Summary from GoodReads:

The bestselling author of The Hidden Diary of Marie Antoinette and The Last Wife of Henry VIII returns with an enchanting novel about one of the most seductive women in history: Josephine Bonaparte, first wife of Napoleon.Born on the Caribbean island of Martinique, Josephine had an exotic Creole appeal that would ultimately propel her to reign over an empire as wife of the most powerful man in the world. But her life is a story of ambition and danger, of luck and a ferocious will to survive. Married young to an arrogant French aristocrat who died during the Terror, Josephine also narrowly missed losing her head to the guillotine. But her extraordinary charm, sensuality, and natural cunning helped her become mistress to some of the most powerful politicians in post-revolutionary France. Soon she had married the much younger General Bonaparte, whose armies garnered France an empire that ran from Europe to Africa and the New World and who crowned himself and his wife Emperor and Empress of France. He dominated on the battlefield and she presided over the worlds of fashion and glamour. But Josephine’s heart belonged to another man–the mysterious, compelling stranger who had won her as girl in Martinique.

My Review:

I read a lot of books.  I read a lot of historical fiction books, but never have I read anything about France during King Louis XVI’s reign nor about Napoleon.  I find that odd, now that I think about it – especially considering that in this year alone I’ve read two books which overlap over King Louis and Marie Antoinette’s deaths.

I’ll be honest, it took me a bit of time to get into The Secret Life of Josephine.  It was strange and I knew next to nothing about her earlier life so I felt a little lost – but then things seemed to clear up a bit.  Although it’s obvious that Carolly Erickson took some liberties (with voodoo/witchcraft), she did do a fantastic job of giving us exactly what she intended to give: historical entertainment.

As a result of the embellishment given to the story, it had all of the classic elements to make a suspenseful, romantic, thrilling story.  Arranged marriages, politics, intrigue, war .. everything was present and in the middle of it all – Josephine, an incredibly strong woman fighting for love, her children and her life.

This was a bargain buy for me, purchased spur of the moment and I’m glad it ended up being a worthwhile read.  And it’s sparked massive interest in Josephine, so I plan on checking out a non-fiction look at her life soon.

Check out these review(s):

Historically Obsessed