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3.71 AVERAGE
3.71 AVERAGE
Everything felt flat to me in this book. The characters, the setting, the descriptions...I wasn't invested in it. A lot of dialogue, very quick moving, and some magical elements added into historical fiction which just didn't seem to mesh quite right. It was an easy enough read but I got about 230 pages in and was never looking forward to picking it up.
08.12.13 As I read this, many of the details and even names remind me strongly of "Game of Thrones" and the Song of Ice and Fire series. I knew [a:George R.R. Martin|346732|George R.R. Martin|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1351944410p2/346732.jpg] based his fantasy novels on The Wars of the Roses, but I didn't realize how many parallels I might see between these two series. I am intrigued, and I like it.
08.16.13 I had picked out this book as a vacation read, because Gregory's Tudor series got me through more than a summer a few years ago (just after the movie of "The Other Boleyn Girl" was quickly followed by "The Tudors" TV series). This week, I discovered that my timing was prophetic once again, and "The White Queen" is about to be the next big TV series on Starz. Go figure. I made sure to finish the book before starting the show, but I doubt I will even go on to the rest of the series right away.
I had not studied the Yorks, the Lancasters, the Plantagenets, or any English royal families before Henry VIII. I have read most of Shakespeare's histories, but I hadn't entirely put them in chronological order; they sort of stood alone in my mind. This novel -- despite everyone and their brother being named Edward, Richard, George, and Henry -- sorted a lot of the timeline for me.
I liked the mythology. Even if none of it had any historical basis (which I know it did, and that Philippa Gregory is a diligent researcher), I would be interested in the stories of Melusina and wish fulfillment magic. I appreciate Gregory's intriguing take on the witchcraft accusations, and I like how she presents the power of women in a time when women were entirely under the rule of men.
I am far more interested in Elizabeth of York than Margaret Beaufort or even Jacquetta Woodville, whose spiritual/magical background intrigues me, but I will eventually work through #2 and #3 to get to the mother of Henry VIII. I've read some mixed reviews on this series, some particularly negative in comparison with her Tudor Court novels, and I think I do prefer the Tudors, but her writing style does not disappoint, and I enjoyed this story well enough to keep going with the series without regrets. I look forward to the TV series as well. I expect I will also be re-reading [b:Richard III|42058|Richard III|William Shakespeare|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1328043960s/42058.jpg|2913597] and exploring some of the supplementary books that Gregory used in her research.
Should I also read the Wideacre Trilogy, Earthly Joys books and/or the Order of Darkness series?
08.16.13 I had picked out this book as a vacation read, because Gregory's Tudor series got me through more than a summer a few years ago (just after the movie of "The Other Boleyn Girl" was quickly followed by "The Tudors" TV series). This week, I discovered that my timing was prophetic once again, and "The White Queen" is about to be the next big TV series on Starz. Go figure. I made sure to finish the book before starting the show, but I doubt I will even go on to the rest of the series right away.
I had not studied the Yorks, the Lancasters, the Plantagenets, or any English royal families before Henry VIII. I have read most of Shakespeare's histories, but I hadn't entirely put them in chronological order; they sort of stood alone in my mind. This novel -- despite everyone and their brother being named Edward, Richard, George, and Henry -- sorted a lot of the timeline for me.
I liked the mythology. Even if none of it had any historical basis (which I know it did, and that Philippa Gregory is a diligent researcher), I would be interested in the stories of Melusina and wish fulfillment magic. I appreciate Gregory's intriguing take on the witchcraft accusations, and I like how she presents the power of women in a time when women were entirely under the rule of men.
I am far more interested in Elizabeth of York than Margaret Beaufort or even Jacquetta Woodville, whose spiritual/magical background intrigues me, but I will eventually work through #2 and #3 to get to the mother of Henry VIII. I've read some mixed reviews on this series, some particularly negative in comparison with her Tudor Court novels, and I think I do prefer the Tudors, but her writing style does not disappoint, and I enjoyed this story well enough to keep going with the series without regrets. I look forward to the TV series as well. I expect I will also be re-reading [b:Richard III|42058|Richard III|William Shakespeare|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1328043960s/42058.jpg|2913597] and exploring some of the supplementary books that Gregory used in her research.
Should I also read the Wideacre Trilogy, Earthly Joys books and/or the Order of Darkness series?
I thought this book was just ok overall, but I appreciated the mixing in of the Melusina story and magic. I thought that made things a bit more interesting and gave the strong female characters a bit more sway over their lives.
However, the rest of the story I found rather exhausting. It might be because I had just finished Pillars of the Earth before I picked up this one, but the whole court lifestyle of backstabbing, games, and drama just became tiresome to read. By the end I was backing up her daughter Elizabeth when she just wanted to go live in the countryside and be normal for a change. That sounded much better to me!!
Overall, it was ok but the Melusina magic made it more fun.
However, the rest of the story I found rather exhausting. It might be because I had just finished Pillars of the Earth before I picked up this one, but the whole court lifestyle of backstabbing, games, and drama just became tiresome to read. By the end I was backing up her daughter Elizabeth when she just wanted to go live in the countryside and be normal for a change. That sounded much better to me!!
Overall, it was ok but the Melusina magic made it more fun.
Not enough historical stuff, wayyy too much fictional stuff.
So I read this series out of order and while it didn't seem to be a problem, when I got to this book, I realized that I really should have read them in order. There were things that were meant to be suspenseful that just weren't because I knew how it ended. I did like reading Lady of the Rivers first though, because it was a prequel so I had the background. This is a time period that I wasn't very familiar with, but it is fascinating to me. I have always thought of kings and queens as living the easy life. While that is partially true, during this time period, it wasn't always that easy. There were constant wars which lead to changes in power, leaving those out of power at the mercy of the new rulers and subject to possibly being charged with treason. Not as easy as I had imagined it. Elizabeth, the sometimes queen of England, has had to deal with challenges since she met and fell in love with the king. They marry in secret and the problems start. Some people try to claim that the marriage was because of witchcraft or that it didn't really happen. These are just the beginnings of the challenges of Elizabeth's reign as sometimes queen.
I loved The Other Boleyn Girl, but had a hard time with this one. So very many characters named Richard.
A good read that made me want to learn more about the War of the Roses. Interesting perspective through the eyes of the Queen.
Another 6 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️novel with stellar narration to match! All of the characters feel so real and the events so richly detailed that it is easy (& a pleasure!) to get so immersed in the story! Love love LOVE it!!!
emotional
informative
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Having great trouble actually reading this book. The real history of the time is sufficiently fascinating that there is really no reason Gregory needs to add water witches and sorcery into the mix. The central relationship between Elizabeth Woodville and Edward IV is both underwritten and overwritten and embarrassingly bad. "Good God, I could take you now!" is not the kind of romantic writing one is willing to put up with for long. I am only a few chapters in, and life is simply too short to keep reading bad books.
Too bad, for the Boleyn books were quite well done, and the pre-Tudor maneuverings of the Wars of the Roses should be full of interest. However the poor writing and the swerve into magical writing debase the Philippa Gregory brand. This may be one for skimming through, or simply closing and not picking up again.
Too bad, for the Boleyn books were quite well done, and the pre-Tudor maneuverings of the Wars of the Roses should be full of interest. However the poor writing and the swerve into magical writing debase the Philippa Gregory brand. This may be one for skimming through, or simply closing and not picking up again.