Did anyone else have a hard time getting through this? And any thoughts on her other books?

[Fran]

Farrah - I too, found this book a bit hard going, I would, however, recommend The Wideacre Trilogy, they were fantastic books to read and weren't full of history (not that I don't like a bit of history!) or too many characters. Enjoy!

[Sue]

Enjoyed both this, The Red Queen and The Women of the Cousins´War. I really didn´t know much about the Wars of the Roses and this has given me a way in. Looking forward to The Kingmaker´s Daughter and to reading more about the subject by other writers.

[Ann]

I liked this book and like her writings. I find they parallel the more pure history of Alison Weir. It is very interesting to read these authors together. I find Gregory to flesh out the humanity of the characters.

[Ewa]

I have really enjoyed reading this. One of her books I like the most. And I'm reading almost everything which appears translated to Polish (with exeption of Wideacre Trilogy). My real faves were Virgin's Lover (because of poor Amy Robsart) and Queen's Fool.

[Felicia]

Valerie wrote: "The Other Boleyn Girl was excellent. I've read most of her other ones, and they were good, but The Wise Woman was downright disturbing."

You think that was disturbing, try her Wideacre series!

[Lisa]

I enjoyed this but like many others, it was the first Gregory novel I've read. I love history, fact or fiction. There were times when the book dragged however the story was compelling and well worth reading. I have the Red Queen and The other Boleyn girl sitting on a table, hoping to get to them soon. It is very helpful to read others take on Philippa Gregory's novels.

[Elizabeth(The Book Whisperer)]

I loved this book. I love historical fiction and this was a good one. I enjoy her Tudar stories too, but those stories have been done so much, its nice to read about other royal families of England.

[Amanda]

This was my first book by this author and it was OK. It was not until page 200 or so that I felt like it was engaging for me. The Red Queen and the Lady of the Rivers are much more interesting. I found Elizabeth to be very boring... no offense to those who loved her. haha

[AmandaEmma]

it took me a month to read.... normally i read 600 pages in about a day or 2, but this one just didnt catch me :/

[Heather]

I found the White Queen far too similar to The King's Grey Mare, by Rosemary Hawley Jarman who wrote a much more atmospheric and haunting account of Elizabeth Woodville. Too many similarities to be accidental in my opinion though I am a huge fan of Gregory's work this really has impacted on my view of her work :/

[[deleted user]]

Honestly, I can not imagine anyone gaving a hard time getting through any of Phillipa Gregory's historical fiction. But then, I tend to lean toward books which are nonfiction. I can honestly say that those books tend to be drier reading, but in my opinion are much more rewarding, in the long run. Having said that, I do own a couple of Phillipa Gregory's books, and a handful of other historical fiction novels, as well. They can be quite entertaining, they just should not be taken as complete historical fact.

[[deleted user]]

*Philippa

[Alanna]

I've read a ton of her novels, and they're all really great. This one though, I do have to admit took me REALLY long time to get through. I think part of it may have been because I had just powered thru the Tudor series without a break and I had had just about enough dead queens and little princes as I could handle.

I did go back and finish it though, and couldn't put it down. But it was a little tough. And now, I'm scared to buy anything else by her, wondering if maybe I've put myself off her writing for good! *pout*

[Heather]

Alanna,

This was just not her best. Wait a while and give it another try. The others in this series are very good, in my opinion.

[LadyT]

I liked this book.Some parts of it were hard to read. But once you get past them. Then the book really starts to get good. I highly recommend that everyone read the entire series of the cousins war. The Author has a lot of good books.

[[deleted user]]

Yes, and i didnt like the story....

[Catherine]

Yes, I found it hard to get through this book. I want to finish the series but I feel like it would just be too hard - which is not the case for her other books (Tudors). Let's just wait until the 10 episode series comes out, it's supposed to air this year on BBC and Starz!!!

[RJay]

Heather wrote: "Farrah,
Her other books are much better. I would read the Tudor books first. Everyone loves The Other Boleyn Girl, but my favorite is The Constant Princess.
Happy Reading!
Heather"
I concur. Of all her books, The Constant Princess is the best.
For the best of historical fiction, try Sharon Kay Penman. And for great, readable biography, my pick is Ian Mortimer.

[Becky]

I got bored also, very ho-hum. Not very well written--much repetition, even exact same wording on the same page. I only went as far as I did because I had nothing else on hand to read. I will probably not finish, great topic though.

[Catherine]

Yeah, I know what you mean, guess we'll just watch the show this year! I can't wait to see the costumes!

