The Sun in Splendour

Plantagenet Saga #14

by Jean Plaidy

Reckoned by those about him to be the most handsome man in the country, Edward the fourth has risen to the throne with the help of Warwick, the kingmaker. But even Warwick's trusted advice cannot convince the King to ignore his passion for the beautiful widow, Elizabeth Woodville - and when she refuses to become his mistress the two are married.

Beloved of the people, Edward proves himself to be a strong king, but his love of luxurious living soon begins to impact on his royal duties. Despite his mistresses, Elizabeth is loyal to the illustrious king, providing him with many children, among them Edward the fifth and Richard Duke of York. But Edward lived recklessly and on his death an incident from his past comes to light that will change the course of history ...

Genres: Historical Fiction, Historical, Fiction, Plantagenet, British Literature, Medieval, Royalty

466 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1982

About the author

Eleanor Alice Burford, Mrs. George Percival Hibbert was a British author of about 200 historical novels, most of them under the pen name Jean Plaidy which had sold 14 million copies by the time of her death. She chose to use various names because of the differences in subject matter between her books; the best-known, apart from Plaidy, are Victoria Holt (56 million) and Philippa Carr (3 million). Lesser known were the novels Hibbert published under her maiden name Eleanor Burford, or the pseudonyms of Elbur Ford, Kathleen Kellow and Ellalice Tate. Many of her readers under one penname never suspected her other identities.
-Wikipedia

Reviews

[Marquise · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too much tell and too little show, long and clunky dialogue, repetitive writing, dry prose . . . This novel has all of it.

What else? Oh, all--and I mean all--the Wars of the Roses tropes to ever exist appear here. And given the book's age, I'd even hazard to guess some of the mainstay Wars of the Roses and Yorkist/Ricardian tropes were started by Plaidy with this book, and aped ad infinitum by subsequent novelists.

Being fair to the lady, Plaidy doesn't make any beyond-the-pale mistake as regards historical accuracy. Those she does make are rather small to middling in the ranking of blunders, such as when she calls Edmund of Rutland a duke (he was an earl, not even poised to inherit the Duchy of York), or when she makes Elizabeth Woodville's first husband, John Grey, a lord (he was a mere knight). However, the way she delivers these facts, through dry recitation and unimaginatively delivered in a sequential fashion, makes it read like a factual pile of events kept together with super-glue rather than a story. It also shows its age in that the facts cited are the product of research available at the time.

Perhaps the one quirk I found more annoying was Plaidy's tendency to tell the reader about ranks and facts all the time, reminding the reader of them every now and then in a way that smells faintly of Philippa Gregory; and she also never lets the reader use his/her imagination and draw his/her own conclusion. Instead, she feeds them what she wants the reader to know and conclude, and can be a bit pompous in the delivery. Example, the closing line:

“So ended the battle of Bosworth, the last in the Wars of the Roses. So ended the rule of the Plantagenets. A new reigning family had come to England with the Tudors.”

With all due respect, Mrs Plaidy, I know Bosworth was the last battle, I know it ended the rule of the Plantagenets, and I know the next dynasty to follow are the Tudors. Now, could you kindly not tell me the obvious and instead write a story with these facts you're so intent on spoon-feeding me?

Anyway, perhaps this novel is good for beginners and for those who're not familiar with the period or the Lancastrian/Yorkist civil war. Goodness knows Plaidy will make sure they know everything, though not all correct, with her storytelling style that leaves nothing out but adds nothing remarkable either. Passably decent novel, but forgettable. That's my verdict.

[Pauline Calkin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oh so very boring. This novel is a pale and uninspiring telling of Edward IV and Richard III’s reigns, sharing with Sharon Kay Penman’s phenomenal version a title and historical characters, but none of the latter’s vibrancy and drama. The writing style can charitably be described as plain and straightforward, but more honestly as pedestrian and dull, the dialog wooden. I sometimes had the impression I was reading a book meant for young adults. And there is constant repetition of various matters. Whenever she is mentioned (which is a lot) Elizabeth Woodville is always described as beautiful and cool; Edward is handsome and amiable and the people love him, and on and on. I got the impression that the author wrote the parts and then stuck them together without editing. Thus, the incident where George and Anthony Woodville are put forward as prospective bridegrooms for Mary of Burgundy are explained in two different chapters. Then the history can be laughable: it is said several times that after the Yorkist defeat at the second battle of St. Albans that Warwick saved the day by marching on London and having Edward proclaimed king. Yeah, right no mention of who had been commanding the Yorkists.
The book does have some saving graces, and Richard is portrayed favorably.

