Avail Yourself In Destiny's Hands: Five Tragic Rulers, Children Of Maria Theresa Crafted By Justin C. Vovk Displayed As Copy

really wanted to like this one more than I did, Sadly, I just couldn't. While an interesting and fairly easy and quick readwhich I do appreciate, especially for a book following multiple people with similar namesit also lacked sources for a lot of what was said, which always worries me when I'm reading about something I don't already have a decent amount of knowledge on myself.
Not bad, but not great, I would say if you're going to pick this one up don't take everything that is written in it as beingfactual, The writing is a little trite and textbookish, which made it the perfect airplane read, Detroit and back in five lifetimes, Not bad. This was an incredibly detailed and excellent biography done through the eyes of Maria Theresa and her five children, It's incredibly balanced. I had to use it to get a feel of the period and to understand, But I found it incredibly easy to read, understand them, With enough time for all, and well I would say that the three least known are in fact quite my favourite, Since a lot has been said about Marie Antoinette, Not as many covering her two sisters whom were where the story ends since they died last, This was a very enjoyable and interesting read, I have not read much of most of the featured historical figures before, the exception is Marie Antoinette, There was a lot of her in this book, but much ofof her other siblings and her mother, Maria Theresa, I recommend this book to anyone interested in European and/or Royal History, I actually started this during a trip to Prague and Budapest, when I realized how little I knew about the Habsburg dynasty that ruled central Europe foryears.
Vovyk concentrates on just five of Enpress Maria Theresa's children, whom she used unashamedly to create alliances with other powers, I couldn't help but pity the fate of very young girls sent off to foreign lands to marry men, some of whom were halfwits or boors.
Marie Antoinette, for example, was onlywhen she was dispatched to France, where she was forced to renounce her Austrian nationality in the most brutal fashion: being stripped naked of her Viennese clothes and having her entire retinueincluding her puppysent back to Austria.
She is also a more compassionate person than is commonly believed, For example, when overParisians died in an accident during her wedding celebrations, she sent her entire clothing allowance for that year to be used as relief for the surviving familiesa most uncommon gesture forth century nobility.


Some of her older sisters fared better, Charlotte, Queen of Naples, became a very effective monarch and actually ruled the roost because her husband preferred hunting to governing, And their brother Leopold brought excellent reforms to the Kingdom of Tuscany until Napoleon invaded,
If you want a wellresearched and readable book about late Eighteenth Century Europe, I highly recommend this one, An interesting book, about the reigning children of Maria Theresa, There were a few inaccuracies and typos, and the most unhelpful family tree I have ever seen, A good clear one would have clarified rather than muddled the complex family relationships here! Still I was somewhat unfamiliar with some of the historical figures here especially the families in Naples and Parma, so it is a good starting point for further reading.
Good book as an overview of the children of Empress Maria Theresa, I've read other more detailed books, but this one is good for anyone looking for a detailed refresher on these facinating people who shaped history.
Only think that bothered me was all the heavy footnoting in each chapter, Made me feel like the author was copying word for word from other texts, I liked the book but as usual with more than one subject, I lost track of who was who, . . Especially with their children. They had a habit of naming children after each other so there were several with the same names, Loved the history behind the book but found the format hard to read, Kind of a history text book combined with letters and diaries, A look at five of the children of Empress Maria Theresa of Austria, and their turbulent times on the thrones of Europe, Each of them in their own ways had to deal with revolution, war, and the ending of their dreams, Joseph II became Holy Roman Emperor after the death of his father, and coruler with his mother, but his personal life was a shambles, and he nearly brought Hapsburg rule to an end.
Leopold II was first Grand Duke of Tuscany, and married happily sixteen children there,and would succeed his brother as HRE, but had the misfortune of dying early.
Of the sisters, Amalia married the Duke of Parma, and while the marriage started off badly, she did manage to get some proficency in the art of ruling.
Maria Carolina married the King of Naples, bore numerous children seventeen children there, and turned herself into a thorn in Napoleon's side in his attempts to conquer southern Italy.
Then there's

Marie Antoinette, the most unfortunate of the daughters, and last Queen of France,

The book does have some innaccuracies, and quite a few typos, but on the whole the research is solid, There is a bibliography, index and extensive notes, Overall, this gets four, Maria Theresa, Holy Roman Empress and AustriHungarian Queen in the's, hadchildren, five of whom became rulers in their own right across Europe.
This book follows the stories of those five children with bits and pieces of their other siblings, their children, the history and political landscape of a revolutionary Europe, history of Prussian, Russian, Ottoman, French, and Spanish wars, including the French Revolution and Napoleon's campaigns.
I loved learning more about Joseph II Maria Theresa's successor and Holy Roman Emperor Leopold II, Duke of Tuscany and Holy Roman Emperor after Joseph's death Maria Amalia, Duchess of Parma in Italy, Maria Carolina/Charlotte, Queen of Naples and Marie Antoinette, Queen of France.
I was astounded at how these five individuals and their political alliances and strategic marriages covered over a third of Europe, Maria Theresa hadgrand children and they were spread from the Netherlands to Italy, the Bourbons in Spain and France, and throughout Central Europe, including a granddaughter who was Napoleon's second wife and therefore Empress of the French, and another who married Louis Phillpe d'Orleans and become Queen of France.


