Historical Fiction and Novels with Royal Characters

[Grace Angel]

Yes, I think this guy was just too old for Diana to be interested, she generally didn't go for way way older men. Even Charles was only 12 years older than she. If I am not wrong, I know some of her lovers were somewhat older than her, but I believe she never was in a relationship with anyone that had more than 12 years on her ( Charles)?

 

[Emmily]

Philippa Gregory books - what are your thoughts?

I just finished "The Constant Princess," and have read the "The Other Boleyn Girl" and "The Boleyn Inheritance." They are very entertaining to read. I realize these books are historical fiction. But for those of you who have done some studying on this time period how accurate are they? She seems to do quite a bit of research. Thanks!

 

[Sister Morphine]

I love them, honestly. I'm no historian on Tudor England, but what I have read about it from a historical standpoint shows that she's quite accurate in her portrayal of certain people, places and things.

 

[Duchessmary]

They're all HORRIBLE except for "The Boleyn Inheritance".

 

[Elly C]

I think they have some merit - I quite enjoyed The Other Boleyn Girl - Mary Boleyn has always fascinated me & I think the novel draws quite well on the limited information known about her. All historical fiction is obviously an interpretation & of course "fiction", but I remember thinking it was quite interesting in its portrayal of the relationship between the three siblings. I guess like a lot of people, my initial interest in royal history came from reading historical fiction as a teenager (particularly by Jean Plaidy) & I am often surprised how well this has stood me in good stead when it comes to having a reasonable working knowledge of key events/ historical figures. So I think providing the research is thorough, it would be a thumbs up from me.

 

[redrose_2121]

I really really do not like Philippa Gregory. I have actually found that most of her books are inaccurate, ESPECIALLY "The Other Boleyn Girl." It may have some accurate information about Mary Boleyn, but Anne and George Boleyn are not portrayed accurately at all. The only book of hers that I actually sort of enjoyed was "The Boleyn Inheritance". I realize that they are historical fiction and do not have to actually be true to life. However, I have read several interviews with Philippa Gregory, and she always seems to be of the opinion that she is not actually that far off base. I remember in one of them she actually said that she tries to stick to the facts as much as possible! I couldn't believe it! This is the sole reason that I dislike her work. Her books may be entertaining, but they are definitely not all accurate. That in itself is fine, but what is not fine is that she is leading people to believe that what she writes is not very different from what actually happened. It's definitely misleading for readers.

 

[mattep74]

Tom Clancy started his Ryanverse with Jack Ryan saving the prince of Wales in Patriot games. The royal family have a big part of the book, especially Prince of Wales as Commander Wales in the end.

Then they reunite in the burial chapter in Exucitive orders.

Its never stated that its EII, Charles and Di, just implied.

 

[lady of hay]

The last book of this type that I read was Phillipa Gregorys "The White Queen", about Elizabeth Woodville. Some of the book is accurate, (as far as we know today) e.g how she meets Edward IV , but other parts ,her involvement with witchcraft for example are conjecture. I am hopeing to be able to read "The Red Queen" , about Margaret Beaufort, before my "summer" is ended, as the Wars of the Roses, or The cousins War as Gregory terms it is my area of interest.

 

[lady of hay]

Further to my above post, I have been given a copy of "The Red Queen" as a gift. However I was keen to find out how Ms Gregory was going to deal with the "Beaufort issue". This being the following;
the Beaufort line was the illegitimate line of John of Gaunt and Katherine Swinford. As far as I am aware they were legitamised as a favour to Gaunt by Richard II ,after John and Katherines marriage. However Henry IV, Gaunt's only "legitimate" son, passed an act of parliament barring the Beauforts from the succession. Margaret Beaufort was not ,therefore, the lancastrian heiress the book appears to claim she was.
Any thoughts form other members on this ?

 

[cmbruno]

One of my favourite books of all times is "Forever Amber". I first read it when I was a teenager; the book belonged to my grandmother and was older than me. Every since I read it again every 2 or 3 years.

 

[nascarlucy]

When my mother was a young woman Forever Amber was made into a movie. It was very controversial when the movie came out. In some communities in the United States it was banned because of the content. Nowadays that movie could be seen on prime time TV. It's tame compared to other scandals (Tiger Woods for example).

I read the Daniel Steel's book, H.R. It was a good book about a modern princess. It was very sad that her father and her brother ended up being killed. I was so into the book that I'm almost dropped the book out of my hands when the car got blown up.

