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Aug 21, 2008

Sara W rated it:

I gave this book two stars because I personally only thought it was okay, but I can see why other people would like it. This book reenforced my belief that I do not really enjoy reading fiction. I like history, and I like to learn, so I enjoy historical fiction that sticks close to the facts and close to what a majority of historians would agree happened - pretty much non-fiction with dialogue. I do not enjoy historical fiction that sensationalizes history by making things up or that takes a More...

11 comments like (8 people liked it)

Jul 29, 2008

Amateur de Livre rated it:

Book Synopsis:

Juana of Castile, the last queen of Spanish blood to inherit her country’s throne, has been for centuries and enigmatic figure shrouded in lurid myth. Was she the berefet widow of legend who was driven mad by her loss, or has history misjudged a woman who was ahead of her time? In his stunning new novel, C.W. Gortner challenges the myths about Queen Juana, unraveling the mystery surrounding her to reveal a brave, determined woman we can only now begin to fully underst More...

0 comments like (7 people liked it)

Aug 29, 2008

MichelleCH rated it:

I went back and forth on whether this was a two or three star rating for me. The beginning of the book is nicely written drawing the reader into the story as seen through the eyes of a very young Juana. The middle however started to become much too modernized for my personal taste. I felt like the author's writing was too forced and just didn't flow well. Some of the thoughts attributed to Juana were just too contrived and what I felt would have been unrealistic for a Queen of that time period. More...

0 comments like (8 people liked it)

May 17, 2011

Stephanie rated it:

Some readers shy away from male authors writing historical fiction because men sometimes gloss over or are otherwise indifferent to the plight of women in history. Such readers should give Gortner a second look because he approaches women's history with sensitivity, appreciation and respect. The story of Queen Joanna of Castille is a heartbreaking tale of abuse and political manipulation. Like her more famous sister, Katherine of Aragon, Joanna showed remarkable tenacity and strength of will in More...

3 comments like (8 people liked it)

Dec 22, 2008

Beneath rated it:

I didn't even finish this one. I guess it is okay but the problem is that I have read so many of this tragic queen books. She's forced by the status of royalty into a marriage; he's awful and cheats on her (as if any royal woman didn't know this stuff went on back then). Power struggle. Yadda yadda. The writing is good, don't get me wrong, I just started to feel like I've read this historical book before.

0 comments like (5 people liked it)

Nov 12, 2008

Piroska rated it:

An interesting idea, but poorly executed. Juana comes over as much too modern, and the characters a rather two dimensional. The whole thing becomes tedious about a third of the way through.

0 comments like (5 people liked it)

Sep 12, 2008

Lesa rated it:

If you're an Anglophile, or enjoy biographies of queens, you undoubtedly know the story of Catherine of Aragon, Henry VIII's first wife. Catherine's sister was Juana of Castile, known in Spain as Juana la Loca. C.W. Gortner could have called his historical novel, The Last Queen, the lost queen or the forgotten queen. As he says in the outstanding commentary on his website, Juana of Castile, the last queen of Spain, is almost unknown outside of Spain.

It doesn't hurt to listen to his c More...

1 comment like (9 people liked it)

Sep 12, 2008

Carey rated it:

Queen Isabel and King Ferdinand of Spain spent a lifetime winning their country back from the Moors. They finally succeeded in 1492 with the fall of Granada. They would use their four daughters to cement alliances with other European countries in order to obtain peace for themselves and their people.

Juana of Castile is like any other princess of the time, bound up in duty to her family and her country. At sixteen she is married to Philip, the Archduke of Flanders. It is difficult for More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Sep 07, 2008

Elena rated it:

"The Last Queen" by C.W. Gortner is a historical novel which gives a fresh perspective on the life of the enigmatic Queen Juana of Castile. Gortner skillfully weaves together the loose threads of fact and fiction into a rare and subtle tragedy. The story of the daughter of Isabel of Castile and Ferdinand of Aragon, known to history Juana la Loca, is usually told with the emphasis on the passion between Juana and her faithless husband, Philip of Flanders. While Gortner’s retelling More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Oct 15, 2008

Janae rated it:

I loved this book and will now seek out other books by this author. He paints a wonderful picture of "Juana the Mad". Through reading it, I only could wonder was she really mad, or did her husband and father, and those she loved and trusted create the fallacy that she was mad in order to take the thrown that was rightfully hers after her sister and brother's passing?

