Customer Reviews

The Stolen Crown: The Secret Marriage that Forever Changed the Fate of England

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Susan Higginbotham's second major novel (I'm not counting the novella-length Hugh and Bess here) hearkens back to an older tradition of historical fiction, one associated with writers like Margaret Campbell Barnes, Jan Westcott or even Jean Plaidy, one characterized by a straightforward recounting of a straightforward series of historic events. That has its pros and its cons -- the "pros" including the fact that it's impeccably researched and detailed, the "cons" lying mostly in what isn't there, rather than what is.

At its heart, this is the story of a ill-fated trio: Harry, Duke of Buckingham by birth (but, with a Lancastrian background, kept out of the center of power); his friend, Richard, Duke of Gloucester, brother to the new Yorkist King, and the young Katherine Woodville, sister to the new Yorkist queen and chosen as Harry's wife by her new brother-in-law, the king. It's a tale of sharply divided loyalties -- not Kate's, as the cover seems to suggest, but rather those of Harry. For when, in 1483, King Edward IV dies unexpectedly leaving his 13-year-old son as heir, Harry is torn between his allegiance to his wife, and his vow to be a blood brother to Richard, who has ambitions of his own vis-a-vis the crown.

This would be a great introductory novel to read about the dramatic events of 1483 and why they proved so crucial to England's history. Higginbotham has a definite opinion of who the villains of the story are, and it's not the one that has dominated of late, making the tug-of-war over Harry's loyalties more compelling. Her portrayal of Richard III is a dramatic one; so much so, indeed, that I often felt that I would have loved to have been hearing the story as told by Higginbotham's Richard as a kind of anti-hero.

Because the one element of some newer works of historical fiction that is missing here, at least for me as a reader, was a fresh view of events. The story began to grab my attention only about halfway through; up until then, it was partly outside observers (the story is told alternately in the first person by Kate and Harry) narrating what they witnessed but rarely participated in, and partly love story. That's all fine, but historical novels that really command my attention are those where the narrators are also protagonists, directly or indirectly. Harry and Kate seemed pawns throughout of people and players greater -- and less naive and more unscrupulous -- than themselves. Ultimately, that was frustrating to me as a reader, especially since neither of them chose to view themselves as pawns (which would have made it more intriguing, as a psychological element.) I'm no fan of Philippa Gregory's research (and actually couldn't finish her book about Elizabeth Woodville, thanks to its repetitive and overly ponderous style, and the repeated use of witchcraft to rev up the drama at critical moments), but one of the reasons I greatly enjoyed The Other Boleyn Girl, or Vanora Bennet's Portrait of an Unknown Woman: A Novel was that both grabbed me with the whole world that the authors created for their main characters, and the way it made me think about the characters. There's nothing here that performed the same function for me.

In Higginbotham's first novel, by contrast, that extra element was there, in spades -- the idea of a niece and wife facing up to the consequences of her loyalty. Again, it was a Plaidy-esque tale, but one of an unfamiliar character from a period of time that has been written about less than the Wars of the Roses or the Tudors, and the fact that we had only one perspective. Here, we have two, and that didn't always work for me. In this case, I could quite happily have disposed of Kate's point of view and settled down to follow the whole saga through the eyes of Harry -- a Lancastrian heir trying to find his path in a Yorkist world -- or a more Machiavellian Richard.

That said, this is a well-researched novel (some of that research does make itself a bit too obvious sometimes, as when an anecdote has no purpose plotwise, but is still there) and one that is a good read. It's one of the better novels for those unfamiliar with the era and the characters; I'd recommend it highly to these readers, as it provides as unbewildering introduction into the complex relationships and events as possible. But for a reader who's already knowledgeable about the period, beyond the curiosity value of having the story told through different eyes and with different (quite intriguing) answers to the core questions, such as who killed the princes in the Tower, that lack of a factor X may be more of an issue. I was subconsciously looking for a theme -- was this the story of ambition? of what happens to the naive in periods of turmoil? of kings and queens vs pawns? but didn't find one.

Recommended to historical fiction afficionados.

