Hugh and Bess - Susan Higginbotham

Forced to marry Hugh le Despenser, the son and grandson of disgraced traitors, Bess de Montacute, just 13 years old, is appalled at his less-than-desirable past. Meanwhile, Hugh must give up the woman he really loves in order to marry the reluctant Bess. Far apart in age and haunted by the past, can Hugh and Bess somehow make their marriage work?

Just as walls break down and love begins to grow, the merciless plague endangers all whom the couple holds dear, threatening the life and love they have built.

My thoughts:

I read the book about Hugh's dad, and I must say this one was much better. This one I could actually enjoy. Though I do not like that she made it..cute? They liked each other too much. Is that fact or fiction?

Ok, Bess is told she must marry Hugh. She is 13, a widow, he is 30. The age thing did not bother me. Marry them away young before they do something stupid. It was the 14th century after all. They waited until she was mature enough for that other business.

Hugh is the son of a traitor. Bess the daughter of a newly made Earl with the king's ear. It was a political match. In this book they grow to like each other, and I guess that was nice.

Oh that time. I had forgotten that 3 of his sisters (kids!) were forced to become nuns when their father was executed. Women were cattle. Horrible :/

Conclusion:

All in all, I enjoyed this book. It felt very light historical fiction (the previous one was actually too heavy and felt like a textbook). An interesting couple too. 

cover

boring

Paperback, 287 pages
Published August 1st 2009 by Sourcebooks Landmark (first published October 29th 2007)
Historical fiction
Own

Historical Fiction Reviews: 3 in 1

Young Eleanor, niece of King Edward II, is delighted with her marriage to Hugh le Despenser and her appointment as a lady-in-waiting to Queen Isabella's household. But before long, Eleanor realizes that her beloved Uncle Edward is not the mighty ruler his kingdom-or his queen-expected.

Hugh's unbridled ambition and his intimate relationship with Edward arouse widespread resentment, even as Eleanor remains fiercely loyal to her husband and to her king. However, her allegiance may cost her dearly.

My thoughts:

The book was interesting, but that is just that...it was the history itself that was interesting. Not the book.

For me it could have better. As it was now, it just did not know whether it was fiction or non-ficion. Everything had to be told, every little detail about everyone in the country. There was even a mention of something that would not happen in years. The characters could not imagine that, I do not want to know that either. We are not tellers of the future. So less of that, and more focus on characters. Without telling everything.

Still it was interesting to read about Eleanor de Clare.(even if she has TSTL moments). She married a man beneath her status cos the king told her to. Hugh was, well honestly I would have liked that he was portrayed even darker cos he was powerhungry. But I never felt we should see him as a bad man. We totally should have. And of course there is everyone else, nobles, royals. Plots, traitors, war, and a bunch of psychopaths really ;) I would NOT have wanted to be her.

Paperback, 499 pages
Published April 1st 2009 by Sourcebooks Landmark (first published July 25th 2005)
Own

A child born in the plague year of 1348, abandoned and raised within the oppressive walls of a convent, Alice Perrers refused to take the veil, convinced that a greater destiny awaited her. Ambitious and quick-witted, she rose above her obscure beginnings to become the infamous mistress of Edward III. But always, essentially, she was alone.... 

Early in Alice's life, a chance meeting with royalty changes everything: Kindly Queen Philippa, deeply in love with her husband but gravely ill, chooses Alice as a lady-in-waiting. Under the queen's watchful eye, Alice dares to speak her mind. She demands to be taken seriously. She even flirts with the dynamic, much older king. But she is torn when her vibrant spirit captures his interest...and leads her to a betrayal she never intended. 

My thoughts:

I do not really know what happened, it could have been growing all week. I was all come on, 600 pages? Why is that needed? Cos honestly nothing happened in the book.

I started to read, it felt ok, but then I started to skim and skimmed to the end. I could have worked through it and given it a good rating but it was a library book which means...I gave up and skimmed. I have too many books. I need awesome, if the library do not give me awesome I go all eh.

