Top reviews from the United States

• 

  Julie C

  5 out of 5 stars

  Incredibly Moving & Touching Story!!! I Highly Recommend It!!!

  Reviewed in the United States on May 18, 2026

  Format: Kindle

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  Wow! This book took me on quite the journey. Through history and through many emotions! I definitely had several moments when the tears were dripping down my cheeks. We know how history has portrayed these women, especially Marie Antoinette, but I loved how Rebecca Connolly studied their lives very intensely and in-depth to uncover more about who they were. If you read this one, please don't skip over reading the author's notes and explanations at the very beginning of the book. It was very enlightening and brought an even greater depth to my experience of reading this book.

  I love historical novels and this one is one that I will be recommending for many readers. I was completely engrossed in the lives of these three incredible women. Before reading this book, I didn't know much about Queen Charlotte, and I loved seeing more of her life and story. But my favorite aspect was the friendship between these three ladies. The author does talk about, in her opening notes of the book, the historically accurate relationship between these ladies and the liberties she took with their story. And I loved it! I couldn't imagine the weight that these women, and other women in similar roles throughout history, carried on their shoulders. And the misperceptions that were had of them. I loved how that was addressed through the telling of their stories. It was beautifully done. And is a book that will linger in my mind for a very long time to come.

  I had a digital copy of the book that I was reading, but I also wanted to hear the audiobook narration and see how that was done. It was honestly fantastic. There were three different narrators for each of the three ladies. If you enjoy audiobooks, this is on that I would encourage you to listen to. Or read and listen to it. Wow! I loved both ways.

  I definitely had tears streaming down my face near the ending. Even now thinking about has me getting choked up. Especially as I ponder not just these ladies, but so many other people throughout the world, in history and now, who have experienced struggles and unfairness. But this book also had me thinking a lot about the power of true friendships! They are so important and help us in our many struggles and ups and downs of life! I loved how that was portrayed throughout this book. The special bond of sisterhood, and friendship! It was so beautiful! And makes me grateful for my tribe of women who cheer me on!

  Content: I would say that this book is a clean read. It does talk about certain conflicts in history, death, and loss of babies/children. But it was all written in a very sensitive way. I would let my young teenagers read it.

  I received a copy from the publisher, Shadow Mountain Publishing, via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions in the review are my own.

  Happy Reading!!!

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• 

  Heather Conner

  4 out of 5 stars

  Three Queens

  Reviewed in the United States on June 4, 2026

  Format: Kindle

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  Rebecca Connolly has once again written a book that I will never stop recommending. I have loved every book that I have read by this author, and Three Queens was no exception. There are so many things to point out that I loved, but I do want to take a moment to focus on the uniqueness of the story. Readers are given multiple storylines that are all equally enjoyable, touching, and unique. I had no idea when I started the first page that I would go on such an intriguing journey until the last page.

  I am a big history nerd. So when I found out that Rebecca Connolly was writing a story about three women in history, I placed this book at the top of my TBR. My excitement was met by an outstanding book that I hope everyone that reads this review will take my advice and get themselves a copy of. And if you haven’t read anything by this author yet, let me give you a piece of advice. You are missing out on an author whose writing you will fall in love with.

  So much happened in each storyline which makes it difficult for me to go into details about everything I loved about this book. But let me be very clear when I say that I loved everything about this book. There wasn’t a moment while reading that I didn’t fall completely in love on every page. Please, please, and please get yourself a copy of this one!!

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• 

  Ashley Blank

  5 out of 5 stars

  A breathtaking story of sisterhood

  Reviewed in the United States on May 16, 2026

  Format: Kindle

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  A stunning and breathtaking portrayal of historical fiction featuring three women in history who endured some of the most heartbreaking experiences! Female leadership from the newly created United States to the regencies of England and France, these three women developed a friendship in secret that provided some of the most endearing moments for them during their most difficult trials.

  Abigail Adams the wife of John Adams who was the Vice President under George Washington after the revolution, to Queen Charlotte of England who was married to King George III who suffered from severe mental illness late in his life, to Marie Antoinette the Queen of France who watched her husband King Louis killed by the revolution in France.

  There is so much to process with this book as it covers a lot of historical ground of events that took place during their leadership roles, but the biggest thing I took away from it all was the quiet strength in the friendship these three women formed. Coming from competing and even confrontational perspectives, especially between the United Status and England at this time, they found commonalities between them and stayed in contact as friends and confidants. Each of them is bearing incredibly pressure in their roles and the comfort they each found in one another was astonishing.

