The Lady of the Rivers by Phillipa Gregory

Author: Phillipa Gregory
Publish Date: April 3, 2012
Website: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/9987.Philippa_Gregory
ISBN: 9781416563716
List Price: $15.29 (Amazon)
My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Jacket Synopsis:
Philippa Gregory brings to life the story of Jacquetta, Duchess of Bedford, a woman of passion and of legend who navigated a treacherous path through the battle lines in the War of the Roses to bring her family unimaginable power.

When the young and beautiful Jacquetta is married to the older Duke of Bedford, English regent of France, he introduces her to a mysterious world of learning and alchemy. Her only friend in the great household is the duke's squire Richard Woodville, who is at her side when the duke's death leaves her a wealthy young widow. The two become lovers and marry in secret, returning to England to serve at the court of the young King Henry VI, where Jacquetta becomes a close and loyal friend to his new queen.

The Woodvilles soon achieve a place at the very heart of the Lancaster court, though Jacquetta has visions of the growing threat from the people of England and the danger of their royal York rivals. Jacquetta fights for her king and queen, as she sees an extraordinary and unexpected future for her daughter Elizabeth: a change of fortune, the white rose of York, and the throne of England.

Comments:
Another great book in the series of the Cousin's War. I've read The White Queen and The Red Queen. This was a great story into the life of Jaquetta Woodville, mother of the White Queen. I love the backstory of how her French background melded into the English culture and how prominent a figure she may have really been. Now we know that this is historical fiction and mostly for entertainment, but it based on factual information about the real people who lived at that time.

In a time that was very dangerous for a women and especially an intelligent and spiritual woman. It was interesting to see how women may have controlled their destiny through strategic relationships and marriages.

I love the writing style of Phillipa Gregory. It is smooth, eventful, and ever entertaining. It is fascinating to believe that there maybe magic in their world or at least the notion of the sixth sense that helps to provide good natured guidance, or bad, however, you look at it. I am looking forward to reading more books in this Cousin's War series.

The Red Queen by Philippa Gregory

Author: Philippa Gregory
Publish Date: 2010
Website: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/9987.Philippa_Gregory
ISBN: 9781416563723
List Price: $13.33 (paperback)
My Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Jacket Synopsis:
The second book in Philippa's stunning new trilogy, The Cousins War, brings to life the story of Margaret Beaufort, a shadowy and mysterious character in the first book of the series - The White Queen - but who now takes centre stage in the bitter struggle of The War of the Roses.

The Red Queen tells the story of the child-bride of Edmund Tudor, who, although widowed in her early teens, uses her determination of character and wily plotting to infiltrate the house of York under the guise of loyal friend and servant, undermine the support for Richard III and ultimately ensure that her only son, Henry Tudor, triumphs as King of England.

Through collaboration with the dowager Queen Elizabeth Woodville, Margaret agrees a betrothal between Henry and Elizabeth's daughter, thereby uniting the families and resolving the Cousins War once and for all by founding of the Tudor dynasty.

My Comments:
The next book in the series of the "Cousins War" after the "The White Queen". Determination is an understatement in this book. Her possessed spirit about being led by the inspiration of Joan of Arc was almost a little much. Considering anyone that was as driven and possessed by her ambition would be considered a loony today. Throughout the book she seemed too naive and ignorant to really accomplish the goal to make her son king. It was her perceived place in society and knowing how to use that place to her advantage to create any opportunity for her son that even helped to remotely achieve their goal. The book doesn't really show that she is really a mindful plotter nor all that smart about it. To me, she seems to have been used by the men around her to support their own selfish goals which, in the end, achieves Margaret's goal to put her son on the thrown. However fragile the whole plan was and that it eventually unfolded to her ultimate goal is beyond me. I think it was all just luck in the end because plot after plot fails and hardly without trying does the plan work.They knew it was their last chance before they were banished forever. They being Henry Tudor and his Uncle Jasper.

