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3.71 AVERAGE
3.71 AVERAGE
I've long been taught that unless you can really make it work, to avoid writing present tense in long pieces at all times. In The White Queen, it's not bad, but Gregory doesn't really sell it. Maybe it's just that I've had that lesson drummed into me.
I had issues with the plotting. One chapter, Elizabeth Woodville and Edward had just married, the next, there's mention of their girls. When did that happen? The novel moves away from the first person perspective to third person to show scenes, usually battle scenes, that Elizabeth wouldn't have witnessed. It's jarring and clumsy, particularly with Elizabeth's occasional interjections. I also found the battle scenes to be lacking in substance.
I founding the ending very sudden, like what you'd expect from a huge book and lopped into three sections and published as a trilogy without any editing. I'm not at all familiar with the history of the War of the Roses so I felt as though I'd been left out of something.
The Melusina story was interesting, but I felt as though it would've worked better as a prologue rather than being interwoven into the narrative. The references to Melusina were repetitious, but nowhere near as annoying as Elizabeth's overly dramatic mentions of that dark locket, ugh.
I picked up this book because the blurb made it sound like Elizabeth Woodville was an incredibly strong woman, and I'd love to see more of that. Except, I couldn't really warm to Elizabeth. Every "please don't go off to war and leave me" exchange set my teeth on edge. Yes, I understand being reluctant to see your husband ride off to war, but he's not going off for something trivial, he's fighting to defend his throne.
The magic in the novel was all right. I like the subtle edge, but it's almost too subtle.
The White Queen is an easy but middling read.
I had issues with the plotting. One chapter, Elizabeth Woodville and Edward had just married, the next, there's mention of their girls. When did that happen? The novel moves away from the first person perspective to third person to show scenes, usually battle scenes, that Elizabeth wouldn't have witnessed. It's jarring and clumsy, particularly with Elizabeth's occasional interjections. I also found the battle scenes to be lacking in substance.
I founding the ending very sudden, like what you'd expect from a huge book and lopped into three sections and published as a trilogy without any editing. I'm not at all familiar with the history of the War of the Roses so I felt as though I'd been left out of something.
The Melusina story was interesting, but I felt as though it would've worked better as a prologue rather than being interwoven into the narrative. The references to Melusina were repetitious, but nowhere near as annoying as Elizabeth's overly dramatic mentions of that dark locket, ugh.
I picked up this book because the blurb made it sound like Elizabeth Woodville was an incredibly strong woman, and I'd love to see more of that. Except, I couldn't really warm to Elizabeth. Every "please don't go off to war and leave me" exchange set my teeth on edge. Yes, I understand being reluctant to see your husband ride off to war, but he's not going off for something trivial, he's fighting to defend his throne.
The magic in the novel was all right. I like the subtle edge, but it's almost too subtle.
Spoiler
Especially when it mostly involves reeling in threads that your mother has thrown into water.The White Queen is an easy but middling read.
I've always like this kind of books. Takes me different to times and new twist.
Seriously love love love this book! It is a great way to start reading historical fiction. It’s an awesome introduction into Phillipa Gregory books. She is great at introducing the characters but also keeping it historically accurate (with some creative freedom obviously.)
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I really enjoyed this book. I could feel myself rooting for the people within the story, and found it so interesting that the majority of the book was based on fact. The ending is so bittersweet when you read about the factual end of the queens story. It’s a brilliant take on Tudor England and historial fiction, and I can’t wait to read more of her books because of this!
About 2/3 of the way into this book I got a sneaking suspicion that I had actually already read it before, but was frustrated that I couldn't remember how it ended and yet the plot seemed to be moving more slowly in the second half.
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
informative
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
emotional
informative
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
Diverse cast of characters:
No