⋙ PDF The Other Queen A Novel The Plantagenet and Tudor Novels Philippa Gregory 9781416549123 Books

The Other Queen A Novel The Plantagenet and Tudor Novels Philippa Gregory 9781416549123 Books

Download As PDF : The Other Queen A Novel The Plantagenet and Tudor Novels Philippa Gregory 9781416549123 Books

The Other Queen A Novel The Plantagenet and Tudor Novels Philippa Gregory 9781416549123 Books

I only paid $2.99 for this book (check out bookbub!), but I paid too much. I truly enjoy most of PG's novels, but take them with a grain of salt. I always read a reliable source (such as Alison Weir) if I really want to read what is actually known about a given monarch. PG does so well bringing facts alive, but takes liberties everywhere. Regarding this novel: it is the same material, repeated (using some of the same words and phrases), over and over and over again. Some reviewers have mentioned this, but truly, it would be laughable if it weren't so frustrating. MQS is a fascinating woman; so much more could have been done with her character. Additionally, Bess is the reason I gave this book two stars rather than one--she's intriguing. Unfortunately, the fascination ends after the 4th and 5th repetitions of the same exact thoughts and actions. Margaret George wrote 870 pages about MQS, and I found the novel compelling. PG phoned in this one.
*Full disclosure: I could not go past the halfway point.*


Tags : The Other Queen: A Novel (The Plantagenet and Tudor Novels) [Philippa Gregory] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. From #1 <I >New York Times</I> bestselling author and “queen of royal fiction” (<I >USA TODAY</I>) Philippa Gregory—a dazzling new novel about the intriguing,Philippa Gregory,The Other Queen: A Novel (The Plantagenet and Tudor Novels),Atria Books,1416549129,Biographical,Biographical fiction,Biographical fiction.,Great Britain - History - Elizabeth, 1558-1603,Great Britain;History;Elizabeth, 1558-1603;Fiction.,Mary,Scotland - History - Mary Stuart, 1542-1567,Scotland;History;Mary Stuart, 1542-1567;Fiction.,Shrewsbury, Elizabeth Hardwick Talbot,1527?-1608,1542-1587,Countess of,,ENGLISH HISTORICAL FICTION,Elizabeth, 1558-1603,FICTION Biographical,FICTION Historical General,FICTION Historical Renaissance,FICTION Literary,FICTION Romance Historical General,FICTION Women,Fiction,Fiction - Historical,Fiction-Coming of Age,Fiction-Historical,GENERAL,General Adult,Great Britain,Great BritainBritish Isles,Historical - General,Historical fiction,History,Mary,Mary,,Phillippa; Phillipa; Anne Boleyn; Queen Elizabeth; Queen Elizabeth I; Henry VIII; Henry Tudor; King James; James V; Scotland; England; Earl of Shrewsbury; Bess of Hardwick; The White Princess; Starz; The Other Boleyn Girl; historical fiction; beach read; summer read; book club book; best book club books; New York Times bestseller; New York Times bestselling author; #1 New York Times bestselling author; royal family; books about the royal family,Queen of Scots,,Richard Armitage; Hobbit; Thorin; Alex Kingston; Doctor Who; Dr. Who; ER; Phillippa; Phillipa; Anne Boleyn; Queen Elizabeth; Queen Elizabeth I; Henry VIII; Henry Tudor; King James; James V; Scotland; England; Earl of Shrewsbury; Bess of Hardwick; The White Princess; Starz; The Other Boleyn Girl; historical fiction; beach read; summer read; book club book; best book club books; New York Times bestseller; New York Times bestselling author; #1 New York Times bestselling author; royal family; books about the royal family; mary queen of scots; mary queen of scots movie; saoirse ronan; margot robbie; david tennant; mary stuart; George Talbot; Bess of Hardwick; The White Queen; The White Princess; The Spanish Princess; books like Outlander; books like Wolf Hall; books like Pillars of the Earth; book movies;,Scotland - History - Mary Stuart, 1542-1567,Scotland;History;Mary Stuart, 1542-1567;Fiction.,Shrewsbury, Elizabeth Hardwick Talbot,Shrewsbury, Elizabeth Hardwick Talbot,,United States,FICTION Biographical,FICTION Historical General,FICTION Historical Renaissance,FICTION Literary,FICTION Romance Historical General,FICTION Women,Historical - General,Fiction - Historical,1527?-1608,1542-1587,Countess of,,Elizabeth, 1558-1603,Great Britain,History,Mary,,Queen of Scots,,Shrewsbury, Elizabeth Hardwick Talbot,,English Historical Fiction,Fiction,Historical fiction

The Other Queen A Novel The Plantagenet and Tudor Novels Philippa Gregory 9781416549123 Books Reviews

For me, Gregory is hit or miss, and this was mostly a miss.