[Kiesha ~ Gwenllian ferch Gruffydd · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was finally happy to get to the end. Overall a great series and story---Edward IV has never been one of my favs, not sure why. I also detest his Queen, Elizabeth Woodville.

[Elena · Rating 3 out of 5]

Like an other book by the same author, I found this one an unremarkable book. It's nice, not bad, but the historical accuracy is not the best nor the charachterization. There's a lot of telling and almost nothing showing, even in dialogues, which are rather didactic. We are told a charachter is like this or like that, but we are never showed, and in the end it doesn't feel true or realistic. Also the end was very rushed, so much that important pieces of History were completely left out.

[Laura L. Van Dam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Biografía novelada de los últimos Plantagenet.

Amena de leer, y con un Ricardo III más amable que el que nos cuenta Shakespeare, es más bueno que Lassie.

[Vanessa · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story of what happens when several people decide "But MY family should have all the power in the country." and then don't take it well when the others don't agree.

History as we know it.

I don't think I'll need to rehash the entire story of the War of the Roses or how it ended (not sure if the character limit would suffice), or even introduce the important players. So I'll just go to the points I think people are the most interested in:

Which people are presented as villains:

- Most definitely the Duke of Clarence. Unless someone is remembering what a charismatic child he was, he's usually portrayed as a jealous, childish drunk, whose only redeeming quality is that he kind of sorta loves his wife.

- The Woodvilles at least partly. In the beginning, both Jaquetta and Elizabeth are portrayed as sympathetic and as just trying to protect their family. After some time, the whole family gets greedier and more righteous, though. And arrogant. According to them, they're the most special family in the country and recognizing that fact was the reason why Edward IV not only married one of them, but also elevated countless family members to the most important postions.

Afterwards it gets more grey in my opinion. Warwick is clearly presented as someone who might not want the crown, but seeks to rule through the king instead and in a way just as greedy as the Woodvilles... but on the other side, his arguments always make sense. He's shown as someone capable of ruling and making levelheaded decisions for the country.

Everyone else is mostly in between. Lots of dumb decisions made for greed (or in Edward IV's case, for the love of peace in the family) by almost everyone.

And most interesting to many people is probably that Richard III is not a villain in this book. He's actually one of the most sympathetic characters and the audience is clearly meant to root for him. It gets a bit muddier towards the end, cause the author tried hard to find excuses for the more terrible things he did in his reign, but he clearly never crosses the line to actual villain.

Jean Plaidy's writing style reads, as usual, some sort of mix between the historical fiction it is and a non-fiction book. Even deeply emotional scenes are written in a detached way, which is probably not to everyone's taste.
I also found some inconsistencies in the characters, which might simply go back to in which person's head we are at several points as the POV switches constantly - sometimes twice on a single page.

One thing I found quite glaring was the lack of Margaret Beaufort, who should have been mentioned way more often as a backround character in my opinion. Nothing big, just tiny hints at the future. Instead we got two, maybe three really clunky scenes in which she's suddenly noticed and her son mentioned.

All in all, I thought this was a quick read with some heights and lows.

[Maria (Wen) · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is a thick long book and when I first started reading it I wasn't sure if I'd like it, but then it sucked me in. It is a different and interesting take to the story of King Richard who is usually villified in other plays and books. It was interesting to read the dynamics of what happens in the King's court and the power struggles that take place.

[Taylor's♡Shelf · Rating 3 out of 5]

Perhaps I'm getting a little tired of Plaidy. Or perhaps I lucked out and read some of her best novels first. In any case, I have to admit that I had to slog through the second half of this novel.

