Audiobook Wednesdays: The Lady of the Rivers by Philippa Gregory

Oh, Philippa, I can't quit you. I wasn't impressed with the last book I read of yours, The King's Curse, but like I said, I was open to reading more of your books... but not pay full price for them.

Enter Audible's 6 dollar audiobook deal. I'm a member, which means I pay $13.00 a month for a book, but every so often, they have sweet, sweet book deals. I would have never known if it wasn't for the fact I put Down the Rabbit Hole on the wish list, and they sent me an email letting me know that it was on the sale. I snapped up Holly's book, and then took are this time around to listen to the voice actors. This is the first time I ever listened to a book with a British voice actor, and I had trepidations. The sample I listened too was pretty good, and along with another book, I figured, what the hell? I bought it.

This book is a neat set up prequel to Gregory's most famous book, The White Queen, and if you wanted to re-read that book again, you can immediately do so at the ending of this book.

The book is about Elizabeth's Woodville's mother, Jaquetta Woodville, the Dowager Duchess of Bedford and Lady Rivers. It introduces her life as a daughter of a wealthy family of Luxembourg and how she became the Duchess of Bedford, then the Lady Rivers. I was very interested to read about Richard Woodville and Jaquetta's romance, and how she was disgraced by marrying him, which was one of the reasons, (along with the price) I pulled the trigger and bought the book.

At first, I thought I made a huge mistakes. The voice actor was annoying, and when she did the voices of men and other women, some of them trailed off mid sentences, which prompted me to hike up the sound so I could hear them and figure out what the heck they were saying (just a day in the life of a hard-of-hearing person...). I thought this was going to be Magnus Chase all over again but I was relieved to find that when Jaquetta got older, she matured into her voice as well as Richard's Woodville's voice.

Jaquetta meets Joan of Arc in the beginning of the book, as well as introduce magical motifs and themes that are there for a lot of her books. Thankfully, it's not so heavy handed as The King's Curse, where Margaret Pole mentions The Curse on nearly page, and even shows Jaquetta resisting her magical gifts in order to fly under radar for most of life.

I always like reading books where the author refers to other events in other books. Call it cheesy, but it makes me feel like I'm apart of an inside joke or I'm in the know. When she mentions "The 3 Suns" or when she refers to her daughter standing in the road, I'm gleeful, because I know what she's referring to, and I feel accomplished.

Margaret of Anjou is laughably evil and spoiled in this book and I can't imagine a person who can't reflect on their own actions and not draw their own conclusions on their decisions. You're glad when England is ride of her and King Henry, who is such a pool fool. This definitely sets up the saviors that is Edward and Elizabeth who overtake the throne.

I read some of the reviews and some of them critique the fact that Philippa constantly referred to people by their name and title and their relation. I don't remember from her other books, but as an audio book, it was good to hear the titles sometimes and be reminded of who the heck they were. Besides, there are a million Richards, and Edwards and Henries... sometimes it's hard to keep track! Nevertheless, the conversations between Jaquetta and Margaret of Anjou was stilted because Gregory felt the need to constantly refer to everyone by their name and station.

Overall, it was an enjoyable listen. There is some good and bad, and if you want a deep, insightful historical fiction book, this isn't it. Many readers, especially history buffs complained that PG is dumbing down her books to appeal to a larger audience, especially the constant references to various people by their titles and station, but I thought it was better than some of her books. I definitely wouldn't buy it for full price.

The King's Curse by Philippa Gregory (Or, a slow burn of a sad story that we've all read before)

So let me explain the title first. I came up with the title as I waded through the book and I remember repeatedly telling my husband that it's just a sad story... one where we know the ending, and most likely, know the big parts of the story.The only difference is that it's through the eyes of another character, not one of the key players. I knew of Margaret Pole and her sad end, but I didn't know backstory or her role during the War of the Roses.

I'm not sure about you all, but I hate reading about characters that are so happy and life is wonderful when the reader knows that it's going to go to hell pretty soon. I'm going to go out on a limb and state that Gregory was laying it on with Katherine of Aragon's happiness, especially since we all know what's going to happy to her. It also happened with Margaret Pole, to a lesser extent, with her rags to riches story, seeking refuge in a nunnery until Katherine of Aragon marries Henry the VIII and is invited back to court. We all know where she ends up and her being elated makes me squirms. I feel like it's a horror movie, where the main character goes into the darken house when you know there is a killer there waiting for them.

