Have always admired Worsley and her attempts to make British history more accessible but unfortunately this just reads as a bit too juvenile for me.

Unlike some alternative histories, this book was really good. I had an immediate connection to the characters and the story was believable. For a children's book it was easy to follow and it had enough twists to be able to enjoy in one setting

Thank you for the opportunity to read this book. Unfortunately, it wasn't for me, but I'm sure others will love it.

I loved this book. Lucy Worsley is definitley a historian I look up to and so happy she has written a few of these YA novels depciting famous inhabitants of the Historic Royal Palaces that Worsley curates for. Thank you for the ARC, I loved it!

Very interesting to see Lucy writing fiction and weaving in historical fact. It flows well, although the writing is a little staid. Certainly a good choice of book for young book readers who love both fiction and history.

With Lucy Worsley's writing you really get a feel for the time period and how it must have been for Victoria and her companions. My Name is Victoria is absolutely wonderfully told and I couldn't put it down.

Despite being aimed at younger readers I really enjoyed this book. This book follows a young Queen Victoria and her childhood companion Miss V Conroy. In history books, it is said that Victoria did not like Miss Conroy but Lucy takes a different take on events. In this book, the girls are written as being very close with Miss V willing to do anything for Victoria. We see this at the end of the book when the story takes a shocking turn.

What I really enjoyed about the book is that you can clearly see Lucy's passion and knowledge for history when you read the book. Lucy clearly knows what she writing about and although this is a work of fiction the places and characters were real.. The story is quite believable and it is an interesting take on events.

I hope that Lucy will write a similar novel in the future as I really enjoyed her first one Eliza Rose and this one was just as good. I think that she is really good at taking the facts and turning them into her own story.

Adult me would give this a 3.5 but I think it's a brilliant introduction to historical fiction for 8-12 year olds so I'm adding another half a star.

This is a lovely tale of genuine friendship forming between two very different little girls. Princess (later Queen) Victoria and Miss V. Conroy. Miss V. is sent to live with Victoria to give her appropriate company for age. There are questions over the loyalty of Miss V's father, John Conroy, who works at the palace and his main job is to protect Victoria and her family.

The friendship between the girls grows in a lovely, authentic way. They're pushed together and things are initially a bit awkward but their friendship is beautiful by the end. It's a real coming of age story and one that we don't see very often in terms of royalty. I've never really read about Queen Victoria's childhood before and I enjoyed it a lot.

I also love that this is written by a real historian- I can trust it to be a more accurate story and it makes for a such a good children's historical fic. I would definitely recommend this one and will look to read Lucy Worsley's first novel Eliza Rose in the future.

This book, which is aimed at older children/young teenagers, tells us of the lives of two girls named Victoria. The more famous of these two is the Princess Victoria, daughter of the Duke and Duchess of Kent. With the death of a number of her uncles, she becomes heir to the throne of Great Britain. The other Victoria is “Miss V.”, the daughter of Sir John Conroy. She is roughly the same age as the princess and becomes her companion.
Princess Victoria lives in Kensington Palace, with her mother, a widow, and her governess and teacher, Baroness Lehzen. Sir John Conroy is comptroller of this household and, with the Duchess of Kent, they devised something called the “Kensington System”. This ensured that the young princess was kept isolated and obedient, under the strict control of the adults around her.
Miss V. is brought into the household at the age of 10 to be a companion for the princess, but her reception is not particularly enthusiastic. Princess Victoria is very unhappy with her restricted life and is highly distrustful of young companion.
Lucy Worsley has used real historical characters and settings in this novel, but she has used her imagination to develop the relationships between them. I loved the “what if” plot development, which took me by surprise.
This was a very enjoyable read for me. The settings were described in a way which made them visible in my mind and the characters were well developed and interesting. I am a fan of Lucy Worsley’s history programmes and I have to say, I’m a fan of her novel, “My Name is Victoria”!