The book is about Mary Queen of Scots exile and imprisonment from the throne. Written in three voices -- Mary, Shrewsbury, and his wife Bess, the latter tasked with housing her.

I had just finished the 5th book in this Tudor series and Cecil was the redeeming character. Therefore it was incredibly difficult to slam on the brakes and read of a nasty, scheming Cecil ten years later.

I was thoroughly disgusted with Bess, whose "I am an independent woman" shtick grated on my last nerve. Queen Mary is just delusional, and Shrewsbury loses pretty much all regard by the end, and I felt sorry for him.

I was deeply disappointed by the ending. Anyone with history behind them knows the Scots queen was beheaded, yet for some inexplicable reason, Gregory chose to cover the entire POINT of the book in a dream sequence of Shrewsbury and the loathsome gloating of Bess. After committing myself to a long, drawn out account of the Queen avoiding The Tower, why didn't the author at the minimum give Mary a final voice?

Not the best. I feel like I wasted my time and bought a different book about this instead.
This book took me a little longer than usual to read, not because of the quality of the writing, but because this was a part of Tudor history I didn't know much about and I found myself constantly looking up the characters and places Gregory mentioned in the book.

I think writing this book from 3 different first person perspectives gave an interesting view of the time period. Three different people have three very different views of the same event. I found myself constantly thrown for a loop by Mary. She never thought twice about lying and it was interesting to see how she would portray an event to others, and then how she actually thought of the same event.

Bess is one of the best historical fiction characters I've read in a long time. From Gregory's book, as well as the researching I did on my own, I've come to really love her strength and determination. She was a smart business woman and used that to her advantage. She worked her way up and earned the things she had, even if it was through marriage, and worked hard to keep herself safe and secure for the future. I think more women in books should be like her.

Yet again, Gregory has me thinking about the little things in history and how one simple decision can change the fate of a country, and the world. While not my favorite book (The Queen's Fool has that title), it was a great read and sheds more light onto the Tudor era of history.
I love historical fiction and I usually love Phillipa Gregory's books. But this one didn't quite do it for me. Mary Queen of Scots is an interesting character who led a fascinating life but in this book the best parts are all behind her--France and her marriage to the king, Scotland and her husband and lover. Here she is merely a pawn in everyone's power game. The book is an elaborate chess game where one queen is moved from place to place while the opposing queen tries to decide what to do with her. As well written as it is, it isn't the best of this series.
I've recently become interested in learning about Mary, Queen of Scots; this gives an interesting take on the period of her life that seems to be the least talked about, when Mary seeks protection in England and in exchange Queen Elizabeth causes her to become restrained in an English earl's home to make her comfortable, but not technically free. Other depictions I've seen of Mary make her more likable; Gregory portrays her as quite shallow and selfish, yet still fun to read about. The switching up of narrators throughout this book makes it easy for the reader to see how Mary impacted people around her - George, her genteel imprisoner the earl who has been given the contradictory instructions by Queen Elizabeth to treat Mary with respect as a queen deserves but also monitor her to make sure she is not plotting to steal the English throne, finds Mary to be the most irresistible woman despite his undying loyalty to his wife and his queen. George's wife Bess is jealous of Mary for the bewitching effect her beauty has on men and bitter at all the money and assets housing Mary costs her, but she even admits to the reader it is impossible not to warm to Mary. My only criticism of the book is there's so much anticipation as to what will happen between Mary and her "frenemy" Elizabeth and then all of a sudden, it's several years later and there's a quick description of the circumstances of Mary's death, from Bess after she has received the news. I would have liked Mary's first person point of view leading up to her death, so I found the end to be abrupt and lackluster. But up until that point I couldn't put the book down.
I only paid $2.99 for this book (check out bookbub!), but I paid too much. I truly enjoy most of PG's novels, but take them with a grain of salt. I always read a reliable source (such as Alison Weir) if I really want to read what is actually known about a given monarch. PG does so well bringing facts alive, but takes liberties everywhere. Regarding this novel it is the same material, repeated (using some of the same words and phrases), over and over and over again. Some reviewers have mentioned this, but truly, it would be laughable if it weren't so frustrating. MQS is a fascinating woman; so much more could have been done with her character. Additionally, Bess is the reason I gave this book two stars rather than one--she's intriguing. Unfortunately, the fascination ends after the 4th and 5th repetitions of the same exact thoughts and actions. Margaret George wrote 870 pages about MQS, and I found the novel compelling. PG phoned in this one.
*Full disclosure I could not go past the halfway point.*