This book was very eloquently written. The author makes, what could be very difficult to understand, com More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Aug 10, 2011

Jerelyn rated it:

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7 comments like (1 person liked it)

Sep 06, 2008

Leah rated it:

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0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Dec 15, 2009

Anna rated it:

With all the hype about the Tudor dynasty these days, more and more stories are coming out of the historical closet to be told. This is a fictionalized account of Juana of Castile, the daughter of Isabella and Ferdinand and sister to Catherine of Aragon, first wife of Henry VIII. Juana was married to Philip, the Archduke of Flanders, and their early life was very happy and passionate. But when the succession of Spanish heirs dies out leaving Juana the heir to the Spanish throne, Philip becomes g More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Jul 12, 2010

Andrea rated it:

I read The Last Queen all in one go on Sunday afternoon--a very pleasant way to spend a lazy Sunday.

At first I thought it was going to be a "romancy" historical read (aside: why do these historical novels, so often about women, have much of the take of a romance novel? Are the authors consciously aiming at this audience?), but really got it into it.

I think, other than the above question, my main thought to discuss is that the author is male. I didn't read the More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 10, 2010

Marylou rated it:

EThis is a fun and enjoy read. After reading so much nonfiction it has been enjoyable to read about the infante Juana of Spain who married Phillip of Flanders. It explains many relationships among European royalty as they all intermarried. Gortner does not think Juana was crazy.

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 14, 2010

Lisa rated it:

I found this fictionalized account of Juana of Castille, the daughter of Queen Isabel and King Ferdinand of Spain, and sister to Catalina otherwise known as Catherine of Aragon, first wife to Henry VIII, absolutely fascinating. Most of what I've read about Juana has been in relation to her sister, Catherine of Aragon. All of what I've read has referred to her as mentally unstable.

The story of her childhood, marriage to Philip of Flanders and claim to the Spanish throne is riveting. More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Apr 23, 2009

Kelly rated it:

I recommend this to all of my friends who like Philipa Gregory historical novels. Remember Henry's first wife, Katherine of Aragon? This novel tells the story of Katherine's older sister who is married off to the Hapsburg line. Although similar in subject matter to the stories of all the Tudor wives (arranged marriage, husband is power-hungry cheater, pressure to get pregnant, etc.), I really got into this story a lot more than I did with the Gregory books. I had much more empathy with this More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Nov 16, 2011

Tahmeena rated it:

I usually like reading historical fiction so I was expecting to really like the book...unconditionally. Alas, it was not to be!!! My feelings about the book are pretty ambiguous. I really enjoyed parts of the book while other parts put me in a stupor.

I didn't know anything about Juana or Philip or Spanish history for that matter. Hence, I didn't realize how tragic Juana's life was. I believe that contributed in part to the ambiguity of my feelings regarding this book. I am a sucker More...

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Aug 04, 2011

Amanda rated it:

It was incredibly difficult for me to find this book. Due to the current popularity of Tudor-era novels, and, spilling off from that, similar-era historical fiction/romance, I thought it wouldn't be too difficult to find. But after several recommendations and countless glowing reviews, I tracked The Last Queen down at the library.

I was engrossed from the very first page -talk about a good find -until the very end. Gortner's tale about Juana of Castile is thoroughly well-written, well-r More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 02, 2010

Kate rated it:

It was the dark of night and the last e-ink page had been turned, leaving me staring anxiously at a list of books that had either already been read or didn't interest me at the moment. I began to tremble, sweat sprang from my forehead with all the vigor of Victoria Falls. I had failed to line up my next book and I was already suffering withdraw, literary DTs. Blindly, I scrambled with my Kindle, flipping frantically through Amazon's Kindle Store. A historical fiction novel lept out at me, though More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 03, 2009

Ariela rated it:

Reading books like this make you realize how lucky you are not to have been born a princess in 1400’s Europe. In this novel about Juana of Castille – the second daughter of Ferdinand, King of Aragon, and Isabella, Queen of Castile – Gortner allows you to witness the delicate balance of power and impotence that marked Juana’s life. Married off to Philip the Handsome at a young age, her life was continually marked by the power she could potentially wield and the control men had over her. Although More...

