions and in a few cases things just add up for me. I’d give this one a 3.5 if it was available to me.

Charlotte, an associate curator at the Met, is absorbed in her research on the overlooked female pharaoh Hathorkare and is uninterested in the upcoming Met gala until a valuable artifact goes missing, hinting at Hathorkare's curse. Charlotte and eighteen-year-old Annie must team up to retrieve the artifact, leading them back to Egypt, where Charlotte must face her past and potential dangers.

I became interested in Fiona Davis after reading The Spectacular, and The Stolen Queen has just solidified my fandom. The glamor of New York shines through in each novel that she produces. 4/5 stars.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group Dutton for the opportunity to read The Stolen Queen by Fiona Davis, one of the best historical fiction writers writing today. The Met Gala and The Met's Department of Egyptian Art combined for another engaging read from Ms. Davis. Excellent!

The Stolen Queen was a quick, fast paced read once again featuring strong female characters in a dual timeline. If that all sounds familiar, you are quite right. This author is known for this kind of historical fiction, and I will admit that I have not always been a fan. I did enjoy this one though, as I found the characters to be thoroughly engaging and the history very interesting. It did deliver a few surprises and I had a hard time putting this down as the characters worked to suss out an interesting mystery. A fine read for fans of womens historical fiction that I will look forward to recommending to my library patrons.

If you are a fan of Fiona Davis, historical fiction filled with intrigue, love, and loss, then look no further! The Stolen Queen is a fascinating tale that centers on Met Gala, stolen art, a tragedy four decades earlier, travel, and an Egyptian curse. I do not wish to spoil the novel, so I will refrain from summarizing, but I can say that this was one of the best books I have read in the past year. Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for an advance e-reader copy of this book!

I have read a few of Fiona Davis' books and this one is definitely a standout. i found the backdrop between the Met and Egypt quite fasicinating and well researched and the character development interesting. Once the personal history was revealed, I did pretty much guess the end but not all of it...It was wrapped up quite neatly but t still found the book quite satisfying. sure to be ahit among readers and fans.. The biggest dissap[ointment is that the book is done and I have to find something else to read.

“The Stolen Queen” by Fiona Davis was the perfect blend of fact and fiction reminiscent of her earlier books. It is set in dual timelines 1930s Egypt and 1970s New York City. The story revolves around a young woman who is offered a coveted spot on an archaeological dig and winds up discovering a valuable collar necklace along with other antiquities thought to belong to an undistinguished female Pharaoh.

Forty+ years later scarred by tragedy, we find her working as a curator at the Met in NYC where they are preparing for the Met Gala. She meets a young intern who becomes the assistant of Diana Vreeland (former fashion editor of Vogue) who is organizing the gala when the collar neck piece, which is thought to be stolen and cursed suddenly shows up. During the Gals there is a theft of a priceless statue and the rumors of the ancient curse resurface.

Both women return to Egypt to solve the mystery but also to find peace and resolution to their personal misfortunes. This book is entertaining, educational and unputdownable!

Thank you NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Dutton for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Fiona Davis's The Stolen Queen spins an exciting narrative spanning multiple timelines and global settings, featuring two main characters searching for purpose. Charlotte Cross is a woman in her 60s serving as a museum curator at The Met in NYC, with a history of working as a field archaeologist in Egypt in the 1930s. Annie Jenkins is a 19-year-old living in a cramped apartment with her mentally taxing mother and figuring out her next job. Their two paths meet at The Met Gala in 1978 when an important historical artifact goes missing. Or has it been stolen? This series of events sets the two on an adventure where past meets present and takes them across the globe. The book takes its time setting up both Charlotte and Annie's personal stories almost to the halfway point, before the action of the novel really kicks in. But once the action starts, it never lets up. If you're not big on Egyptian history, you should know that Davis's book features dense exposition on ancient pharaohs... though, Davis is smart to clarify the key figures here are only based on true historical persons... along with exploring the history of The Met itself. I was curious if Davis's novel would provide any commentary on the stain of former colonial and imperialist powers' acquiring other countries' antiques, and Davis eventually gets there in the latter half of this novel. The complicated history of museums, how they acquire items, and what they control, runs throughout this book without coming off too heavy-handed. But, I was not a fan of who ended up being the villain at the end of this story and felt it lacked a greater discussion among the characters. All said, I never read Fiona Davis before and this was a great entry point for an engaging historical fiction. Thank you to Penguin Random House and NetGalley for the ARC, really enjoyed this!

Superbly told, suspenseful dual timeline story about a young archeologist who suffers an unnamed tragedy while in Egypt in 1936, and a young woman, Annie, working for a famous icon at the NY Met Museum many years later.

Charlotte Cross is the young archeologist who many years later is also working at the Met. She is an assistant curator and loves her job, because it allows her to do what she really wants to do: research an ancient Egyptian Queen, Hathorkare and prove that she not only existed, but wasn't written out of history by her male successors because she did a terrible job. Charlotte does all her research from New York, because she is too scarred by whatever trauma took place in Egypt so many years ago. The Met's collection includes a priceless artifact, a remnant of a mysterious beautiful woman, and Charlotte wants to know more about her, and her possible connect to Hathorkare.

Annie is a mere 18, working for Diana Vreeland, who is huge in the art world and a former fashion editor for Vogue. Diana is brilliant, creative and temperamental, and this is Annie's first real job, as Diana's assistant. Annie The Met hosts a gala every year and Diana is responsible for it. Things are going amazingly well, and then the artifact goes missing from the collection. Annie and Charlotte must find it before the gala.

Rich in historical detail and full of interesting characters, The Stolen Queen captures the imagination. Anyone who loves tales of ancient Egypt combined with suspense and mystery will love this book!