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A review by tahlia__nerds_out
Mistress of the Monarchy: The Life of Katherine Swynford, Duchess of Lancaster by Alison Weir
informative
medium-paced
4.0
Alison Weir is the author who first got me interested in devoting more reading time to history vs fiction... and she particularly helped me learn to appreciate English history. It has been a while since I have read one of her books, since I have branched out into reading other authors as my interest in reading about history (and not just English history) has grown.
It was nice to return to the author who got me to appreciate English history. I have owned this book for awhile, but for some reason never got around to reading. I am glad that I finally have.
I forgot how easy Weir's writing is to read. Her style is pleasant and not at all dry. She does her research and seems passionate about her chosen topics.
However....
I never noticed before -- and maybe it is just something she does in this book -- but Weir uses the word "obviously" a little too often. The conclusions she came to were not obvious and left me wondering what brought her to them. I would have preferred her to offer a reference. If there was no reference, I don't mind a theory being offered. I just don't like said theory being presented as "obvious". It isn't. We weren't there and what is in the text does not "obviously" support the conclusion.
And my final bugbear is that Weir too often assumed that things that John of Gaunt did were for Katherine, particularly favors granted to Katherine's sister Phillipa Chaucer and to Katherine's brother-in-law Geoffrey Chaucer. They could have been. But Chaucer and Phillipa both had a long history of service to the royal family and particularly to the Lancastrian branch. Phillipa, in particular, had served both of John's wives prior to Katherine (Blanche and Constance). Most favors to Phillipa were granted with the note: "for her great service to my beloved wife (insert name here)". It seems rather one-note to assume that John of Gaunt would primarily grant favors to the Chaucers because of Katherine. It seems just as likely that he would have esteemed the Chaucers on their own merit and that their familial connection to Katherine was a happy happenstance.
I do think that the author vastly overemphasizes how much of what John of Gaunt did was for or due to Katherine. I do think that she was important to him. I don't think that his affection for her was all-encompassing, though. To be fair, a lot of the assumptions are made because there simply isn't a ton of source material on Katherine. Most of what is known as fact about her seems to be in relation to her husbands and her children. I think that the author might have been better served if she had chosen to make this book a dual biography on John of Gaunt & Katherine Swynford. Then she would have had to do fewer gymnastics to try to make her primary subject pertinent to the story. With two protagonists, her job would have been easier... especially since there is much more material on John of Gaunt.
That being said, I did really enjoy this book. It was very easy to read, even if I didn't always agree with assumptions made. I would definitely recommend it, though I do encourage fellow readers to supplement this book with others during the same era, particularly a book on John of Gaunt, in order to get a more complete view of the Katherine and her famous love story. The only reason I gave this book 4 stars was because of the tendency to reach in order to involve Katherine in events. It is a strong 4 stars, though, close to 4.25. Well worth the time I spent reading it.
It was nice to return to the author who got me to appreciate English history. I have owned this book for awhile, but for some reason never got around to reading. I am glad that I finally have.
I forgot how easy Weir's writing is to read. Her style is pleasant and not at all dry. She does her research and seems passionate about her chosen topics.
However....
I never noticed before -- and maybe it is just something she does in this book -- but Weir uses the word "obviously" a little too often. The conclusions she came to were not obvious and left me wondering what brought her to them. I would have preferred her to offer a reference. If there was no reference, I don't mind a theory being offered. I just don't like said theory being presented as "obvious". It isn't. We weren't there and what is in the text does not "obviously" support the conclusion.
And my final bugbear is that Weir too often assumed that things that John of Gaunt did were for Katherine, particularly favors granted to Katherine's sister Phillipa Chaucer and to Katherine's brother-in-law Geoffrey Chaucer. They could have been. But Chaucer and Phillipa both had a long history of service to the royal family and particularly to the Lancastrian branch. Phillipa, in particular, had served both of John's wives prior to Katherine (Blanche and Constance). Most favors to Phillipa were granted with the note: "for her great service to my beloved wife (insert name here)". It seems rather one-note to assume that John of Gaunt would primarily grant favors to the Chaucers because of Katherine. It seems just as likely that he would have esteemed the Chaucers on their own merit and that their familial connection to Katherine was a happy happenstance.
I do think that the author vastly overemphasizes how much of what John of Gaunt did was for or due to Katherine. I do think that she was important to him. I don't think that his affection for her was all-encompassing, though. To be fair, a lot of the assumptions are made because there simply isn't a ton of source material on Katherine. Most of what is known as fact about her seems to be in relation to her husbands and her children. I think that the author might have been better served if she had chosen to make this book a dual biography on John of Gaunt & Katherine Swynford. Then she would have had to do fewer gymnastics to try to make her primary subject pertinent to the story. With two protagonists, her job would have been easier... especially since there is much more material on John of Gaunt.
That being said, I did really enjoy this book. It was very easy to read, even if I didn't always agree with assumptions made. I would definitely recommend it, though I do encourage fellow readers to supplement this book with others during the same era, particularly a book on John of Gaunt, in order to get a more complete view of the Katherine and her famous love story. The only reason I gave this book 4 stars was because of the tendency to reach in order to involve Katherine in events. It is a strong 4 stars, though, close to 4.25. Well worth the time I spent reading it.