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The King's Concubine
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619 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2012
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About the author
Anne O'Brien
66 books776 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
My home is in the Welsh Marches, although much of my early life was spent in Yorkshire, most recently in the East Riding.Ann O'Brien The Marches is a remote region of England, surrounded by echoes from the past. Hereford is close with its famous Mappa Mundi and chained library.So is Shrewsbury, and also Ludlow with its splendid castle and its connections with our Plantagenet and Tudor kings. With my husband, I live in an eighteenth century timber framed cottage, which itself must have seen much history over two hundred years.
I have always enjoyed the appeal of History.I taught the subject with enthusiasm but it became my ambition to write historical romances. My first novel, The Runaway Heiress, was published by Mills and Boon in 2004.
This first book was a Regency Romance in the great tradition of Georgette Heyer - who has not admired her skill and delicate touch for the period? I have drawn on my interest in the Stuart century to write about the English Civil War and Restoration England of Charles II. Living in the Marches however I soon discovered the wealth of atmosphere and legend in this isolated part of England from medieval times. It was not long before I was encouraged to create a medieval romance inConquering Knight, Captive Lady.
When not writing, I have a large rambling garden where George and I grow organic vegetables and soft fruit - or perhaps I should admit that he grows them whilst I pick and cook them. We have a wild garden, an orchard, a formal pond and herbaceous flower borders. We share it all with rabbits and pheasants, frogs and goldfinches, hedgehogs and buzzards. It is a beautiful place. When we first settled into our cottage I planted a herb garden on a Tudor pattern with stone pathways and clipped box hedges. From this I developed my interest in herbs and their uses.
Nicholas Culpeper's The Complete Herbal, a fascinating resource to a historical novelist first published in 1649, has become essential bedside reading. As a result the use of herbs in medicine and witchcraft, for both good and ill, has appeared in some of my novels.
For pure relaxation I enjoy yoga as well as singing with a local Choral Society. Watercolour painting allows me to simply sit and appreciate the landscape and the flowers in my garden, when my mind is busy constructing my next plot.
My home is in the Welsh Marches, although much of my early life was spent in Yorkshire, most recently in the East Riding.Ann O'Brien The Marches is a remote region of England, surrounded by echoes from the past. Hereford is close with its famous Mappa Mundi and chained library.So is Shrewsbury, and also Ludlow with its splendid castle and its connections with our Plantagenet and Tudor kings. With my husband, I live in an eighteenth century timber framed cottage, which itself must have seen much history over two hundred years.
I have always enjoyed the appeal of History.I taught the subject with enthusiasm but it became my ambition to write historical romances. My first novel, The Runaway Heiress, was published by Mills and Boon in 2004.
This first book was a Regency Romance in the great tradition of Georgette Heyer - who has not admired her skill and delicate touch for the period? I have drawn on my interest in the Stuart century to write about the English Civil War and Restoration England of Charles II. Living in the Marches however I soon discovered the wealth of atmosphere and legend in this isolated part of England from medieval times. It was not long before I was encouraged to create a medieval romance inConquering Knight, Captive Lady.
When not writing, I have a large rambling garden where George and I grow organic vegetables and soft fruit - or perhaps I should admit that he grows them whilst I pick and cook them. We have a wild garden, an orchard, a formal pond and herbaceous flower borders. We share it all with rabbits and pheasants, frogs and goldfinches, hedgehogs and buzzards. It is a beautiful place. When we first settled into our cottage I planted a herb garden on a Tudor pattern with stone pathways and clipped box hedges. From this I developed my interest in herbs and their uses.
Nicholas Culpeper's The Complete Herbal, a fascinating resource to a historical novelist first published in 1649, has become essential bedside reading. As a result the use of herbs in medicine and witchcraft, for both good and ill, has appeared in some of my novels.
For pure relaxation I enjoy yoga as well as singing with a local Choral Society. Watercolour painting allows me to simply sit and appreciate the landscape and the flowers in my garden, when my mind is busy constructing my next plot.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 231 reviews
June 17, 2012
"Better than Philippa Gregory" says the bold statement on the cover. Oooh... Big Call.
Gregory is one of the finest architects of what I call the Likeable Villianess: the abrasive, self-serving, yet ultimately sympathetic anti-heroine you love to hate. Finest of *these* times - might I add as a disclaimer - since Margaret Mitchell's wonderfully complex Scarlett O'Hara is arguably the doyenne of them all.
Anne Boylen of The Other Boylen girl is probably Gregory's most famous creation (she puts the "evil" in Medieval... LOL) but I have always had a soft spot for her Beatrice, a lesser known, but beautifully shocking character from her Wildacre series.
So does O'Brien, and her Alice Perrers, live up to the hype?
It's a "yes".
I'm not sure I'd go as far as to say this novel was BETTER than Gregory's work, as a sweeping whole, but it's most certainly on par with it and was thoroughly engrossing and enjoyable.
Alice Perrers takes a firm fourth place as one of my favourite LV's, with a chutzpa to rival any of her courtly contemporaries. The very fact these women have... let's just say it, the balls to do the things they do, in the dangerous times they do them, is endlessly fascinating to me and this novel didn't disappoint on any level.
