The Forbidden Queen ~ Anne O'Brien

 1415. The jewel in the French crown, Katherine de Valois, is waiting under lock and key for King Henry V. While he's been slaughtering her kinsmen in Agincourt, Katherine has been praying for marriage to save her from her misery. But the brutal king wants her crown, not her innocent love.

For Katherine, England is a lion's den of greed, avarice and mistrust. And when she is widowed at twenty-one, she becomes a prize ripe for the taking—her young son the future monarch, her hand in marriage worth a kingdom.

This is a deadly political game, one the dowager queen must learn fast. The players—the Duke of Gloucester, Edmund Beaufort and Owen Tudor—are circling. Who will have her? Who will ruin her? This is the story of Katherine de Valois.

I've never really considered Katherine of Valois before. Thinking about it after having read the book, she does stand out as a queen if just simply for falling in love with and marrying her servant, Owen Tudor.

O'Brien's writing was new to me, this being the first of her books I have read. Contrary to what it says on the cover, however, I prefer Phillipa Gregory's style. O'Brien's style captivated me and made me eager to continue reading. Her world building was really good but I feel she could have built up the characters of Beatrice, Alice and Katherine's other ladies a bit more to remind the reader of their presence. To me, they seemed to fade into the background like a tapestry. However, I found all of this and more to be more prominent and enticing in Gregory#s books.

I really liked how Katherine's flutter of a romance with Edmund Beaufort was written, but I thought that the scene on the side of the river where she first see Owen as a potential partner was very unnatural and rushed. One minute she had never really noticed him as a person, he next (after having studied his naked area) she was totally enthralled by him and felt his presence everywhere.

O'Brien evokes sympathy from the reader really well when describing the marriage of her to King Henry and, I must admit, I was moved to shed a tear or two at the ending.

All in all, I thought this a good read, it was interesting, thought provoking and empathetic, but I prefer the writing style and techniques of Gregory. Especially her book The Queen's Fool, which I have already reviewed.

I would recommend this book.

As usual, please comment suggestion on how I could improve my reviews or which books you would like me to review next.
  I'm sorry this didn't go up on Saturday as planned, I had it all ready to go but the stress of revision made me forget to post it. Sorry xXx