  Many moments in this book, especially those of a personal nature, made me cry tears of sorrow for the losses endured, especially for Marie Antoinette. I knew little about her when I read this book and I feel like I've developed a newfound appreciation for everything she experienced. From the loss of a child to the loss of her husband who she deeply loved. It was a torturous experience to see what it would have been like to be overthrown by a Revolution and cast aside as criminals and hunted down simply because they were the rulers.

  But even more fascinating is the reflective passages from Abigail Adams about the death of Marie Antoinette. Seeing as how Adams is part of a newly minted revolutionary country as well who fought their regents in Britain, to find her compassion and understanding for Marie Antoinette was humbling and provides a lot of reflection for me on this time period.

  I adored each of these women and feel even closer to all of them after reading their stories. Rebecca Connolly did an amazing job at writing about their lives and providing the harsh realities in a way that also allowed them to shine through as the humans they are and not just their roles. I will be thinking on this one for a while and diving into my own research as I love to do when it comes to historical figures that catch my attention.

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  Ashley Blank

  5 out of 5 stars

  A breathtaking story of sisterhood

  Reviewed in the United States on May 16, 2026

  Format: Kindle

  A stunning and breathtaking portrayal of historical fiction featuring three women in history who endured some of the most heartbreaking experiences! Female leadership from the newly created United States to the regencies of England and France, these three women developed a friendship in secret that provided some of the most endearing moments for them during their most difficult trials.

  Abigail Adams the wife of John Adams who was the Vice President under George Washington after the revolution, to Queen Charlotte of England who was married to King George III who suffered from severe mental illness late in his life, to Marie Antoinette the Queen of France who watched her husband King Louis killed by the revolution in France.

  There is so much to process with this book as it covers a lot of historical ground of events that took place during their leadership roles, but the biggest thing I took away from it all was the quiet strength in the friendship these three women formed. Coming from competing and even confrontational perspectives, especially between the United Status and England at this time, they found commonalities between them and stayed in contact as friends and confidants. Each of them is bearing incredibly pressure in their roles and the comfort they each found in one another was astonishing.

  Many moments in this book, especially those of a personal nature, made me cry tears of sorrow for the losses endured, especially for Marie Antoinette. I knew little about her when I read this book and I feel like I've developed a newfound appreciation for everything she experienced. From the loss of a child to the loss of her husband who she deeply loved. It was a torturous experience to see what it would have been like to be overthrown by a Revolution and cast aside as criminals and hunted down simply because they were the rulers.

  But even more fascinating is the reflective passages from Abigail Adams about the death of Marie Antoinette. Seeing as how Adams is part of a newly minted revolutionary country as well who fought their regents in Britain, to find her compassion and understanding for Marie Antoinette was humbling and provides a lot of reflection for me on this time period.

  I adored each of these women and feel even closer to all of them after reading their stories. Rebecca Connolly did an amazing job at writing about their lives and providing the harsh realities in a way that also allowed them to shine through as the humans they are and not just their roles. I will be thinking on this one for a while and diving into my own research as I love to do when it comes to historical figures that catch my attention.

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• 

  Heidi Gorecki

  4 out of 5 stars

  Informative perspective

  Reviewed in the United States on May 20, 2026

  Format: Hardcover

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  While this isn’t entirely what I thought it would be, it was really intriguing getting a glimpse into into the lives of these 3 women nonetheless. A lot of it was fictionalized but the timeline and major events were based in history.

  The marriages of Charlotte and Marie Antoinette felt a little too tender and close for probable reality but if you can put aside the likelihood in the time period and circumstances, the relationships themselves are lovely if they were true. It was enjoyable to read like that at least.

  The majority of the book focused on Marie Antoinette and the revolution in France, and painted her in a very different light than the little we probably all learned of her in history classes. While some of the book may have exaggerated the positives of her, there was a lot of context given into how unjustly vilified she was by the mob which unfortunately made its way to our understanding of her incorrectly, and appears to recently be coming to light as semi-untrue.

  And man, what evil, disturbing, inhumane people France was made up of at the time. I did a deep dive looking up each of her family and rabbit-trailed from there and it is such a sad and brutal history, especially with their son’s treatment.

  Well told look into what may have been in the women’s lives. I appreciated the focus on their friendships and how important and encouraging that model is for us in general as women.

