Description
She has a million followers on social media.
She uses her fashion-forward eye to pick the perfect angle and filter on every photo.
She’s iconic.
She’s a trend-setter.
She’s Marie Antoinette, the year is 3070, and she’s arrived in the Franc Kingdom to marry the prince, secure an alliance, and rake in likes from her fans.
Versailles is not the perfect palace Marie’s seen on The Apps. Her life is a maze of pointless rules, and the court watches her every move for mistakes. Her shy husband Louis is more interested in horses and computer-hacking than producing heirs. Versailles seems like a dream full of neon-lit statues, handsome android soldiers, and parties till dawn. Under the surface, it’s a creepy den of secrets: surveillance in Marie’s bedroom, censored news feeds, disappearing courtiers.
When Marie and Louis become king and queen long before they’re ready to rule, any efforts to aid their suffering subjects are stamped out by the mega-corporations of the First Estate. Between riots in Paris and image-wrecking social media firestorms, Marie can’t afford to lose her head. Using her social media savvy and Louis’ hacking knowledge, they try to fix their reputations and change their kingdom for the better, but the royals may find it’s already too late. They’re ruling over the end of an era.
Cooper Stark @lillian04_143
January 21, 2023
4
I thought when I started reading this that it would be a familiar story in a new setting, imagining characters from history in the future. I thought I knew what would happen, but instead, this book kept me guessing, sucked me in and kept me turning pages. Will Marie produce an heir like the original did, with a future-Louis who’s demisexual? How will Marie do at maintaining her power and using it for good? Will Louis and Marie right the wrongs of Parée and avoid repeating history? It was a true page-turner, definitely a worthwhile read.