[Joana]

I honestly think the show will be an awful portrait of The Cousin's War saga :c

[[deleted user]]

I think it would help if there was some guide to the people - I kept forgetting who the Duke of Buckingham was and the other Dukes as they weren't consistently called by their regular names. This was also apparent on the family trees in the front of the book - if I knew it was John Smith, Duke of York, and this was clear, it would have been easier. But most of the nobility had two names - both Smith and York, as an example. I gave up trying to remember who was who, which was frustrating, but I kept reading anyway.

[❤︎ ⸆⸉ Chelsea.]

No. it was really easy to read, I've read it three times and probably will read it again when her next book comes out.

[Amanda]

Lisa wrote: "I think it would help if there was some guide to the people - I kept forgetting who the Duke of Buckingham was and the other Dukes as they weren't consistently called by their regular names. This w..."
Yeah. Everyone was called by the same name and I got confused also. I did give up too. LOL

[LadyT]

The book has a slow start to it. But it gets better once you keep reading.

[Melody]

I fell in love with the cover…which could have returned to bite me upon reading it. I loved it! I found it easy to read and I loved the hints of magic and such. I thought it was rich in romance and history. I have read a few of her books and also The Red Queen but ultimately The White Queen was my favorite! Also, when her boys are taken to the tower it wrenched my heart, as a mother. Such a sad era of history.

[Eileen]

I have read most of Philippa Gregory's books and enjoyed them all. That being said, I have to say The White Queen was not my favorite. The author's treatment of Elizabeth Woodville was generous, but the woman and her family were serious social climbers. Once they reached the top, I think they strutted about preening in their elevated positions. Not the best way to win friends and influence people.

The story was 1st person, the POV character being Elizabeth Woodville, so I'm not sure the author had much of a choice about the sympathetic portrayal. Part of the reason it was not my favorite may have been my personal dislike of social climbers. Oddly, I found The Red Queen's POV character, Margaret Beaufort, more likable, even though she was one tough bird. Hmmm, I wonder what that says about me...

[Amanda]

Eileen- I found the Red Queen more like able as well because she was flawed and it made for a more entertaining read than WQ.

[Eileen]

Amanda wrote: "Eileen- I found the Red Queen more like able as well because she was flawed and it made for a more entertaining read than WQ."

I have somehow linked to Philippa Gregory's facebook page and she added a photo from The White Queen production. I'm not sure if it is TV or movie. In it, in the background, Margaret Beaufort is standing there. I wonder if there will be much about Margaret in this show.

[Karen]

I have read several of Philippa's books on the Tudor period. My favorite is The Constant Princess. I have a tender spot for Catalina, Catherine of Aragon. The books on the Red and White Queens did not have the impact as The Other Boleyn Girl or Constant Princess, but remember that not as much was written in history on Margaret Beaufort and Elizabeth Woodville. My next favorite ia The Boleyn Inheritance. This is a great character study of Anne of Cleves, Katherine Howard and Jane Rochford, George Boleyn's wife.

[Sylvia]

This was my first Philippa Gregory book and I absolutely loved it. Just ordered the Red Queen and can't wait to get to it.

[Eileen]

Sylvia wrote: "This was my first Philippa Gregory book and I absolutely loved it. Just ordered the Red Queen and can't wait to get to it."

I thought was wonderful. I knew a lot of English history, and specifically a lot about the Tudors. But until I read this book I never understood how frightening and intimidating it must have been to be at Henry VIII's court. The man was a tyrant. The book opens with the execution of one of Henry's cousins over something that seemed pretty minor to me. Philippa Gregory did a masterful job of communicating the fear that pervaded the Tudor court.

[[deleted user]]

Amanda wrote: "Lisa wrote: "I think it would help if there was some guide to the people - I kept forgetting who the Duke of Buckingham was and the other Dukes as they weren't consistently called by their regular ..."

LOL - I read it twice, and LOVE the characters, I just couldn't keep them straight, so just kinda skipped over the names - irreverent, I know, but I did the same with the sailing terms in Master and Commander...

[Karen]

In order to keep up with some of the characters, I bought a book called The Tudors by G J. Meyer. It is a non fiction account of the Tudor era. I use it as a reference whenever I read the historical novels.

[Ann]

I have read most of Philippa Gregory's books and started with the White Queen, then the Red Queen, and have enjoyed most of them. Don't get discouraged you'll find more than not with her books. She is one of my favorite authors!