I am also not a fan of the this is me, the narrator, I am old now and telling my story. I want to live in the moment. I do not want the narrator as a old woman there with me at the same time looking back.

Paperback, 480 pages
Published 2012 by Mira Books
Library

Sadie Appleby has lived all her life in her small village. One night she is rudely awoken by her older and bolder sister, Ella, who has robbed her employer and is on the run. The girls flee their rural home of Westmorland to head for London, hoping to lose themselves in the teeming city. But the dead man's relatives are in hot pursuit, and soon a game of cat and mouse begins.

Ella becomes obsessed with the glitter and glamour of city life and sets her sights on the flamboyant man-about-town, Jay Whitgift. But nothing is what it seems - even Jay Whitgift.

Can Sadie survive a fugitive's life in the big city? But even more pressing, can she survive life with her older sister Ella?

My thoughts:

I wanted more from this one but it fell kind of flat for me.

First we got Ella who is a bitch. She robs her previous employer and goes to London to get pretty things and a man. I never liked her, I guess I was never meant to like her but I think she got off too easy.

Sadie could have been good, but she was just a mouse who should have found some courage and not let her sister walk all over her. First maybe she should have understood that robbing was a shitty idea.

The book takes place in London where they girls try to get by, but the whole on the run, making a new life was sort of dull.

Interesting premise, but not for me.

Cover

I prefer the other one 

Paperback, 304 pages
Published September 13th 2012 by Pan Macmillan
Own

Review: The Queen of Last Hopes - Susan Higginbotham

Genre: Historical Fiction
Pages: 400
Published: Jan 2011 Sourcebooks Landmark

It would be called the Wars of the Roses, but it all began with one woman's fury...

Margaret of Anjou, Queen of England, cannot give up on her husband-even when he goes insane. And as mother to the House of Lancaster's last hope, she cannot give up on her son-even when all England turns against him. This gripping tale of a queen is at its heart a tender tale of love: passionate, for her husband, and motherly, for her only son.

Plot:

The War of the Roses, ok I will do my best. Margaret of Anjou was married to Henry VI from the house of Lancaster. Together they had a son Edward. Henry was mad, other people wanted power because they all descended from the same king. Warwick, the king-maker plotted with the Duke of York, and what follows is battles, the king being captured, Margaret plotting for her husband and son, more battles, people turning sides etc etc. King Edward IV. Exile, plotting, and then I will not even go into the whole plotting inside the York camp and when they kill each other.

My thoughts:

This was my second Higginbotham book and I do enjoy her books. They are so rich in history, and so full of detail. Sure I was lost a bit in the beginning. How could I not be, all these people plotting were cousins, so cousin killing cousin, cousin marrying cousin, brother killing brother. Always switching sides, but all the major players are listed in the book so it felt good to go and have a look at that. The War of the Roses will always be one big mess, but Higginbotham makes a good job explaining it all, and I do think I got it now.

I have read other books, yes more Yorkist books, so I never thought much about Margaret. But she was so young, and her husband went mad so early. The people hated her and said that her son was not the kings. I felt really sorry for her because her whole world just crumbled under her. I also saw her with new eyes, because those who win write the history and she has not been looked upon with gentle eyes. But then the women are always the weak spot and get all the blame.

I even turned into a Lancastrian, they had the right to rule. Still a mad king is not a good king, so I am a bit of a Yorkist there. But as usual, Warwick is an evil man, and I just have to like Edward IV. I also have to mention Henry Beaufort, the Duke of Somerset, I even had a bit of a crush on him, and I did like that Higginbotham took some creative freedom and played a bit with him.

A great book, you are there, you are on the side of the House of Lancaster and look at things from their point of view. Margaret is the main character, but instead of letting her tell it all, there are some other POVs, Somerset among others. And I did like that, because then you really were on all those battle fields.

Recommendation and final thoughts:

I do recommend her books to all historical fiction fans, and the rest of you too. They are just so good, and I just become more and more interested in The War of the Roses. A messy period in time turns into one great story.

