Scan barcode
bluestjuice's review against another edition
3.0
The intriguing premise - the relationship between Alais of France and Eleanor of Aquitaine - was what drew me to this book, and much of it emerged with satisfying detail. The political landscape is subtle and ever-changing, enough to keep the plot moving in unexpected directions, and I found Eleanor to be adequately ruthless in her plays to increase and augment and exert her power. Despite her being ostensibly the protagonist (or at least, an equal focus of the book's narrative with Eleanor), Alais didn't hold up so well. I found her character problematic because she was at once exceedingly mature and poised, with the bearing given by years of training as a princess, yet at the crucial points of her most significant actions, she is largely driven by impetuous, emotional urges. The last about-face in particular really stretched my credulity, even more so than the niceties of reconciliations between Alais and most of the major characters in the last few chapters. That said, it was an entertaining and interesting read, which I overall enjoyed.
And now I get to watch A Lion In Winter and totally re-imagine all the backstory. Win!
Spoiler
Her betrothed is unfaithful with a lady in waiting? Alais will be unfaithful with his father! Her foster-mother betrays her trust in the course of politics? Alais will steal her husband and her crown! The king, her lover, declines to involve her in the details of his political affairs? How dare he! Back to the spurned betrothed and mother Alais will go, with a foot stomp! (Except without a foot stomp, because she is poised and composed and royal.)And now I get to watch A Lion In Winter and totally re-imagine all the backstory. Win!
drasalau's review against another edition
2.0
I'll be honest. I'm a big fan of historical fictions that tend to center on romances. There have been great ones, there have been bad ones, but I have never felt quite as disappointed as I did with this one. It felt a little shallow and rather undeveloped.
The strongest 'love' in this romantic historical fiction is familial love between Alais and Eleanor of Aquitaine, which already struck me as surprising since Alais was raised to dislike Eleanor as the whore who left her father. And yet she falls into platonic love with her after seeing her and interacting some with her. It feels incredibly unrealistic and it's incredibly difficult for me to wrap my head around the development of this relationship.
I understand the author stretched the ages but to stretch them a decade or so seems careless. If she wanted to write a novel about Eleanor during the wars she put her sons through with her estranged husband, then she should have simply done so and tossed away Alais as a member of this party. It would have been more interesting to see Eleanor's reactions to her husbands taking Alais as a mistress as it allows for some sense of realism. Little information is known about Alais and, frankly, most women during these centuries (thanks medieval ages, thanks). I understand it is also a fictional piece of work, but if this were my focus in my history degree, I might have been offended.
I admit it was written pretty well grammatically though the pacing felt off and she hardly stressed parts that would have been great to add detail to. For a book as long as this was (which, admittedly, isn't the longest historical fiction I've seen), it felt rather hollow and empty with paltry story telling. I felt like I was expecting hearty stew and only got the unsalted broth.
I was not impressed and was happy I got it on the cheap because I would have felt cheated had I paid fully for this.
Spoiler
The strongest 'love' in this romantic historical fiction is familial love between Alais and Eleanor of Aquitaine, which already struck me as surprising since Alais was raised to dislike Eleanor as the whore who left her father. And yet she falls into platonic love with her after seeing her and interacting some with her. It feels incredibly unrealistic and it's incredibly difficult for me to wrap my head around the development of this relationship.
I understand the author stretched the ages but to stretch them a decade or so seems careless. If she wanted to write a novel about Eleanor during the wars she put her sons through with her estranged husband, then she should have simply done so and tossed away Alais as a member of this party. It would have been more interesting to see Eleanor's reactions to her husbands taking Alais as a mistress as it allows for some sense of realism. Little information is known about Alais and, frankly, most women during these centuries (thanks medieval ages, thanks). I understand it is also a fictional piece of work, but if this were my focus in my history degree, I might have been offended.
I admit it was written pretty well grammatically though the pacing felt off and she hardly stressed parts that would have been great to add detail to. For a book as long as this was (which, admittedly, isn't the longest historical fiction I've seen), it felt rather hollow and empty with paltry story telling. I felt like I was expecting hearty stew and only got the unsalted broth.
I was not impressed and was happy I got it on the cheap because I would have felt cheated had I paid fully for this.
blodeuedd's review against another edition
4.0
Plot:
The blurb does say it. Princess Alais is sent to marry prince Richard, but instead when she grows up she becomes King Henry's mistress.
