Name: My Contrary Mary
ISBN: 9780062930064

Cynthia Hand

Brodi Ashton

Jodi Meadows

Long live the queen: The authors who brought you the New York Times bestselling My Lady Jane kick off an all-new historical trilogy with the classy, courtly tale of Mary, Queen of Scots. Welcome to Renaissance France, a place of poison and plots, of beauties and beasts, of mice and . . . queens? Mary is the queen of Scotland and the jewel of the French court. Except when she’s a mouse. Yes, reader, Mary is an Eðian (shapeshifter) in a kingdom where Verities rule. It’s a secret that could cost her a head—or a tail. Luckily, Mary has a confidant in her betrothed, Francis. But things at the gilded court take a treacherous turn after the king meets a suspicious end. Thrust onto the throne, Mary and Francis face a viper’s nest of conspiracies, traps, and treason. And if Mary’s secret is revealed, heads are bound to roll. With a royally clever sense of humor, Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows continue their campaign to turn history on its head in this YA fantasy that’s perfect for fans of A Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue.

My Contrary Mary

This series is my palate cleanser because it’s entertaining, I love the irreverent takes on history and historical figures. There was a cameo from the other characters in earlier books (like Jane and Gifford) which made me laugh and also glad because I did wonder what they went on to do after their story ended.

This story is about Mary, Queen of Scots and the year she married her childhood friend and betrothed, Francis (aka soon-to-be King of France). It’s a right mess because all the adults on both sides are scheming to steal the throne while there’s a rising threat from factions that support the Edians (people who can transform into animals). Some people back in Scotland want Mary dead because they believe her to be a Verity (people with no Edian forms) but her big secret is that she is an Edian too—she is a mouse. And her ladies in waiting are also Edians masquerading as Verities so that Scotland’s future can be secured via her marriage to the dauphin of France. Very funny and full of contemporary references.

This book was hilarious. I loved all of Ari’s predictions that were actually movie references. I am looking forward to reading more by these authors.

Alison

Campbell Berry

I really wanted to love this book because I love Mary, Queen of Scots but I just didn't. The book was boring and I didn't like how the narrators would give their opinion or how they tried adding pop culture references. I ended up skimming the last 50+ pages. I did think it had a unique plot though.

Sahi K

I requested the audio galley without realizing that it didn’t have the full cast narrators that the usual audiobooks in the series have, which was a disappointment. 

But otherwise this story of Mary was a lot of fun. The Queen of Scots is a great character, strong and compassionate and with good convictions. She is well supported by her husband Francis who is more of a thinker than a doer, and even if it takes time, he does stand up for what’s right. While Ari and Liv’s romance itself was cute, I can’t say I was always impressed with her decisions. 

I was not always able to recognize the historical puns or references, but Ari’s visions of Hollywood movies were absolutely hilarious and I had a good laugh. This turned out to be a good beginning for the series, and I’m very excited to see which other Mary’s story we will get to read about in the sequel.

Long live the queen: The authors who brought you the New York Times bestselling My Lady Jane kick off an all-new historical trilogy with the classy, courtly tale of Mary, Queen of Scots. Welcome to Renaissance France, a place of poison and plots, of beauties and beasts, of mice and . . . queens? Mary is the queen of Scotland and the jewel of the French court. Except when she's a mouse. Yes, reader, Mary is an Eðian (shapeshifter) in a kingdom where Verities rule. It's a secret that could cost her a head--or a tail. Luckily, Mary has a confidant in her betrothed, Francis. But things at the gilded court take a treacherous turn after the king meets a suspicious end. Thrust onto the throne, Mary and Francis face a viper's nest of conspiracies, traps, and treason. And if Mary's secret is revealed, heads are bound to roll. With a royally clever sense of humor, Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows continue their campaign to turn history on its head in this YA fantasy that's perfect for fans of A Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue.

