Tagged: the cousin’s war
The Kingmaker’s Daughter by Philippa Gregory
(Cover picture courtesy of Goodreads.)
Spies, poison, and curses surround her…
Is there anyone she can trust?
The Kingmaker’s Daughter is the gripping story of the daughters of the man known as the “Kingmaker,” Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick: the most powerful magnate in fifteenth-century England. Without a son and heir, he uses his daughters, Anne and Isabel as pawns in his political games, and they grow up to be influential players in their own right. In this novel, her first sister story since The Other Boleyn Girl, Philippa Gregory explores the lives of two fascinating young women.
At the court of Edward IV and his beautiful queen, Elizabeth Woodville, Anne grows from a delightful child to become ever more fearful and desperate when her father makes war on his former friends. Married at age fourteen, she is soon left widowed and fatherless, her mother in sanctuary and her sister married to the enemy. Anne manages her own escape by marrying Richard, Duke of Gloucester, but her choice will set her on a collision course with the overwhelming power of the royal family and will cost the lives of those she loves most in the world, including her precious only son, Prince Edward. Ultimately, the kingmaker’s daughter will achieve her father’s greatest ambition.
Richard Neville, the Earl of Warwick during the time of Elizabeth Woodville was queen has never been one of my favourite figures throughout history. He seemed to go wherever the winds blew, betraying this cause and that to make sure his own blood got on the throne of England. I’ve never liked historical figures like him, but I always pitied his daughters Anne and Isabel, who were nothing more than pawns in his schemes. Married off to men much older than they, told to think and act certain ways depending on their family’s current alliance and such.
I was also reluctant to pick up The Kingmaker’s Daughter because the last Philippa Gregory book I just read was The Other Boleyn Girl, which I hate with a passion right now. Still, I couldn’t resist the Cousins’ War series, not after loving The White Queen that featured Elizabeth Woodville.
What was interesting to me was seeing Elizabeth Woodville as the villain of the piece. In this story, everyone sees her as an evil witch who curses anyone who gets in her way. Why, she even kills her own brother-in-law. Anne Neville, our novel’s main character, is predisposed to see Elizabeth as the enemy and a witch because in reality she probably did. Gregory doesn’t make her out to be some sort of super-heroine that manipulates everyone around her either; she stays relatively true to historical fact and at the same time, tells a story of a woman who seized her own destiny only to realize its true cost.
Anne Neville is a three-dimensional character and not only that, she’s interesting. She’s brought to court at a young age and has to stay in that viper’s nest for a little while. It certainly makes an impression on her, but her naivete wins out when her father orchestrates a match that would make her sister Isabel Queen of England as well as later when her father does the same thing for her. As she grows, though, losing her father and her first husband, Anne really realizes the cost of all these ambitions both morally, personally and politically. Eventually she does get her dream, but it is a Pyrrhic victory.
I wouldn’t say that the plot of The Kingmaker’s Daughter is fast-paced by most standards, but it was interesting enough to keep me wanting to find out what happened to Anne. Although I’ve never been fond of her as an historical figure, I like how Philippa Gregory went above and beyond in terms of effort so that she would shine as a person, not just as a political pawn. Anne had a hard life, made only worse by the tragedies that occurred later on, so you can’t help but feel sorry for her and feel a vested interest in what happens to her next.
All in all, The Kingmaker’s Daughter was a pretty solid book. The character of Elizabeth of York really shone through in the end as her star was rising so I honestly can’t wait to read her take on things in The White Princess.
I give this book 5/5 stars.
The Lady of the Rivers by Philippa Gregory
(Cover picture courtesy of A Reader’s Journal.)
A story rich in passion and legend, The Lady of the Rivers is the story of Jacquetta, Duchess of Bedford, a woman who navigated a treacherous path through the battle lines in the Wars of the Roses.
When Jacquetta is married to the 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 can sense the growing threat from the people of England and the danger of their royal York rivals. As Jacquetta fights for her king and queen, she can see an extraordinary and unexpected future for her daughter Elizabeth: a change of fortune, the throne of England, and the white rose of York…
The Lady of the Rivers is, so far, my favourite book in Philippa Gregory’s The Cousins’ War series. It was even better than The White Queen, mainly because we never saw the downfall of the Yorks, which always made me a bit sad. Jacquetta was one of my favourite characters in the first book, so I was definitely glad to see that she got a book to herself. The story of her childhood, first loveless marriage and subsequent marriage for love is fascinating. And to think, all of this (the broad events of her life) actually happened.
Jacquetta is an amazing narrator. She’s strong, cunning and yet vulnerable when it comes to love. She truly believes in Melusina and her special gift of seeing and healing, which adds another layer to the plot of the story. Unlike Margaret Beaufort, I felt that I truly understood this incredible woman; Philippa Gregory brought her to life in the pages.
The plot is faster paced than you would generally expect in historical fiction, which is definitely a bonus. It’s also fascinating to see Jacquetta’s rise in the English Lancaster court while she foresees an incredible future for her daughter Elizabeth that involves England being under the house of York. This is definitely Philippa Gregory at her finest.
I give this book 4.5/5 stars.
The Red Queen by Philippa Gregory
(Cover picture courtesy of Whitcoulls.)
Heiress to the red rose of Lancaster, Margaret Beaufort never surrenders her belief that her house is the true ruler of England. Ignored by her sainted cousin Henry IV, mocked by her mother, married at age twelve, and endangered by childbirth, she sets her heart on putting her son on the throne regardless of the cost to herself, to England, and even to the little boy. She names him Henry, like the king; sends him into exile; and pledges him in marriage to the daughter of her sworn enemy, Elizabeth of York.
Margaret charts her own way through loveless marriages, treacherous alliances, and secret plots. Finally, gambling her life that her husband, the ruthless, deceitful Thomas, Lord Stanley, will support her, she masterminds one of the greatest rebellions of all time—all the while knowing that her son has grown to manhood, recruited an army, and now waits for his opportunity to win the greatest prize.
My overall impression of the second book in The Cousin’s War is one of indifference mingled with boredom. For once, I’m actually reading a series in order and I think The White Queen was much better. Perhaps it is the fact that I can identify more with the enchanting Elizabeth Woodville than my ruthless ancestor (according to family legend) Margaret Beaufort.
I really do feel sorry for Margaret—she is married at the age of 12 for goodness sake! But my sympathy pretty much ends there as she schemes her way to the top with a single-minded focus that even I am surprised at. I respect her determination, but her ruthlessness is too much, even for me. I understand Genghis Khan better than I understand her because of Conn Iggulden’s wonderful portrayal. Maybe my lack of understanding is partly because of Margaret’s obsessive piety, something that is foreign to me.
Like The White Queen, the plot is not exactly fast-paced, but I don’t really expect fast plots in historical fiction—unless the author is Conn Iggulden, of course. I can’t quite sympathize with all of the characters, but I do understand what drives them. Maybe I will be able to understand them better on a second read through, but for now my ‘meh’ judgment stands.
I give this book 3/5 stars.