Antoinette's Sister Reading Guide & Discussion Questions

Book Club Discussion Questions

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For supplemental discussion material see our Beyond the Book article, The Children of Holy Roman Empress Maria Theresa and our BookBrowse Review of Antoinette's Sister.

Please be aware that this discussion guide will contain spoilers!

1. What did you know about Maria Carolina Charlotte before reading the novel? Did you know she was the sister of Marie Antoinette or that she was the queen of Naples? What surprised you the most as you were reading?
2. In an age when men dominated the political landscape, Charlotte's mother, Empress Maria Theresa (1717–1780)—archduchess of Austria, queen of Hungary and Bohemia, and Holy Roman empress—was regarded as a shrewd, formidable, and influential ruler. Her dedication to governance, however, often took precedence over her role as a caregiver, as evidenced by the quote "I am a queen before I am a mother." Discuss the nature of Charlotte's relationship with her mother. In what ways was Maria Theresa a role model? In what ways did she fall short as a guiding influence—or do you not believe that she did?
3. When Charlotte was a child, her mother lamented her passionate and free-spirited nature, going so far as to call her "impetuous" and "selfish." Later in Charlotte's life, however, after she takes the throne of Naples, Maria Theresa describes her as "witty" and "charming." Describe the evolution of Charlotte's character, from her betrothal to Ferdinand at the age of fifteen to her death at the age of sixty-two. What prompted Charlotte's transformation from rebellious teenager to headstrong ruler?

Unless otherwise stated, this discussion guide is reprinted with the permission of Grand Central Publishing. Any page references refer to a USA edition of the book, usually the trade paperback version, and may vary in other editions.