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3.61 AVERAGE
3.61 AVERAGE
To start out, Philippa Gregory writes fictional stories about people who lived around the War of the Roses. As a history buff you need to suspend the truth when reading these works of fiction. They are not a retelling of what really happened, with just the gaps filled in. History is exaggerated and changed as part of dramatic license. Much like a television series or movie may be drastically different from the book. It doesn't make the retelling bad, just different from the source material. If you can separate this from your knowledge of Margaret Beaufort's life and read this as a fictional novel then you might enjoy it. Just because it is not historically accurate doesn't mean it is a bad read.
This novel tells the story of the War of the Roses from the Lancastrian perspective, therefore the events mentioned in the WHITE QUEEN (York perspective) and this book are extremely similar. I have to wonder if both books could not have been joined to offer different points of view in the same book.
I felt that although Margaret Beaufort as a narrator was well written, her character lacked depth and dimension. As Margaret was a determined, courageous woman and led a fascinating life more could have been done to do her justice in the book. Despite all this, I still enjoyed this book, probably because it has been over a decade since I read the WHITE QUEEN and I can suspend reality for a time.
This novel tells the story of the War of the Roses from the Lancastrian perspective, therefore the events mentioned in the WHITE QUEEN (York perspective) and this book are extremely similar. I have to wonder if both books could not have been joined to offer different points of view in the same book.
I felt that although Margaret Beaufort as a narrator was well written, her character lacked depth and dimension. As Margaret was a determined, courageous woman and led a fascinating life more could have been done to do her justice in the book. Despite all this, I still enjoyed this book, probably because it has been over a decade since I read the WHITE QUEEN and I can suspend reality for a time.
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Not as incredible a novel as it's predecessor, 'The White Queen' but this novel is definitely constructed with the same draw. While many of the main events in the first novel that overlap in this book are skimmed over in a way that still manages to encompass the majority of the middle section of the book, the sympathy created for this woman we learnt to hate in the first novel that the author manages to create in the beginning the novel is trulying artful and the little insights we are given into her life throughout the middle section are worth pushing through the bulk of repetition. By the time the novel begins to catch up to where the last left off I was eagerly tearing through the pages, desperate to get to the end, knowing that the ending I would most want is historically impossible. I love how this author writes, and despite my hate for open endings, the 'almost' open ending nature of her novels fall in a different column as they end where true history can pick up. With each new novel I find myself attached to these characters and desperately wishing I could change history so that their endings could be more fairytale than they are. I have the next two novels ready to read but this novel has me greatly anticipating 'The White Princess'.
Important info in the series; hated the point of view character enough to make the book sour for me. Zzz
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
dark
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
emotional
informative
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
One of the things I love about Philippa Gregory's work is that it always encourages me to find out more about the people, places and events of Tudor Britain. I like to be swept up in the story of these Tudor women whilst knowing that it is fiction, and not a factual account of the times.
I read [b:The White Queen|5971165|The White Queen (The Plantagenet and Tudor Novels, #2)|Philippa Gregory|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1439412993s/5971165.jpg|13560666] last year and am glad that I did not read these two novels back-to-back so that I could immerse myself in that period again and see the events from the viewpoint of Margaret Beaufort. She is an intriguing character and whilst her piety is well documented I did find myself getting a little tired of the author's constant repetition of this.
Even though I know how the final event of the novel turned out, I still found myself eager to find out the loyalties of Lord Stanley and his brother William Stanley, and Henry Percy. Lord Stanley in particular was a well crafted character, always leaving the reader guessing as to if and when he might turn his coat.
I would recommend this novel for those interested in historical fiction.
I read [b:The White Queen|5971165|The White Queen (The Plantagenet and Tudor Novels, #2)|Philippa Gregory|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1439412993s/5971165.jpg|13560666] last year and am glad that I did not read these two novels back-to-back so that I could immerse myself in that period again and see the events from the viewpoint of Margaret Beaufort. She is an intriguing character and whilst her piety is well documented I did find myself getting a little tired of the author's constant repetition of this.
Even though I know how the final event of the novel turned out, I still found myself eager to find out the loyalties of Lord Stanley and his brother William Stanley, and Henry Percy. Lord Stanley in particular was a well crafted character, always leaving the reader guessing as to if and when he might turn his coat.
I would recommend this novel for those interested in historical fiction.
rated down a star bc margaret had an annoying superiority complex that didn’t gel with me sometimes