European Royalty discussion
European Royalty Discussions
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What have you read lately?
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Susanna - Censored by GoodReads
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May 15, 2009 12:51PM
Very much so, Boof; there's some mention of it in Weir's Life of Elizabeth I, which I finished fairly recently.
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Boof wrote: "I'd be interested to hear what you think about Queen Victoria Sera.I have just ordered [Book: The Sisters who would be Queen: The Tragedy of Katherine, Mary and Lady Jane Grey] by Leanda de L..."
I read the de Lisle book a couple of months ago and really enjoyed it. It is very readable.
Oh cool, Tanzanite. I'm looking forward to it.I have started Plaidy's Daughter's of Spain today (I appear to be on a tudor roll!). It's the 3rd in the Isabella and Ferdinand trilogy but I didn't know that when I started it. I don't think it matters though. Also, I quite often find myself interested in people and want to read backwards (if that makes sense). For example, I got interested in reading about Katherine of Aragon's childhood but from that will probably develop an interest in I and F 'cos I will want to know where she came from. Am I making sense, LOL?
Thank you for all the Victoria recommendations!Sounds like Plaidy is the way to go.
I love reading one of her books first when reading about someone new. I don't enjoy her books as much as some other authors, but it's always so factual that i feel like I have a good basis of a persons character.
Also - I finished Legacy (loved it!) and it mentioned Katherine Grey, also. The Sisters Who Would Be Queen sounds really good! I'll be adding it to my to-read shelf :)
Ooh, I saw what you and Misfit had said about Legacy so I checked it out on Amazon and I have managed to find a second hand copy for 1p!.......so I have ordered it :o)
Now that Boof has bought Legacy.....I hear that Sourcebooks has the rights to this one and will be releasing it next year so we can all discover this awesome book.
Boof wrote: "Oh cool, Tanzanite. I'm looking forward to it.I have started Plaidy's Daughter's of Spain today (I appear to be on a tudor roll!). It's the 3rd in the Isabella and Ferdinand trilogy but I did..."
Boof, I read this book a few weeks ago, and although Plaidy isn't at her best, the story is still very good. I also didn't read the first 2 books in the trilogy, but you are right, it doesn't matter.
I'm reading [Book: The Autobiography of Henry VIII with Notes by His Fool, Will Somers] now. Only 100 or so pages in and I'm loving it!!
Boof wrote: "I'm reading [Book: The Autobiography of Henry VIII with Notes by His Fool, Will Somers] now. Only 100 or so pages in and I'm loving it!!"
I read this one last month and thought it was pretty darned good.....loved the interpretation of Henry, btw!
I read this one last month and thought it was pretty darned good.....loved the interpretation of Henry, btw!
Michele wrote: "Boof wrote: "I'm reading [Book: The Autobiography of Henry VIII with Notes by His Fool, Will Somers] now. Only 100 or so pages in and I'm loving it!!"I read this one last month and thought it w..."
I have this and have read it a couple of times. I really, really loved it!
I am loving it too! I can't seem to want to put it down. Such a great book. I just bought George's Mary Queen of Scots today too. Has anyone read this one?
Boof wrote: "I am loving it too! I can't seem to want to put it down. Such a great book. I just bought George's Mary Queen of Scots today too. Has anyone read this one?"I did. Meh, but it wasn't because of the writing it was more because Mary is so danged irritating that it fizzled out by the end. LOL, a couple of comments I got on my review at amazon, like so you'd give Mary 3.5 stars too? Stuff like that.
Royaltys Strangest Characters by Geoff Tibball. Amazingly good look at the mad, raving, cruel and sadistic rulers since 290 BC. It's very interesting in all that it covers and he adds a laugh or two to lighten it up a little.
Nona wrote: "Royaltys Strangest Characters by Geoff Tibball. Amazingly good look at the mad, raving, cruel and sadistic rulers since 290 BC. It's very interesting in all that it covers and he adds a laugh or tw..."Ooohh, this sounds really interesting!
Misfit wrote: "Boof wrote: "I am loving it too! I can't seem to want to put it down. Such a great book. I just bought George's Mary Queen of Scots today too. Has anyone read this one?"I did. Meh, but it was..."
