false 6590 159848 1400047854 9781400047857 48 http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/159848.The_Lady_in_the_Tower 3.65 417 legendary Jean Plaidy.

Young Anne Boleyn was not beautiful but she was irresistible, capturing the hearts of kings and commoners alike. Daughter of an ambitious country lord, Anne was sent to France to learn sophistication, and then to court to marry well and raise the family’s fortunes. She soon surpassed even their greatest expectations. Although his queen was loving and loyal, King Henry VIII swore he would put her aside and make Anne his wife. And so he did, though the divorce would tear apart the English church and inflict religious turmoil and bloodshed on his people for generations to come.

Loathed by the English people, who called her “the King’s Great Whore,” Anne Boleyn was soon caught in the trap of her own ambition. Political rivals surrounded her at court and, when she failed to produce a much-desired male heir, they closed in, preying on the king’s well-known insecurity and volatile temper. Wrongfully accused of adultery and incest, Anne found herself imprisoned in the Tower of London, where she was at the mercy of her husband and of her enemies.]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1986 159844 0609810170 9780609810170 33 http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/159844.The_Rose_Without_a_Thorn_The_Wives_of_Henry_VIII 3.65 340 royalty, passion, and innocence lost.

Born into an impoverished branch of the noble Howard family, young Katherine is plucked from her home to live with her grandmother, the Duchess of Norfolk. The innocent girl quickly learns that her grandmother’s puritanism is not shared by Katherine’s free-spirited cousins, with whom she lives. Beautiful and impressionable, Katherine becomes involved in two ill-fated love affairs before her sixteenth birthday. Like her cousin Anne Boleyn, she leaves her grandmother’s home to become a lady-in-waiting at the court of Henry VIII. The royal palaces are exciting to a young girl from the country, and Katherine ?nds that her duties there allow her to be near her handsome cousin, Thomas Culpepper, whom she has loved since childhood.

But when Katherine catches the eye of the aging and unhappily married king, she is forced to abandon her plans for a life with Thomas and marry King Henry. Overwhelmed by the change in her fortunes, bewildered and flattered by the adoration of her husband, Katherine is dazzled by the royal life. But her bliss is short-lived as rumors of her wayward past come back to haunt her, and Katherine’s destiny takes another, deadly, turn.]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1983 159849 0609810251 9780609810255 24 http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/159849.Katharine_of_Aragon_The_Wives_of_Henry_VIII 3.77 287 Katharine of Aragon novels in one volume.

Legendary historical novelist Jean Plaidy begins her tales of Henry VIII’s queens with the story of his first wife, the Spanish princess Katharine of Aragon.

As a teenager, Katharine leaves her beloved Spain, land of olive groves and soaring cathedrals, for the drab, rainy island of England. There she is married to the king’s eldest son, Arthur, a sickly boy who dies six months after the wedding. Katharine is left a widow who was never truly a wife, lonely in a strange land, with a very bleak future. Her only hope of escape is to marry the king’s second son, Prince Henry, now heir to the throne. Tall, athletic, handsome, a lover of poetry and music, Henry is all that Katharine could want in a husband. But their first son dies and, after many more pregnancies, only one child survives, a daughter. Disappointed by his lack of an heir, Henry’s eye wanders, and he becomes enamored of another woman—a country nobleman’s daughter named Anne Boleyn. When Henry begins searching for ways to put aside his loyal first wife, Katharine must fight to remain Queen of England and to keep the husband she once loved so dearly.]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1968 159828 0609810219 9780609810217 18 http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/159828.Mary_Queen_of_France 3.68 269
Princess Mary Rose is the youngest sister of Henry VIII, and one of the few people whom he adores unconditionally. Known throughout Europe for her charm and good looks, Mary is the golden child of the Tudor family and is granted her every wish.

