Author: Philippa Gregory
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Publish Date: September 15, 2011
Source: Crazy Book Tours
Why You're Reading This Book:
- You're a historical fiction lover
- You like the other books in the Cousins' War trilogy.
From Goodreads.com: "Jacquetta, daughter of the Count of Luxembourg and kinswoman to half the royalty of Europe, was married to the great Englishman John, Duke of Bedford, uncle to Henry VI. Widowed at the age of nineteen she took the extraordinary risk of marrying a gentleman of her house-hold for love, and then carved out a life for herself as Queen Margaret of Anjou's close friend and a Lancaster supporter - until the day that her daughter Elizabeth Woodville fell in love and married the rival king Edward IV. Of all the little-known but important women of the period, her dramatic story is the most neglected. With her links to Melusina, and to the founder of the house of Luxembourg, together with her reputation for making magic, she is the most haunting of heroines."
My Two Cents:
Okay, so you guys remember when I said that I was a fan of The White Queen (the first book in this trilogy) but not so much of a fan of The Red Queen (the second book)? This third book, which covers Elizabeth Woodville's (The White Queen's) mother falls staunchly with The White Queen. I liked it. I was hoping for a little more magical realism (a genre that I'm personally a huge fan of) and I definitely got it with the story of Jacquetta, who believes even more strongly than Elizabeth that she is a descendant of the water goddess.
Jacquetta factors heavily in the story of her daughter. She's one of the only ones that witnesses her daughter's marriage to the King. It was nice to see more of her story. She's a great character! Gregory does a really wonderful job weaving in some of Jacquetta's mystical beliefs.
This book is perfect for fans of the other two books in the trilogy. One thing that's nice about all of the books is that they can be read as standalone stories without missing out on anything.
Bottom line: Great read!
I've heard mixed things about this book but I'm glad to see you liked it! I have a review copy myself and can't wait to read it :)
ReplyDeleteI've seen this one, but didn't realize it was part of a trilogy. I definitely plan to read The White Queen and The Red Queen, so I will be adding this one to the list.
ReplyDelete@Kat @ NoPageLeftBehind The magical realism is really what sold me on this book. I was so fascinated with the things that Jacquetta did throughout the book.
ReplyDelete@lsl_scrapper I think you can read them in any order you want without being lost!
ReplyDeleteI really, really liked this one. I think it's my favorite of the three. Like you, loved TWQ. Couldn't stand TRQ (she's not an easy character to be inside her head, ya know?). I also expected more of the magic, so was mildly disappointed by it – especially since she seemed so much more pro-magic during TWQ. Still, it's a great story about an intriguing woman!
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