  Thanks to Netgalley for the advanced copy of this book. All opinions are mine.

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• 

  Nyx

  3 out of 5 stars

  Suspend your disbelief

  Reviewed in the United States on May 18, 2026

  Format: Kindle

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  Three Queens by Rebecca Connolly follows Abigail Adams, Queen Charlotte, and Queen Marie Antoinette from the American Revolution through the French Revolution. Not to be confused with the twin release date book A Founding Mother, Three Queens has Abigail Adams take a bit of a back seat to the dramas unfolding for both Charlotte and Marie Antoinette. Great Britain's queen grapples with her husband's mysterious illness, as well as her irresponsible and politically scheming son the Prince of Wales. France's queen deals with the infamous "affair of the necklace" and the subsequent growing animosity toward her and her family from the people of France.

  Abigail first meets Charlotte after her husband takes the position of minister to Great Britain. There is an assumed animosity and chilly air due to the elephant of the American Revolution in the room, yet the two women recognize something in each other. Similarly, Abigail meets Marie Antoinette as a social gathering at Versailles where the two women take an instant liking to each other and form a mutual respect. Charlotte, meanwhile, maintains a correspondence with Marie Antoinette as they exchange details of their children, their day-to-day lives, etc. Connolly constructs a meeting among the three women a la the fictitious meeting between Queen Elizabeth and Queen Mary in the 2018 film Mary Queen of Scots; a tantalizing what if scenario? While Charlotte and Marie never met in person, they did indeed write to each other. And while we know Abigail and John Adams exchanged copious letters to each other throughout their separations, I do not believe Abigail carried on a correspondence with the two queens.

  Connolly creates a sort of sisterhood of these three women--the strength of which carries to Marie Antoinette's mind the day of her execution, which I found a bit of a stretch. In reality, I do not believe the queens of France and Great Britain would truly carry on such an intimate and close friendship/correspondence with Abigail--a common woman for all their intents and purposes. Despite John Adams' new found status during and after the American Revolution, Abigail would likely still have been viewed as a whole other socioeconomic class. Thus, readers will have to suspend their disbelief for this friendship. What's more, the marriages of Marie Antoinette and Charlotte with Louis and George, respectively, are depicted as quite lovey-dovey, perfect, and fluffy before George's illness and before the violence of the French Revolution. I found these depictions to also be a bit unbelievable, as their relationship dynamics seem to lack any nuance in terms of power dynamics and gender views of the day.

  The lives of these three women are no doubt interesting in their own rights, however, Three Queens fell a bit short for me with the many times I had to suspend my disbelief. Ultimately, the relationships (romantic and friendship) did not ring true. The latter half of the book favors Marie Antoinette's story given the revolution, which makes the overall narrative uneven and unequally split among the three. What's more, the author's writing style often reverts to repetition of the same ideas just written in three to five different ways for impact. I found myself skipping all the repetition just to get to the advancement of action.

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• 

  M. Westbroek

  5 out of 5 stars

  Wow! This historical novel is brilliant!

  Reviewed in the United States on May 5, 2026

  Format: Hardcover

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  Wow! All I can say is Wow! Three Queens is brilliant and well written! It is an in-depth look at the lives of Marie Antoinette, Queen Charlotte, and Abigail Adams. Connolly took the actual history of Marie Antoinette and Queen Charlotte corresponding with one another and the fact that Abigail Adams did meet each of them and turned it into a friendship.

  It was wonderful to read about the differences between England, France, and the United States during that time period. I’m glad Connolly added Abigail Adams. Not only is she one of the few ladies in that era we know to be well-spoken, but it gave more depth to the book by giving us a greater perspective of the different nations at that time. I really like how Connolly portrayed each of the three women’s lives- their hopes, fears, dreams, and everything else that they individually faced. Too often we put famous people on pedestals and forget that they all have struggles as well.

  This book is also a wake-up call to each of us. There were so many rumors around the time of the French Revolution, no one knew what was true and what to believe. The different factions of the government and people were not willing to listen and work together, and thousands were killed because of it. Today there is so much information online that is not always true. People will give biased reports on what they believe or think, then those rumors are spread, just like during the French Revolution. This book reminds me to look for the truth and be kind no matter what news is being spread.

  In all, Three Queens is a wonderful historical novel. It is one of my top favorite books I have read so far this year. I recommend it to everyone who wants a good historical novel.

  I received this book as an ARC from the publisher, Shadow Mountain Publishing. All of these thoughts and opinions are my own.