Except when it comes to marriage. Henry VIII, locked in a political showdown with France, decides to offer up his pampered baby sister to secure peace between the two mighty kingdoms. Innocent, teenage Mary must become the wife of the elderly King Louis, a toothless, ailing man in his sixties. Horrified and furious, Mary has no choice but to sail for France. There she hones her political skills, bides her time, and remains secretly in love with Charles Brandon, the Duke of Suffolk. When King Louis dies, after only two years of marriage, Mary is determined not to be sold into another unhappy union. She must act quickly; if she wants to be with the man she truly loves, she must defy the laws of church and state by marrying without her brother’s permission. Together, Mary and Charles devise a scheme to outwit the most ruthless king in Europe and gain their hearts’ desire, not knowing if it will lead to marital bliss or certain death.]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1964 159830 0609810227 9780609810224 23 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257589658m/159830.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257589658s/159830.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/159830.The_Thistle_and_the_Rose 3.58 259
Princess Margaret Tudor is the greatest prize when her father, Henry VII, negotiates the Treaty of Perpetual Peace with neighboring Scotland. The betrothal is meant to end decades of bloody border wars, but it becomes a love match: To Margaret’s surprise, she finds joy in her marriage to the dashing James IV of Scotland, a man sixteen years her senior. But the marriage, and the peace it brings to both nations, does not last. When King James is struck down by the armies of Henry VIII, Margaret—Princess of England, but Queen of Scotland—finds herself torn between loyalty to the land and family of her birth and to that of her baby son, now King of the Scots. She decides to remain in Scotland and carve out her own destiny, surviving a scandalous second marriage and battling with both her son and her brother to the very end. Like all the Tudors, Margaret’s life would be one of turmoil and controversy, but through her descendants, England and Scotland would unite as one nation, under one rule, and find peace.]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1966 156587 060981026X 9780609810262 25 http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/156587.The_Sixth_Wife 3.73 233
Henry VIII’s fifth wife, Katherine Howard, was both foolish and unfaithful, and she paid for it with her life. Henry vowed that his sixth wife would be different, and she was. Katherine Parr was twice widowed and thirty-one years old. A thoughtful, well-read lady, she was known at court for her unblemished reputation and her kind heart. She had hoped to marry for love and had set her heart on Thomas Seymour, the dashing brother of Henry’s third queen. But the aging king—more in need of a nurse than a wife—was drawn to her, and Katherine could not refuse his proposal of marriage.

Queen Katherine was able to soothe the King’s notorious temper, and his three children grew fond of her, the only mother they had ever really known. Trapped in a loveless marriage to a volatile tyrant, books were Katherine’s consolation. But among her intellectual pursuits was an interest in Lutheranism—a religion that the king saw as a threat to his supremacy as head of the new Church of England. Courtiers envious of the Queen’s influence over Henry sought to destroy her by linking her with the “radical” religious reformers. Henry raged that Katherine had betrayed him, and had a warrant drawn up for her arrest and imprisonment. At court it was whispered that the king would soon execute yet another wife. Henry’s sixth wife would have to rely on her wits to survive where two other women had perished. . . .]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1953 59459 1400082501 9781400082506 16 http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/59459.The_Courts_of_Love_The_Story_of_Eleanor_of_Aquitaine 3.78 213 When I look back over my long and tempestuous life, I can see that much of what happened to me—my triumphs and most of my misfortunes—was due to my passionate relationships with men. I was a woman who considered herself their equal—and in many ways their superior—but it seemed that I depended on them, while seeking to be the dominant partner—an attitude which could hardly be expected to bring about a harmonious existence.


Eleanor of Aquitaine was revered for her superior intellect, extraordinary courage, and fierce loyalty. She was equally famous for her turbulent relationships, which included marriages to the kings of both France and England.

As a child, Eleanor reveled in her beloved grandfather’s Courts of Love, where troubadours sang of romantic devotion and passion filled the air. In 1137, at the age of fifteen, Eleanor became Duchess of Aquitaine, the richest province in Europe. A union with Louis VII allowed her to ascend the French throne, yet he was a tepid and possessive man and no match for a young woman raised in the Courts of Love. When Eleanor met the magnetic Henry II, the first Plantagenet King of England, their stormy pairing set great change in motion—and produced many sons and daughters, two of whom would one day reign in their own right.

In this majestic and sweeping story, set against a backdrop of medieval politics, intrigue, and strife, Jean Plaidy weaves a tapestry of love, passion, betrayal, and heartbreak—and reveals the life of a most remarkable woman whose iron will and political savvy enabled her to hold her own against the most powerful men of her time.]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1987 31091 1400082498 9781400082490 24 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168197950m/31091.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168197950s/31091.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/31091.Murder_Most_Royal 3.72 196
In the court of Henry VIII, it was dangerous for a woman to catch the king’s eye. Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard were cousins. Both were beautiful women, though very different in temperament. They each learned that Henry’s passion was all-consuming–and fickle.

Sophisticated Anne Boleyn, raised in the decadent court of France, was in love with another man when King Henry claimed her as his own. Being his mistress gave her a position of power; being his queen put her life in jeopardy. Her younger cousin, Catherine Howard, was only fifteen when she was swept into the circle of King Henry. Her innocence attracted him, but a past mistake was destined to haunt her.

