The Queen's Lover: A Novel [Paperback]

Vanora Bennett (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 8, 2011

Catherine de Valois, daughter of the French king Charles VI, is born into troubled times. Though she is brought up in a royal court, it is a stormy and unstable environment. Before she is out of her teens, Catherine is married off to England's Henry V as part of a treaty honoring his victory over France. She is terrified at the idea of being married to a man who is a foreigner, an enemy, and a rough soldier, and is forced to leave her home for England.

Within two years she is widowed, and mother to the future King of England and France—even though her brother has laid claim to the French crown for himself. Caught between warring factions of her own family and under threat by the powerful lords of the English court, she must find a way to keep her infant son safe. In Owain Tudor, a childhood friend for whom Catherine has long had affection and who now controls the Royal household, Catherine finds both strength and kinship. As their friendship turns to love, however, she risks not only her life and that of her son but the uneasy balance of power in England and France that will be forever changed.

History comes alive in this lyrical and moving true story of one woman's courage and the inception of one of the most famous royal lineages of all time.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Everyone knows that medieval royals are hot. You need look no further than the best-selling novels of Philippa Gregory and Alison Weir for proof of the popularity of this lucrative publishing phenomenon. While many are rushing to cash in on current market demand, few novels are as authentically rendered as this one. Displaying the same narrative flair and historical accuracy as she did in Figures in Silk (2009), Bennett spins the gripping tale of young Catherine de Valois, the fifteenth-century French princess sacrificed on the altar of national honor and political expediency. Hastily married off to King Henry V of England as a battle prize, she must learn to navigate the intricacies and intrigues of the English royal court after Henry’s untimely death. Luckily, she has Owain Tudor, the Welsh-born controller of her household, to assist her in doing so. Especially unique and compelling is the story of Elizabeth’s friendship with feminist poet Christine de Pizan. Historical fiction with enough heft to satisfy discriminating fans. --Margaret Flanagan --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

“A substantial historical novel set in turbulent 15th century England. Ably explores themes of romance and politics.” (Kirkus Reviews, on Figures in Silk )

“Vanora Bennett knows what drives her characters, both fictional and historical, and they seem as real and easy to relate to as your next-door neighbor. Bennett’s medieval England comes alive in ways a reader can immediately relate to, even while being transported away from the modern world.” (Christian Science Monitor on Figures in Silk )

“Readers of historical fiction will be pleased with Bennett’s sure-handed storytelling.” (Publishers Weekly, on Figures in Silk )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 624 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks; Reprint edition (March 8, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061689874
• ISBN-13: 978-0061689871
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (50 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,161,181 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I've been writing historical novels for the past four or five years, and those years have definitely been the best time of my life.

Before that I was a foreign correspondent, working for the Los Angeles Times and Reuters and finally The Times of London in a series of far-flung places from Europe to Asia to Africa to the former Soviet Union. My Russian friends used to joke that as I got more experienced, I was forever being sent to riskier places. It was hugely thought-provoking, and also tremendous fun, in some ways, but with time I began to long to go home.

Writing about the past - yet another foreign country, to paraphrase LP Hartley - turned out to be the way. Who knew, back then, that hanging out in the London Library, reading books over the noise of kiddy computer football games at home, and getting the manuscript in on time, would come to seem every bit as thrilling as those scary taxi rides I used to take in and out of war zones?

Yet I think my books still reflect that earlier period of conflict reporting. My first novel, for instance, is about Thomas More's family of diehard Catholics, at the time Henry VIII was turning England Protestant, and although it has a very fictional love triangle and an art-history conundrum in its foreground, the background of religious conflict, arrests, secret police, and torture and execution for your beliefs all felt very real to me too.

I don't think it makes much difference whether these sorts of big, and often terrifying public events, are situated in the present or in the past - they've always cast the same long shadow over individual lives. The only difference is that more of us in the West lead more cushioned lives today, while, in the past, you were likelier to be caught up in whatever the troubles of the times were. To me, part of the pleasure of writing the books I write now is to make some kind of literary sense, a pattern, out of some of the terrible things I witnessed before - to try and understand how love, loyalty, friendship and quiet decency can, sometimes, help individuals come through, even those caught up in the larger-scale horror of war and conflict.

The four novels I've written so far have gone back in time from Henry VIII (the Middle Ages being a particularly rich source of turbulent history). I've skipped back half a century or so at a time. My fourth novel deals with the poet Geoffrey Chaucer, back in the 14th century, at the time of the English Peasants' Revolt.

