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A review by kimberly_b
The Lady of the Rivers by Philippa Gregory
2.0
Where to begin...It had been a while since I'd read a Philippa Gregory book (and I'd liked her books in the past--[b:The Other Boleyn Girl|37470|The Other Boleyn Girl (The Tudor Court, #2)|Philippa Gregory|http://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1355932638s/37470.jpg|3248536] being my favorite), so I was looking forward to reading The Lady of the Rivers after I won it through First-Reads. After starting it, I quickly realized PG's writing has become a shadow of its former self. Devoting an entire book to Jacquetta was questionable to begin with; for all the royal goings-on that she was privy to, her life really wasn't all that exciting. The novel consisted a lot of such-and-such happened and then I went into confinement and had another baby (I believe the grand total was 14). Since not as much is widely known about Jacquetta as, say, Anne Boleyn, I was expecting some further character development and insight into who she was. Unfortunately, PG does extremely little character development and for most of the book I couldn't ascertain if Jacquetta was just stupidly ignorant or so innocent that she couldn't quite grasp political implications. All of the other characters were as equally one dimensional and you really couldn't love or hate any of them because they were just...there. PG should have just written a non-fiction book about Jacquetta since she really didn't offer any insight into Jacquetta which, in my mind, is part of the point of historical fiction. But, oh yeah, Jacquetta's life isn't really that interesting to begin with! The beginning of the novel was really reminiscent of an Arthurian legend to me: Jacquetta is married to John of Lancaster, 1st Duke of Bedford (a.k.a. Arthur), but she is really in love with Richard Woodville, the Duke's Chamberlain (a.k.a. Lancelot). All of the magical infusions in the story really made this seem even more so. When Jacquetta finally realizes she is to be parted with Richard, her verbal reaction was incredibly stilted. I would compare it to a modern woman finding out that she was going to have to live without her cell phone, "But, I've always had a cellphone...what will I ever do without one?" After Richard got a taste of Jacquetta's virginal, unicorn beckoning magical huha, Bam! they were inseparable and there really wasn't any more to their relationship than that. Well, in PG's imagination at least.
Two other major gripes I had with the book were the constant reminders of who characters were. Within pages it was literally, "Duchess Eleanor", "The duchess", and then "Eleanor, the duchess". Readers aren't that stupid that they can't remember who one of the main characters is and what title they hold! Also, I really didn't understand why PG had Lewis die at age 12 when the family tree says he died in infancy. Now I know infancy is a loose term, but shouldn't it be 'adolescence' or 'childhood' by that age? Maybe not, but it seemed so to me.
Overall, the story was okay and even entertaining in parts with the King and Margaret. I don't think this novel could ever have been a 5 star book considering the subject alone, but it definitely would have garnered a higher rating if PG had just explored her characters more and had fun writing it. I really got the feeling that the book was more of a chore for PG to write rather than a pleasure. I wish she could tap into her imagination like she used to to at least write a page-turner with some scandalous and interesting people. 2 stars.
Two other major gripes I had with the book were the constant reminders of who characters were. Within pages it was literally, "Duchess Eleanor", "The duchess", and then "Eleanor, the duchess". Readers aren't that stupid that they can't remember who one of the main characters is and what title they hold! Also, I really didn't understand why PG had Lewis die at age 12 when the family tree says he died in infancy. Now I know infancy is a loose term, but shouldn't it be 'adolescence' or 'childhood' by that age? Maybe not, but it seemed so to me.
Overall, the story was okay and even entertaining in parts with the King and Margaret. I don't think this novel could ever have been a 5 star book considering the subject alone, but it definitely would have garnered a higher rating if PG had just explored her characters more and had fun writing it. I really got the feeling that the book was more of a chore for PG to write rather than a pleasure. I wish she could tap into her imagination like she used to to at least write a page-turner with some scandalous and interesting people. 2 stars.