 

[Eleanor Elizabeth]

English historical fiction -- early medieval

Someone mentioned Emma of Normandy earlier. Another good book about Emma and England prior to the Conquest is the Hollow Crown by Helen Hollick. Hollick also wrote an interesting book on the last English king called Harold the King.

Also, anything by Sharon Kay Penman is good.

 

[MRSJ]

The last book of this type that I read was Phillipa Gregorys "The White Queen", about Elizabeth Woodville. Some of the book is accurate, (as far as we know today) e.g how she meets Edward IV , but other parts ,her involvement with witchcraft for example are conjecture. I am hopeing to be able to read "The Red Queen" , about Margaret Beaufort, before my "summer" is ended, as the Wars of the Roses, or The cousins War as Gregory terms it is my area of interest.

Yes I read White Queen as well and Red Queen is awaiting me on my Kindle- Gregory may not be 100% accurate but it's fun reading IMO- i think she takes a lot of what were rumors and makes them 'true' which ok for my purposes....and can I just say I love this thread because I am always looking for good authors!

 

[Duchessmary]

An oldie but goodie is "Immortal Queen" by Elizabeth Byrd. Excellent if inacurate novel on Mary Queen of Scots.

 

[Kasumi]

Book review: Devil's Consort by Anne O'Brien
The young man who travels to a palace deep in the heart of Bordeaux in 1137 might be the next King of France but his 15-year-old future wife holds all the aces.
Eleanor, Duchess of Aquitaine, is powerful, wealthy, sophisticated and beautiful and will bring vast tracts of valuable and well-governed land to her union with Prince Louis Capet.
It’s a marriage made in political and dynastic heaven...or is it?
Anne O’Brien is fast becoming one of Britain’s most popular and talented writers of medieval novels. Her in-depth knowledge and silky skills with the pen help to bring the past to life and put the focus firmly on some of history’s most fascinating characters.

 

[morhange]

The Lost Crown: A Novel of Romanov Russia

I just got it last night, about 1/3 of the way through so far. It's from the perspective of all four grand duchesses and it's pretty good, although it seems to be going by very quickly. One chapter is supposed to cover an entire year.

Anyone else have it? If so, what did you think?

 

[westieluv]

book sounds great!

I'll have to look for this book, it sounds very interesting. I've long been interested in the Romanov family, especially Anastasia. Did you believe in Anna Anderson?

 

[PrincessKaimi]

Sharon Penman is an excellent writer of historical fiction about Welsh and English royalty. I just finished her trilogy (starts with Here Be Dragons) and am rereading it. I can't get enough (am reading aloud to hubby, he's enjoying the boy parts very much - great descriptions of everything from medieval warfare to castle planning).

There's romance too, but the books stick very close to the real lives of Eleanor of Aquitane, King Richard, King John, Joan of North Wales, Llewellyn Fawr and many others.

 

[Warren]

"Death of Kings" by Bernard Cornwell, 2011

"Death of Kings"
by Bernard Cornwell

ISBN: 9780007331796
Category: Historical Fiction
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Country of origin: United Kingdom
Pages: 400
Published: September 2011
Published in the United States: January 2012

blurb 1
It is the year 898 and Britain is in turmoil as the once powerful Alfred, King of Wessex, lies on his deathbed. The Danes linger outside the Saxon King's wealthy kingdom, ready to invade as soon as his 30-year reign ends.
Enter Uhtred, the hero of Bernard Cornwell's Saxon Series, of which Death of Kings is the sixth instalment. The Danes want him dead and the Saxons do not trust him, yet the great warrior is caught up in the rival clan's' battle. Cornwell's latest offering is a compelling and accurate historical fiction.

blurb 2
The fate of a young nation rests in the hands of a reluctant warrior in the thrilling sixth volume of the New York Times bestselling Saxon Tales series.
Following the intrigue and action of The Burning Land and Sword Song, this latest chapter in Bernard Cornwell’s epic saga of England is a gripping tale of divided loyalties and mounting chaos. At a crucial moment in time, as Alfred the Great lays dying, the fate of all—Angles, Saxons, and Vikings alike—hangs desperately in the balance.

blurb 3
The master of historical fiction presents the iconic story of King Alfred and the making of a nation. As the ninth century wanes, England appears about to be plunged into chaos once more. For the Viking-raised but Saxon-born warrior, Uhtred, whose life seems to shadow the making of England, this presents him with difficult choices. King Alfred is dying and his passing threatens the island of Britain with renewed warfare. Alfred wants his son, Edward, to succeed him but there are other Saxon claimants to the throne as well as ambitious pagan Vikings to the north. Uhtred's loyalty -- and his vows -- were to Alfred, not to his son, and despite his long years of service to Alfred, he is still not committed to the Saxon cause. His own desire is to reclaim his long lost lands and castle to the north. But the challenge to him, as the king's warrior, is that he knows that he will either be the means of making Alfred's dream of a united and Christian England come to pass or be responsible for condemning it to oblivion.