Painted in the rich colors of Tudor England, Murder Most Royal is a page-turning journey into the lives of two of the wives of the tempestuous Henry VIII.


Look for the Reading Group Guide at the back of this book.


Also available as an ebook.]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1949 159831 0609810200 9780609810200 23 http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/159831.Queen_of_This_Realm_The_Tudor_Queens 3.78 175
But in these pages, in her own voice, Elizabeth also recounts the emotional turmoil of her life: the loneliness of power; the heartbreak of her lifelong love affair with Robert Dudley, whom she could never marry; and the terrible guilt of ordering the execution of her cousin, Mary, Queen of Scots. In this unforgettable novel, Elizabeth emerges as one of the most fascinating and controversial women in history, and as England’s greatest monarch.]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1984 159832 0609810197 9780609810194 13 http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/159832.In_the_Shadow_of_the_Crown 3.77 176
In a stroke of fate, however, Henry's much-longed-for son died in his teens, leaving Mary the legitimate heir to the throne. It was, she felt, a sign from God--proof that England should return to the Catholic Church. Swayed by fanatical advisors and her own religious fervor, Mary made horrific examples of those who failed to embrace the Church, earning her the immortal nickname "Bloody Mary." She was married only once, to her Spanish cousin Philip II--a loveless and childless marriage that brought her to the edge of madness.

With In the Shadow of the Crown, Jean Plaidy brings to life the dark story of a queen whose road to the throne was paved with sorrow.]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1989 159850 0609810243 9780609810248 22 http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/159850.Victoria_Victorious_The_Story_of_Queen_Victoria 3.48 157
At birth, Princess Victoria was fourth in line for the throne of England, the often-overlooked daughter of a prince who died shortly after her birth. She and her mother lived in genteel poverty for most of her childhood, exiled from court because of her mother’s dislike of her uncles, George IV and William IV. A strong, willful child, Victoria was determined not to be stifled by her powerful uncles or her unpopular, controlling mother. Then one morning, at the age of eighteen, Princess Victoria awoke to the news of her uncle William’s death. The almost-forgotten princess was now Queen of England. Even better, she was finally free of her mother’s iron hand and her uncles’ manipulations. Her first act as queen was to demand that she be given a room—and a bed—of her own.

Victoria’s marriage to her German cousin, Prince Albert, was a blissfully happy one that produced nine children. Albert was her constant companion and one of her most trusted advisors. Victoria’s grief after Prince Albert’s untimely death was so shattering that for the rest of her life—nearly forty years—she dressed only in black. She survived several assassination attempts, and during her reign England’s empire expanded around the globe until it touched every continent in the world.

Derided as a mere “girl queen” at her coronation, by the end of her sixty-four-year reign, Victoria embodied the glory of the British Empire. In this novel, written as a “memoir” by Victoria herself, she emerges as truthful, sentimental, and essentially human—both a lovable woman and a great queen.]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1985 661630 0609810235 9780609810231 8 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257667174m/661630.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257667174s/661630.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/661630.Royal_Road_to_Fotheringhay 3.60 141 The haunting story of the beautiful—and tragic—Mary, Queen of Scots, as only legendary novelist Jean Plaidy could write it

Mary Stuart became Queen of Scotland at the tender age of six days old. Her French-born mother, the Queen Regent, knew immediately that the infant queen would be a vulnerable pawn in the power struggle between Scotland’s clans and nobles. So Mary was sent away from the land of her birth and raised in the sophisticated and glittering court of France. Unusually tall and slim, a writer of music and poetry, Mary was celebrated throughout Europe for her beauty and intellect. Married in her teens to the Dauphin François, she would become not only Queen of Scotland but Queen of France as well. But Mary’s happiness was short-lived. Her husband, always sickly, died after only two years on the throne, and there was no place for Mary in the court of the new king. At the age of twenty, she returned to Scotland, a place she barely knew.

Once home, the Queen of Scots discovered she was a stranger in her own country. She spoke only French and was a devout Catholic in a land of stern Presbyterians. Her nation was controlled by a quarrelsome group of lords, including her illegitimate half brother, the Earl of Moray, and by John Knox, a fire-and-brimstone Calvinist preacher, who denounced the young queen as a Papist and a whore. Mary eventually remarried, hoping to find a loving ally in the Scottish Lord Darnley. But Darnley proved violent and untrustworthy. When he died mysteriously, suspicion fell on Mary. In haste, she married Lord Bothwell, the prime suspect in her husband’s murder, a move that outraged all of Scotland. When her nobles rose against her, the disgraced Queen of Scots fled to England, hoping to be taken in by her cousin Elizabeth I. But Mary’s flight from Scotland led not to safety, but to Fotheringhay Castle...