I usually love novels that focus on Elizabeth Woodville. I never understood why Margaret Beaufort was always given a bad wrap for seeming too conniving, and Elizabeth seemed to slip through that stain on her character. I would say one thing that Plaidy did well in this novel is not letting Elizabeth off the hook for her family greed just because she was beautiful and gave King Ed a warren of children.

That being said, the rest of the characters in this novel were just alright. For some reason Plaidy decided to portray Thomas Grey as the biggest sex-craved rake in all of bloody England. And unfortunately, Plaidy fell victim to not giving Richard enough of a transitional period between Lucifer and Satan. I don't mind if authors want to portray Richard as a greedy usurper. It's been done well. But you need to give him more of a catalyst and time to let it fester. This Richard's sudden change in motivations didn't feel believable to me.

Also, the repetition was strong in this one. I don't know how many times we needed to be reminded that Edward liked to go 'adventuring' with Hastings and Grey to savor the streets of England. I get it. He's scum.

Overall, I think Plaidy started off strong and then it kind of got away from her. I'll continue with Plaidy, but for now I'm on hiatus.

[Lady Jane Grey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not *the* "Sunne in Splendor" (Susan Kay Penman), but Jean Plaidy's version. I got the other one for Christmas, though! I am so glad Jean Plaidy was a Richardian, but she was brilliant so why wouldn't she have been? And yes, I cried at the end.

[Christine Cazeneuve · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well I reached the end - the final book in the saga/series of the Plantagenet's. This book spent most of its time on the reign of Edward IV and Queen Elizabeth Woodville. It also explores Richard III. However, as the final book into an intriguing series I expected more. The book seemed very rushed to me. Events - important ones - were just brushed over rather than explored and repetitive non-issues throughout. Not sure what happened here but I am glad I finished the saga/series and would still recommend.

[Grace Bowling · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am a huge fan of Jean Plaidy. This book, however, disappointed. I found it very dull and lifeless. This book coveres the time of Edward IV claiming thr crown through the death of Richard III. Elizabeth Woodville is basically a background character. If your looking for a fictionalized telling of this time in history, read this book. If you wanted more about Edward and Elizabeth, skip it.

In contrast, Philippa Gregory’s The White Queen and Barbara Taylor Bradford’s The Ravenscar Dynasty are much more interesting and novelized stories of Edward IV and Elizabeth.

[Iona · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book many years ago and remember enjoying it so when I found it in the Kindle store I was keen to read it again. Will it live up to my expectations I wonder...?

I don't remember the story at all, vague bits came back to me. However, as before I really enjoyed it. Well written, quite descriptive but not bogged down in detail. I might seek out more historical novels by Jean Plaidy.

[Jennifer Collier · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book, Jean Plaidy weaves a wonderful story around historically accurate facts filling out the characters. I've enjoyed all the Plantagenet series and it's changed my opinion of some of the kings including Richard III.

[Rachael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jean Plaidy is always an easy read. And pretty historically accurate.

[Bec · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was worth a read, I do enjoy Jean Plaidy as an author. However, I've read stronger versions of this story and felt that certain characters personalities had been changed and didn't match history.

[Rosie Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

A splendid read and my favourite era the Plantagenets bought to life

[ShellieJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic story of Edward IV and the Wars of the Roses! Jean Plaidy is always a winner :)

[Ashlynn Hudkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kinda of a hard read but loved it none the less

[Andrea Willers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jean Plaidy got me interested in history, my history lessons at school certainly didn't inspire me

[Jennifer Clark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well written and well researched . This book, although it primarily follows the life of Edward 4th, gives an interesting account of the reign of Richard 3rd. I really enjoyed it, poor Richard!

[Phil Syphe · Rating 2 out of 5]

Like most books by Jean Plaidy, “The Sun in Splendour” had the potential of being much better. Having now read the entire Plantagenet saga, I rate this the second worse after the previous novel.

The Wars of the Roses was a fascinating and complex period in English history. It’s the period I’m most knowledgeable about, therefore I can state that this novel is more like a substandard biography.