This novel is a dramatic story of the power of tribal commitment and the terrible difficulties of divided loyalties. This is the making of England magnificently brought to life by the master of historical fiction.

cover image reproduced courtesy of the publishers

 

[No1_Saint]

My favourite one is deifinitely The Autobiography of Henry VIII with notes by his fool Will Somers. I did have a copy of this but someone stole it from my house. Lame.

 

[CarolynHarris]

Here are my favourite examples of Tudor historical fiction

Holiday Weekend Historical Fiction Roundup: Henry VIII, Elizabeth I and Mary, Queen of Scots | Carolyn Harris: Royal Historian

 

[CarolynHarris]

And here are my favourite French royal historical novels:

Royal Historical Fiction Roundup 2: The French Court in the 18th and 19th centuries | Carolyn Harris: Royal Historian

 

[Artemisia]

My favourite historical novels are the ones in the series "Les Rois Maudits" (the Accursed Kings) by Maurice Druon.

The series include:
- Le Roi De Fer (the Iron King)
- La Reine Étranglée (the Strangled Queen)
- Les Poisons de la Couronne (the Crown Poisons)
- La Loi des Mâles (the Royal Succession)
- La Louve de France (the She-Wolf of France)
- Le Lis et le Lion (the Lily and the Lion)

My favourite book is La Louve de France (the She-Wolf of France), possibly because of my fascination with Isabella of France and admiration of Edward III. Les Poisons de la Couronne (the Crown Poisons) is magnificent too, as are the rest of the books in the series.

 

[LauraS3514]

My favorite of all time is Sharon Kay Penman's "The Sunne in Splendor" covering the lives of Edward IV and Richard III. You'll never believe Shakespeare's history again -not that any on this board ever would She is a meticulous researcher and makes the time period and the characters really come alive. She's currently working on another novel in her cycle on the early Plantagenets, now covering the last days of Richard the Lion-Hearted. If you "like" her Facebook page, she keeps her "friends" up to date on what she is writing and the research involved.

 

[Baroness of Books]

I've read all SKP's novels, including her latest on Richard I, called "Lionheart." The sequel to that is "A King's Ransom," focusing on his return from the Holy Land and capture, to be published at a later date. Unfortunately, that's going to be her last book on the Plantagenet saga. I hope she focuses her attention on another royal dynasty, because I really love her work.

 

[CarolynHarris]

Bring Up the Bodies by Hilary Mantel

An excellent novel about the rise and fall of Anne Boleyn, from Thomas Cromwell's perspective

Historical Fiction Roundup 5: Bring Up The Bodies by Hilary Mantel | Carolyn Harris: Royal Historian

 

[Emmily]

I've just purchased Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel but haven't started it yet. Have you read that book? I'm anxious to start, and then Bring Up the Bodies is the next on my list.

 

[William Kuhn]

Do you think any of you might be interested in this?

Hi, my name is Bill Kuhn and I've written a novel called MRS QUEEN TAKES THE TRAIN.

It's about the current Queen of England, who is beginning to feel her age and a little melancholy sometimes. She is given a chance opportunity to leave the palace unrecognized one day when a girl from the Mews loans her a hoodie to keep the rain off. The Queen is surprised when, wearing the hoodie, the guards don't acknowledge her. She decides to slip off to visit one of her "happy places," the royal yacht Britannia moored in Scotland. She boards a public train incognita at Kings Cross. A ragtag group of courtiers discover her missing and decide to go after her before MI5 and the tabloids find out. Romance and mischief ensue.

My previous works are non-fiction, mainly on the Victorian monarchy, including one on two courtiers who worked for Queen Victoria, Henry and Mary Ponsonby.

If there were any interest, I might post an excerpt from it.

It's published in October in the USA by HarperCollins and in November by Allen & Unwin in Australia.

If you've got this far, thank you for reading!

 

[Catherine J]

Hi Bill,

Welcome.

Sounds interesting but I think I might feel "wrong" reading a fictionalized account of HMtQ, She's ... you know ... the QUEEN. It would feel disrespectful to me, I think.

That said, good luck to you.

 

[William Kuhn]

Thanks Catherine J. I know what you mean. The book is pretty respectful though, as I've always been an admirer of HMQ and have tried to be fair in my previous books on Queen Victoria. But I understand the book might not be for everyone.