Reviews

War of the Roses: Stormbird, by Conn Iggulden

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flexdza's review against another edition

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adventurous tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

sofiahogstedt's review

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adventurous dark informative tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

aliilman's review

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5.0

Stormbird, the first volume of the Wars of the Roses series.

Bloody brilliant. Conn Iggulden’s writing made the book a page-turner. My most favourite character has to be Derihew Brewer. Cunning and a unique personality. A man of loyalty. He’s a fictional character, but such character might have existed back then as the king’s / queen’s spymaster.

How’s the story?

It’s 1437. 15 years have passed since the sudden death of one of England’s most renowned kings, Henry V. His prowess in war has garnered success for England during the Hundred Years’ War. His son, Henry VI, had succeeded to the throne at the age of 9 months old. A regency was created to rule the nation while Henry VI was growing up.

Now, Henry is fit to rule the nation. He is also the disputed king of France. Unlike his father, Henry is passive. A gentle bloke, perhaps. The nation grew restless over the manner in which he ruled the nation, especially with the safety of the English over in France in danger of yet another battle with the French.

In order to prevent yet another bloodbath with the French, the English set out a plan for a peace treaty by organising a marriage between Henry and a lady from a royal French family. A couple of years gone by and finally, a peace treaty of 20 years was achieved with the marriage of Henry and Margaret of Anjou, at the expense of Maine going into the hands of the French.

With the news of the treaty spreading throughout the nation, certain powerful figures from other royal English houses are eager to see a different man on the throne. Not helped by the revolts that have broken out, the nation are about to plunge into a civil war spanning a few decades.

saranya_reads's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark informative tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

bookloversboudoir's review against another edition

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4.0

This is my first time reading the author.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and found it engrossing.

The characters are well written and not exactly what I was expecting. Richard of York tends to be portrayed as a scheming villain, Henry VI as crazy and Queen Margaret as a she-wolf. The characters are much more rounded, sympathetic and human than I was expecting.

I liked Margaret the most and enjoyed reading about her as a child and the circumstances that led her to become Henry’s wife.

Stormbird has a complex structure, with chapters told from the viewpoint of different characters. This structure reminds me a lot of the Game of Thrones books. I loved the twists and turns, the well written fight scenes and the historical accuracy.

One of things that struck me is that the author uses a neutral tone throughout the novel, making it clear there is no clear-cut right or wrong and allowing the reader room to make up their own mind whether they follow the white rose or red rose into battle.

Stormbird is epic and I looked forward to reading the other two books in the series.