#BlogTour The Queen's Rival by Anne O'Brien

It's a pleasure to take part on the BlogTour The Queen's Rival by Anne O'Brien.

About the Author
Sunday Times bestselling author Anne O'Brien was born in West Yorkshire. After gaining a BA Honours degree in History at Manchester University and a Master's in Education at Hull, she lived in East Yorkshire for many years as a teacher of history. Today she has sold over 250,000 copies of her books in the UK and lives with her husband in an eighteenth-century cottage in the depths of the Welsh Marches in Herefordshire. The area provides endless inspiration for her novels about the forgotten women of history.

Follow @anne_obrien on Twitter, on Amazon, on Goodreads, on Facebook,Visit anneobrien.co.uk, Buy The Queen's Rival

About the book
England, 1459: Cecily, Duchess of York, is embroiled in a plot to topple the weak-minded King Henry VI from the throne. But when the Yorkists are defeated at the Battle of Ludford Bridge, Cecily’s family flee and abandon her to face a marauding Lancastrian army on her own.

Cecily can only watch as her lands are torn apart and divided up by the ruthless Queen Marguerite. From the towers of her prison in Tonbridge Castle, the Duchess begins to spin a web of deceit – one that will eventually lead to treason, to the fall of King Henry VI, and to her eldest son being crowned King of England.

This is a story of heartbreak, ambition and treachery, of one woman’s quest to claim the throne during the violence and tragedy of the Wars of the Roses.

Review
At the beginning we meet a woman who is forced to ensure the safety of herself and her offspring as her husband and elder sons run from the battle at Ludford Bridge and leave her to deal with the consequences of their actions.

I really enjoyed the way O'Brien wrote the story for the majority in correspondence form. Letters written by Cecily and to Cecily. She captures the complex familial and political machinations, the threats and the constantly changing political landscape of the monarchy.

Using the story of one woman to show the power behind the throne, the complexity of the wars that determined the path of our history, and simultaneously give us the rich and fascinating turmoil that gripped and ripped the country apart.The Yorkists and the Lancastrians, the bloodline of the Plantagenets and the retrospectively named infamous War of the Roses. Proving that actual history is better than any fictional historical novel.

As O'Brien mentions herself she doesn't delve into the disappearance of the two princes in the tower. She stops short of that with Cecily's approval and support for her son Richard III. I actually found the last few chapters quite intriguing. They speak more to her ruthlessness, her need to assert her own birthright and that of her children, and the lengths she is willing to go to in order to maintain her reputation and position. One wonders is a push like that or affirmation all it took for a man driven by ambition to commit a crime as yet unsolved.

I think this was O'Brien at her best, perhaps even her best yet. The way it was constructed really highlighted the weaknesses and strengths of the characters, and the fickle nature of the beast called power, which truly does corrupt. I really enjoyed the style the author chose and the ambiguity of the last few chapters. An excellent read by O'Brien yet again.

Buy The Queen's Rival at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Buy at Waterstones.

Read my review A Tapestry of Treason and Queen of the North by Anne O'Brien.

#BlogTour A Tapestry of Treason by Anne O'Brien

Today it's my turn on the BlogTour A Tapestry of Treason by Anne O'Brien. Once again the author gives her readers an intense and captivating historical read

About the Author
Sunday Times bestselling author Anne O'Brien was born in West Yorkshire. After gaining a BA Honours degree in History at Manchester University and a Master's in Education at Hull, she lived in East Yorkshire for many years as a teacher of history. Today she has sold over 250,000 copies of her books in the UK and lives with her husband in an eighteenth-century cottage in the depths of the Welsh Marches in Herefordshire. The area provides endless inspiration for her novels about the forgotten women of history.

Follow @anne_obrien on Twitter, on Amazon, on Goodreads, on Facebook,Visit anneobrien.co.uk,
Buy A Tapestry of Treason

About the book
Her actions could make history but at what price?
1399: Constance of York, Lady Despenser, proves herself more than a mere observer in the devious intrigues of her magnificently dysfunctional family, the House of York.

