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3.88 AVERAGE
3.88 AVERAGE
Rating: 5.0/5.0
Genre:
Historical Fiction
This is the 7th book in Philippa Gregory's series on the Plantagenet and Tudors. Tells the story of Margaret Pole. A princess who stayed all her life in fear of having the same fate as her father and brother. No matter how much she tried to remain (or pretend to be) faithful to the Tudors, they still at the end took her life the same way if not worse. Margaret was a Plantagenet, the only surviving daughter of George Plantagenet, 1st Duke of Clarence (The White Rose). After Henry VII became the King of England, his mother Margaret Beaufort married Margaret to Sir Richard Pole. She remained all her life under her husband's name without mentioning whose daughter she was all her life.
“Life is a risk, who knows this better than me? Who knows more surely that babies die easily, that children fall ill from the least cause, that royal blood is fatally weak, that death walks behind my family like a faithful black hound?”
The author has successfully presented the main character this way as I have read her story in some history books. She was not the courageous woman who would stand up to her values and beliefs if that meant opposing the King or his wish. She might have been open to her own children and a very close circle of family and friends only, but when it came to criticizing the King's cruel behaviors and actions she preferred to show that she was in his support. In this book, we follow her story from the reign of Henry VII to Henry VIII who ordered her execution. They claimed that she was conspiring against the King but many historians say that she was beheaded with no trial or proof of treason. The last few pages of the book were hard to read because one cannot feel anything but really sorry for a 67 years old lady to be killed this way.
Henry VIII was truly a mad man, the more I read about him the more I dislike him. Margaret was a friend of his mother and a good friend to his first wife Katherine of Aragon. She was also the governess of his daughter Princess Mary and remained faithful to her all her life according to historians. But Henry was truly a tyrant who had to kill everybody surrounding him depending on his changing mood! I love the title of this book. and how Philippa Gregory used the curse factor in this story. If you have read the previous books you will know what I am talking about here. Afterall a supernatural touch has made an interesting story more appealing.
“How would I know? I don’t hold with prophecies and predictions and long-lost kings. I don’t have giants in my family tree, like you Nevilles. I don’t have three suns in the sky like you Yorks. I am not descended from a water goddess who comes out of a river to mate with mortals! When your family was founded, no one had ever heard of us. When your uncles were on the throne, mine were quiet City men. I don’t know what you might have, what you might have kept from those times—a banner or a standard, a bead-roll or letter. Anything that shows your descent, anything that shows your royal blood, any prophecy that you once had the throne and will have it again. But whatever you have, your ladyship, clear it out and burn it. Nothing is worth the risk of keeping.”
The book is so rich with events and lots of beheading due to treason. Henry VIII's reign was truly a sick era filled with all cruelty. And as a reader one can feel it while reading this novel. Yes, I felt angry many times with the main character because she was a coward from inside as she was describing herself, but at the same time I could not blame her a lot because of her fear of being taken to the tower was genuine, her father, her brother and her son all were taken there and had the same fate on the block! Finally, she followed them too.
I am in love with this series. I am not just reading for enjoyment but when I read about an interesting event in these books it makes me go and research more about it. Gregory keeps the main events intact but the things that historians are conflicted about she gives her own version of the story, what she thinks. This book gets 5.0 out of 5.0 for me. Another favorite!
This is the poem that was written on the wall of Margaret's cell in the tower:
For traitors on the block should die;
I am no traitor, no, not I!
My faithfulness stands fast and so,
Towards the block I shall not go!
Nor make one step, as you shall see;
Christ in Thy Mercy, save Thou me!
I'm just a fan of the way she writes historical fiction. I particularly enjoyed this one because it was written from the point of view of Margaret Pole. She's a seldom written about character who was right in the tornado of madness that was Henry VIII's reign.
Well done and nicely paced
Well done and nicely paced
dark
informative
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Margaret Pole was born a Plantagenet, niece to King Edward IV and King Richard III. Her beloved cousin married the conquering new King Henry VII. She was lady-in-waiting to Katherine of Aragon and then appointed governess to Mary Tudor. The King's Curse starts on the exact same day that the previous novel The White Princess ends and encompasses the events of The Constant Princess within the first half of the book. It follows King Henry VIII's descent from spoilt prince to the destructive force he became.
