5 GOLD stars
How I discovered this book: a favourite author
In a Nutshell: The story of Marguerite of Anjou
Loved, loved, loved this excellent book. I was so engrossed all the way through and I need a bit of breathing space before starting something else, because I keep thinking about it. Yes, that good.
This was particularly fascinating for me because although I know the ins and outs of the later years of the Wars of the Roses, I had huge gaps in my knowledge about how it started and how Marguerite got to where she was. Also, it was most interesting to read about the younger years of the three sons of York, about Elizabeth Woodville and her mother Jacquetta, about Margaret Beaufort and others.
Painted as she is all too often in history, I too thought of Marguerite as a ruthless vixen, but Judith Arnopp portrays her in such a way that one can totally see her point of view, and what drove her on, and on and on. Of course history is written by the victors; I wonder if Ms Arnopp's versions of Richard of York and Edward of March (never mind Warwick) are also more accurate than those seen in other books, not least of all those made into BBC TV dramas.
I was thinking, afterwards, about how so many lives could have been saved, including almost everyone Marguerite cared about, had she succumbed to the inevitable and allowed Edward to take the crown the York army believed was rightfully his, but there is no definite answer to who should have worn it; the lines of succession were so ... messy. I wondered if she would have fought so hard if just for her husband, poor Henry VI, if there was no son. Would the honour of the country she was fated to rule be enough? Motherhood made her a fierce lioness, but so many died for her cause; was she right to let this happen?
If only she could have married Edward of Somerset instead!
Anyway, this is a terrific book in which I became so emotionally involved. I was impressed by the way Marguerite's life fitted so perfectly into one novel without ever coming across as written at too fast a pace; the detail is all there where you need it. This is a writer who knows when a year needs one paragraph and moment needs two pages. An absolute winner, and a 'must read' for anyone who loves this period of history. Well done, Judith Arnopp - every book is better than the last!