Candyce Kirk

Luna

** spoiler alert **
           i was not expecting another “you can’t actually trust women’s emotions b/c every “i’m not into you like that” for 400 pages is just a lie” story from these authors but here we are. rly is it supposed to be cute to insinuate that women can’t know their own emotions until they’re drugged and then they magically fall in love with someone they’ve staunchly said they’re not interested in? no? okay

besides that whole being drugged as part of a romantic plot thing, we have:

- angst 
- pettiness
- teenagers needing to make babies
- a dash of incest 

once again i will say no means no and if this story just supported that and either didn’t force a romance to work retroactively (like “oh NOW i know i’ve always loved you” girl you literally said you didn’t. let women be believed!!! stop making every character a liar when they’re not interested in someone!!) or had mary like francis from the start this would’ve mostly slapped

Alli King

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC (Voice Galley)!

Hand, Ashton, and Meadows just rock this set up. Set in the same world of Edians and Verities as My Lady Jane, this book follows Mary (Queen of Scots), Francis (dauphin -> king of France), and Ari (daughter of Nostradamus). 

It has the same levity, wit, and willingness to eschew facts for happy endings as they showed In the My Lady Janies and books. It’s not longer a novel writing style, so some of the magic is slightly lost. However, I greatly enjoyed reading it and will continue to read all such books by these lovely authors!

laura

I really loved this read. I really was so invested in all the characters. I also adored the narrators in the read and loved how this story was structured. I also loved how the book was connected to the my lady Jane book. I also really loved Francis as main character. I also loved how the magic system in this read has been in the same in all their reads. I also really enjoyed how the twisted the story!! This read is about 400 pages but i flew through it!! Such a enjoyable read!!

Paige Green

Disclaimer: I received an early access audiobook from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Book: My Contrary Mary

Author: Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, Jodi Meadows

Book Series: Mary Book 1

Rating: 5/5

Diversity: Sapphic romance with one of the MCs, Ace side character

Recommended For...: historical fiction, young adult readers, The Lady Janies lovers

Publication Date: June 22, 2021

Genre: YA Historical Fiction

Recommended Age: 13+ (some violence, some language, death, misogyny)

Explanation of CWs: There is some slight violence in this book and the book does have the occasional curse. The book also has some death involved with the plot and because it’s from the Renaissance Period there are some misogynistic views on our MCs and the side characters which reduce them, even a powerful queen, to just a womb on legs. This is quickly thwarted by the kickass MCs though.

Publisher: HarperTeen

Pages: 512

Synopsis: Welcome to Renaissance France, a place of poison and plots, of beauties and beasts, of mice and . . . queens?⠀
⠀
Mary is the queen of Scotland and the jewel of the French court. Except when she's a mouse. Yes, reader, Mary is an Eðian (shapeshifter) in a kingdom where Verities rule. It's a secret that could cost her a head—or a tail.⠀
⠀
Luckily, Mary has a confidant in her betrothed, Francis. But after the king meets a suspicious end, things at the gilded court take a treacherous turn. Thrust onto the throne, Mary and Francis are forced to navigate a viper's nest of conspiracies, traps, and treason. And if Mary's secret is revealed, heads are bound to roll.

Review: As my first book into The Lady Janies universe I am absolutely floored at how great this book is! I immediately loved this book from the first chapter. The book is well done, it’s funny, and it’s the right kind of historical fiction for me. It doesn’t take history too seriously and really shows that those of the past were just like us. I really liked the character and how well done they were. I also really liked the world building and the pacing was on par as well. The book’s plot was well written and I was immediately invested in this read. I also thought the romance was well done.

The only issue I really had with this book is that the ending leaves me wanting more and the finale was a bit too quick in my opinion.

Verdict: Highly recommend!

Elodia

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book 

My Contrary Mary was a fun and fast-paced read. I loved the show Reign and this book reminded me of so much of it!

The characters were really well written, especially Mary! She was strong but still somewhat too trusting, which led to some betrayals.

Frances had the most development throughout the book. He was very passive, both Mary and his mom would make decisions for him, but by the end, he started standing up for himself.