The book is narrated not by Princess Victoria, heir to the throne of Great Britain (and the Empire etc…), but by Miss V Conroy. Miss V, as she is known to everyone, is the younger daughter of John Conroy, comptroller of the household of the Princess and her mother, the Duchess of Kent. All the characters in this book are real – Conroy and the Duchess, Miss V, Victoria’s other attendants and the rest of the Hanoverian Royal Family, even her dog, Dash – but the story of what happens to her is altered, very slightly. Victoria and Miss V become friends – in fact Miss V is the only young friend available under the repressive Kensington System set up by Conroy – and support each other through the years leading up to Victoria’s reign. Miss V learns to mistrust her father and to understand the life that Victoria will have to lead when she is Queen.

Lucy Worsley has some fun with the story of Victoria and Miss V, blending solid historical facts with both the speculative rumours of the day and few interesting ideas of her own. The ending would certainly come under the heading of alternative history but, because it is reasoned out and handled so well, it is entirely believable.

My Name is Victoria by Lucy Worsley

It is the late 1820s and King George IV is close to death. He will be succeeded by his brother William who is not expected to survive George for long. His heir, Princess Victoria, is effectively held captive in Kensington Palace by her mother and her mother’s dearest friend Sir John Conroy. Conroy is the creator of the Kensington System, a regime designed to keep Victoria constantly under observation and so secure from the plots of her royal relatives who might fancy themselves as heirs to the British throne, rather than this lonely, unhappy yet spirited child. But Conroy wants to extend his influence over Victoria even more and to do that he gives Victoria his own daughter, known to one and all as Miss V (to distinguish her from Miss Conroy, her elder sister, and from the princess), as companion, sister and, Conroy hopes, spy. But both Victoria and Miss V have minds of their own and, after uneasy and suspicious beginnings, they form the tightest of friendships.

And so begins the story of Princess Victoria and Miss V’s friendship. With half of the novel covering their years as small children, about the age of 10 or 11, the second takes us up to their later teens and the arrival of German princes and the relentless approach of fate in the shape of an ailing King William IV.

Lucy Worsley does such a fine job of spreading her enthusiasm and knowledge of history. She’s an inspirational presenter and writer, and I loved Eliza Rose, Lucy Worsley’s debut novel for young adults which told the story of Henry VIII’s tragic fifth queen, Katherine Howard. This time, the author goes back (or forward) to another period of history and once again reveals a young girl who is in many ways, despite the glamorous appearances of power, a vulnerable victim of history. Princess Victoria, though, is determined to win her freedom from the enemy, which is here represented by Conroy and the Kensington System. And history tells us how this will turn out.

But My Name is Victoria isn’t quite as it seems and it’s possibly because of this that the book lost me during the second half when we move from historical fiction to historical fantasy or alternate history. This is, though, my fault. I’ve never got on with alternate history, especially when I know quite well the period of history from which we’re diverted. However likeable, stubborn and proud she is, I didn’t recognise Princess Victoria from history, or her mother, or the German princes. The princess’s mother plays barely a role here.

Having said all that, this is a novel aimed at children, not at me. Whereas Eliza Rose seemed to me to have a wide appeal across ages – perhaps because of its themes and dire consequences, My Name is Victoria feels more comfortably targeted at younger readers. And I have no doubt that they will thoroughly enjoy it! I love the idea of children being inspired to discover history for themselves thanks to the skills of such historians and writers as Lucy Worsley. This happened to me as a child and teenager with the marvellous Jean Plaidy, whose books I still cherish all these years on. I can see parallels between Jean Plaidy and Lucy Worsley and that makes me very happy indeed. I’ll be sure to read all of the novels that Lucy Worsley produces, even though I must accept that not all of them, or indeed any, were written with me in mind!

Other review
Eliza Rose

I loved, loved, loved the idea behind this novel!
Worsley presents the childhood of one of England's greatest monarchs, Queen Victoria, in a new light. It looks at the cruelty of the system which she lived under, very truthfully. The first half of the novel does drag a little, but picks up massively in the second 'alternative reality' half of the novel. I'm not usually a fan of alternative history, but this is so well done.
Highly recommended!

The years before Victoria came to the throne are not well known, although writers such as Alison Plowden and Jean Plaidy did cover this period in their books. However what sets this story apart is the twist at the end of the tale. Lucy Worsley is a serious historian who has the knack of bringing her subject alive and taking us back to that period in time. A brilliant addition to the corpus of fiction about Victoria.

