Author: Philippa Gregory
Publisher: Touchstone
Publication Date: August 18, 2009
Pages: 416
From Goodreads:
The White Queen tells the story of a woman of extraordinary beauty and ambition who, catching the eye of the newly crowned boy king, marries him in secret and ascends to royalty. While Elizabeth rises to the demands of her exalted position and fights for the success of her family, her two sons become central figures in a mystery that has confounded historians for centuries: the missing princes in the Tower of London whose fate is still unknown. From her uniquely qualified perspective, Philippa Gregory explores this most famous unsolved mystery of English history, informed by impeccable research and framed by her inimitable storytelling skills.
I was really excited to hear that Philippa Gregory was coming out with a new historical fiction series. I am a big fan of her previous books and was looking forward to reading this first book in The Cousin's War series. And let me say - I was not disappointed!
The author is truly a master at using the elegant and poetic language used during the time periods her books are set in. I almost wish we still spoke like that just because of how beautiful it is! The author also does a really great job of describing the settings the characters are in. You can actually form a pretty vivid picture in your mind, which to me is always a big plus.
One thing that never ceases to amaze me with the historical fiction books I have read by this author is the deceit, conspiracies, and lies that the royal families participated in. It literally was your livelihood to be able to manipulate and "work the system" in order to get ahead or to claim what was rightfully yours. I also can't imagine losing so many family members, especially at the hands of other family members and friends.
I had a bit of trouble keeping track of all the family members that had the same names. I can't even count how many Edwards, Richards, and Henrys there were, so the story did get a bit confusing at times. Other than that, I thought this book was a true masterpiece and I am very excited to read The Red Queen in the near future.
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