The King's Curse is the fifth Philippa Gregory book I've read and disappointingly it is not a favourite. I was looking forward to learning about Margaret Pole, having first heard of her from other books in the series. However, I have to agree with other reviews that critique the middle portion for being slow and repetitive. That is perhaps due in part to the novel covering a 40-year period. For much of that time, Margaret was removed from the royal court and the story was told through second-hand news she heard from her sons. I did enjoy The King's Curse overall, but it's not a book I will be rereading anytime soon.
What I found most interesting was the depiction of Margaret's character as a result of her experiences and the values of the contemporary nobility. Margaret endured a lot and described herself as a survivor. Often she survived by hiding, giving in, and failing to take determinate action. She's a sympathetic character yet at times is quite unlikeable, cold, greedy, and overly focussed on family pride. I particularly despised the way she treated her daughter-in-law, though I imagine such incidences were common to her class and time. At her best, Margaret is compassionate, resilient, brave, and an old hand at court ways. I would recommend The King's Curse to readers who have enjoyed other of Philippa Gregory's books or who specifically want to learn about Margaret Pole.
The King's Curse is the fifth Philippa Gregory book I've read and disappointingly it is not a favourite. I was looking forward to learning about Margaret Pole, having first heard of her from other books in the series. However, I have to agree with other reviews that critique the middle portion for being slow and repetitive. That is perhaps due in part to the novel covering a 40-year period. For much of that time, Margaret was removed from the royal court and the story was told through second-hand news she heard from her sons. I did enjoy The King's Curse overall, but it's not a book I will be rereading anytime soon.
What I found most interesting was the depiction of Margaret's character as a result of her experiences and the values of the contemporary nobility. Margaret endured a lot and described herself as a survivor. Often she survived by hiding, giving in, and failing to take determinate action. She's a sympathetic character yet at times is quite unlikeable, cold, greedy, and overly focussed on family pride. I particularly despised the way she treated her daughter-in-law, though I imagine such incidences were common to her class and time. At her best, Margaret is compassionate, resilient, brave, and an old hand at court ways. I would recommend The King's Curse to readers who have enjoyed other of Philippa Gregory's books or who specifically want to learn about Margaret Pole.
This for me was the best in the series so far. Telling the story of Margeret Pole and her family. Henry VIII and his reign and just fantastic writing. I was gripped throughout.
Op jonge leeftijd heeft Margaret maar een ding te vrezen: haar achternaam. Plantagenet is een gevaarlijk woord op het moment dat The Tudors de macht grijpen. Margaret wordt dan ook uitgehuwelijkt aan een onbelangrijke maar loyale Tudorknight en zo kan ze haar naam veranderen in Margaret Pole. Maar de schaduw van de Tower is nooit ver weg...
Misschien moet ik even stoppen met Gregory boeken te lezen... Dit boek was een klepper, het beslaat 40 jaar of meer waarin heel heel veel gebeurt. Het leven van Margaret Pole is zeker een boek waard, maar uiteraard is zij niet bij alles betrokken. Het boek doet dus heel regelmatig van tell ipv show en er worden samenvattingen gegeven van gebeurtenissen in enkele zinnen. Geen erg voor wie de gebeurtenissen kent, maar ik ken leukere manieren om er over te lezen.
Margaret moet een tragisch angstig leven gehad hebben, maar heeft dat lot moedig gedragen. Dat maakte dat ik me deze keer niet aan de hoofdpersoon stoorde. Maar wel aan veel andere dingen.
De demonisering van de Tudors. De verheerlijking van de Yorks. Gregory heeft zich in de vorige boeken zo vastgereden dat ze haar theorieën wel moet vasthouden. Leidend tot een belachelijke titel voor dit boek en stomme herhaling van de zogezegde curse.
Schrijven met voorkennis is nog zo'n vervelende. De manier waarop Reginald en Geoffroy van in het begin worden neer gezet bv. Of opnieuw de belachelijke curse. Allemaal makkelijk te schrijven nu dat je weet hoe het is afgelopen maar de mensen zullen toendertijd wel niet zo naar de zaken gekeken hebben.
De demonisering van de Boleyns en de Howards en de verheerlijking van Jane Seymour. Dat was misschien nog het meest tenenkrullend van allemaal. Ik zou eens graag een boek lezen met Jane Seymour als bitch. Want ze was zeker even erg als Anne Boleyn. Face it!