“Plaidy excels at blending history with romance and drama.” —New York Times]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1955 661630 0609810235 9780609810231 8 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257667174m/661630.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257667174s/661630.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/661630.Royal_Road_to_Fotheringhay 3.60 141 The haunting story of the beautiful—and tragic—Mary, Queen of Scots, as only legendary novelist Jean Plaidy could write it

Mary Stuart became Queen of Scotland at the tender age of six days old. Her French-born mother, the Queen Regent, knew immediately that the infant queen would be a vulnerable pawn in the power struggle between Scotland’s clans and nobles. So Mary was sent away from the land of her birth and raised in the sophisticated and glittering court of France. Unusually tall and slim, a writer of music and poetry, Mary was celebrated throughout Europe for her beauty and intellect. Married in her teens to the Dauphin François, she would become not only Queen of Scotland but Queen of France as well. But Mary’s happiness was short-lived. Her husband, always sickly, died after only two years on the throne, and there was no place for Mary in the court of the new king. At the age of twenty, she returned to Scotland, a place she barely knew.

Once home, the Queen of Scots discovered she was a stranger in her own country. She spoke only French and was a devout Catholic in a land of stern Presbyterians. Her nation was controlled by a quarrelsome group of lords, including her illegitimate half brother, the Earl of Moray, and by John Knox, a fire-and-brimstone Calvinist preacher, who denounced the young queen as a Papist and a whore. Mary eventually remarried, hoping to find a loving ally in the Scottish Lord Darnley. But Darnley proved violent and untrustworthy. When he died mysteriously, suspicion fell on Mary. In haste, she married Lord Bothwell, the prime suspect in her husband’s murder, a move that outraged all of Scotland. When her nobles rose against her, the disgraced Queen of Scots fled to England, hoping to be taken in by her cousin Elizabeth I. But Mary’s flight from Scotland led not to safety, but to Fotheringhay Castle...

“Plaidy excels at blending history with romance and drama.” —New York Times]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1955 3322106 0307346196 9780307346193 16 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1255761019m/3322106.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1255761019s/3322106.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3322106.To_Hold_the_Crown_The_Story_of_King_Henry_VII_and_Elizabeth_of_York 3.33 102
Henry Tudor was not born to the throne of England. Having come of age in a time of political turmoil and danger, the man who would become Henry VII spent fourteen years in exile in Brittany before returning triumphantly to the Dorset coast with a small army and decisively winning the Battle of Bosworth Field—ending the War of the Roses once and for all and launching the infamous Tudor dynasty.

As Henry’s claim to the throne was tenuous, his marriage to Elizabeth of York, daughter and direct heir of King Edward IV, not only served to unify the warring houses, it also helped Henry secure the throne for himself and for generations to come. And though their union was born from political necessity, it became a wonderful love story that led to seven children and twenty happy years together.
Sweeping and dramatic, To Hold the Crown brings readers inside the genesis of the great Tudor empire: through Henry and Elizabeth’s troubled ascensions to the throne, their marriage and rule, the heartbreak caused by the death of their son Arthur, and, ultimately, to the crowning of their younger son, King Henry VIII.


