The Kingmaker's Daughter by Philippa Gregory

Philippa Gregory's novel entitled The Kingmaker's Daughter follows the events in The White Queen. This novel is told through the eyes of Anne Neville, wife of King Richard the Third. Anne Neville has a very different view on the events that took place in The White Queen , which made me question what I had been reading in Gregory's previous novel.

Reading Anne Neville's account of events made me wonder who was right? What side is telling the truth here? Did King Richard the Third see an opportunity to gain the throne for himself, or was he doing this to save his country from a child being ruled by an overbearing mother? Of course there is no correct answer to these questions as history is written by the victors. King Richard the Third has been depicted as a killer of innocent children, which is the story that the Tudors would be telling everyone as they were the victors of that battle. Yet this novel begs the question, what really happened during this time--whose story should we believe?

I have to admit, while I enjoyed the concept of turning the story around, this is not one of Gregory's best efforts. The prose is a little weaker than her other novels and I find it harder to connect with Anne Neville than with her other narrators. I found Anne Neville to be led by events around her, instead of charging forward and helping move events along. She did not seem to really play a part in her own life--she let the men in her life lead her along. Gregory tends to depict much stronger women than this. Anne Neville has a a few strong moments here and there, but all in all she pretty much reacts to what is going on around her instead of acting on what is going around her.

Normally I say go out and get the book--not that I am saying not to read it (it is part of a series), but Gregory has done better in the past, so it might not be exactly what you are expecting from the author.

Till next time,
R.F.F.

The White Queen by Philippa Gregory

The White Queen by Philippa Gregory was the first book I read in her War of the Roses series ( I actually think it was the first novel she wrote for it). Once again Gregory captivated my attention with her wonderful gift of story telling.

The White Queen is about Lady Elizabeth Grey, also known as Elizabeth Woodville , the queen of the York court. She was a commoner and a widow with two children who married the King of England, which made her unpopular with numerous people of the time.

One of the legends of how Elizabeth came to be queen is that she waited by the side of the road with her two young sons to see the King. The story goes that King Edward was so captured by her beauty that he stopped to speak with her. Of course there are other takes on how the couple met, but this is the one that Gregory chose to use and I think it is the most romantic take on history. Of course, romance isn't always historically accurate, but it makes for good reading. 

For those who don't know, this is the mother of the Princes in the Tower, still one of the biggest unsolved mysteries. She was also the other grandmother of Henry VIII (Margaret Beaufort being the other one I have previously written about). Gregory weaves the debated theory through her novel, on whether both princes were sent to the Tower or if the queen sent her younger son on to safety and bought another boy to send to the Tower. While I had heard of the princes in the Tower, I had never heard of this theory before, so I found it very interesting.

Once again, Gregory focuses on the theme of women choosing their own destiny. Lady Elizabeth Grey was never supposed to be queen, it was a virtual impossibility. A woman of her station and rank could never hope to be introduced to the King, let alone become his wife. But Lady Elizabeth Grey knew what she wanted (or her mother knew what she wanted, there's some debate over that as well) and she wanted the King of England. More importantly, he wanted her too. Throughout the novel, King and Queen fight to maintain what they feel is their destiny, be it on the battlefield or in sanctuary. 

This is a great novel because it asks amazing questions and when you read, you need to ask questions.

Till next time,

R.F.F.