My thoughts:
My second book about a mistress of King Henry, in a month, well he did get around.
This book was made into Eleanor parts and Alais parts. So it changed POV every chapter and that worked. It was interesting to see what these two women felt and needed. I must say I got truly fascinated by Eleanor, she was so strong, and she did what she wanted.
Alais then, well I liked her when she was young and naive, then when the book came to a turning point I felt she was a bitch. That might seem harsh, but she played games she was too young to play. She bedded the king for revenge and wanted to take the crown and become queen. She was saddened by Richard's infidelity but never considered that the king surely never would have stayed only by her side. But the bitchiness was needed, there had to be some drama, and she had to learn a lesson. I even felt a bit sorry of fair Rosamund, his other mistress that he had kept for years. In the end it just made me like Eleanor more because she played the game so well. And I wondered how she could be so forgiving of Alais who she had loved like a daughter.
This book is not entirely historically correct, she does play with years and what happened. She changed some things and it fitted. It made the story interesting and asked that little what if. It did also make me think, if it is true, how could we know for certain, anyway, how could he? She was a princess, what a scandal.
This book gives it a more happy ending. It does not say anything but it does hint, I like it in a way. It makes you think that all worked out while in reality they did not stand by her.
The whole book is written with such ease, which of course then makes it easy to read. The words just flow by.
Recommendation and final thoughts:
I will give it a 3,75 just because of that easy way it was written. I would recommend it to historical fans, and to others. It was a nice book to read, and it did make me wonder, was he handsome? Lol.
Reason for reading:
I didn't know anything about Alais, so I wanted to know more.
The blurb does say it. Princess Alais is sent to marry prince Richard, but instead when she grows up she becomes King Henry's mistress.
My thoughts:
My second book about a mistress of King Henry, in a month, well he did get around.
This book was made into Eleanor parts and Alais parts. So it changed POV every chapter and that worked. It was interesting to see what these two women felt and needed. I must say I got truly fascinated by Eleanor, she was so strong, and she did what she wanted.
Alais then, well I liked her when she was young and naive, then when the book came to a turning point I felt she was a bitch. That might seem harsh, but she played games she was too young to play. She bedded the king for revenge and wanted to take the crown and become queen. She was saddened by Richard's infidelity but never considered that the king surely never would have stayed only by her side. But the bitchiness was needed, there had to be some drama, and she had to learn a lesson. I even felt a bit sorry of fair Rosamund, his other mistress that he had kept for years. In the end it just made me like Eleanor more because she played the game so well. And I wondered how she could be so forgiving of Alais who she had loved like a daughter.
This book is not entirely historically correct, she does play with years and what happened. She changed some things and it fitted. It made the story interesting and asked that little what if. It did also make me think, if it is true, how could we know for certain, anyway, how could he? She was a princess, what a scandal.
This book gives it a more happy ending. It does not say anything but it does hint, I like it in a way. It makes you think that all worked out while in reality they did not stand by her.
The whole book is written with such ease, which of course then makes it easy to read. The words just flow by.
Recommendation and final thoughts:
I will give it a 3,75 just because of that easy way it was written. I would recommend it to historical fans, and to others. It was a nice book to read, and it did make me wonder, was he handsome? Lol.
Reason for reading:
I didn't know anything about Alais, so I wanted to know more.
wolfski26's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
ladyhighwayman's review against another edition
3.0
3 1/2
The Queen's Pawn tells the story of Princess Alais of France, sent to England to marry Prince Richard, and Eleanor of Aquitaine, who takes young Alais under her wing.
As Alais meets Richard for the first time, the attraction is instant and Alais looks forward to her future marriage. However, once at Windsor, Alais falls into the web of Richard's father, King Henry II and goes against two of the people she loves the most: Richard and Eleanor
The book is told from the point of view of both Alais and Eleanor, written in the first person. This took sometime to get used to, but I eventually got the hang of it.
As the story unfolds, we see from the view of both Alais, the fight for both Henry and the crown. Jealousy is mixed with revenge, but there is still also love. Eleanor thinks of Alais as her daughter and Alais thinks of Eleanor of the mother she had never known. While each woman is steadfast on winning, their hearts are also breaking.