“Plaidy excels at blending history with romance and drama.”
—New York Times]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1982 720718 0307346153 9780307346155 17 http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/720718.The_Reluctant_Queen_The_Story_of_Anne_of_York 3.67 118 Middleham Castle, where both spent much of their childhood. Their life is idyllic, until the reigning king dies and a whirlwind of dynastic maneuvering leads to his children being declared illegitimate. Richard inherits the throne as King Richard III, and Anne is crowned queen consort, a destiny she thought she had successfully avoided. Her husband’s reign lasts two years, two months, and two days—and in that short time Anne witnesses the true toll that wearing the crown takes on Richard, the last king from the House of York.]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1990 175487 1400082528 9781400082520 21 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172433880m/175487.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172433880s/175487.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/175487.The_Queen_s_Secret 3.71 126
With Joan of Arc inciting the French to overthrow English rule, Katherine’s loyalty to her adopted homeland of England became a matter of intense suspicion. Katherine had brought her dowry and borne her heir; what use was she to England? It was decreed that she would live out her remaining years alone, far from the seat of power. But no one, not even Katherine herself, could have anticipated that she would fall in love with and secretly marry one of her guardians, Owen Tudor—or that a generation later, their grandson would become the first king of the great Tudor dynasty.]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1989 175489 140008251X 9781400082513 7 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172433881m/175489.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172433881s/175489.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/175489.The_Captive_Queen_of_Scots 3.68 114
So begins Jean Plaidy’s The Captive Queen of Scots, the epic tale of the Scottish Queen Mary Stuart, cousin to Queen Elizabeth of England. After her husband, Lord Darnley, is murdered, suspicion falls on Mary and her lover, the Earl of Bothwell. A Catholic in a land of stern Protestants, Mary finds herself in the middle of a revolt, as her bloodthirsty subjects call for her arrest and execution. In disgrace, she flees her Scottish persecutors for England, where she appeals to Queen Elizabeth for mercy, but to no avail. Throughout Mary’s long years as the Queen’s prisoner, she conceives many bold plans for revenge and escaping to freedom—but the gallows of Fotheringhay Castle loom . . .

Set against royal pageantry, religious strife, and bloody uprising—and filled with conspiracies, passion, heartbreak, and fascinating historical detail—The Captive Queen of Scots is an unforgettable, page-turning tale of the intense rivalry between two powerful women of noble blood.]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 971 817170 0449206483 9780449206485 2 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257802814m/817170.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257802814s/817170.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/817170.Myself_My_Enemy 3.92 65 6590 3.73 5920 530 1983 865347 0099493268 9780099493266 8 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1179008561m/865347.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1179008561s/865347.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/865347.The_Plantagenet_Prelude 4.02 82 6590 3.73 5920 530 1976 794561 140008248X 9781400082483 6 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257674779m/794561.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257674779s/794561.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/794561.The_Loves_of_Charles_II 3.85 78 From princesses to country girls to actresses…the loves of Charles II come to life.

Ten years after Charles I was deposed and executed, his son, Charles II, regains the throne after many years in exile. Charles is determined not only to restore the monarchy but also to revive a society that has suffered under many years of Puritan rule, when everything from theater to Christmas festivals was illegal. As king, Charles II throws himself into the gaiety of court life, becoming a patron of the arts and a consummate lover of women. He first secures a strong dynastic alliance by marrying Catherine of Braganza, a shy, plain Portuguese princess who falls in love with her handsome husband and brings him great wealth, but can never give him the son he longs for. For many years, his “untitled queen” is a bold and sensual older woman—Barbara, Countess of Castlemaine—whose husband is routinely paid to look the other way. But when the politically ambitious Lady Castlemaine becomes too powerful, she is replaced by Louise de Kéroualle, a baby-faced French noblewoman who may have been sent to Charles’s court as a spy. His other great love, and Louise’s rival, is Nell Gwyn, a stage actress who rises from the streets of London to become the king’s favorite and a hero of the working class.