This tells an imaginary version of Victoria's teenage years through the eyes of her companion. Though pleasant and nicely written, it is more suited to teenagers than adults.

Miss V is sent to Kensington Palace to befriend the Princess Victoria but she soon learns she is expected to be more than just a playmate. Her father puts a huge burden on her young shoulders and as she becomes aware of all the secrets and schemes involved in life at the palace, she has to choose between the loyalty she has to her friend and that to her father.
Never having been much good at history, I don't know how much of the story is supposed to be true about the young Queen Victoria's childhood but this is certainly an intriguing tale!

As a huge fan of Lucy Worsley, I knew I'd enjoy My Name is Victoria.

The book is a fun piece of historical fiction, centred around the relationship between a young Queen Victoria and a girl her own age. Without giving any of the book's content away, I thought Ms. Worsley was really clever with her story line and plot twists, and I certainly did not see that ending coming.

While My Name is Victoria is a charming book aimed at a younger audience, it is also a great light read for adults.

4.5 stars

Tapping perfectly into the current thirst for all things Victoria, this will be of interest to readers older than Worsley's target age group, as well as upper primary/lower secondary students.

I loved Eliza Rose, I love Worsley's enthusiastic and passionate TV work, and think she's already done some sterling work bringing history to life for a new generation. Here, we get another unknown and (with licence taken) unusual look at scenes 'behind the crown' - at Queen Victoria's days as an imprisoned princess, and a girl who was asked to be her companion - and to spy on her.

I couldn't find out much about the real 'Miss V Conroy' though was was real, she (as well as her siblings) was charged with playing with the young Victoria, and did spend many years with her before Victoria's ascension to the throne. Here, she is a fully fleshed young woman, daughter to the hated Sir John Conroy, 'companion' himself to Victoria's Duchess mother, angling for power and controlling the princess with his own children.

Called 'Miss V' by everyone, to distinguish her from bother her older sister and the princess with whom she shares a new, Miss V unwillingly but dutifully does her father's bidding, reporting back regularly on Victoria's frame of mind, her schemes, her very thoughts. She grows from a dutiful girl of 11 to a composed and spirited 16 year old, alongside her playmate, and we see the life the princess is likely to have lived under the crippling 'Kensington System' of Sir John's creation.

As ever, Worsley creates a full world of characters and locations, with gardens and palaces and coaches bringing the period to life for the reader. There are powerful scenes showing the impetuousness of the restrained young Victoria, the power struggle going on around her, how the public felt about her, and the meeting with cousins and suitors.

She's a different character to the one we've seen recently on television, the one that I remember from biographies I read as a girl - but Worsley has an answer for that too, and it may not be quite what you'd expect. The ending, while I could see it coming, is one that's going to surprise many, and needs a little pinch of salt.

However, I loved the idea of it, and everything that came before. I enjoy historical books that help make sense of the past, put events in context - here we see the royal family's issues with succession, the connections with family abroad, not much of the struggles of the everyday working classes, but the important story of how Victoria's background came to be important in her later reign. Miss V is the heart of the book, the moral heart as well as our narrator, and it's lovely to witness such a famous queen in her younger days. I imagine most readers will look forward to the later scenes in the book when they know a certain German prince will likely make an appearance.

And yes, he does... Enjoy!

Cleverly constructed, lots of insight into real people and real times, this is likely to appeal more to female readers I would guess, with lots of talk of dresses and dances. It's a different take on a fascinating woman, just as the recent 'Lydia' by Natasha Farrant made you look at Austen's youngest Bennett sister with fresh eyes.

Enjoyable look at one of our most famous monarchs, one for ages 10-15.

With thanks to Netgalley for the advance e-copy.