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Jun 23, 2009

Samantha rated it:

The Last Queen is a novel of historical fiction based on the life of Juana of Castile. It begins with Juana's childhood and leads into her struggle to become queen of Spain. Juana faces heartbreak, love and betrayal among the pages of this story and the reader cannot help but root for her. Throughout the story she faces all hardships with strength and courage as she works to become the rightful queen of Spain and to protect her beloved country.

What an amazing read this was! I've begu More...

2 comments like (1 person liked it)

Apr 29, 2009

Linda rated it:

Why had I not heard of Juana of Castile before?

Good historical fiction not only entertains readers by transporting them to another time and place, but also informs. Often you can learn more through fiction than you can through dusty tomes written by historians.

Such is the case in Gortner’s brilliant novel The Last Queen. I was ignorant of the lifestory of Juana of Castile until I read this book, and I wonder why her story isn’t more popular. It is filled with passion, i More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Jan 06, 2012

Shweta's Book Journal rated it:

I am a fan of historical fiction but it's been taking a back seat over my love for YA. But there have been times when I have absolutely loved some historical fiction and couldn't stop raving about them. The Last Queen is going to be one such review. To be honest I knew very little about Juana of Castile. My knowledge was limited to the facts that she was Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand's daughter known in the world history text books as Joanna the mad ,who was declared mentally unfit to rule More...

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Oct 25, 2011

Rachel rated it:

Ok I realize that I am reading this from a 21st century woman's point of view and not a 16th century woman's POV and that is a little skewed, but this book pissed me off. I would not have put up with what Juana of Castile went through, betrayed by her husband and father and sequestered away in a castle to rot. Despite this, I enjoyed reading about her story as I didn't know much about Spanish royal history or about Juana herself.

Juana of Castile's parents were the famous Queen Isabe More...

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Oct 04, 2009

Sensitivemuse rated it:

I had to say I loved this book. A lot. I liked how Juana stood out from the rest of her sisters and it was nice to see Catalina (afterwards becoming Catherine of Aragon) have a "cameo" appearence in the story. Juana is very headstrong, and despite what she goes through, she manages to be steadfast and it was as if nothing could break her. I admired Juana a lot in this book. I liked how the relationship between Juana and Philip started. It was lovely and reminded me a lot of the love be More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Aug 02, 2009

Graceann rated it:

Historical fiction readers are inundated with novels about Anne Boleyn and Elizabeth I. If they do a little digging, they might be able to find something on Mary Queen of Scots or Marie Antoinette. Not that these aren't interesting people, but I was beginning to wonder if there was any other historical figure out there about whom an author might write. C.W. Gortner's "The Last Queen" is the answer to that question.

I knew absolutely nothing about Juana of Castile, so I More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Apr 22, 2010

April rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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Aug 13, 2007

Ellen rated it:

I loved loved loved this book, could not put it down. It takes the perspective that Joanna the Mad wasn't really crazy as she is remembered, rather that she was a victim of her husband and the times in which she lived. I never got to finish the story though, because I left my copy on a train. Currently the book is out-of-print and unavailable! The author promises a new publication from a new publisher and I am anxiously awaiting this possibility.

2 comments like (1 person liked it)

Oct 31, 2010

Freda rated it:

I read this as an ebook on my Kindle and absolutely loved it. The story is so full of drama and intrigue that it certainly kept me turning the virtual pages. It’s 1492 and Spanish Princess Juana, 13, watches with trepidation as her parents, King Fernando and Queen marry their children off to foreign alliances: Princess Catalina marries Prince Arthur, and later his brother Henry, becoming known as Catherine of Aragon, first wife to Henry VIII; Princess Juana herself is married off to Philip of F More...

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