All this being said, this author needs a serious editor, I felt that there were contradictory statements within paragraphs, he always calls these five rulers "Maria Theresa's five special children" which just grated on my nerves special really Is that the best you can do.
I also think that as these rulers started having children, who all had the same names, essentially, it was really confusing to try and keep them straight.
And the wars and alliances that had individual cities or regions switching their allegiances would have been easier to keep straight with a few more maps there is one map in the front, and a few family charts, but I still found them lacking.
Very well written, many new and interesting facts, Highly recommend it. Honestly, it was alright.
Very easy to read but it was pretty clear that the author is quite biased,
If you want to get a general sense of what life was like for this Austrian family, then this is an easy read.

But if you want actual facts and precise dates, this is not for you,
The dates are all jumbled together, a map would've helped, and the names just get really confusing when multiple children have the same first name but the author doesn't spend the time to address who is who.
Royal biographies especially those of female Royals whose lives end in tragedy really draws you in, I really liked this possibly because it's the first one I've read in more than a year, No idea whether it deserves theI've given it but honestly I would have given itif it wasn't for the pessimism and the unnecessary sense of foreboding that was there from the beginning of the book.
For example, I don't think that Joseph II had such a bad life oh so, his first and beloved wife died young and he didn't like his second wife but he still ruled a huge Empire and he didn't lose much of it during his lifetime.
Also Leopold's life is a downright happy and contented one in my opinion loving wife, huge family, a good enough reign in Tuscany, son becoming the Emperor etc.
. No one can compare with Marie Antoinette's end of course it was heart wrenching to read that, Charlotte and Amalia of course didn't have perfect lives they were banished and they couldn't live in the glory they were accustomed, but but no one killed them, did they Anyway, this is a family I love to read about and the book gave a glimpse of the big picture empires crumbling, people rising.
All in all I did enjoy this, Enjoyed this history lesson of the Hapsburg's and The Holy Roman Empire as led by Maria Theresa and then herspecial children very much.
Not historical fiction but still told in an engaging and colorful manner which not only held my interest but had me looking forward to my history lesson.
I loved it. Slightly dry and slow in parts, but interesting anyway, It was easy to power through the less fascinating details to get to the more interesting family dynamics involved, This is incoherent and I am not sure it is even entirely accurate, My edition could have done with better diagramming to try to work out who was who,stars. A well written and interesting biography covering the lives of at leasthistorical figures who arent widely mentioned, I appreciate the balance Vovk gives to all five of the figures he surveys rather than giving inordinate page time to those like Marie Antoinette whose stories have already been widely covered.
It was interesting enough, but there wasn't a whole lot of new information I hadn't already heard of before, It would probably serve better/be more interesting for someone who didn't already know a lot about the Habsburgs as I do, There were quite a few factual errors that annoyed me as well, such as saying something to the effect of "Marie Antoinette had to watch her brother in law, the Comte de Provence, marry a Savoyard Princess and have children of his own.
" That was the Comte d'Artois, Provence never had children, about Maria Theresa so much has been said and written, about her daughter Marie Antoinette oh my god, twice as much probably! now about the other brothers and sisters.
. i for one knew almost next to nothing so this book was a very good read and a very informative surprise!
all the brothers and sisters are presented in a clear and very engaging manner, with a ton of information on the lesser known ones being presented to us and it is fascinating!
may not be perfect in terms of historic content but it is certainly worth the read!

Justin Vovk's "In Destiny's Hands" is the heartbreaking story of five children of Austria's iconic empress, Maria Theresa, who watched as their royal worlds were ripped apart by tragedy and epic misfortunes.
These are the stories of Joseph, whose disastrous reign forced Austria to the brink of civil war Amalia, the brazen and scandalous duchess who married a boyprince and died exiled and forgotten Leopold, Maria Theresa's unassuming second son, who was the envy of Europe until his tumultuous reign was cut tragically short Maria Carolina, the very Austrian queen of Naples, who ended her days fighting Napoleon with her dying breath and Marie Antoinette, the legendary teenage bride, who was hated and reviled as Queen of France and met her ultimate fate on the guillotine, a testimony to her mother's vain ambition.
Painstakingly researched and masterfully crafted, In "Destiny's Hands" brings to vivid life the world of eighteenth century like never before, "Readers will find many fascinating details in Vovk's "In Destiny's Hands, " Vovk has shed light on these individuals and provided a much needed new work on Maria Theresa's progeny, "
Julia P. Gelardi, author of the critically acclaimed "Born to Rule: Five Reigning Consorts, Granddaughters of Queen Victoria" and "In Triumph's Wake: Royal Mothers, Tragic Daughters, and the Price They Paid For Glory"

"Be prepared for heart break, smiles, and most of all, a roller coaster of enlightenment.
. . you will not be able to it down, "
David Antunes, M. A. , author of "Napoleon's Way: How One Little Man Changed the World",