Enfin, niet haar slechtste, maar die schrijfskills die is ze toch een beetje kwijt. Of misschien ben ik veel strenger geworden. Dat kan ook.
Misschien moet ik even stoppen met Gregory boeken te lezen... Dit boek was een klepper, het beslaat 40 jaar of meer waarin heel heel veel gebeurt. Het leven van Margaret Pole is zeker een boek waard, maar uiteraard is zij niet bij alles betrokken. Het boek doet dus heel regelmatig van tell ipv show en er worden samenvattingen gegeven van gebeurtenissen in enkele zinnen. Geen erg voor wie de gebeurtenissen kent, maar ik ken leukere manieren om er over te lezen.
Margaret moet een tragisch angstig leven gehad hebben, maar heeft dat lot moedig gedragen. Dat maakte dat ik me deze keer niet aan de hoofdpersoon stoorde. Maar wel aan veel andere dingen.
De demonisering van de Tudors. De verheerlijking van de Yorks. Gregory heeft zich in de vorige boeken zo vastgereden dat ze haar theorieën wel moet vasthouden. Leidend tot een belachelijke titel voor dit boek en stomme herhaling van de zogezegde curse.
Schrijven met voorkennis is nog zo'n vervelende. De manier waarop Reginald en Geoffroy van in het begin worden neer gezet bv. Of opnieuw de belachelijke curse. Allemaal makkelijk te schrijven nu dat je weet hoe het is afgelopen maar de mensen zullen toendertijd wel niet zo naar de zaken gekeken hebben.
De demonisering van de Boleyns en de Howards en de verheerlijking van Jane Seymour. Dat was misschien nog het meest tenenkrullend van allemaal. Ik zou eens graag een boek lezen met Jane Seymour als bitch. Want ze was zeker even erg als Anne Boleyn. Face it!
Enfin, niet haar slechtste, maar die schrijfskills die is ze toch een beetje kwijt. Of misschien ben ik veel strenger geworden. Dat kan ook.
I don't know why I keep picking up Philippa Gregory novels. I always end up irritated and disappointed.
I think the only reason I finished this one was because prior to this, my knowledge of Margaret Pole's life was minimal-I knew of her parentage and rocky upbringing, and how her life ended, but the story in the middle was a void for me. Granted, most of these holes have been filled in with PG's interpretation of history.
The reason this book received 2 stars from me is that it did help me connect the dots a little bit better between the vastness that is the Plantagenet cousins-The Warwicks, Courtenays, Nevilles, and Yorks, expressly.
Other than that, compared to other biographical works that I've read on other characters within this book, I'd say that PG's rendering of these women is biased, and historically flawed in some areas.
And so ends my dalliance with Gregory and her books. I can't do it anymore.
I think the only reason I finished this one was because prior to this, my knowledge of Margaret Pole's life was minimal-I knew of her parentage and rocky upbringing, and how her life ended, but the story in the middle was a void for me. Granted, most of these holes have been filled in with PG's interpretation of history.
The reason this book received 2 stars from me is that it did help me connect the dots a little bit better between the vastness that is the Plantagenet cousins-The Warwicks, Courtenays, Nevilles, and Yorks, expressly.
Other than that, compared to other biographical works that I've read on other characters within this book, I'd say that PG's rendering of these women is biased, and historically flawed in some areas.
And so ends my dalliance with Gregory and her books. I can't do it anymore.
Another great by Philippa! Her ability to tell these stories through the eyes of those closely involved is beyond measure. This is Margaret's (Henry VIII Mother's cousin) telling of how the Tudor line came to be and the beginnings of how it started to crumble.
informative
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Phillipa Gregory's latest entry in the Cousins' War series is as full of history and intrigue as her previous works. The story of Margaret Pole was particularly fascinating due to her lineage and what she witnessed and participated in throughout her life. Gregory is adept at making history more than a list of dates and names, and instead making long-gone characters seem relatable and interesting. E-galley provided by NetGalley.
I really liked the life of Margaret Pole who calls herself a survivor. She did not live an exciting life until her last moments but she met, talked and loved other people who had very eventful lives.
Gregory expertly tells the story of an important period in time (King Hery VIII's madness) through a woman who once loved her like a big sister.
The book could have been shorter but I did not feel like it dragged either.
Gregory expertly tells the story of an important period in time (King Hery VIII's madness) through a woman who once loved her like a big sister.
The book could have been shorter but I did not feel like it dragged either.