Reason for reading:

I really enjoyed her last book, The Stolen Crown (Go York ;)

Cover:

Meh

ARC Review: The stolen Crown - Susan Higginbotham

The Stolen Crown by Susan Higginbotham

The Secret Marriage That Forever Changed the Fate of England

Genre: Historical fiction
Pages: 400
Publication date: March 1st 2010

Trapped in the Wars of the Roses, one woman finds herself sister to the queen...and traitor to the crown

When six-year-old Kate Woodville’s beautiful sister Elizabeth makes a shocking—and secret—marriage to King Edward IV, Kate and her large family are whisked to the king’s court. Soon a bedazzled Kate becomes one of the greatest ladies in the land when she marries young Harry Stafford, Duke of Buckingham. But Kate’s fairy-tale existence as a duchess is shattered when the ongoing conflict between the houses of Lancaster and York engulfs the Woodville family.

As Edward IV fights to keep his crown, Harry’s relatives become hopelessly divided between Lancaster and York. Forced constantly to struggle with his own allegiances, Harry faces his defining moment when his dear friend Richard, Duke of Gloucester, determines to seize the throne for himself as Richard III. With lives in jeopardy and nothing less than a dynasty at stake, Harry’s loyalties—and his conscience—will be put to the ultimate test.

Ever since I read a review of Hugh and Bess I have wanted to read Higginbotham, so when I got the chance I jumped at it. And I am happy to say that I did the right thing.

First of all I must say that she sure did an excellent job keeping all the different Edwards and Henrys  and so on apart. I went in after having studied the long lists of names in the beginning and wondered how this would turn out. But she kept track of them all and she made sure that I as the reader could keep track of them all. Cos oh yes the War of the Roses was a messy time, and then I am not only talking about all the people. The twist and turns, the constant backstabbing, I am amazed that any nobleman got through all that without loosing his head, one way or another. And of course this book made me google, yes I could just not sit and read, I had to go google everyone so I would know things before they happened. Things that had happened long ago, trace lineages, oh this book was a treat for the history addict that I am. You know what, I will go google again after this. I want to know more, because even if I knew things (evil Richard screaming my kingdom for a horse), that was pretty much it.

This book takes place at the center stage but at the same time not on it. It is the story about Katherine Woodville. Her sister married king Edward IV and that shook the country. They thought she was too lowborn, which in a way does not make much sense, except for on her fathers side. But certain people had other plans for the king. Then he married away her siblings and Katherine became Duchess of Buckingham. Fast forward a bit, fighting with the Neville family, fighting with his brother the duke of Clarence, fighting with the French, fighting with the old king and his entourage, and then he died. Which leads to the princes in the Tower, Richard III, and England's savior Henry Tudor. Then finally the civil war could end and York and Lancaster was reunited. This all the reader experiences through Kate's and Harry's eyes.

Higginbotham managed to bring forth a troubled time in England's history and make it come alive. I love an author that can do that, and she did an excellent job. She made me want to know more, and history felt so real. 

I really liked Kate, and I felt kind of sorry for her because some historian hasn't really had nice things to say about her, they made her marriage sound awful, and of course there are tons of rumors about her family. Witchcraft and so on. But after the way Richard III seized the throne no wonder. And she kept her hope up even after loosing so many of her kin. I truly liked the way she was shown. Same goes with Harry, even if he made some foolish choices. And it was nice to follow them from when they were kids. And they have such a nice life together, I liked their lovestory. In the end no one can tell what really happened in their marriage, but I do believe this story.

Higginbotham stayed true to the era with everything. She has done her research and it shows. She managed to incorporate the rumors for what they were, rumors about "famous" people.

I am happy to have read this book, and after such a great historical book I really feel that I must read her previous novel, Hugh and Bess. This is a book that history fans will enjoy a great deal.

For the rest of you, well this story has romance, betrayal, war, backstabbing, political intrigue, wicked rumors and all those other things that any reader loves to read about. This book is for everyone in that aspect. Oh and you learn a lot!

Blodeuedd's Cover Corner: It feels like the genre

Reason for reading: A copy from the publisher

Final thoughts: I recommend it