“Sisi: Empress on Her Own” - Allison Pataki

 (Sisi book 2)

👑 Suffice it to say that the second half of Sisi’s life is far more tumultuous than the first; if you don’t want spoilers, don’t do a deep dive after reading book 1! EOHO takes us through the end of Sisi’s life, so the 2 books tell her complete life story.

👑 I enjoyed the fictional interactions between Franz Joseph, Sisi, and the European monarchs who flocked to Vienna for the World’s Fair. Pataki writes convincingly of the widely disparate personalities of Tsar Alexander, Queen Isabella of Spain, and the Shah of Persia, to name a few.

👑 A major plot point of EOHO is the relationship between Emperor Franz, Empress Elisabeth, and their son, Crown Prince Rudolf. He is a troubled child, often overlooked in his parents’ power struggles. He becomes a highly depressed adult desperate for his father’s approval. Rudolf’s progressive ideas would have steered Austria toward England and away from the Russo-German alliance.

Unfortunately, no one around him to fathom his deep depression, or forgive him for his wild, philandering ways. He may have broken centuries of stiff Hapsburg protocol just when it was vitally important to do just that.

👑 I enjoyed Pataki’s impeccable historical research that informs the reader of the geo-political landscape in Austria-Hungary prior to the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, and precisely why that event was the immediate catalyst for Wold War I. She provides plenty of background leading up to this event from the POV of the Hapsburg court - including the rival European alliance blocs, the rise of nationalism in the A-H Empire, and aggressive militarism in Europe, to name but a few.