I'm reading Plaidy's Captive Queen of Scots right now. This book and the first one (Royal Road to Fotheringay) are the only books I've read about Mary. I have been pretty amazed about certain choices Mary has made - I'm not necessarily irritated with her, but I do want to shake some sense into her! Her good qualities as a human being definitely seem to be her downfall as a sovereign. Her and Elizabeth seem like complete opposites.
Finishing up Anne Easter Smith's "A Rose for the Crown" and I absolutely love it. I'd have to say its my favorite out of the three!
Misfit wrote: "Robin wrote: "Boof wrote: "I agree, Sara and Angie. I am hooked and I also have to keep reminding myself that she hasn't made this all up. It is the first Weir I have read and I will definitely b..."Thanks for the recommendation about Legacy. I just ordered a copy from Amazon that said to be in very good condition expecept for wear due to age. It was more than I like to spend but so many of you loved it that I couldn't pass it up!
What do all of you, who have read, Margaret George's Henry VIII, Mary Queen of Scots, or Cleopatra think about them. I own all three but they are lengthy.What about opinions on Carolly Erisckson's nonfiction books i.e. The First Elizabeth, Bloody Mary, and Mistress Anne? Again I have them but haven't read them yet.
I would really appreciate your feedback. I need the push to get started again on this genre!
Thanks
Susan wrote: "What do all of you, who have read, Margaret George's Henry VIII, Mary Queen of Scots, or Cleopatra think about them. I own all three but they are lengthy.What about opinions on Carolly Erisckso..."
I loved Henry VIII, but while her writing was good in Mary Q of S, Mary herself was so irritating (especially in her later years), that the latter part of it really dragged.
I've heard pros and cons about Erickson.
PS, I think I've mentioned this before but apparently Sourcebooks is going to publish Legacy in 2010 so everyone can get a brand new copy. That is if they want to wait.
Susan, I am reading Margaret George's Henry VIII right now and really enjoying it. It's written as a memoir by Henry himself so it's nice to have a different persepective.
Susan wrote: "What do all of you, who have read, Margaret George's Henry VIII, Mary Queen of Scots, or Cleopatra think about them. I own all three but they are lengthy.What about opinions on Carolly Erisckso..."
I've read a couple of Erickson's non-fiction and enjoyed them (I think one on Henry VIII's wives and possibly one on Alexandra Romanov - I get Erickson and Antonia Fraser's books mixed up in my head sometimes because I own books by each of them). I remember them being pretty easy to get through.
Thanks for the replying. I would love to hear some more views, especially about Erickson because I've read some bad reviews of her today on other threads.
Erickson is a great story teller you just cannot take what she writes as truth, now her book Great Harry and the one on MQofS I have not read yet( one of those that I rushed to buy then put it on the shelf unread) but her Secret Life of Josephin, Hidden Diary of Marie Antoinette and Henry VIII Last Wife I have and well there are things that happens that leave you wondering 'did that really happen' and when you investigate you find it was fabricated for entertainment. So read it if you want a story teller type read but if your looking for fact go else where.
I have 4 Erickson books on my TBR - Blood Mary, Great Harry, Hidden Diary of MA, and The Last Wife of Henry VIII. I intend to read this last one within the next couple of months. I'm curious to see what's been fabricated. I am pretty traditional in this sense, but not over the top, so it will be interesting to see how this one goes.
I read Bloody Mary years and years ago, but I have heard similar comments to Nona's about the accuracy. I tried one of her "historical entertainment" books, The Tsarina's Daughter and only made it about 50 pages before it hit the wall. I heard the one she wrote about Josephine Boneparte was..quite...well...something in the sex department. I don't intend to find out. I got enough of bad sex in that Tudor Vampire book to last me a lifetime.
That Tudor Vampire Book! What a title that would be.Heh.
Susanna wrote: "That Tudor Vampire Book! What a title that would be.Heh."
Gad, that was a mess that was.
Yes, I much enjoyed your review!
We had waaaaaay too much fun commenting on that one. "volcano of honey". Yikes.
Misfit wrote: "We had waaaaaay too much fun commenting on that one. "volcano of honey". Yikes."I don't think I even want to know!! Lol!
What was particularly funny was the combination of Misfit's review, the comments on the review, and the other ratings for "That Tudor Vampire Book."
