Allison Pataki’s new historical novel, THE ACCIDENTAL EMPRESS, makes a compelling argument that Sisi (the last known Habsburg Empress) belongs in the exclusive clique that includes Anne Boleyn, Marie Antoinette and Princess Diana. (Vanity Fair asks readers to "think of it as The First Wives Club meets Game of Thrones.") Pataki became intrigued with Sisi while in Austria and Hungary on a family trip with her dad, the former Governor of New York, George Pataki. In a recent interview with Vanity Fair, she states that "Sisi was arguably the first modern celebrity who operated on a global scale… She captured peoples’ hearts and imaginations the way Diana did, and yet, she’s become a footnote in history.” This is where THE ACCIDENTAL EMPRESS begins.

Wikipedia lists the origins of the Habsburgs as such: "The House of Habsburg (/ˈhæbs.bɜrɡ/; German pronunciation: [ˈhaːps.bʊʁk]), also spelled Hapsburg, was one of the most important royal houses of Europe. The throne of the Holy Roman Empire was continuously occupied by the Habsburgs between 1438 and 1740. The house also produced emperors and kings of the Kingdom of Bohemia, Kingdom of England (Jure uxoris King), Kingdom of France {Queen consort}, Kingdom of Germany, Kingdom of Hungary, Empire of Russia, Kingdom of Croatia, Second Mexican Empire, Kingdom of Ireland, Kingdom of Portugal, and Habsburg Spain, as well as rulers of several Dutch and Italian principalities." It is this royal lineage into which Sisi is thrown and with which THE ACCIDENTAL EMPRESS weaves its romantic tale.

"Pataki takes special care to ensure that readers fall in love with Sisi, the Fairy Queen. She does; we adore Sisi and will follow her anywhere. The historical depth of the backdrop against which she struggles and succeeds just enhances the romantic draw of this lovely novel."

Pataki clearly soaked up a lot of atmosphere while touring the land of the Habsburgs. Every page is rich with the details that transport readers back to this time of manners, morales and manipulation that is a world away from our real lives at present. THE ACCIDENTAL EMPRESS is a strange love story, one that manages to convey romance and eroticism without resorting to the crass eruptions of the present literary fascination with power and privilege. Even the birth of their children brings a quiet romantic fervor to their lives, this strangely thrown-together couple who eventually found real love and forged a life.

It is mentioned that “A Midsummer Night's Dream” is Sisi's favorite Shakespeare play. The lovestruck wanderings of these characters are the perfect mirror-image to Sisi's own romantic foibles. Being a very young bride and having to play to the expectations of so many older folks within the scope of reigning over an empire is a difficult sleight-of-hand to perform, but Sisi does it with all the lovely intelligent and heartfelt emotional reactions of a Shakespeare heroine.

Pataki is adept at conveying the tone of the court at this time and the ways in which Sisi's life --- her mental, emotional and physical health --- played out against the strictures of the requirements of her royal life. THE ACCIDENTAL EMPRESS makes the case that Sisi was a feminist, fighting these oppressive ways while trying to learn the paths of her own true heart. In love with her husband, Sisi does everything possible to bring about a world of peace and prosperity but stops at nothing to ensure the protection of her husband and the life and family they create together.

THE ACCIDENTAL EMPRESS gives us a multi-faceted look into the public and personal places inside the Empire, and Pataki takes special care to ensure that readers fall in love with Sisi, the Fairy Queen. She does; we adore Sisi and will follow her anywhere. The historical depth of the backdrop against which she struggles and succeeds just enhances the romantic draw of this lovely novel.