The author had the material to up the pace and present the reader with intrigue, conflict, action, bloodshed, battles, and develop the main characters. Sadly, what comes to the fore is repetition of information, lame attempts at conflict, underplayed action scenes, and poor character development.

Edward IV and Richard III led such eventful lives that one novel could never do their stories justice. As with all previous books in the Plantagenet series, the author’s need to pack several decades of history into one volume results in a serious rush job. While I like fast-paced novels, I dislike rushing over bland scenes that should’ve been dramatized.

The main reason why Plaidy’s works are so dry is because there’s far too much *telling*, as opposed to *showing*. Many times in this book the reader is told what happened in a few sentences, when the author could’ve dramatized scenes to show what happened.

Below is an example of blatant telling:

> She went to his bedchamber and imperiously dismissed those who were in attendance.<

We’re also told, not shown, what characters are like. Take this for an example:

> He was arrogant in the extreme and he wanted her to know that he was the master.<

The above is also a clunky sentence, something else Plaidy’s guilty of, which results from her continuous use of the passive voice. It’s always, “The hands of the king”, as opposed to the active voice: “The king’s hands”.

Passive voice = passive prose.

Below is arguably the most poorly constructed sentence in the whole book, reflecting a complete lack of thought for sentence structure:

>So to Middleham to be brought up in Warwick's household Richard had been sent.>

Some of the character exchanges are good, but most lack substance. At times, we don’t even know where conversations are transpiring. A new scene opens with two characters talking, yet there’s no sense of place. The author/narrator hasn’t given a shred of detail where the characters are. It’s like they’re floating in limbo. This is poor imagery. At least have them seated at a table, or lying in bed, or taking a walk – anything to give the reader a sense of place to visualise the scene.

For example, one scene opens with: > Edward listened thoughtfully to what had occurred.< This is followed by dialogue between Edward and Richard with no detail on where they are.

The most underwhelming aspect of the previous book is Ms Plaidy’s approach to the famous battles that made up the Wars of the Roses. Not as many conflicts feature during the history covered in this novel, but any battles that do appear are summed up like footnotes, in about four sentences, and we don’t see a drop of blood.

Because of this, I didn’t have high expectations for the Battle of Bosworth. Although it’s longer than four sentences, it’s still blatant telling. I don’t feel what Richard III is feeling. I don’t see what he sees. I hear no clashes of steel. I sense no tension whatsoever. This major battle offers no excitement, no sense of “do or die”.

Even the famous charge down Ambien Hill is missing, while Richard Ratcliffe dies twice – when someone’s described as having gone “down”, I take it to mean “dead”, so it’s confusing when a character’s described as having gone down one minute, and then he’s back in the fray the next.

Maybe Jean Plaidy was squeamish when it comes to describing men hacking each other to death, I don’t know, but why write on the Wars of the Roses if those battles that constituted the conflict between Lancaster and York are reduced to mini synopses?

Unusual for Plaidy, she makes several little historical errors, such as referring to Edward V as thirteen when he was really twelve. Also, she refers to Richard’s “Clarence nephews, Warwick and Lincoln”. Warwick was Richard’s sole Clarence nephew, while Lincoln – John de la Pole – was his sister Elizabeth’s son. This is probably owing to the author rushing through the book so she could start writing another.

Something about Jean Plaidy’s books keep me coming back for more. Perhaps it’s her obvious love for English history, which I share, that draws me back. I wish she’d focused less on turning out as greater quantity of novels as possible and concentrated more on quality writing..

Some of her novels do hit the mark, but “The Sun in Splendour” is another that feels like an unedited second draft.

[Kouju Tokieda · Rating 5 out of 5]

この表紙で出版当初のペーパーバックにて読了。大学生時代、京都丸善で購入した記憶。
当時も今も好きなヴィクトリア・ホルトの別名義作品という事で購入。
初めて読んだプレイディ作品。エドワード4世～リチャード3世の死によるプランタジネット朝の終焉まで。リチャード3世は好きであったので、好漢に描かれているこの作品は嬉しかった。非常に読みやすく、面白かった。この作品を読んで以降、プレイディ名義作品が入荷する度に購入して読むきっかけとなった1作。

[Kara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Covers the War of the Roses from Edward meeting Elizabeth Woodville in that fateful 'oak tree meeting' until the Battle of Bosworth. We get lots of points of view and manages to cover a lot of ground despite the short length of the book. A little too much telling rather than showing, but overall very enjoyable.