Surrounded by power-hungry men, including her aggressively self-centred husband Thomas and ruthless siblings Edward and Richard, Constance places herself at the heart of two treasonous plots against King Henry IV. Will it be possible for this Plantagenet family to safeguard its own political power by restoring either King Richard II to the throne, or the precarious Mortimer claimant?

Although the execution of these conspiracies will place them all in jeopardy, Constance is not deterred, even when the cost of her ambition threatens to overwhelm her. Even when it endangers her new-found happiness.

With treason tragedy, heartbreak and betrayal, this is the story of a woman ahead of her time, fighting for herself and what she believes to be right in a world of men.

This is one woman's quest to turn history on its head.

Review
This should go without saying when it comes to historical fiction - I both enjoy and admire the way O'Brien endeavours to stay as close to the known or presumed historical narrative as possible, whilst building the fictional story around the facts. It becomes a learning and not just a reading experience.

Also the way she gives us a more in-depth look, albeit it one gathered via research and presumption, and not necessarily based on written records or hearsay, of the women behind powerful men. The women who played pivotal roles in history, and yet usually end up being invisible figures.

The approach O'Brien takes differs from say Gregory, who wanders more into the fictional aspect of the genre, as opposed to the historical accuracy O'Brien strives for. It's certainly a difference worth noting.

In events pre-dating the War of the Roses, in fact the ones that led to it, this story takes a closer look at Constance of York, Lady Despenser. The Plantagenet family is one of the most infamous when it comes to British history, scheming,  politics and ruthlessness. The majority of them appear to have had an innate affinity for survival in what can only be called tumultuous eras in history.

The women played their part in our very own game of thrones, as did Constance. A woman who at first glance comes off as cold, ambitious and willing to do anything to keep the family name and honour safe. As a man her actions would be considered the norm, as a woman the description tends to become more negative.

As a man her involvement in treasonous plots against King Henry IV would have probably been met with a harsher response than just a life in isolation and staying a great distance away from court and intrigue.

Once again the author gives her readers an intense and captivating historical read. One full of treachery, betrayal and staunch loyalty. A read I highly recommend.

Buy A Tapestry of Treason at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: HQ; pub date 22nd August 2019. Hardback £14.99 - Available in ebook and Audio. Buy at Amazon com.

Read my review of Queen of the North by Anne O'Brien

Queen of the North by Anne O'Brien

There are few ways of approaching a story that ventures into historical fiction, stories with the odd bit of history thrown in for good luck or to validate a time period, fiction that imagines a different narrative of history and stories with inaccurate historical facts.

Then you have the authors, who like Anne O'Brien, incorporate their story within the confines of accurate historical narratives, obviously with a wee bit of artistic licence here and there, thereby making it more than just a read. It is an experience of culture, learning and history.

In Queen of the North O'Brien takes the reader to the events in 1399, and although they aren't given as much attention as the events that unfold a few decades later, they are pivotal to said events. They are the seeds that are sown, which bring about the later catalyst and murderous power struggles between the York and Lancaster cousins of the Plantagenet house.

From the very beginning one thing is clear about Elizabeth, she will never forget the fact she is a Mortimer or the legitimacy of their claim to the throne. Her loyalty to the name comes before any loyalty towards her husband, the Percy family and even her own children.

In fact I would go so far as to claim hypocrisy, because the political power plays and machinations of the men she is surrounded by are no different to her own secret plans and ploys. Fluttering eyelashes, sweet voices and wiles of a woman, all in the name of her own agenda. Elizabeth has to take a step back and consider her own portion of guilt in regards to her husband, his untimely death and the desecration of his corpse.

Along with her propensity for elaborate prose and descriptive writing, O'Brien's powerful characters are what I enjoy the most about her books. She is in a class of her own, and in my personal opinion belongs up there with the best.

Buy Queen of the North at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer.

Follow @anne_obrien @HQStories @HarperCollinsUk
Visit anneobrien.co.uk