Gregory also lays it on pretty thick with the character of Gregory, who eventually betrays Montague and his mother and his entire family. He's the apple of his mother's eye, but bad things only happen to boys that are overindulged and spoiled, which brings me too...

Damn, Henry the VIII. The rise and fall of this vapid, egomaniac of a character is pretty satisfactory, but in his wake is a path of destruction and headless women, not to mention a destruction of a religion in England. He surrounds himself with corruption, but I take issue with Margaret's viewpoint. It's skewed because she's a York Princess and her family is pushed to the side. Need I say that her father was killed because he eagerly tried to overthrow Edward II?

The last 100 pages of the book was also interesting to me because I haven't read anything on Jane Seymour or the aftermath of the fall of Anne Boleyn. I appreciated the last pages or so of the book when King Henry marries Jane Seymour. I feel like I've read a lot of books recently and saw a lot of movies that depicted the rise and fall of Anne Boleyn, but we never hear about the wives after that dangerous affair. It was interesting to read it through the eyes of a powerful bystander and an heir of the Plantagenet line, the oldest royal family in England.

I even enjoyed the beginning of the book when Katherine of Aragon and Author are introduced and they were wedded and living in Ludlow when Author comes down with a mysterious illness. Katherine of Aragon is also another character I haven't read so much about, other than the displaced wife of Henry the VIII. The women are very sympathetic with her, and hate Anne Boleyn, and the reader can see how she isolates herself from everyone at court so when she is put on trial, no one is there to defend her. The act of putting his wife aside leads him into doing crazier and crazier things, with the people of court too afraid of him to advise him otherwise. Again, I feel like this is Margaret's black and white viewpoint because King Richard was definitely flirting with his niece...

Finally, like the other books in the series, there is mention of witchcraft, curses, religion and mythology, and the like, which gives it an interesting flair and spin on the history. I've read a few other books in the series, like The White Queen and The Red Queen which repeatedly mention the above themes and motifs. I'm not sure if it needed such repetition of a curse throughout the book and Margaret's adamant refusal of acknowledging it.

I'll see what other books in this series I can find for a bargain. I have a few more that I need to read, The White Princess and the other book about the rise of the Woodville family, but I'm not paying full price for them!

The Kingmaker's Daughter by Phillipa Gregory

Like most of PG's books, this one was found at the Baltimore book fair. I wasn't really interested in The Kingmaker's Daughter, but I got it because it was a PG book, it was probably 5 dollars and I figured why not?

Eventually, I stumbled upon The Red Queen book in Ohio and it dawned on me that The Kingmaker's Daughter was another installment in the Cousins' War series. When I chose to watch The White Queen show on Starz for my second and third installment on "Which is Better?" it was advertised that those three books were adapted for the show. I could see the influences of The White Queen and The Red Queen books in the show, so I was curious to see which parts of The Kingmaker's Daughter they used as well. After She-Hulk, this book was next in line!

It's interesting to read about how much other characters perceive Elizabeth's actions as witchcraft. Since it has been so long ago since I read the book that for the entire time I read this one, all I could do was wished I reread The White Queen before reading this book. It's funny, I don't remember much of Anne and Isabel's characters in The White Queen, but maybe it was supposed to be like that? That Elizabeth Woodville paid no mind to girls who based their entire lives on her? However, I do remember parts where Anne was to take the throne, and, I'm not sure if Elizabeth who said it or if another character close to her said it, but that Anne was so thin that the dresses had to be cut down to her size.

It was also interesting to read about The Kingmaker, Warwick and the conflict between him and Edward through Anne's eyes. He was a man desperate for power, and hurt that he was betrayed by Edward. It's also interesting how the entire aristocracy is absolutely against a commoner like Elizabeth and her family to gain power and how much they are willing to scheme, back stab and die in order to get her and her family out of there.

