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A review by niamhreviews
The King's Mother by Annie Garthwaite
4.0
I picked this up in June because I got an advanced copy from Netgalley, but I put it down about 30% of the way in because it was very dense and I didn't have the brain capacity for it. But after a summer of watching Tudor based TV shows and needing something that was both character-driven AND fast moving, I decided to get it out from the library and read it. Excellent job me, well done!
'The King's Mother', contrary to some of the copy on the back of the dust jacket, primarily follows Cecily, mother to Edward 5th and Richard 3rd, and her wheelings and dealing as 'The King's Mother' as she attempts to keep her family on the throne during the Wars of the Roses. It moves at lightning speed between battles (these guys are always at war either with each other or with France), marriages, babies, deaths etc, detailing the beginning of Edward's reign to the sudden end of Richard's and the accession of Henry Tudor (this shouldn't be a spoiler, it's literally history).
In her bio, Garthwaite talks about how much she loves this period of history and as a fellow geeker of a very specific period of English history, that passion shines through. Cecily lifts off the page and I found myself completely engrossed in this complex web of tales - even if I did get confused between who was who sometimes because the Royal name pool, like their gene pool, is rather small. The writing is rich with detail and packed - you have to concentrate particularly hard because if you don't, you'll miss something - and she expertly weaves fiction and fact so well that you just assume these are all transcripts of conversations. It's so very Shakespearean in its execution that I consistently found myself wondering WHEN this was going to be turned into an epic television series, rather than if. Is this the next Wolf Hall we've all been waiting for?
I've immediately added 'Cecily' to my TBR and I'm sort of hoping that this author's next book might transition to Margaret Beaufort and how she managed the reigns of Henry 7 and the early one of Henry 8, because she is a fascinating figure in history.
'The King's Mother', contrary to some of the copy on the back of the dust jacket, primarily follows Cecily, mother to Edward 5th and Richard 3rd, and her wheelings and dealing as 'The King's Mother' as she attempts to keep her family on the throne during the Wars of the Roses. It moves at lightning speed between battles (these guys are always at war either with each other or with France), marriages, babies, deaths etc, detailing the beginning of Edward's reign to the sudden end of Richard's and the accession of Henry Tudor (this shouldn't be a spoiler, it's literally history).
In her bio, Garthwaite talks about how much she loves this period of history and as a fellow geeker of a very specific period of English history, that passion shines through. Cecily lifts off the page and I found myself completely engrossed in this complex web of tales - even if I did get confused between who was who sometimes because the Royal name pool, like their gene pool, is rather small. The writing is rich with detail and packed - you have to concentrate particularly hard because if you don't, you'll miss something - and she expertly weaves fiction and fact so well that you just assume these are all transcripts of conversations. It's so very Shakespearean in its execution that I consistently found myself wondering WHEN this was going to be turned into an epic television series, rather than if. Is this the next Wolf Hall we've all been waiting for?
I've immediately added 'Cecily' to my TBR and I'm sort of hoping that this author's next book might transition to Margaret Beaufort and how she managed the reigns of Henry 7 and the early one of Henry 8, because she is a fascinating figure in history.