"In this sweeping, immersive novel, Clare McHugh draws readers into the mesmerizing world of the eldest
daughter of Queen Victoria – Princess Vicky – as she emerges into a powerful
force in her own right and ascends to become the first German
Empress.” —Marie Benedict, New York Times bestselling author of The Only Woman in the Room
Perfect for fans of the BBC's Victoria,
Alison Pataki's The Accidental
Empress, and Daisy Goodwin's Victoria, this
debut novel tells the gripping and tragic story of Queen Victoria’s eldest
daughter, Victoria,
Princess Royal.
To the world, she was Princess Victoria, daughter of a queen, wife of an
emperor, and mother of Kaiser Wilhelm. Her family just called her Vicky…smart,
pretty, and self-assured, she changed the course of the world.
January 1858: Princess Victoria glides down the aisle of St James Chapel to
the waiting arms of her beloved, Fritz, Prince Frederick, heir to the powerful
kingdom of Prussia. Although theirs is no mere political match, Vicky is
determined that she and Fritz will lead by example, just as her parents
Victoria and Albert had done, and also bring about a liberal and united
Germany.
Brought up to believe in the rightness of her cause, Vicky nonetheless
struggles to thrive in the constrained Prussian court, where each day she seems
to take a wrong step. And her status as the eldest daughter of Queen Victoria
does little to smooth over the conflicts she faces.
But handsome, gallant Fritz is always by her side, as they navigate court intrigue, and challenge the cunning Chancellor Otto von Bismarck,
while fighting for the throne—and the soul of a nation. At home they endure
tragedy, including their son, Wilhelm, rejecting all they stand for.
Clare
McHugh tells the enthralling and riveting story of Victoria, the Princess
Royal—from her younger years as the apple of her father Albert's eyes through her rise to power atop the mighty German empire to her final months of
life.
"The eldest daughter of Queen Victoria and mother of Kaiser Wilhelm, Princess Vicky deserves a novel of her own. Brimming with luxurious detail and vicious court intrigue, this is both a splendid portrait of a royal marriage and a woman whose dreams fell prey to the darkness of German history."