A solid historical fiction novel and a great debut for Christy English. I'd like to thank Christy for sending me a copy her book. I enjoyed it!
The Queen's Pawn tells the story of Princess Alais of France, sent to England to marry Prince Richard, and Eleanor of Aquitaine, who takes young Alais under her wing.
As Alais meets Richard for the first time, the attraction is instant and Alais looks forward to her future marriage. However, once at Windsor, Alais falls into the web of Richard's father, King Henry II and goes against two of the people she loves the most: Richard and Eleanor
The book is told from the point of view of both Alais and Eleanor, written in the first person. This took sometime to get used to, but I eventually got the hang of it.
As the story unfolds, we see from the view of both Alais, the fight for both Henry and the crown. Jealousy is mixed with revenge, but there is still also love. Eleanor thinks of Alais as her daughter and Alais thinks of Eleanor of the mother she had never known. While each woman is steadfast on winning, their hearts are also breaking.
A solid historical fiction novel and a great debut for Christy English. I'd like to thank Christy for sending me a copy her book. I enjoyed it!
areagle1112's review against another edition
3.0
After reading Christy English's other novel ( To Be Queen: A Novel of the Early Life of Eleanor of Aquitaine ) I was very excited to read this one, which follows Queen Eleanor's life after being Queen of France.
I chose to read English's second novel written first because I thought it would be better in the long run if I had a better background on the main character before reading about her later life. Needless to say, I loved it - all the way through, from end to end, everything, I loved it. And I immediately picked up The Queen's Pawn as soon as I was finished.
It wasn't bad, per se, but it didn't automatically draw me in as the other did. I pushed that feeling aside and continued reading - quickly finding out that this was nothing like To Be Queen .
Princess Alais, daughter of King Louis VII (Eleanor's first husband), I disliked off the bat. I don't know why, so don't ask - I just did. And as the book progressed, my opinion of her got worse. Eleanor - the strong, bright, beautiful woman that I came to love - was portrayed as a scheming, sneaky, do-whatever-I-have-to-do-to-get-my-way character and I felt let down a little, but I still liked her infinitely better than Alais.
I suppose the one thing that bugged me throughout the reading was how Alais viewed Eleanor as "the mother I never had" and repeated how much she loved her, even as she began sleeping with her husband - at fifteen! - and dreamed to take Eleanor's crown away from her and, more or less, destroy her. The main reason Alais decided to return the king's advances was because Eleanor "betrayed" her - which I didn't see. I simply think she overreacted to what Eleanor did. This was the whole plot of the story and I didn't quite like it.
What also drove me crazy was how like a child Alais acted. At first I thought Alais was older than she was ans so it bothered me a great bit. Then I found out she was only fifteen and I thought I would realte more to her. Nope; I think it made me hate her even more.
The fact that so little is known about Princess Alais probably resulted in my hatred of her; that and English's literary freedom with the character. It just. . .didn't fit, I guess. If she is known to be like this and act as such I would probably at least respect her as I do with other people in history I don't particularly like.
I still loved Eleanor, though. I think her and her son Richard - "the Lionhearted" - were the redeeming characters of the novel. As mentioned, she is a bit different from the other book - more hardened, I think - but I loved her still. I also throughly enjoyed the history English presented in both her novels. She has quite a talent with bringing to life this period in history. I will never discredit her for that; I loved the facts, the lifestyles, and the cultures that she presented with her words.
If Christy English writes and has published more novels, I will definitely check them out and read them, without a doubt. I will also not not reccomend this novel to others; on the contrary, I think fans of historical fiction will enjoy this and Enlgish's second novel.
I chose to read English's second novel written first because I thought it would be better in the long run if I had a better background on the main character before reading about her later life. Needless to say, I loved it - all the way through, from end to end, everything, I loved it. And I immediately picked up The Queen's Pawn as soon as I was finished.
It wasn't bad, per se, but it didn't automatically draw me in as the other did. I pushed that feeling aside and continued reading - quickly finding out that this was nothing like To Be Queen .
Princess Alais, daughter of King Louis VII (Eleanor's first husband), I disliked off the bat. I don't know why, so don't ask - I just did. And as the book progressed, my opinion of her got worse. Eleanor - the strong, bright, beautiful woman that I came to love - was portrayed as a scheming, sneaky, do-whatever-I-have-to-do-to-get-my-way character and I felt let down a little, but I still liked her infinitely better than Alais.
