The White Queen by Philippa Gregory

Release Date: Out now!

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Pages: 464pgs

The Story

Internationally bestselling author Philippa Gregory brings the tumult and intrigue of The Wars of the Roses to vivid life through the women of the House of Lancaster and the House of York, beginning with the story of Elizabeth Woodville, the White Queen. A woman who won the love of a king and ascended to royalty by virtue of her beauty, Elizabeth fought tenaciously for the success of her family -- her daughter who would one day unite the warring dynasties, and her two sons whose eventual fate has confounded historians for centuries: the Princes in the Tower. An active player in the power struggles that surrounded her, she made hard and courageous choices, always trying to protect those whom she loved. Informed by impeccable research and framed by her inimitable storytelling skills, Philippa Gregory gives an unforgettable voice to an extraordinary woman at the heart of a devastating conflict.

The Review

A big thanks to Simon & Schuster Australia for sending me a review copy of this book!

It's been a while since I've read a Philippa Gregory book (a shame on my part), but I - very much - love reading anything she writes. So even though I have read this book before (but many years ago and I don't remember too much of it), but when I received a new paperback copy of the book from the publishers and since a new TV series has been made for this particular series, I just couldn't resist in reading the book again and remembering what a great writer the author is. And it was definitely great reading this book again and getting refreshed on what I have forgotten from the book so yay for that!

THE WHITE QUEEN is a delightful read for me and pretty much anyone who is a historical fan. Trust me, if you haven't read a Gregory book before, then you're seriously missing out on some super awesome historical fiction. The thing Philippa Gregory has such a great knack for is knowing her history so well (at least from what I can tell of my history awareness) and producing a book from that and creating her own stories from them . . . they're just so awesome. Sure, these books are not for everyone's tastes, but then again, if you love history in fiction then you will love this book too.

Overall, I highly recommending reading THE WHITE QUEEN and the rest of the series. They are just full of richness in detail and have some really interesting - and perhaps complex - characters and that's exactly what I love in historical fiction. Lot's and lot's of complications.

The Rating

4 1/2 / 5 stars

The Kingmaker's Daughter by Philippa Gregory

Release Date: Out now!

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Pages: 452pgs

The Story

'I have lost my father in battle, my sister to Elizabeth Woodville's spy, my brother-in-law to Elizabeth Woodville's executioner, my nephew to her poisoner, and now my son to her curse...'

The gripping and ultimately tragic story of Anne Neville and her sister Isabel, the daughters of the Earl of Warwick, the most powerful magnate in England through the Cousins' Wars. In the absence of a son and heir, he ruthlessly uses the two girls as pawns but they, in their own right, are thoughtful and powerful actors.

Against the backdrop of the court of Edward IV and his beautiful queen, Elizabeth Woodville, Anne turns from a delightful child growing up in intimacy and friendship with the family of Richard Duke of York to become ever more fearful and desperate as her father's enemies turn against her, the net closes in and there is, in the end, simply nowhere she can turn, no one she can trust with her life.

The Review

A big thanks to Simon & Schuster Australia for sending me a review copy of this book!

Let me just say I'm a huge Philippa Gregory fan and I have read most of her books out there, and I've also managed to love most of those books of hers as well. Now I've quite enjoyed her Cousins War series especially The White Princess which I thoroughly enjoyed, but unfortunately for this particular title, I found there was something lacking in this particular storyline and I'm not sure what it was exactly, but there was definitely something lacking in this book.

THE KINGMAKER'S DAUGHTER is a story about Anne Neville, the daughter of King Richard Neville, also known as 'The Kingmaker' as he had a lot of influence over many kings. In part of King Richard's grand plans, he had used his two daughters, Anne and Isabel, as pawns and had high hopes and expectations that at least one of them would become a Queen. Now of course, like in most of Gregory's books, threats and enemies are soon made, families are destroyed, and more troubles comes in the main character's way, and this then leads to Anne, after some tragic misfortunes, to eventually marry King Richard, the Duke of Gloucester, and together they soon begin to face their troubles which is, in Gregory's usual writing style, becomes so very complicated and yet delicious because who doesn't love a bit of royal troubles with friends and enemies?

On a whole, I still enjoyed the book but like I said before something was lacking this time round. And perhaps that's because I didn't really know too much about Anne and her family, and perhaps there was a lot going on this time round . . . but regardless it was still a pleasant read like most of Gregory's books. But on a positive note, what I did like very much was Anne as our main character and I quite liked that she became stronger and stronger by the time the book ended, and that's one thing I've always loved about Gregory as an author: that she writes strong and empowered young women with a purpose. She always gets me with those girls of hers!

Overall, THE KINGMAKER'S DAUGHTER may not be my ultimate favourite book of the author, but I still enjoyed as apart of the Cousins War series.

The Rating

3/5 stars

The White Princess by Philippa Gregory

Release Date: Out now!

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Pages: 544pgs

The Story

The haunting story of the mother of the Tudors, Elizabeth of York, wife to Henry VII.

Beautiful eldest daughter of Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville - the White Queen - the young princess Elizabeth faces a conflict of loyalties between the red rose and the white. Forced into marriage with Henry VII, she must reconcile her slowly growing love for him with her loyalty to the House of York, and choose between her mother's rebellion and her husband's tyranny. Then she has to meet the Pretender, whose claim denies the House of Tudor itself.