Ari's sections were delightful. She was the most dimensional character and did things she knew were bad, but most of the time she had good reasons. Her visions and the references in them were hilarious.

It’s rare for a book to make me laugh, but My Contrary Mary had me laughing throughout the book.

Taylor McNeely

I’m so upset because I really wanted to like this book since I loved the Plain Jane series, but I just couldn’t get into it. I almost DNFed My Contrary Mary several times while reading it but I pushed through to see how it would end. I didn’t really connect with or totally love the main characters, Mary and Francis, and I don’t have a high opinion about the side characters either. I’m not saying this book is totally horrible. It still had funny parts and I love when the narrators break the fourth wall, but it was just okay for me. COMES OUT JUNE 22ND

*Thank you to @netgalley for my advanced copy. All opinions are my own.*

Nikki Sojkowski

**This review and more can be found at Love at First Write**

An ARC of this audiobook was provided to me by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This series as a concept had me so unbelievably excited. After completing a trilogy of historical Jane retellings, Hand, Ashton, and Meadows have set their sights on Marys. The very first, My Contrary Mary, is a Mary Queen of Scots retelling. Get ready to be transported to Renaissance France where Mary is a ward of the French Court!

The book's narration comes from several shifting POV's (primarily Mary), as well as some third-person narrator comments. The narrator's are really what makes this book so special. They are absolutely hilarious, providing a 'so-here-is-the-scoop' tone. They are terrible gossips, but charmingly witty at the same time. They are that friend in college/high school that you always turned to when you wanted to hear about the latest scandals without going through the effort of snooping things out for yourself. Before the book even properly started I was cry-laughing at the dedication: "For the people who feel like they have to be perfect; and for France. We're sorry for what we're about to do to your history, but it was your turn." 

I found myself enjoying the return to the Eðian/Verity dynamic (shapeshifter/pure humans) as a metaphor for the disparity and tensions between Catholics and Protestants at the time. It is a cool way to reframe this time period, and was pretty genius! 

On top of the comedy, the characters were so well developed. I truly felt for Mary and Francis, and even the side characters like Mary Livingston and Ari. Their actions and motivations felt real, and the stakes and betrayals in court were gutting. While of course this is a series of Marys, in a sense each book is also a stand alone, which I think is a boon to the work. Readers don't necessarily have to read The Lady Janies series to enjoy this latest work. Comedy and Historical Fiction blend together effortlessly in this gem of a book. Bonus points? Bonus points! On top of everything, I actually feel like I learned a lot reading this book. The plot was surprisingly historically accurate, if we overlook the whole fantasy shapeshifting element haha.

All in all, My Contrary Mary is a must-read, and I impatiently await the additions of Marie Curie and Mary Mallon to the new Mary series!

Andrada D

So, you see, this was an OK read. I loved to see them recuperating Mary, Queen of Scots, as many history aficionados must admit fate wasn't fair with her.

My problem? Compared to the Jane series, the book was less- less romantic, less funny, less engaging, so I must rate it less. 

But overall, fans of the series should rejoice, this new entry offers a delightful enough read, finally bringing due justice to Mary (and Francis. And, really, every fan of The Reign. We just wanted them to be happy!)

Geneviève Rouleau

Disclaimer: I received an ARC of the AUDIOBOOK through NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Okay, first things first, while reading my review, keep in mind that : being an ARC, the content was generated by a synthetic voice. Which means the voice is flat, and since this particular trio of authors is known for its humour, those moments were actually kinda hard to distinguish 😅

As always, these authors did a fantastic job of including modern pop culture references, puns, and humour in their retold version of Mary Queen of Scots' life. I always enjoy it when they also include themselves in the book (ex : voicing their thoughts regarding something a character did or said) ALSO, some characters from My Lady Jane (def my fave book by these authors) were included and now I definitely want to go reread that one hahah! 

Overall, fun and enjoyable, and I'd definitely reread this in physical form or listen to this again with a HUMAN narrated audiobook 😅 3⭐