I suppose the one thing that bugged me throughout the reading was how Alais viewed Eleanor as "the mother I never had" and repeated how much she loved her, even as she began sleeping with her husband - at fifteen! - and dreamed to take Eleanor's crown away from her and, more or less, destroy her. The main reason Alais decided to return the king's advances was because Eleanor "betrayed" her - which I didn't see. I simply think she overreacted to what Eleanor did. This was the whole plot of the story and I didn't quite like it.
What also drove me crazy was how like a child Alais acted. At first I thought Alais was older than she was ans so it bothered me a great bit. Then I found out she was only fifteen and I thought I would realte more to her. Nope; I think it made me hate her even more.
The fact that so little is known about Princess Alais probably resulted in my hatred of her; that and English's literary freedom with the character. It just. . .didn't fit, I guess. If she is known to be like this and act as such I would probably at least respect her as I do with other people in history I don't particularly like.
I still loved Eleanor, though. I think her and her son Richard - "the Lionhearted" - were the redeeming characters of the novel. As mentioned, she is a bit different from the other book - more hardened, I think - but I loved her still. I also throughly enjoyed the history English presented in both her novels. She has quite a talent with bringing to life this period in history. I will never discredit her for that; I loved the facts, the lifestyles, and the cultures that she presented with her words.
If Christy English writes and has published more novels, I will definitely check them out and read them, without a doubt. I will also not not reccomend this novel to others; on the contrary, I think fans of historical fiction will enjoy this and Enlgish's second novel.
sanimes's review against another edition
1.0
This is why I stopped reading European historical fiction. Thought I gave it another try since this was lying around my home (my sister’s copy).
Too much eroticism and romanticism and too little historicity. Poor character development and writing. Read this if you don’t care about history.
Too much eroticism and romanticism and too little historicity. Poor character development and writing. Read this if you don’t care about history.
awall14's review against another edition
3.0
I did not like this one as much as the first. I don't really know why exactly, but I think mainly in was because I had so much trouble following WHY the characters were doing something.
Ok, actually I had trouble following why Alais is doing something. Ok, so first she loves Richard, then she doesn't and she loves Henry, then she betrays Henry again and loves Richard. I understood the WHY for some parts (Richard cheating) but then I felt that the only reason she betrayed Henry was because the author had to do SOMETHING with her. I sorta get she left Henry because she suddenly realized he would never make her queen, but honestly how long did that take her??? LIke duh. I felt she only went to Henry so the author could spice up the love stuff.
On the other hand, this was basically a fictional book, so... I won't complain that much. It was totally interesting to meet Alais and see Eleanor in her later life. It was a creative and very well written story. I guess I was just to rational or something for the love stuff :/But, total tumbs up to Ms. English for bringing the story of an almost unknown character to life!!!!
Also, this book has made me interested in Rosamund (Henry's other mistress) and I'll be keeping my eyes out for books about her if there are any.
Ok, actually I had trouble following why Alais is doing something. Ok, so first she loves Richard, then she doesn't and she loves Henry, then she betrays Henry again and loves Richard. I understood the WHY for some parts (Richard cheating) but then I felt that the only reason she betrayed Henry was because the author had to do SOMETHING with her. I sorta get she left Henry because she suddenly realized he would never make her queen, but honestly how long did that take her??? LIke duh. I felt she only went to Henry so the author could spice up the love stuff.
On the other hand, this was basically a fictional book, so... I won't complain that much. It was totally interesting to meet Alais and see Eleanor in her later life. It was a creative and very well written story. I guess I was just to rational or something for the love stuff :/But, total tumbs up to Ms. English for bringing the story of an almost unknown character to life!!!!
Also, this book has made me interested in Rosamund (Henry's other mistress) and I'll be keeping my eyes out for books about her if there are any.
mimima's review against another edition
2.0
As historical accuracy, good writing, and well-drawn characters are important to me, this book did not work.
margreads's review against another edition
3.0
3/5 and that's a stretch.
Disappointed because I wanted to like it a lot more than I did.
Disappointed because I wanted to like it a lot more than I did.