I enjoyed the dynamics between Anne and Richard after Edward dies and their fight for the throne. It starts as Richard's genuine concern for his nephew, then it's a struggle for power between Elizabeth's clan and Richard's clan, then finally their fight for control and power. Richard is seen as the loyal brother for all those years, and then he declares his brother's children as bastards.

I was particularly interested to read about when Richard III started making moves on his niece, Princess Elizabeth. In The Red Queen, Margaret Beaufort talks at length about how disgusted she is with Richard III and Princess Elizabeth and how much they flirt and how the court gossips about their relationship. In this book, Anne is absolutely convinced that Richard is the love of her life and he saved her from desitution, the tower, the abbey and possibly even death. Anne hypes him up for the entire book, and I waited for the other foot to drop.

However, it was far sadder than the other books revealed. Richard and Anne's child, Edward, dies, and Anne is so distraught there are no other children and their heir is gone. She mourns the loss of her son, and Richard tells her that his plan is to ruin his niece to reduce Prince Henry's claim to her and the throne.

Finally, however, for me, the least interesting part of the book, were the princes in the tower. I like that it is never really solved, though several clues were given to what could possibly have happened to them. Anne is guilt ridden to think that she could have possibly given the command to harm them, and then second guesses Richard's claim that he didn't harm them.

I think I will keep an eye for The White Princess, another book in the Cousins' War. I read some harsh things about it, especially the relationship between Henry Tudor and Elizabeth York.. so we'll see.

Which is better? The White Queen, second half of the season

So, I viewed most of the second half of the series, read the book, The Kingmaker's Daughter (review featured soon), and then watched the last episode of the series. As I said before, a part of me wants to re-read The White Queen, then re-watch The White Queen to see how much of all three books are used in the series.

Anyway, back to reviewing the second half of the season of The White Queen! So, after Margaret of Anjou is defeated, the romance of Richard and Anne come into play. I really like how Richard is depicted throughout the show, and how complicated he is. What I like about PG and about this show is that all the characters are not all good or all evil. They all make choices. They all have aspirations and desires, and they choose just how far they will go to achieve their goals.

So, PG has the series, The Cousins' War, and tells the War of the Roses through women's eyes, but the real star of the series is Richard III. Does he want to be King Regent to his nephew Edward? Did he or didn't he kill the Princes in the Tower? Does he or doesn't he love Anne Warwick? What is his end game with Princess Elizabeth? We never quite know where we stand with him. Throughout the series, he is clever, and he plays the long game with finally sleeping with Princess Elizabeth.

Which, by the way, is pretty skeevy and creepy. I've read a lot of criticism over that shipping and PG's writing of the pairing. Apparently the real story of King Henry and Queen Elizabeth of York is a beautiful romantic story and PG decided to go in another direction with an incestous relationship instead. I haven't read The White Princess yet to accurately judge the future relationship between Henry and Elizabeth.

Now, I didn't notice this before I read the book, but after I read The Kingmaker's Daughter, I noticed that for the show, they made Anne much more aggressive. I think it was to push things along, and most of PG's books are in first person and the reader is privy to their inner thoughts. I'm not sure how I feel about it, but I'm not sure how else to move the story along, so they most likely made the right choice.

They also made Princess Elizabeth much more aggressive as well. I remember in The Red Queen where Princess Elizabeth goes to live with Margaret Beaufort. Margaret comments that she is demure and she makes the right choices at all times, the makings of a real Queen, and I remember in The Kingmaker's Daughter is also graceful and demure as well. Princess Elizabeth in the show yells at Margaret and runs off to see Richard. Its to move the show along but the unfazed Elizabeth is what I was fascinated with.

I've read reviews on The White Queen, specifically the period clothing and the lack of "no teeth" and grime. To be honest, do we really need realistic historical fiction? We all know those times were dirty, cold and violent... I don't want to be reminded of it while I watch TV. "Reign" clothing is almost all historically inaccurate and it'ts great. The key is, to know that it's accurate and that it's intentional.

I also think that if one wanted to watch historically accurate shows, The White Queen would not be it. Philippa Gregory's books are centered around women's stories, and more than the chronological events that occurred, she focuses on character relationship and evolution. The White Queen does that  very well.