Since this is my first introduction to Margaret Beaufort, I won't discount her too much for being naive and ignorant. I plan on reading more material on her to better understand what kind of person she was and if this book portrays an appropriate likeness of the real person. Just as in the "White Queen" and the Melusina references, the constant "vision" or need to have a "vision" is a little daunting. Was she really that consumed by her need to be a "visionary?"

This one sentence shows Margaret's constant attitude throughout her life. "If I could live in a nunnery in this time of imprisonment, at least I would have lived with holy women and not this collection of fools."

The White Queen by Philippa Gregory

Author: Philippa Gregory
Publish Date: January 1, 2008
Website: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/9987.Philippa_Gregory
ISBN: 9781476735481
List Price: $10.57 (Paperback)
My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Jacket Synopsis:
Brother turns on brother to win the ultimate prize, the throne of England, in this dazzling account of the wars of the Plantagenets. They are the claimants and kings who ruled England before the Tudors, and now Philippa Gregory brings them to life through the dramatic and intimate stories of the secret players: the indomitable women, starting with Elizabeth Woodville, the White Queen.

The White Queen tells the story of a woman of extraordinary beauty and ambition who, catching the eye of the newly crowned boy king, marries him in secret and ascends to royalty. While Elizabeth rises to the demands of her exalted position and fights for the success of her family, her two sons become central figures in a mystery that has confounded historians for centuries: the missing princes in the Tower of London whose fate is still unknown. From her uniquely qualified perspective, Philippa Gregory explores this most famous unsolved mystery of English history, informed by impeccable research and framed by her inimitable storytelling skills.

With The White Queen, Philippa Gregory brings the artistry and intellect of a master writer and storyteller to a new era in history and begins what is sure to be another bestselling classic series from this beloved author.

My Comments:
Let me first state that I very much enjoy Philippa Gregory's writing style. It is smooth, vivid, and logically laid out. This book is from the perspective of Elizabeth Woodville, her story of the White Queen of York during the time of the War of the Roses and ends with the inevitable Lancaster resurgence by the Tudor's. This story is mostly non-fiction where historical records are available to lay out the story, where there is no record or required personal insight, the author does a good job of piecing in fictional bridges to fill the holes in the historical records. She does propose several logical outcomes to certain situations that were not recorded to let the reader pause to question what they think may have happened, but in those parts of the book the author tries not to give a definitive answer where there are no facts.

Elizabeth's Mother was always a source of advice and comfort. Her initial advice to Elizabeth is "...give your husband a son and heir, protect the poor and innocent, and further the hopes of your family. Any ninny with a honest heart, a scheming family, and an open purse can do that." In this portrayal of Elizabeth, she appears to want to be an honest and fair queen. References like these show how strong women could be during a time when women could not rule and perceived to not maintain any form of power.

Page 183 - Anthony's response, a foreshadowing of future events? "All the York Family are a bloodthirsty lot, born and raised on the battlefield. Let us hope that when we finally have peace, they don't kill each other out of sheer habit."

Page 340 - "I am alone in a world of master conspirators." A statement made by Elizabeth as she tries to protect her sons from what she perceives as their York uncle Richard's attempt to steal the throne for himself. However, the book and the miniseries, leave question as to Richard's true goal for the throne. Whether it was to truly crown the Prince Edward to begin with, but with Elizabeth's defensive moves, did they cause Richard to doubt the intentions of the Rivers family. So much attention is given the the notion of witchcraft, it leaves much to the imagination of the reader.

The book does well overall to identify the major characters to these historical events and outline the many plots that were devised to gain advantage in every situation by every family who could remotely vie for the throne. An amazing historical time, but a brutal & horrible time to live, I am sure. This is 1 of 4 in the series of books called the "Cousin's War".

I am off to read the Red Queen, from the perspective of Margaret Beaufort, the last Lancaster family to have strong contention for the thrown with her son Henry Tudor...to be Henry the VII?