Court intrigue and affairs of the heart weave together in this unforgettable page-turner.]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1972 794533 0099493179 9780099493174 5 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1178421142m/794533.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1178421142s/794533.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/794533.Madame_Serpent 3.88 65 Amid the glittering fetes, masques, jousts and banquets of the immoral court in 16th century Europe, the reluctant bride became a passionate but unwanted wife.
Angry, humiliated and tortured by jealousy as she secretly spied on Henry's lovemaking, Catherine began to plan her revenge...]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1951 1327503 0099493284 9780099493280 3 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1182780678m/1327503.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1182780678s/1327503.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1327503.The_Heart_of_the_Lion 3.89 61 6590 3.73 5920 530 1977 817225 0099493160 9780099493167 4 http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/817225.The_King_s_Secret_Matter 3.88 52 6590 3.73 5920 530 1962 1149370 0099493144 9780099493143 9 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1181413340m/1149370.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1181413340s/1149370.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1149370.Katharine_the_Virgin_Widow 3.66 64 THE INFANTA OF SPAIN WAS A TRUE PRIZE.
In the eyes of the world, Katharine of Aragon was a precious object to be disposed of for the glory of Spain. Her parents, Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand, send her to England to become the bride of Arthur, Prince of Wales.
But soon her frail husband was dead, and a fateful question loomed: Was the marriage consummated, as Katharine's priest avowed, or was the young widow still a virgin? On that delicate point hinged Katharine's--and England's--future. Meanwhile, waiting in the wings was her willful, handsome brother-in-law, bold Prince Henry, who alone had the power to restore Katharine's lost position.
Jean Plaidy's narrative genius sparkles in this story of a remarkable royal marriage that inspired some of history's bloodiest deeds . . . .]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1961 794542 0099493187 9780099493181 5 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1178421157m/794542.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1178421157s/794542.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/794542.The_Italian_Woman 3.91 53 6590 3.73 5920 530 1952 1327500 0099493276 9780099493273 2 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1182780670m/1327500.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1182780670s/1327500.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1327500.The_Revolt_of_the_Eaglets 3.89 55 6590 3.73 5920 530 1977 1780106 030734617X 9780307346179 2 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1188227203m/1780106.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1188227203s/1780106.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1780106.The_Merry_Monarch_s_Wife_Catherine_of_Braganza_Wife_of_Charles_II 3.86 43
The ninth novel in the beloved Queens of England series, The Merry Monarch’s Wife brings Catherine of Braganza to life and plunges readers into the tumultuous world of Restoration England.]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1991 1327550 0330250779 9780330250771 5 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257624688m/1327550.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257624688s/1327550.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1327550.The_Bastard_King 3.94 49 6590 3.73 5920 530 1974 1327499 0099493195 9780099493198 1 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1182780668m/1327499.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1182780668s/1327499.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1327499.Queen_Jezebel 4.04 48 6590 3.73 5920 530 1954 446342 0099493152 9780099493150 3 http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/446342.The_Shadow_of_the_Pomegranate 3.65 49
England loved the young lovers, but hardly were they wed when powerful people in Henry's court were spinning webs of intrigue around the innocent royal pair.

Spanish spies, the Pope's men, the Queen's seductive ladies-in-waiting, and especially the King's brilliant advisor, Cardinal Thomas Wolsey--all were obsessed with one question: Would Queen Katharine be able to give Henry the healthy son he so desperately needed? Everything depended on the answer, especially the destiny of Queen Katharine herself.