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  3 people found this helpful

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• 

  Chelsie S.

  4 out of 5 stars

  Fascinating read about Abigail Adams, Queen Antoinette & Queen Charlotte's friendship.

  Reviewed in the United States on May 13, 2026

  Format: Hardcover

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  This was a fascinating read about three well known women from this time, I did not realize they were close friends with each other. Abigail Adams has headed to England to meet up with her husband who is the ambassador and looking to reestablish a relationship between them and the US. Queen Marie Antoinette of France is not a very well liked woman and as the revolution tightens its hold, her world is slowly collapsing. Queen Charlotte is watching her husband spiral meanwhile her eldest son is doing all he can to take what his father has built, threatening the country. These three women formed a bond at a time when women were still mostly to be seen and not heard. They were to run the households and take care of the children. Each of these women struggle with loss of children, fear for their countries and their futures. I liked that each chapter had a letter between characters as well as that we got to see a part of these women that many of us can relate to. How strong they had to be and how much they really did take on being in the positions they were and yet they still had to keep up the act of being the perfect wife, supporter of whatever their husbands did and were able to rely on each other in times of need. Thank you to the author and publisher for the complementary novel and to Great Reads Book Promotion for the tour invite. This review is of my own opinion and accord.

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  Chelsie S.

  4 out of 5 stars

  Fascinating read about Abigail Adams, Queen Antoinette & Queen Charlotte's friendship.

  Reviewed in the United States on May 13, 2026

  Format: Hardcover

  This was a fascinating read about three well known women from this time, I did not realize they were close friends with each other. Abigail Adams has headed to England to meet up with her husband who is the ambassador and looking to reestablish a relationship between them and the US. Queen Marie Antoinette of France is not a very well liked woman and as the revolution tightens its hold, her world is slowly collapsing. Queen Charlotte is watching her husband spiral meanwhile her eldest son is doing all he can to take what his father has built, threatening the country. These three women formed a bond at a time when women were still mostly to be seen and not heard. They were to run the households and take care of the children. Each of these women struggle with loss of children, fear for their countries and their futures. I liked that each chapter had a letter between characters as well as that we got to see a part of these women that many of us can relate to. How strong they had to be and how much they really did take on being in the positions they were and yet they still had to keep up the act of being the perfect wife, supporter of whatever their husbands did and were able to rely on each other in times of need. Thank you to the author and publisher for the complementary novel and to Great Reads Book Promotion for the tour invite. This review is of my own opinion and accord.

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  Melissas Bookshelf

  5 out of 5 stars

  Three amazing women of history!

  Reviewed in the United States on May 13, 2026

  Format: Hardcover

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  Wow! Three Queens brings some of history’s most powerful women together in a story I won’t soon forget. In this sweeping historical fiction, Rebecca Connolly brings to life the true story of the intertwined lives of three extraordinary women. Separated by oceans, politics, & revolution, Abigail Adams, Queen Charlotte, and Marie Antoinette are united through friendship, letters, motherhood, loss, & the burdens of leadership.

  After years apart from her husband, Abigail Adams arrives in Europe determined to secure support for the young United States. In England, Queen Charlotte struggles to hold together a kingdom as King George III battles private madness & her son schemes for power. In France, Marie Antoinette watches the world she knows begin to collapse as revolution closes in.

  Though I knew how each of these women’s stories would end, I was touched by each of their stories, especially Marie Antoinette’s. Their heartbreaking losses of several children touched my heart & endeared these amazing women to me. Beyond the difficult trials, there’s humor, genuineness, & a powerful connection that I was thrilled to realize was real. Charlotte kept me smiling with her temper & quick tongue. I admired Abigail’s love for her husband & family & her witty commentary. Antoinette surprised me with her deep love, difficult losses, & strength amidst the brutality of the French Revolution. She’s often portrayed as a villain, but I found her a complicated victim. Through public duty and private heartbreak, these women form a quiet sisterhood that pulled on my heartstrings.

  Using journal entries & letters at the beginning of each chapter, the deepest emotions & intriguing personalities of these three unforgettable woman are brilliantly brought to life. Rich in emotion, intrigue, and historical detail, this captivating story of friendship & resilience during one of history’s most turbulent eras is one that’ll definitely stay with me.

  Highly recommend to historical fiction fans. I received an advanced copy from the publisher with no expectation of a positive review. All opinions are completely my own & provided voluntarily.

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