[Abigail H. Leskey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Character: Numerous, obviously, and all the main characters are real people.

Edward IV: Is the "sun in splendour." Not the most morally upright king, but popular.

Elizabeth Woodville: Becomes Edward's queen (That's not a spoiler to anyone whose studied the time-period much at all). She's gorgeous and I think is described in the book as "calculating," but she loves her family.

George, Duke of Clarence: You won't like him.

Richard, Duke of Gloucester (Richard III): I'm on the fence about him historically; I'd like to think he wasn't bad, but.... As a character, I like Richard in this book very much. He starts out a hero-worshiping sweetheart, and becomes "stern" and "principled." And his romance with Anne Neville is nice.

Plot: This book begins before Edward IV meets Elizabeth, and continues until the end of Richard's reign. Basically it's the royal history, fictionalized a bit. Ms. Plaidy's version of the "Princes in the Tower" episode was interesting. Not the usual version.

Writing: It worked well enough.

Content: God's name was misused, I think. Lots about mistresses, but not graphic.

And finally: More of an older girl book, for maybe 15 or 16+. Recommended for people interested in Edward IV and Richard III's reigns, especially Ricardians.

[Helene Harrison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review - I thought Elizabeth Woodville came across the most cleanly. Strangely, I felt that Richard III came across better than Edward IV did, and I don't mean as a better person. Edward just seemed to be a little in the background. The storyline is recognisable, with a few small changes, to the historical record. It is similar to books like The White Queen by Philippa Gregory, although this one was a little better than Gregory's effort.

Genre? - Historical Fiction / Drama / Romance

Characters? - Edward IV / Richard III / Elizabeth Woodville / Elizabeth of York / George Duke of Clarence / Anne Neville / Jane Shore / Edward V / Richard Duke of York / Jacquetta Lady Rivers / Anthony Earl Rivers

Setting? - London (England)

Series? - Plantagenet #14

Recommend? - Yes

Rating - 16/20

[Richard Stueber · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is a fictional account of the reigns of Edward IV of England and his brother Richard III. Not many people in this novel come off too well except for Richard III.
The basic historical facts are covered herein, but the motivations and characters of the principal characters may not have been accurately portrayed. I have read other more satisfying books about these two reigns and don't take Shakespeare's Richard III as any serious version of the character of Richard. And probably not this book either. The
truth lies somewhere in between.
Edward's wife Elisabeth Woodville comes off particularly badly, as do the relations on her side.

[Sara W · Rating 4 out of 5]

Edward IV (son of Richard, Duke of York, from Red Rose of Anjou) claims the throne. He marries Elizabeth Woodville, and their children include Elizabeth, Edward and Richard. Edward IV dies, and his son, Edward V (a child) becomes king. Edward V and his brother Richard, Duke of York, are the "princes in the tower". Richard III (brother of Edward IV and uncle to Edward V) declares the princes illegitimate and takes the crown for himself. He marries Anne Neville (daughter of the Earl of Warwick).

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the book, as I love all Jean Plaidy books, but I wish I had been able to get hold of an earlier edition. My copy had obviously been re-edited, and the punctuation was awful - whole paragraphs would be written without any commas. Whoever re-edited for the new edition needs a good slap. If there's one thing I can't stand, it's lack of commas.

[Cindy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cant go wrong reading Jean Plaidy's books. Always draws you right in. I notice lately that many have difficulty recalling names (too hard) and constant mis-spellings (it's called "old english" actually)..I love reading books centered around these times in ancient history and at one time had every book Jean had written on the throne of England through various Kings, Queens and cohorts.

[Lauren-Jane · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wasn't overly impressed, there seems to be very little characterisation. I didnt get that history coming to life sense and the historical story is so interesting anyway that you'd think it would be hard for it not to be an amazing book, yet it was only so so.