There are rumors about The White Princess in the works, but we'll see if that comes to fruition. I'm a fan of PG, so hopefully it comes about! There is enough media surrounding Henry the VIII and Anne Boleyn. Bring on the other royals!

So, which is better? I think it's a good adaptation of 3 books (!!!) and they got really good actors for the show, but I have to say... the books are better! They have much more content, 1st person perspective is invaluable and the nuances are also very fun. The actors are cute in the show and the smexy times are fun... but The White Queen, the TV show, is not as good as The White Queen, The Red Queen and The Kingmaker's Daughter books.

Which is Better?: The White Queen, the first half of the season

The White Queen, a series produced by Starz, combines three books by Philippa Gregory, The White Queen, The Read Queen and The Kingmaker. I reviewed The Red Queen earlier in my blog, and The Kingmaker is in my book stash currently. I stumbled onto The White Queen a few years ago when a vintage store was giving away free books once you've made a purchase.

I didn't intend on comparing the TV series with the books from the series Cousins' War, but like most things, I stumbled upon it on Amazon Prime when Baltimore City closed schools due to the riots and I needed a break from the news. I remembered when this show aired, and there were complaints about the costuming and set up of the show. I didn't have Starz, so it didn't make much difference to me. As you all know Gregory is my girl and so I decided to review the TV series. Since this is not a movie, I am going to break up my review into 2 parts: episodes 1-5 and 2-10.

So the series opens with what I remembered from The White Queen. Elizabeth Woodsville has a premonition and goes to meet King Edward by the side of the road with her 2 sons to beg for her lands back when he husband is killed on the battle field. King Edward is oh, hay, gurl, hay and is captivated by her beauty. There is a bit of a rapey scene but it doesn't happen, and then King Edward comes back and tells Elizabeth that he caught feelings and that they should get married. They get married in secret and they do it a bunch of times before King Edward goes to war. Elizabeth's brother catches them as he leaves and tells her she's duped and that he's done this to other women before.

Then, MAGIC. Elizabeth's mother claims they are descendants of a river goddess and they go to this river and cut string and eventually Elizabeth reels in a crown ring. After King Edward squashes the rebellion, he comes back for Elizabeth. There is a lot of angst over whether Edward will be true to his word, but he is, and Warwick is all kinds of pissed off when Edward goes against him and the treaty of France and announces his marriage to Elizabeth, which kicks off one of the many conflicts of the series.

So, the Cousins' War books documents the War of the Roses, and the battle for the British Crown. Elizabeth and Edward are of York, and Margaret Beaufort, King Henry are of the Lancaster house. Margaret Beaufort, the star of the book The Red Queen, appears briefly in the first episode, then becomes a major player in the series. I like how they flip back and forth between Elizabeth and Margaret. Film gives more flexibility in terms of showing complex opposing sides. Books can also do this, but Gregory doesn't specialize in 900 page books.

They also show Anne and Isabel, Warwick's daughters, or, like the title of the book, The Kingmaker's Daughters. I have not read the book (yet), but not a lot of time was spent on them in the Queen books. They were painted as timid and sickly and not major players. It is very clear that they are pawns in men's thirst for power, and both Anne and Isabel must survive in a world that cares little for them. They have a lot in common with Margaret, though they do have any screen time together so far.

The casting for all the characters is pretty spot on and what I envisioned them to be in the books. The actresses for Isabel and Anne are not ugly women, but they do play the part of plain and thin. At first, I didn't believe the forbidden romance between Jasper Tudor and Margaret Beaufort, but their beliefs in the future of Henry Tudor brought them together and made their draw towards each other more believable.

Again, I have not yet read The Kingmaker's Daughter, so I am unsure if Gregory spent time on Margaret of Anjou, but her and Edward are 4 kinds of creepy. Just... wait and see.

Finally, since I read the article about the costuming, I noticed the zippers and close stitches of the costumes, but it got better as the series went on. I was never a stickler with costuming as long as I got the gist of the time, and I thought the show did a good job of that so far.

I think the show did a great job of combining all three books into one fluid TV show. Can't wait until the second half!