Jean Plaidy has never written more brilliantly of history's great women and men than in the bittersweet true story of young King Henry and his dear Kate, who wanted only to please her beloved husband but seemed fated to be thwarted at every turn. . . .]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1962 1149391 0330025805 9780330025805 3 http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1149391.Gay_Lord_Robert 3.94 31 6590 3.73 5920 530 1955 3764789 030734620X 9780307346209 4 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1255761014m/3764789.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1255761014s/3764789.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3764789.The_King_s_Confidante_The_Story_of_the_Daughter_of_Sir_Thomas_More 3.80 20
As secretary and personal adviser to King Henry VIII, More becomes increasingly influential in the government, welcoming foreign diplomats, drafting official documents, and serving as a liaison between the king and the Archbishop of York. His own household stands in startling contrast to the licentious Tudor court, but as lord chancellor he gains recognition and becomes indispensable to the king. More’s love of faith surpasses his duty to the crown, and his refusal to accept King Henry VIII’s claim to be supreme head of the Church of England ends his political career...and leads to his trial for treason.]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1954 235349 0449200523 9780449200520 1 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257520103m/235349.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257520103s/235349.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/235349.The_Queen_from_Provence 3.77 44 6590 3.73 5920 530 1979 678210 0449206289 9780449206287 2 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257544185m/678210.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257544185s/678210.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/678210.The_Sun_in_Splendour 3.78 45 6590 3.73 5920 530 1982 720717 0449200469 9780449200469 0 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257535056m/720717.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257535056s/720717.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/720717.Hammer_of_the_Scots 3.84 32 The news of Henry III's death reached his son Edward on the long road home from the Holy Land. Now he was England's King and a man fit for his destiny.
Through all the years of his reign, through stark personal tragedy and chill forebodings as his son grew into a weak, corrupted prince, Edward I strove to weld a nation united from England and Scotland and Wales.
When the mighty Wallace raised the Scots in arms and the Welsh Llewellyn strove for power, Edward stood firm to his resolve, still knowing in his heart how much would be lost when his crown passed down to his dissolute son...]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1979 652057 0449222845 9780449222843 3 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257813872m/652057.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257813872s/652057.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/652057.William_s_Wife 3.68 31
In her own poignant words, Lady Mary recounts her strange and haunting story: a happy childhood in merry England under King Charles II, her dark and lonely years in Holland, and the upheavals that brought her home once more as England's honored queen. Hers is a richly royal story, with kings and queens, princesses and princes, playing their noble or shameful roles upon Europe's brilliant stage. Among these towering figures Lady Mary's lot had been cast, among them she would grow strong or perish....]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1992 1327501 0099493292 9780099493297 3 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1182780670m/1327501.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1182780670s/1327501.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1327501.The_Prince_of_Darkness 3.92 37 6590 3.73 5920 530 1978 1327510 0330258249 9780330258241 0 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257518792m/1327510.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257518792s/1327510.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1327510.The_Battle_of_the_Queens 3.88 32 6590 3.73 5920 530 1978 817181 0449228916 9780449228913 4 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257621552m/817181.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257621552s/817181.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/817181.The_Goldsmith_s_Wife 3.82 34 6590 3.73 5920 530 1950 794570 0848806093 9780848806095 2 http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/794570.Queen_in_Waiting 3.50 40 The King was old and sour; his mistress ugly; his wife, Sophia Dorothea, imprisoned for over twenty years. Pitiless to the Jacobites, he never forgave an insult or an injury.
With her baby dead and her children taken from her care, Caroline determined to take revenge on the man who treated her so cruelly...]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1967 794532 0449212173 9780449212172 0 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257718490m/794532.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257718490s/794532.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/794532.Caroline_the_Queen 3.77 40 6590 3.73 5920 530 1974 1327528 0330238302 9780330238304 3 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257714642m/1327528.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257714642s/1327528.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1327528.Castile_for_Isabella 3.93 28 6590 3.73 5920 530 1960 1327611 0330020358 9780330020350 2 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257689371m/1327611.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257689371s/1327611.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1327611.Madonna_of_the_Seven_Hills 3.93 28 Growing from childhood into beautiful womanhood, Lucrezia becomes aware of that destiny from which, as a Borgia, she could not hope to escape...]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1965 1327569 0709169329 9780709169321 1 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257536665m/1327569.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257536665s/1327569.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1327569.The_Follies_of_the_King 3.85 33 6590 3.73 5920 530 1980 817194 0399118519 9780399118517 0 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257636149m/817194.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257636149s/817194.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/817194.The_Captive_of_Kensington_Palace 3.86 29 6590 3.73 5920 530 1972 1133002 039912750X 9780399127502 1 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257537510m/1133002.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257537510s/1133002.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1133002.Passage_to_Pontefract 4.04 24 6590 3.73 5920 530 1981 817188 0399119949 9780399119941 1 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257635743m/817188.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257635743s/817188.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/817188.The_Queen_and_Lord_M 3.74 27 Young, determined to dedicate herself to her country, deeply and demonstratively affectionate by nature, the Queen immediately succumbed to the worldly charm of Lord Melbourne, her Prime Minister.
This is a novel of the first years of the Queen's reign before her marriage to the Prince Consort. The innocent young girl found that she was at the heart of Palace feuds, intrigues and scandals which were to oust her from public favor, and the charming Queen whose youth and innocence had so appealed to the people became the villainess of the Flora Hastings scandal, the despot of the Bedchamber Plot and the subject of speculation concerning her relationship with her Prime Minister.
