Queen Bee

By: Amalie Howard

Narrated by: Nikki Patel

A girl seeking retribution against her backstabbing best friend finds her plans derailed once she reunites with the only boy she’s ever loved—a delightful second chance romance with the vibe of Bridgerton, from a USA Today bestselling author!

“A divine dip into Regency waters! What happens when you have to choose between revenge and love? Queen Bee takes flight.” —Jodi Picoult, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Wish You Were Here

Revenge is her opening move. Love might be the endgame.

Lady Ela Dalvi knows the exact moment her life was forever changed—when her best friend, Poppy, betrayed her without qualm over a boy, Lord Keston Osborn, heir to the Duke of Harbridge. She was sent away in disgrace, her reputation ruined.

Nearly three years later, eighteen-year-old Ela is consumed with bitterness and a desire for . . . revenge. Her enemy is quickly joining the crème de la crème of high society while she withers away in the English countryside.

With an audacious plan to get even, Ela disguises herself as a mysterious heiress and infiltrates London’s elite. But when Ela lays eyes on Keston once again, she begins to question whether vengeance is still her greatest desire.

In this complicated game of real-life chess, Ela must choose her next move: Finally bring down the queen or capture the king’s heart?

©2023 Amalie Howard (P)2023 Listening Library

Critic reviews

“A satisfyingly delightful tale of deception, retribution, and romance.” —Kirkus Reviews

“Fast-paced, engaging, and a lot of fun, Howard's novel is a true diamond of the first water.” —Booklist

“A divine dip into Regency waters! What happens when you have to choose between revenge and love? Set within a multicultural, LGBTQ-positive society, Queen Bee takes flight.” —Jodi Picoult, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Wish You Were Here

Enjoyable

I quite enjoyed this book. The story was very engaging and I loved how the chapters switched from eyla to Lyra. I loved the diverse characters, specifically in this time period and I loved the author’s note at the end of the book as well.

Lover of books

There were so many things I liked about this book. The ties to Machiavellian beliefs and the failings of it, the true power of forgiveness and the inclusion of people of color. It was a nice break from the reality of our time.

Wonderful read!

Queen Bee was an awesome read. I that I quite enjoyed. I love that the author incorporated things I've grown up with like coconut bake and currants roll into the story. I think the narration was very well done. The accent and characterizations were on point.

Mostly Enjoyed!

Got a little trite towards the last hour - up until then it was a fun ‘Mean Girls’-adjacent historical romance.

Loved it!

Wonderful to listen to-and the author note at the end was truly powerful.

I wish this was a series.

I love it

I adored every moment of this book. I love it 😍 bridgerton mixed with mean girls & gossip girl

Great characters, story and narrator

Niki Patel is a wonderful narrator. I love the story. The depth of the characters and the explanation of feelings I didn’t want to stop listening to it and I encourage everyone to do the same.

Loved it!!

I am a fan of Amalie Howard’s writing style, always entertaining. This story had a fun spin on a regency romance with a diverse character base and a reverse les mis’ story line. Narration was excellent. Hoping for spin off stories with the supporting characters.