It's also what I would call a good "value" novel - long, and meaty with plenty of plot and some fascinating language and trivia of the times hinting at a polished historian behind the pen.
Thoroughly recommend!
Gregory is one of the finest architects of what I call the Likeable Villianess: the abrasive, self-serving, yet ultimately sympathetic anti-heroine you love to hate. Finest of *these* times - might I add as a disclaimer - since Margaret Mitchell's wonderfully complex Scarlett O'Hara is arguably the doyenne of them all.
Anne Boylen of The Other Boylen girl is probably Gregory's most famous creation (she puts the "evil" in Medieval... LOL) but I have always had a soft spot for her Beatrice, a lesser known, but beautifully shocking character from her Wildacre series.
So does O'Brien, and her Alice Perrers, live up to the hype?
It's a "yes".
I'm not sure I'd go as far as to say this novel was BETTER than Gregory's work, as a sweeping whole, but it's most certainly on par with it and was thoroughly engrossing and enjoyable.
Alice Perrers takes a firm fourth place as one of my favourite LV's, with a chutzpa to rival any of her courtly contemporaries. The very fact these women have... let's just say it, the balls to do the things they do, in the dangerous times they do them, is endlessly fascinating to me and this novel didn't disappoint on any level.
It's also what I would call a good "value" novel - long, and meaty with plenty of plot and some fascinating language and trivia of the times hinting at a polished historian behind the pen.
Thoroughly recommend!
February 24, 2022
This was very good! Apparently some of Anne O’Brien’s books have a sticker on them saying they are better than Philippa Gregory. Well Ive read a few of Gregory’s and only this one by O’Brien, but it definitely was at least as good if not better! I read this one with no prior knowledge of this time period of the royal family, so I had a look on Wiki and it seems that O’Brien has given us quite a kind interpretation of Perrers’ life- many saw her as a scheming harlot!
July 27, 2020
3/3.5 stars
At 17 years old, Alice Perrers became the mistress of King Edward III as his wife ailed with a debilitating illness. In The King's Concubine, Anne O'Brien brings to life the mystery of Alice and the real woman behind the rumours and the false accusations made against her.
I really enjoyed Anne O'Brien's way of bringing to life Alice - a woman I never knew about before. But she was someone who I immediately was intrigued by when I began to learn how she accumulated wealth and what a smart business woman she must have been. At a time when it was really hard/virtually impossible for a woman to own her own wealth, she basically became a property tycoon. And you have to respect that. It makes you think what she could have accomplished if she had been born in a different time as she obviously had a great mind, and a business savvy to boot.
This book would never be described as action packed, it's quite long and for people who might be new to historical fiction, it could be a little bit boring - especially as for the majority of Alice's time as Mistress, times were peaceful and when they weren't, she wasn't privy to much.
It's always interesting and infuriating to see how men vying for power will try and bring down a woman when she takes a step too far up the ladder of power herself, and this is exactly what happened to Alice. She also had a strong sense of pride in this book and this characterization of her which meant that often she said the wrong things and she would often let people think things about her rather than show any kind of weakness.
I also felt in this book the real absence of a group of female companions for Alice - she was an extremely lonely and solitary character and the only people who she seemed to truly be friends with were her lover, and her lover's wife. Even in her marriage, she seemed to keep him at arm's length.
I still enjoyed this book, and as always love to hear about a woman's place and time in history.
At 17 years old, Alice Perrers became the mistress of King Edward III as his wife ailed with a debilitating illness. In The King's Concubine, Anne O'Brien brings to life the mystery of Alice and the real woman behind the rumours and the false accusations made against her.
I really enjoyed Anne O'Brien's way of bringing to life Alice - a woman I never knew about before. But she was someone who I immediately was intrigued by when I began to learn how she accumulated wealth and what a smart business woman she must have been. At a time when it was really hard/virtually impossible for a woman to own her own wealth, she basically became a property tycoon. And you have to respect that. It makes you think what she could have accomplished if she had been born in a different time as she obviously had a great mind, and a business savvy to boot.
This book would never be described as action packed, it's quite long and for people who might be new to historical fiction, it could be a little bit boring - especially as for the majority of Alice's time as Mistress, times were peaceful and when they weren't, she wasn't privy to much.
It's always interesting and infuriating to see how men vying for power will try and bring down a woman when she takes a step too far up the ladder of power herself, and this is exactly what happened to Alice. She also had a strong sense of pride in this book and this characterization of her which meant that often she said the wrong things and she would often let people think things about her rather than show any kind of weakness.
I also felt in this book the real absence of a group of female companions for Alice - she was an extremely lonely and solitary character and the only people who she seemed to truly be friends with were her lover, and her lover's wife. Even in her marriage, she seemed to keep him at arm's length.
I still enjoyed this book, and as always love to hear about a woman's place and time in history.
January 16, 2016
REVIEW:
Alice Perrers was born in the year of 1348 during the plague. She was raised in a convent. While at the convent Alice was quite a problem at times. She refused to take the veil. She believed that she had a bigger and better future in line for her.She left the horrid beginnings of her life behind her to become mistress to Edward III, but like always she was alone.