There was conflict between the Queen and her mother, the flamboyant Duchess of Kent, whose name was linked with that of Sir John Conroy whom Victoria detested; and of another kind with Sir Robert Peel who became victim of the Queen's spite; and there was the aging Duke of Wellington who incurred her anger.
The scene is dominated by the imperious, hot-tempered Queen, unswervingly loyal to those whom she loves as her dear 'Lord M'. And there is Melbourne himself, the aging politician and worldly cynic, the Prime Minister with the stormy past. The publicly-conducted intrigue between his mad wife, Lady Caroline Lamb, and the scandalous Lord Bryon, though over long before the Queen's Accession, reverberated through the years; yet in spite of being cited as co-respondant in two divorce cases, he retained his position as Prime Minister and became a partner in a romantic relationship with the young Victoria.]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1973 1327584 0330242245 9780330242240 3 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257716960m/1327584.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257716960s/1327584.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1327584.Daughters_of_Spain 4.00 24 Tragedy followed tragedy - the infanta Isabella, a brokenhearted widow; Juana, driven to madness by her husband's philandering; and the sorrow of parting with young Catalina, destined to become Katharine of Aragon, wife to Henry VIII and Queen of England...]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1961 222758 0449217795 9780449217795 1 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257779797m/222758.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257779797s/222758.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/222758.Indiscretions_of_the_Queen 3.96 25 6590 3.73 5920 530 1970 817138 0399127585 9780399127588 0 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257539372m/817138.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257539372s/817138.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/817138.The_Star_of_Lancaster 3.92 26 6590 3.73 5920 530 1981 59461 0449241513 9780449241516 0 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257638131m/59461.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257638131s/59461.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/59461.The_Widow_of_Windsor 3.52 29 The years which followed were some of the most momentous in British history, some of the Queen's ministers the most famous. There was the great Palmerston who managed to keep a mocking ascendancy over her; Mr. Gladstone, Grand Old Man and People's William, who prowled the streets at night in an attempt to lead prostitutes back to a life of respectability, and who was no favorite of the Queen, unlike the witty Disraeli, who charmed her completely.
She was surrounded by the colorful members of her family - sons, daughters, their wives and husbands, her grandchildren. There was the censorious Vicky, Crown Princess of Prussia and Empress-to-be who suffered great domestic tragedy; Louise who married outside royalty; Lenchen and baby Beatrice; there was Alfred whose amorous adventures caused his mother such concern and Leopold whose ill health was an even greater anxiety; there was Arthur who had inherited his father's goodness; and above all there was Bertie, Prince of Wales and heir to the throne. Suppressed in his father's lifetime he was determined to pursue pleasure for the rest of his life and his passions were racing and fascinating women. His adventures twice brought him into the witness box to give evidence in famous trials which created the scandals of the decade, and brought sorrow and humiliation to Alexandra, whose happy childhood in the Yellow Palace had ill prepared her for life with the gay and charming philanderer whom she discovered her husband to be.
But Queen Victoria at Windsor, Balmoral, Osborne or Buckingham Palace cannot fail to dominate the scene. Her relationship with John Brown, the rough Highlander, gave rise to speculation, but she was impervious to scandal. All the fascinating characters of an unforgettable age rotate about her like planets round the sun; and she remained the great Queen until the moment of her death and the passing of an era.]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1974 817231 0399136002 9780399136009 0 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257864510m/817231.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257864510s/817231.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/817231.It_Began_in_Vauxhall_Gardens 4.00 7 6590 3.73 5920 530 1955 817320 8439706324 9788439706328 0 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257852392m/817320.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257852392s/817320.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/817320.Madame_Du_Barry_Amante_Real 3.71 7 6590 3.73 5920 530 1959 249894 0709111053 9780709111054 1 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257760209m/249894.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257760209s/249894.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/249894.Defenders_of_the_Faith 3.40 5
This is a powerful story of the troubleous days when Tudor succession was in dispute. The chief characters are two contrasting cousins - one daring, brave and adventurous; the other quiet, reserved and thoughtful. But each has his own kind of courage. It is set in Chelsea, Kent, and Spain, and is a vivid portrayal of a family which came to know the wrath of the Spanish Inquisition.]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1956 817332 0709063024 9780709063025 0 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1178656973m/817332.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1178656973s/817332.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/817332.Milady_Charlotte 4.33 3 6590 3.73 5920 530 1959 59462 0449222403 9780449222409 0 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257842475m/59462.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257842475s/59462.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/59462.The_Scarlet_Cloak 4.00 2 6590 3.73 5920 530 1957 817272 0709057695 9780709057697 0 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257853235m/817272.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1257853235s/817272.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/817272.The_Queen_of_Diamonds 4.50 2 In this novel Jean Plaidy offers one solution to an historical mystery, the motives behind which have long puzzled students and amateur detectives of history.

]]> 6590 3.73 5920 530 1958 6470266 0 http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1242333565m/6470266.jpg http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1242333565s/6470266.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6470266-this-was-a-man 4.00 1 1002136 4.00 5 0 6590 3.73 5920 530 1961 817327 0684100584 9780684100586 0 http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/817327.Basic_Book_of_the_Cat 0.0 0 426829 0.0 0 0 6590 3.73 5920 530 25092 3.72 11245 488 1978 2551129 0449620727 9780449620724 0 http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2551129.Victoria_Holt 0.0 0 25092 3.72 11245 488 32 3.83 1123 19 6590 3.73 5920 530 1982 7360987 8423311430 9788423311439 0 http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-111x148.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/images/nocover-60x80.jpg http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7360987-la-noche-de-la-septima-on-the-night-of-the-seventh-moon 0.0 0 32 3.83 1123 19 25092 3.72 11245 488 6590 3.73 5920 530 1983