This is an unremarkable entry in the current flood of titles pertaining to England during the time of the Wars of the Roses. The two narrators, Katherine Woodville and her husband, Harry Stafford, Duke of Buckingham, were players during the merry-go-round of turmoil surrounding the battle for power between the houses of York and Lancaster for the throne of England at the end of the 15th Century. There are LOTS of historical figures included in the tale, and for those unfamiliar with at least the basics of the events of the period, I fear they will be hopelessly muddled by all the players and their inter-relationships. The bigger problem for me, however, is that I am not of the belief that Richard of Gloucester is the craven murderer depicted here. The debate rages between historians as to whether Richard was the blackguard portrayed by Shakespeare (and the view held by this author) or the more admirable Richard whose reputation has lately been restored by the Ricardians. Personally, I am more a proponent of this latter viewpoint. Consequently, I was quickly disenchanted with the protagonists due to the hatred and malice they displayed toward Richard and their efforts to bring him down. All that aside, however, I found the writing flat and unevocative and there is nothing here that hasn't been done before and better. Finally, I have a personal gripe with bad grammar and poor English which crop up all too often in this novel. "What if the queen dies and leaves Richard a widow?" Huh? Or "He asked to let the boy ride pillion behind Harry and I." Gadzooks! Don't know whether to fault the author, her editor or a failure to proofread, but one would hope mistakes of this sort be limited to message boards and not be made by professional writers. Just MO, but these lapses seem indicative of the fairly haphazard overall effort this novel represents.

This is another wonderful novel by Susan Higginbotham and it covers a very interesting and active period in British history - the Cousins War (or as we call it, the Wars of the Roses). Between the pages we get the story through the eyes of Katherine Woodville and her husband Henry Stafford, Duke of Buckingham. We see from both points of view their marriage as children, their time at Edward IV's court, their life at home, the birth of their children, and Henry's involvement with Richard III.

The first half or so of the novel really focuses on their lives and how they both grow and mature in a very turbulent time. The second half of the novel seems to focus more on Henry's involvement with Richard, Duke of Gloucester. Personally I liked the first half of the novel more because I really enjoyed watching Kate and Henry grow and come to love and care for one another. The scenes between the two when they were young were very sweet and touching. Higginbotham takes on some of the "rumors" about their marriage and shows how they could have been started and why. I thoroughly enjoyed how she weaved these into the story. The author also explores reasons why Buckingham rebelled against Richard and gives her version of "the truth" behind the mystery of the princes in the Tower, which seems believable. Richard III is not shown in a glowing light here but he is not made into a horrible monster (though Kate despises him). We see a more ruthless side of him but it just seems to make him appear more of a man of a time where you had to be a bit ruthless to survive.

As always in Higginbotham's novels, the writing is wonderful, there are fantastic details and descriptions, and great character development. The two main characters, Kate and Henry, are very believable and you can sympathize with them even if you don't agree with them. I really enjoy her writing - it is easy to read but I don't feel like I'm reading something for young adults. She is just very clear in her writing with good details and marvelous research but yet the reader is not going to get bogged down in the pages. While I enjoyed reading this book I have to say I personally enjoyed her previous two ("The Traitor's Wife" and "Hugh and Bess") much more, possibly because I felt there was more going on through out those novels. However, I am a huge fan of this author and I would recommend this book to anyone.

*Reviewed for Bookpleasures

Warning: If you are unfamiliar with the history behind the novel, then you might consider the following review to contain spoilers.
Susan Higginbotham's THE STOLEN CROWN is not, as the subtitle seems to suggest, a story about Elizabeth Woodville's marriage to Edward IV, but another marriage: that of Elizabeth's sister Katherine to Henry Stafford, Duke of Buckingham, who, near the end of Richard III's reign, turned against his royal onetime friend and was beheaded for treason. There has, especially of late, been much speculation as to whether it was Buckingham who killed the princes in the tower, working with the Beaufort/Tudor crew, and not actually Richard as the Shakespearean view on things suggests. Higginbotham, however, takes Buckingham's side in this wonderfully well-constructed, understated, and engrossing novel. We find in The Stolen Crown a sympathetic and yet believable Buckingham, and a wicked, scheming, though not completely vilified Richard. I don't necessarily agree with Ms. Higginbotham's theory on events, but I did absolutely love her book, which shows just how convincing and realistic her prose is.

