The Lady of the Rivers

There were times that certain parts were rushed because so much history is covered. Otherwise easy read that keeps pages turning

LADY OF THE RIVERS is Phillippa Gregory's latest foray into the world of the Wars of the Roses. Ms. Gregory has a talent for picking out a female heroine, who is both very interesting and totally unknown. She managed that feat with Elisabeth Woodville in THE WHITE QUEEN and Lady Margaret Beaufort in THE RED QUEEN. Now we have Jacquetta de St. Pol, a Burgundian princess born to wealth, fortune and arranged marriages, who seemingly threw it all away for the sake of love, in the shape of the well-favored Sir Richard Woodville, a mere knight.Fast forward twenty-eight years, and Jacquetta resumes her position as the aristocrat she was born to be, through a very fortuitous marriage. So fortuitous was this marriage, that the people of the time whispered that she had practiced the Black Arts in order to secure it.Phillippa Gregory is so talented, and I thoroughly enjoyed the beginning of the novel where she introduced us to Jacquetta's world, seen through the eyes of a fourteen-year-old, and her encounters with Joan of Arc. But Ms. Gregory knows how to handle her material, and although Joan was riveting, at no time did I feel that she was overpowering Jacquetta or Jacquetta's story. (This is not true of other novels I have read, which have included Joan as a "minor" character).However, I did think that the pacing of the novel could have been improved. There were a couple of times where the novel went too fast. One was the death of Joan, which I felt was cut too soon. All I needed was more of a response from Jacquetta, some image or physical response that made you understand that this experience was seared into her forever. The other time where I felt that Ms Gregory lost an opportunity was with John of Bedford, Jacquetta's first husband. Although he was menacing, he wasn't menacing enough. I would have liked to have seen real fear on the part of Jacquetta about this man who was not only the cause of her friend' death, but was also asking her to do what he'd killed the other young woman for. Of course, all of this was presented to the reader. But I felt that its handling was too intellectual.Apart from these concerns, this novel is an enjoyable read for those of you interested in 1400s England.

I have to admit, it was difficult to keep names straight, but it's such a good story that I made it work! I felt like I was in the story, watching it all happen. Anything that you think you know about this time frame, dismiss it. Read it for what it is, historical fiction. I've always wanted to read this series and am so happy it's now part of the Kindle unlimited catalog!

She writes about the time periods I'm already interested in with the exact angle that I'm interested in. I can't get enough and I'm so happy these exist. If you are a fan of the show the Tudors or any of the shows that match these books (and like to read) then you will likely love these books.

Amazing book by Philippa Gregory, this time she writes in the narrative of Jacquetta, Lady of the Rivers. The mother of Elizabeth Woodville, who ends up marrying Edward IV. The ending leads right up where they meet and into the next book. She does a nice job of introducing Margaret Beaufort and the other leads in the other books. The love between Baron Rivers and Jacquetta reminds me of my own marriage with my husband. With Baron Rivers, she conceived 14 children, predicting her own and her daughters’ Elizabeth’s. One of my favorite passages was when she was talking with her daughter about her gift of magic and how they relate to prayer. She was very loyal to Margaret of Anjou and Henry VI, the House of Lancaster. She saw how the king deteriorated over time. Everywhere the Queen went she followed. She acted as an intermediary for the Queen and the aldermen of the city. I love how she took us through the different houses. She does an amazing job of leading into the next book which is called, “The White Queen, which is about her daughter. I absolutely love this series and how they started off with Jacquetta’s story. I would totally recommended this book series to those who like historical works.

Love all books from PG. This one is one of my favourites. Very detailed story telling with some history.

Excellent!The second book I am reading in the series of THE COUSINS WAR.very well researched and written, like all books by Phillipa Gregory.

Muy buena lectura, ligera, entretenida y con algo de historia. Pocos libros mencionan a mujeres y su participación historica, y aqui se muestran de manera realnu creible.

Die Autorin lässt Geschichte lebendig werden, Gesichter bekommen, Gefühle empfinden. Schreibstil ist auch als nicht Muttersprachler gut zu lesen und es machte Spaß in eine ganz andere Zeit abzutauchen. Eine ungewöhnliche Frau wird lebendig, von der ich sonst nie erfahren hätte. Das nächste Buch liegt bereits auf dem Nachttisch und wird nicht das Letze sein!

Philippa has such a way with words and a really beautiful ability to paint an emotional picture of the time period she’s writing about. I find her novels to be a wonderful, intriguing, feminine perspective on what life in medieval times would have been like. If you like medieval fiction you’ll love this!