While I can still only muster three stars for Gregory's latest installment of her series featuring prominent women from England's Wars of the Roses, it was nevertheless better than her previous efforts. Based on her mediocre other novels (I enjoyed The Other Boleyn Girl, but never recaptured enjoyment of her books after that), I wouldn't have even bothered reading this one had it not featured Richard Neville's daughter, Anne, a woman who particularly fascinates me.

Anne serves as our narrator throughout the story, but Gregory put herself in a tough position here: Anne is really far too young to ever be a compelling narrator. The events she must convey to the reader in order for the story to make any sense are not things a young, noble girl would have known. Therefore, Gregory is forced to make this information known to Anne (so she can tell you, the reader) through servant's gossip or even her father's confidential conversation -- this latter is so highly improbably (read: impossible) that it makes for laugh-out-loud moments throughout the book. Really, Neville - the Kingmaker himself - would have confided to his pre-teen daughter his battle plans?

Additionally, Gregory puts herself in a fix trying to convey a pre-teen's "voice" in the narrative...the result is what might be a decent Young Adult story, but not good historical fiction for adults. Good characters are, of course, very, very good while bad characters have horns and tails. Delicate characterization doesn't really exist.

I'm not one to quibble too much with the historical liberties she takes throughout the novel....yes, it's fiction so she's entitled. With a little more editing/polishing, the novel has potential. I particularly liked a childbirth scene and her attempt to cast ol' Richard III in a ambivalent light. Take away Anne as the narrator and she could have put the reader right in the midst of the action, instead of dwelling on what Anne was wearing that particular day and overhearing the entire timetable of the Wars of the Roses via servant's gossip and she might have had a very good novel. As it stands, this is historical fiction "lite". Nothing worth shelling out $20 on, but might be worth a library checkout if you want something fluffy to read while at the doctor/dentist's office.