[Arife]

If you read any book of Philippa Gregory, you get excited of her other novels.

[Teresa]

First person, present tense, that's why it's difficult to read!

[Ellen]

I just checked my bookshelves, and found that is the only book by this author that I did not finish. My bookmark is about halfway through.It was a while ago so I do not remember the reason, but a previous post mentioned the difficulty keeping up with the Dukes who were sometimes referred to by their first names and it became too confusing. I'm sure that was the reason since I am easily confused. Loved all her other books though.

[Eileen]

One thing about The White Queen is that the POV character is Elizabeth Woodville. The author is sympathetic to her, which perhaps may not be justified by what Elizabeth did while married to Edward (based on the actual history). A lot of Elizabeth's actions were self-serving and short sighted, and ended up getting her and her family into a lot of trouble. Trouble that, if she'd behaved with a bit more wisdom, might not have occurred. From what I've read about her, it seems as though she behaved like a cliquish high school girl throughout her whole life.

However, as the POV character throughout the whole book, Elizabeth's perspective would be what we see. Perhaps a more interesting POV would have been a younger, emotionally more mature sister who saw what Elizabeth was doing and tells the story of the wreckage it caused. The author did something like this (although it was the court fool, not a sister) in the

The Queen's Fool, about Mary Tudor.

[Joanna]

I'm having a very hard time getting through this! And I hate the writing. I don't usually say that the TV adaptations are better than books, but in this case the BBC's 'The White Queen' is much better than the novel. It may only be my opinion and I hope that other PG's books are more interesting.

[Mare]

I found The White Queen more engaging than The Red Queen, but neither are my Philippa Gregory favorites. I'm a sucker for historical fiction, and the whole Tudor Saga was excellent. I started Wideacre, but didn't get into it before I put it down. I didn't hate it; I just got involved with other things. I'm sure I'll get back to it eventually, and equally sure that I'll keep buying more Philippa Gregory.

[Mare]

Elle wrote: "I liked it too. I'm a total wonk when it comes to Medieval history, though, so what I really loved about it was how carefully the author researched her subject. And I love love love the way she le..."

Totally agree with you on her research. I really appreciate not having to learn my history twice.

[Ray]

I read lots of "real" history wherein authors document who said what and why we think this is what happened. This narrative fiction style of history is always light and easy to read. Compared to the elegant prose of Melville or Fitzgerald, this book plods. As history or historical fiction goes, this book was a joy. The pace was good, details relevant - real history woven into a terrific story that is easy to read. I liked it.

[Kathy]

This particular one I could NOT get through either. But I found the Bolyn books very well written and easy to read.

[Sabrina]

Janet wrote: "Eva wrote: "I don't know what happened with these books! The Other Boleyn Girl, The Queen's Fool, the Wideacre trilogy are all awesome (the Tudor ones in general are very good) but these York ones!..."

I agree too! The Cousins' War series is just not engaging one bit. I did think the White Queen was ok-ish but had to force myself to read The Red Queen and I am currently stuck at 20% of The Lady of the Rivers as I just can't bring myself to carry on.

However, I have loved all her other books except The Other Queen....I never did finish it.

[Marilyn]

Philippa Gregory's research and story weaving are so brilliant I've read nearly all of her published works. There are times however, when I don't enjoy the narration so I switch to reading the novel instead. I'm never disappointed.

[Kathy]

I think to me the Queen was so fairy-tale-ish....blonde, beautiful....just a character, not a real person....in the writing.....if that makes sense.

[Jackie]

'The White Queen' was quite engaging I thought, but I found 'the Red Queen' and 'the Kingmaker's daughter' less so - I think Philippa Gregory is really making the most of her research and has spun out the stories over quite a few novels. I find her Tudor novels definitely more interesting. However, the Plantagenet novels do bring to life an aspect of British history which has been a bit neglected, so kudos for that. I heard her speak at a talk and book signing when she brought out the Mary Queen of Scots book and she is an interesting speaker.

[[deleted user]]

I finished this book in a week and could not put it down! I am usually a slow reader and it takes me quite a while to get through a book as I work all the time and have hardly any free time. Though with this book it really interested me, I am a little apprehensive to start The Red Queen simply because I don't think the character will interest me however I bought a copy yesterday and will probably start it next.

[Melody]

The Red Queen doesn't really compare to the White Queen in my opinion. Rather, it is a stunning contrast to it. The personalities of the women are polar opposites.The White Queen is far better but I would suggest reading BOTH because they are both good, just very opposite each other.