Susanna wrote: "What was particularly funny was the combination of Misfit's review, the comments on the review, and the other ratings for "That Tudor Vampire Book.""Clearly the other people read a different book then I did. I posted more over at Live Journal. I was kinda mean but she did deserve it. Don't go carping on about your historical research and accuracy and then put in crap like the daughter of a French King being called royal whore to her face by the French Ambassador. Ye gods.
Who is the best author, in your opinion, that writes fiction or nonfiction about European Royalty who really keeps to accurate facts?
I like Antonia Fraser, myself.
For the medieval period I'd suggest Chadwick and Penman.
I'm with Misfit. You just cannot go wrong with either authors.Misfit I'm curious why you would even read a Tudor Vampire book? lol, that alone makes me chuckle.
Nona wrote: "I'm with Misfit. You just cannot go wrong with either authors.Misfit I'm curious why you would even read a Tudor Vampire book? lol, that alone makes me chuckle."
Nona, there are just times when all the hoopla gets me curious and then the library got it so I said what the heck. There's one review on Amazon by a reviewer I've followed over the years and she loved it, maybe I was missing something. I found a quote I can probably paste and not get in trouble with Sarah,
"His face red as a cock's wattle, he released her left arm and clamped a hand over her mouth. "I know all about you, lusty princess. Or shall I call you Froward Renee, the wanton Valois who tumbles into bed with nobodies? Well, your pardon for my being green with ancestral honors, but let me assure you, cherrylips, that I am well endowed in body as well as in arms." He pressed his codpiece into her belly with gyrating motions of his hips. "I would swyve you right lustily, I would. What say you, Princess? One fast and hard up against the wall? I trow you will like it."
Note, that is a Royal Princess he's calling cherrylips, and it's not Henry VIII either just a flunkie courtier.
OMG, is anyone at work today, lol! Ha, cherrylips! Too funny! I'll definitely have to read Misfit's review.As for Susan's question (490 above), besides the authors mentioned, I like Jean Plaidy (fiction) and David Starkey (non-fiction). I also enjoy Alison Weir, but from what I hear, she's not all that reliable (although her novel Innocent Traitor was great!).
Nona wrote: "lol, I might read it for laughs only!"That is the only way. You can read my thoughts and more excerpts here,
http://misfitandmom.livejournal.com/
And here, http://shelfofshame.blogspot.com/2009...
PS, I'm at work today but bored to tears. But since there's no one here to look over my shoulders.....
Just recently, I finished up the Young Royals series. There are a couple of biographies of Anne Boleyn, Princess Elizabeth, Bloody Mary, etc. narrated by the royals themselves. I recommend it highly!
Lena,Do have any titles for the bios. and what is the young royals series?
Thanks
The Young Royals Series is a series of books by Carolyn Meyer narrated by young royals of England; it is about their conflicts at Court, the throne, etc. through their eyes.Some titles are:
1. Beware, Princess Elizabeth
2. Mary, Bloody Mary
3. Patience, Princess Catherine
4. Doomed Queen
5. Duchessina
(This author is also working on a series about Marie Antoinette)
Sincerely,
Lena Z.
I'm reading The King's Rose (Alisa Libby) about Katherine Howard. As for Erickson, I've read a couple of her fiction books but wasn't overly impressed with them. I've heard her non-fiction is much better.
Lena, I like the sound of the Young Royals series - I will check thoses out, thanks.
Thanks Lena! For getting back to me so quickly and I will definetely check them out.My new conundrum is whether I need to read about the early Tudors and Henry VIII before I read individual books on his wives or children, fiction/nonfiction?
I've already read quite a bit about Katherine of Aragon. Should I read Plaidy's books on her parents?
Thanks
Susan, I have read the last one in the trilogy about Katehrine's parents and really enjoyed it. It's not really tudor as it is set in Spain but I would still recommend it.
Susan wrote: "Thanks Lena! For getting back to me so quickly and I will definetely check them out.My new conundrum is whether I need to read about the early Tudors and Henry VIII before I read individual boo..."
I really loved Plaidy's trilogy about Isabella and Ferdinand. I've read it twice (along with her trilogy on Katherine of Aragon).
European Royalty
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Noel Botham, Bruce Montague (other topics)Alison Weir (other topics)
Alison Weir (other topics)
Alison Weir (other topics)
Jean Plaidy (other topics)
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