But I'm now regrouping ... and think it's time to move forward through time again. Maybe even to somewhere around the time of the Russian Revolution, which would let me bring into my writing some of the other things I learned on my travels!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Queen Mother, February 14, 2010

By 

Ursula K. Raphael "AstraDaemon, The Zombiephiles" (USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Queen's Lover: A Novel (Hardcover)

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After reading Vanora Bennett's Figures in Silk, I was looking forward to reading another novel by the same author. I noticed right away that her style of writing had changed slightly. The book told the story of Catherine de Valois (mother of Henry VI), from the time she was a young girl to the coronation of her son, in multiple points-of-view...sometimes it was Catherine's thoughts; sometimes Christine's, Owain, Henry V, and a few others. The POVs changed frequently within the same chapters, but it was easy to keep track of. The novel itself was divided into separate books, which allowed the narration to suddenly jump in time, location and tone. I don't think it made any difference to the storyline, but it did add depth to the various characters.

I found the description of Catherine's childhood to be extremely disturbing. I can't imagine royal children starving, or being so severely neglected. Christine was such a big part of Catherine's life, and a great influence on Owain, yet the mention of her death was not what I was expecting for a character of that importance. There were other odd moments in the book; for instance, Dame Butler was emphasized as a beloved servant, but then she makes a snotty remark about young Harry acting like a baby. The abuse that Warwick was able to get away with was also very upsetting. I don't understand why someone would be allowed to beat a future King like that. I can't believe after Catherine's own miserable childhood, she could let anything bad happen to her own son. It's no wonder King Henry VI was known to go mad as an adult.

I loved Part Seven with Jehanne of Arc. It helped me figure out where I was on the timeline...it was very difficult to remember what the date was at any point in the novel. However, by that point in the book, I was under the impression that Catherine was more concerned with her love affair with Owain than the well-being of her son, Harry. If I was suppose to think she was a strong female, I never did. I can't summon up respect for someone that selfish, and Catherine always seemed incapable of helping herself -- even towards the end of the novel. The Cardinal was actually more of a favorite.

Overall, the story was entertaining, but the Historical Postscript left out the detail of Catherine's death. After reading a novel based on her life, it would have been nice to know how she died. I think I prefered the writing style of Figures in Silk, but I would recommend this novel to anyone interested in historical fiction from this time period.

16 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Marginal Historical Fiction, March 4, 2010

By 

M. Jacobsen "I am not young enough to know ev... (Through the Looking Glass) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Queen's Lover: A Novel (Hardcover)

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Bennett chose a great subject to write about this time: Queen Catherine and Owen Tudor, the founder of the English Tudor line of royalty.

Catherine, a royal princess of France who married King Henry V, later married (at least, history tells us she probably did) one of her husband's Welsh servants causing a huge scandal. Their descendants would go on to assume the throne of England.

Where the novel goes astray is in what I like to call the "detours." Bennett's detours are at times completely unbelievable. Young French princesses did not, as a general rule, dress up as a servant and sneak away from their abodes to an entirely different town (days worth of travel away) just to meet up secretly with friends.

Nor did young French princesses have the latitude or privacy to engage in illicit liaisons with commoners.

These kinds of things simply did not happen and to portray them as such detracts from the credibility of the author.

Aside from that, Bennett does keep a plot moving along at a good clip, her dialog is quite good and she does include an author's note (something very much appreciated by historical fiction readers).

So should you read this? If you enjoyed Bennett's previous novels or if you'd just like to read more about Catherine and Owen, I'd say go ahead. If you're picky with credibility, this one might frustrate you a bit.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Unlikely Scenarios Mar This Title, April 2, 2010

By 

Tamela Mccann "taminator40" (Nashville, TN USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Queen's Lover: A Novel (Hardcover)

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I admit to some excitement on seeing this title by Vanora Benett because there is so much romanticism and speculation surrounding Catherine de Valois and Owain Tudor. Even after I'd read some of the less than spectacular reviews on this site, I was still hopeful that perhaps some of the magic of this tale would find its way into the story and I'd come away satisfied. Oh well, one can dream, can't one?

I won't spend much energy recounting the story of Catherine and her Welsh lover who spawned a line of kings known to everyone. Unfortunately, Bennett herself spends too much time doing just that when it comes to Catherine's early years, and the escapades that even a neglected princess undertakes are unbelievable. I found myself just wishing she would get on with the tale; while I knew there was a need for build up to the relationships of Catherine's adult life, it just seemed so unnecessary to spend so much time inventing a youth that seemed so improbable. Though there are sparks of enjoyment along the way, it was next to impossible for me to maintain interest since so much of the story relied on happenstance and circumstances which were unlikely to exist. In fact, so disillusioned was I with the first 150+ pages, I found myself skimming ahead to hit the high points and finally just putting the book aside. Those who do not mind their historical fiction being on the less factual side will probably not find as much fault with the storytelling as I did, but those who feel historical fiction based on real people should rely more fully on fact will be disappointed. I know I was.