Reviews

The White Princess by Philippa Gregory

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readingwithtea's review against another edition

5.0

4.5/5 but this was a second read through (I read all these books years ago when they originally were released) so I already knew going into what I was getting. But I only recently started writing reviews, so I figured I should write this one with a fresh read through.

Love this book. Love this series. Love this author. But I think that’s all a given, provided anyone has talked to me, looked at my bookshelf, or browsed my read list here.

So, given all that, here are my thoughts.

The spins she puts on these historical storylines add to the experience. Are these books all historical accurate? No, they’re not, and if that is what you were looking for, then you may be interested in something like a history book or a school lecture. These are works of fiction and she includes works of fiction in them. They enhance the historical details we know and sometimes she has to bend them to make her storylines work. I’m ok with that and that’s all I have to say about it.

The Princes in the Tower: little Edward and Richard. They’re here. Well, they’re here in spirit. They’ve already gone into the tower just before where this book picks up and many of you will already be familiar with their story and the controversy of what may or may not have happened to them. Since this book is part of her long standing series, I’m sure many of you already know what her stance is on this but technically all these can be stand alone. So if you jump around and don’t know about this yet, don’t worry about it.

What’s probably my most controversial opinion here is this: I like the mini series slightly better than the book. Please don’t pick up your pitch forks yet! So all those things that Gregory tweaked to make her story a good story, the miniseries twists even more. This means all you die hard history buffs need to stay away from the miniseries. I’m all for history but I also enjoy all the pretty gowns and the political back stabbing, then all the little plot changes make for a nice compact story.

But in conclusion, I’ve loved Philippa Gregory since the day my mom randomly bought me The Boleyn Inheritance in high school. I’ve devoured almost every one of her books since. I haven’t agreed with every historical detail she’s twisted, but in the end that’s not the point. She crafts good stories. She gives these women voices and powerful stories of their own. I’ll be reading her books until the end. And I’ll recommend them to anybody I believe would like them.

liziev's review against another edition

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4.0

So I have a bit of a soft spot for Philippa Gregory, and I was really looking forward to this book coming out. I finally got a chance to read it, and everything was going well until the very end. Is there another book in this series? I read it on my kindle, and it ended at 86%. The last 14% of the book is a guide with questions for reading and probably an interview with Philippa Gregory, but I didn't go forward that far. So suddenly the story just ended, and I had to go back a few pages to re-read, knowing that it was the end. It felt like it just skidded to a stop.

So I enjoyed the book, and I liked Elizabeth's perspective. Gregory's writing is always pretty enjoyable for me too. But I'm hoping that she writes another book in this series, because the end was pretty abrupt for me.

lana_gwddnd's review against another edition

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5.0

Beautifully written. Links the past books and the next series perfectly. I'm going to have to read the next series now. Just beautiful.

EDIT: Just found out there is in fact another book in this series, so will have to see how that one connects further to its following series...I did feel that this had resolved everything well enough that the next series could carry it - but having read the first book in the Tudor Series I am happy that there will be another book now.

smilesgiggle's review against another edition

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4.0

Were the York princes murdered in the tower? Are they alive, plotting their return to the throne?
Elizabeth of York weds Henry Tudor in an attempt to end the cousins' war. King Henry becomes obsessed with the possibility of the York princes alive and scheming. Will Queen Elizabeth meet her brothers again?
Excellent read - family loyalty, intrigue, mystery and legend.

jewellspring's review against another edition

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4.0

Purchase the paperback so you can mark it up, take your time, or pass it on. Philippa Gregory's historical fiction novels provide an easy and engaging entry to the history of Great Britain. She writes from the first person perspective of her title character, which scholarly studies can't usually provide, so motivations and their expressions have to be taken with a grain of salt. But how often did we read history in high school and leave thinking, "Huh. I wonder what really happened?" This novel explores the political and intimate relationship of Henry VIII's parents and the tenuousness of Henry the VII's claim to the throne.