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A review by suzemo
The Rival Queens: Catherine de' Medici, Her Daughter Marguerite de Valois, and the Betrayal that Ignited a Kingdom by Nancy Goldstone
3.0
Full disclosure: TV made me read this book.
I sometimes follow Genevieve Valentine's blog, and I really enjoyed her reviews of Reign's costuming, which then turned into just reviews of Reign. It's a delightfully, utterly trashy historical drama about Mary, Queen of Scots and her time at the French court (at least that's how far I've gotten, with the two seasons). My favorite character on the show is Catherine de'Medici, so a book to learn more about her seemed like it might be a bit fun.
I completely recognize that the show is only very, very, very, very loosely based on history. So loosely that I'm sure they just picked out 5 names and went along with it. Either way, I was up for learning about a queen who governed a larger area than even Elizabeth I, and is rarely taught about or spoken of.
Because I'm new to this spot in history, I cannot judge the veracity of the author's claims or take on that time in history, events that unfolded, the reason behind said events or the actions of the people at the time, but I did learn a whole lot more than I knew earlier, and I really enjoyed the book.
The book was narrated by someone I've listened to before, so I'm already comfortable with her reading, but I still think she did a solid job with the material.
I sometimes follow Genevieve Valentine's blog, and I really enjoyed her reviews of Reign's costuming, which then turned into just reviews of Reign. It's a delightfully, utterly trashy historical drama about Mary, Queen of Scots and her time at the French court (at least that's how far I've gotten, with the two seasons). My favorite character on the show is Catherine de'Medici, so a book to learn more about her seemed like it might be a bit fun.
I completely recognize that the show is only very, very, very, very loosely based on history. So loosely that I'm sure they just picked out 5 names and went along with it. Either way, I was up for learning about a queen who governed a larger area than even Elizabeth I, and is rarely taught about or spoken of.
Because I'm new to this spot in history, I cannot judge the veracity of the author's claims or take on that time in history, events that unfolded, the reason behind said events or the actions of the people at the time, but I did learn a whole lot more than I knew earlier, and I really enjoyed the book.
The book was narrated by someone I've listened to before, so I'm already comfortable with her reading, but I still think she did a solid job with the material.