I liked that Katherine was given depth here, and was not just a background character. And, in general, I think the overall characterization of all characters in The Stolen Crown was fair and nuanced. Elizabeth Woodville wasn't given the customary greedy b***h treatment that she often is, but made into a dynamic and complex person. Even though Richard was the "bad guy" here, he wasn't brushed with one stroke either. In fact, I thought the way Higginbotham developed Richard and Harry's friendship was very astute and original. Whatever manner of person Richard was, I can see a young boy being quite awed by this powerful, reserved war-hero. I also appreciated the fact that Richard is not squeaky clean here, because, after having two bastard-born children, that version of things is a little hard to believe, no matter how many historical fantas--excuse me--fiction authors try to push that on their readers. In short, Richard here was very three dimensional and fully fleshed-out. The same can be said of Buckingham. I have to admit, I enjoyed Buckingham's side of the story a little more than Kate's, if only because I felt that Buckingham was a little more interesting as a character. But both sides were interesting, and though I'm not very fond of the switching first-person POV style, Higginbotham managed to pull it off without driving me insane. Because of the aforementioned POV style, the novel wasn't as smooth as I thought it would've been otherwise, but the change in narration was by no means jarring and the flow of prose reminds me of Jean Plaidy, not in a sense that it was dry or dull, but that it was quiet, understated, and meaningful, without being "noisy" if that makes sense. It didn't feel as though Higginbotham was trying to create false drama.

I give this 4.5 stars, and recommend it to anyone interested in this period in history.

I truly enjoyed most of this book, and I very much admire the research Mrs. Higginbotham obviously did. The first 50% or so, was quite "readable" to me, but gradually there were so many Edwards, Richards, Henrys, Johns, Katherines, Elizabeths, et al that it became somewhat confusing. And I am familiar with this period in English history, so it's not that.

I don't know if I will read another of her books. I guess I'm disappointed because I had just finished reading Elizabeth Chadwick's "Greatest Knight", and much preferred her writing style.

All in all, "Stolen Crown" is a good, very different "take" on this era. I would recommend boning up on the Woodville family and Richard III before tackling this one!

And it really needs a glossary!

The Stolen Crown is a narrative from the perspective of Harry, the Duke of Buckingham and his wife Kate during the reign of Edward IV and the War of the Roses. Harry, a Lacastrian, grows up in the Yorkist custody of Edward's queen Elizabeth Woodville and at a young age is married to Elizabeth's youngest sister Kate. They grow up together and each provide their perspective of life during one of the most turbulent periods of British history. There is certainly a lot going on, power is seized and relinquished, marriages are made and unmade, and a very important Welshman lingers on the fringes and bides his time...Frankly, if you do not have at least a moderately good grasp of the history during this period, I think you will be hopelessly confused and if you do know the history well, you may be bored. The book is very well researched and well written, but it was a confusing time. Trying to figure out which Duke is allied with which Earl and raised what army and surrounded whose castle and was then captured, then was pardoned for some reason, then became allied with someone else, raised another army, fought a battle, married an heiress, then got an annulment requires a lot of patience. You really have to be a fan of British history to wade through the Lancasters and Yorks, and for me there has to be an engaging narrative or I get distracted. In this case, I felt like it was more a recounting of history than a fictional novel, and as I have read other books set during this era there wasn't enough originality in Kate and Harry's story. Though the characters were very likable, something was missing, maybe chemistry? I just didn't engage with the story much at all. My disclaimer on this review is that I only read 3/4 of it, and it was OK but it wasn't too hard to put it down to read something else the library wants back in a hurry.

I admit it, I usually only read for entertainment. I'm not big on non-fiction, so serve it to me "lite"! This is a fictionalized account of a real time in English history - so maybe the facts aren't actually known, but the author did a great job in filling in the blanks. Ms. H made the story a page turner, the main two characters were likable - even when they didn't do nice. I actually teared up at the end. Then, at the end, Ms H writes about what is really known/unknown, and I thought how she addressed the story made sense, and it is a story to remember.
I had read "Traitor's Wife" some years ago, before it became a more publishable book (profitable) and really liked that one, too. So, I will look forward to any new book by this same author. She did good!

Historical novels about The Wars of the Roses and the kingship of Richard III tend to breed passionate reactions. Higginbotham stirs up the debate in her portrayal of a turbulent era, where family fights family, brother turns against brother and children in line for the throne of England face a perilous future. The main characters are Kate Woodville, younger sister to Edward IV's commoner wife, Elizabeth Woodville and Harry Stafford, second Duke of Buckingham and lifelong confidant of Edward's youngest brother, Richard, Duke of Gloucester. When Edward marries Elizabeth Woodville without permission of his council or the "Kingmaker", Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, Kate is one of the beneficiaries of that union, wed at an early age to Stafford in lieu of his possible union with one of Warwick's daughters.

As a Woodville, Kate's perspective is critical to the story, for unlike her husband, Kate has an antipathy to the Duke of Gloucester that is unshakable, regardless of Harry's affection for Richard. And as time and circumstances suggest, Kate's has reason to trust her instincts, her position demanding a reckoning between husband and wife. But in the early days, before they join households, Harry pursues the business of men as Kate waits patiently for her real life to begin. Politics and opportunity, of course, move quickly, Edward's Woodville relatives placed in important positions, earning the enmity and jealousy of many. Rumors abound of witchcraft and sorcery; plots brew among the claimants to the throne. The unexpected death of the king throws the country into turmoil, all eyes on the heir, the young Prince of Wales and the selection of his Protector.