<i>My Name is Victoria</i> by Lucy Worsley
Publisher: Bloomsbury Children's
Publication date: 09 March 2017

Miss V. Conroy is a quiet, honest, and dependable girl who knows how to act like a proper lady. Her father John Conroy whisks her away on a Very Important Mission -- Miss V. is to be the companion to Princess Victoria. She will befriend the headstrong princess and report what Victoria says and does to her father. But Miss V. has misgivings about her new role in Kensington Palace, and as she grows up, Miss V. must decide if she is loyal to her father and his Kensington System or to her friend and future ruler Victoria.

We so rarely get to see what Queen Victoria's tragic, lonely childhood was like -- popular culture and history books tend to focus on her reign or the period immediately before she ascended to the throne. In this children's novel, we get to catch a glimpse at what Victoria's secluded childhood might have been like. Most of the characters are real people; Miss V. and John Conroy, Baroness Lehzen, The Duchess of Kent, Victoria herself, and many others were real, historical figures both inside and outside of Kensington Palace. The Kensington System, which plays a major role in the book, really was an incredibly strict system devised by Victoria's mother and Conroy. It was intended to isolate the princess and make her dependent on them so they could wield power through her if and when she became Queen. There are a lot of fictional occurrences throughout the book, however so much of the history is just as fascinating as the fiction. Lucy Worsley, a well-known and well-respected historian and BBC presenter, is the perfect person to write this book -- her knowledge of the inner workings of Victoria's Kensington Palace and the history therein blends beautifully with the story.

<i>My Name is Victoria</i> is told in the first person and is split between Miss V.'s childhood entry into the Kensington System and her later teenage years at Victoria's side. While it draws upon a lot of history, the story is a fictionalised account of how Victoria grew up and how she felt about her childhood companion. Victoria's diaries don't have many positive things to say about Miss V., who she considered a spy for her father, but this is explained away and the girls are close friends in the novel. We see how Victoria could have felt about her strict and lonely upbringing and how she may have rebelled against it. This is the story of how a stubborn and willfull girl transformed into the strong monarch.

This is a children's book, but it is a great, quick read for adults who, like myself, are fascinated by Queen Victoria. It reminded me of the beloved Royal Diaries spin-off of the Dear America series, which I was completely obsessed with as a child. This is a great book for young historians and it is full of the strength of female friendship, the lessons of history, and the power we hold over our destinies.

Rating: 4/5

Really good historical fiction books for children are hard to find but this one really hits the spot. Telling the story of a young queen Victoria, you feel as though you are getting to know the queen herself and unravelling some of the myths behind here as a young girl growing up in the shadow of power. Brilliantly written and hugely enjoyable, will definitely be an addition to my class bookshelves.

I received a free E-Arc from Netgalley.

First things first, I loved this book. Okay, I loved 90% of this book. It was a thoroughly enjoyable novel, a fascinating insight into the early years of Princess Victoria and an exceptionally well-researched novel. If anyone has read the Lady Grace Mysteries set in the first Elizabethan England I would recommend this story to them.

The first half of the story follows the exploits of the young Princess and her friend Miss V. at the age of about 11. This part of the story is long and detailed, but that's no bad thing because the second half of the novel is somewhat faster paced and follows the two girls between the ages of about 16 and 18.

The author manages to portray the enemy of the story, Miss V's father, Sir John Conroy, in both a sympathetic and a cruel way, highlighting his meanness and ambitions for his future, while also showing him as an almost loving father to his daughter, Miss V. It is only near the end of the novel that his ambitious nature makes it almost impossible to like the man anymore.

Princess Victoria's mother is a shadowy character who is hardly ever seen, and it's the nurse and the governess who populate the majority of the story, along with their dog, Dash, and poor old Princess Sophia, at least until near the end of the story when a few German princes make an appearance. And it was from here on that I disliked the story. I genuinely can appreciate the author's intentions in making some changes to the accepted story, but the more I think about them, the more I think that it's just a reach too far to expect the reader to accept the changes. Almost like Alison Weir with her fictional books on Elizabeth I, I found the changes undermine my own, previous, appreciation of the 'historical personage' and it went too much against what I was expecting to be easy to accept and quite frankly, it annoyed me a little.

Still, if I can forget that, I must applaud the author for this attempt to portray the early years of Princess Victoria. This is a fascinating and enjoyable account and I would recommend it.