The Review

A big thanks to Simon & Schuster Australia for sending me a review copy of this book!

Philippa Gregory, who happens to be one of my favourite authors, is very well-known to readers for being the Queen of Historical Fiction and I think they are right on that fact, especially when it comes to the new and fifth addition to her Cousins War series.

In the next installment of the series, THE WHITE PRINCESS introduces readers to a story told through the eyes of Elizabeth Woodville, a long and forgotten (and probably disliked by most people) York Queen of England. The book quickly opens up with Elizabeth who has a chance meeting with a young King Edward of York, not too long after his defeat of Lancaster King Henry. Newly widowed and in love, Elizabeth and the young King soon enter a scandalizing and secret affair, which leads them to marrying (and for love of course) but without the permission of the court's advisers which, at the time, was not necessarily a good thing - if at all for royalty. But when Elizabeth is presented as the King's wife and the new Queen, this is when the great and devious plotting begins and where one woman's journey becomes a long and a very insightful one, especially for the author's readers, new and old.

Compared to the other predecessors of the series, this fifth installment was such a breath of fresh air and it was probably my favourite book coming from Gregory thus far. It was that good. I honestly have no idea how this author does it really, but I know she does it so well no matter what book I read of hers. While most of the author's books are only of fiction and are depicted by her own amounts of research, but what I always love about a Philippa Gregory book is how well she writes her characters and her histories of where her stories take place. Every single part of those two elements have such a standout-ish factor about them and it just gets me even more invested with the storyline, and leaves me going whoa. Gosh, I just love it so much and with this book . . . well . . . I'm definitely impressed. Especially with how the author developed the relationship between Elizabeth and the King. Elizabeth more so had left such a great impact on me and while - at times - the story can be woeful, but amidst all the sex and the violence, Elizabeth's character was a very empowering one and I loved reading about her journey. It was quite brilliant indeed.

Overall, THE WHITE PRINCESS is a must read for all historical fans and it was such a gripping read too, and right from the beginning. Loved it!

The Rating

5/5 stars

Changeling by Philippa Gregory

Release Date: Out now!

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Pages: 266pgs

The Story

Dark myths, medieval secrets, intrigue, and romance populate the pages of the first-ever teen series from #1 bestselling author of The Other Boleyn Girl.

Italy, 1453. Seventeen-year-old Luca Vero is brilliant, gorgeous - and accused of heresy. Cast out of his religious order for using the new science to question old superstitious beliefs, Luca is recruited into a secret sect: The Order of the Dragon, commissioned by Pope Nicholas to investigate evil and danger in its many forms, and strange occurences across Europe, in this year - the end of days.

Isolde is a seventeen-year-old girl shut up in a nunnery so she can't inherit any of her father's estate. As the nuns walk in their sleep and see strange visions, Isolde is accused of witchcraft - and Luca is sent to investigate her, but finds himself plotting her escape.

Despite their vows, despite themselves, love grows between Luca and Isolde as they travel across Europe with their faithful companions, Freize and Ishraq. The four young people encounter werewolves, alchemists, witches, and death-dancers as they head toward a real-life historical figure who holds the boundaries of Christendom and the secrets of the Order of the Dragon.

The Review

A big thanks to Simon & Schuster Australia for sending me a review copy of this book!

CHANGELING is the first book in Philippa Gregory's new YA historical trilogy, The Order of Darkness. Set in Italy, 1453, it follows the characters, Luca Vero and Lady Isolde, two seventeen-year-olds whose fates cross at the Abbey of Lucretili, a Roman nunnery and whose lives will intertwine and change forever.

Having read a few of Philippa Gregory's adult historical novels in the past, like many readers are already aware of, this author is the Queen of Historical Fiction and she will remain so in the future. However, when it came to her very first young adult novel of a new trilogy, which surprised me as I was so used to her adult books, sadly I found this book right here turned out to be not what I was expecting it to be. While I love a good old historical book whereas others do not so much, especially in the young adult genre, but what I struggled with, in this book, was having so much to take in from the storyline and there were far too many religious aspects involved that often prevented me to get hooked on this book. You see, I'm not exactly a fan of religious things that can overwhelm a story. But moving past that, the good thing is both the storyline and the pacing itself eventually got better as the book came together towards the end, so there's some bonuses in that.

Concerning all of the characters, some were likable enough but what they lacked was a reader's connection to them. Personally for me, I found the supporting characters were much more well developed compared to the primary ones which is quite unusual as the main characters are the ones that are supposed to shine. Still . . . every character was likable in the end. More so Lady Isolde whom was the strongest among them all and highly intelligent. Although, I expected something more from her character and perhaps a romantic interest to be seeked through the other main character, Luca, however I think this will be further explored in the next sequel which I guess leaves readers to only wait, hope and see what happens in the future.

Overall, CHANGELING was very entertaining but it lacked in certain strengths that would've make me fall in love with this book and its historical, fantasy elements. While I do prefer Gregory's adult novels to her first young adult novel, however many readers will love this book and it's the perfect introduction to a new historical trilogy!

The Rating

3/5 stars