Events move quickly, the wheel of history turning once more, the author deftly negotiating Elizabeth Woodville's flight into sanctuary, the disposition of the boy king's closest advisors, Richard III's succession to the throne after a claim of precontract and the mysterious fate of the Princes in the Tower. Higginbotham takes a bold leap, portraying her Richard III as a politically ruthless character. Certainly, all is not well in the Stafford marriage, Harry's loyalty to the new king causing a painful rift in a marriage of eighteen years. While we explore the landscape of Stafford's moral ambiguity in support of his lifelong friend, Kate has no such conflicts. Hers is a clear conscience, albeit black and white, the clever Richard the third member of this ménage a trios. Dark secrets are revealed, characters and loyalties exposed, both venal and innocent as Stafford makes a choice and Richard meets Henry Tudor on the battlefield. The rest, as they say, is history. Luan Gaines/2010.

Once again Susan Higginbotham has spun a tale weaved with historical fact that had me falling head long into her latest, The Stolen Crown, with excitement. Now I don't profess to be an expert at anything historical but I do love to read historical novels. I love when an author can teach me something along with giving me a story that captivates my interest. Susan Higginbotham has done that for me in all of her novels: The Traitor's Wife (my review), Hugh and Bess (my review) and now with The Stolen Crown that takes on the Wars of the Roses.

Katherine Woodville is just seven years old when she is married to nine year old Henry (called Harry the majority of the time) Stafford, Duke of Buckingham. All of this comes about after her sister Elizabeth is secretly married to King Edward IV. From that point the lives of the Woodville family change dramatically as they are launched into King Edward IV's Court - marriages are arranged and of course their financial status improves greatly. All of a sudden little Kate is the perfect match for the young Duke of Buckingham.

The novel takes us through the viewpoints of both Katherine and Harry all throughout their lives. We have front row seats to their marriage as children, growing up together, finally discovering their love for each other and eventually having children. Along the way we are treated to their lives at King Edward IV's court and all the secrecy and scheming that goes with that. We find out that Henry Stafford was never a favorite of King Edward IV and this made him very resentful; enough that when given the chance he sides with King Edward IV's brother Richard, Duke of Gloucester which ultimately leads to his downfall.

When King Edward IV dies from a short lived illness his son Edward is next in line to the throne with his brother Richard, Duke of Gloucester and Harry Stafford guiding him until he is of age. However this isn't good enough for Richard who looks for every way possible to take over the throne until he succeeds and in the process two of King Edward IV's sons disappear from The Tower and to this day nobody really knows what happened to them.

My favorite character by far was Kate in the novel. As a young girl she is quite amusing and as an adult woman she is strong and intelligent. Harry I liked as well although I wish he hadn't been so blinded by Richard most of his life. By the time he realized who and what Richard really was it was too late for him. I have to say that I am glad I didn't live in this time period. It was so uncertain. As long as you were in favor with the King you were living high on a cloud but let that be jeopardized in any way and all of a sudden you and your family were at risk of being imprisoned or worse - killed.

I enjoy how Susan Higginbotham makes these characters come to life for her readers. I felt for them - their joys and their sadness. At the end of the novel she gives her reasons for taking the routes she does within the book because some are different from what is popular. I like that about her; that she takes the facts and then can give us such a believable tale of what things might have been like in this time and place. If you love historical fiction then The Stolen Crown is a must read!

I greatly enjoyed Susan Higginbotham's "The Stolen Crown." Both with this novel and her previous book "The Traitor's Wife," I was impressed by how Higginbotham can take a well-known historical event and create it anew by choosing to tell it from the viewpoint of a person close to the major events but one not always in the center. In this case, it is Elizabeth Woodville's sister and her husband, who from early childhood watch the rise of Edward IV and later Richard III, as well as the latter's downfall. I have read several history books about the Wars of the Roses and also Shakespeare's history plays. I thought I was relatively knowledgable, but Higginbotham had me running to genealogy charts to keep track of who was who as I discovered numerous new details to the story. I greatly appreciate her fresh perspective on events as well as her in-depth research. I hope many more historical novels will spring from her pen.

- Tyler R. Tichelaar, Ph.D. and author of the award-winning "Narrow Lives"