Early in her life she met with royalty and that changes her entire life. Very much in love with her husband, Edward, Queen Philippa picks Alice as a lady-in-waiting. The Queen was extremely sick. Alice speaks her mind, although sometimes she regrets it. She maintains that she be taken seriously. She puts the make on an even older king. She intended no betrayal but she captures the Kings heart. When in the privacy of the King's chambers, Alice finds the pleasures and satisfaction of her position. She is torn between being the Queen's confidante and being the King's mistress. She has herself , and only herself.
She promises herself she will act this double role until the bitter end. Edward lavished her and she amassed wealth and influence for herself., but all along she is making enemies. Who is going to stand side by side with Alice when the walls come tumbling down on her?
The story was told from Alice's point of view, in first person and this is how you begin understanding some of the things she does. Was Alice a gold-digging concubine or was she protecting herself for the future by taking what she could when she had the chance.? Did she not leave the King's side because she truly cared for him or was it because if she was not there, she wouldn't get anything.?
These are just a few of the questions you will be asking yourself while reading. The answers are there. Alice lived a life as no other. I would recommend this book to anyone. You won't want to quit reading. There is no boredom in this book. This is a page-turner don't put down keeper. This is one magnificent book. I truly fell in love with the story and characters.
I would give this book 10 Stars if I could but since I can't 5 STARS and that doesn't do it justice.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Manic Readers on behalf of the author, Anne O'Brien, for this unbiased review.
Alice Perrers was born in the year of 1348 during the plague. She was raised in a convent. While at the convent Alice was quite a problem at times. She refused to take the veil. She believed that she had a bigger and better future in line for her.She left the horrid beginnings of her life behind her to become mistress to Edward III, but like always she was alone.
Early in her life she met with royalty and that changes her entire life. Very much in love with her husband, Edward, Queen Philippa picks Alice as a lady-in-waiting. The Queen was extremely sick. Alice speaks her mind, although sometimes she regrets it. She maintains that she be taken seriously. She puts the make on an even older king. She intended no betrayal but she captures the Kings heart. When in the privacy of the King's chambers, Alice finds the pleasures and satisfaction of her position. She is torn between being the Queen's confidante and being the King's mistress. She has herself , and only herself.
She promises herself she will act this double role until the bitter end. Edward lavished her and she amassed wealth and influence for herself., but all along she is making enemies. Who is going to stand side by side with Alice when the walls come tumbling down on her?
The story was told from Alice's point of view, in first person and this is how you begin understanding some of the things she does. Was Alice a gold-digging concubine or was she protecting herself for the future by taking what she could when she had the chance.? Did she not leave the King's side because she truly cared for him or was it because if she was not there, she wouldn't get anything.?
These are just a few of the questions you will be asking yourself while reading. The answers are there. Alice lived a life as no other. I would recommend this book to anyone. You won't want to quit reading. There is no boredom in this book. This is a page-turner don't put down keeper. This is one magnificent book. I truly fell in love with the story and characters.
I would give this book 10 Stars if I could but since I can't 5 STARS and that doesn't do it justice.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Manic Readers on behalf of the author, Anne O'Brien, for this unbiased review.
February 21, 2022
Well written, highly detailed with well fleshed out characters and a totally believable story line I fell under Alice Perrers spell.My only issue was that I thought it was a bit over long and in some ways was too detailed for my taste.Definitely will be looking forward to reading more from this author and if your a fan of the times,a British history geek or just want to experience a rags to riches story give this one a go.
November 22, 2018
This book is a great read; a very entertaining account of the life of Alice Perrers. The story is told from Alice's point of view, and the author draws you into the story. Anne O'Brien does a great job capturing the mood of the period, it transports you to the court of Edward III, with all their intrigue, beauty, and danger. I highly recommend it for any lover of historical fiction or history.
May 25, 2013
Alice Perrers is a 14th century orphan sheltered and used by nuns who on a long and winding path becomes the mistress to King Edward III. She subsequently marries another man, William de Windsor, is banished, then unbanished, then rebanished and finally reinstated in civil society thanks to the great love of Windsor.
As historical fiction, the book is loosely based on facts and tells Alice's side of the story. The author appears to be Alice's apologist and justifies her actions, especially when explaining the relationship with the two people she betrayed the most: 1) Queen Phillippa, to whom she owes everything, as she brought her to the court in hopes that the King would select Alice as his mistress and 2) the King, who gave her a license to find another man. Alice has been painted as a manipulative, conniving vulture in history, but we didn't understand her soft, loyal side. When you get to know her you can see that her actions were justified. It is hard to believe until you realize that this book is a romance novel not historical fiction.
If you look at the book as a romance novel, you can enjoy it as a kind of "mind-candy." A book club friend with a hard copy of the book saw the "Harlequin" mark on the back cover (I had an e-reader which does not have the Harlequin reference). That disclosure gave the right context to the book, Alice's story is a romance novel. Alice shares her bed with three men who respect her and show kindness and gentleness in three different ways. Love is a challenge and true love can overcome all. Classic romance novel themes.
There are two flaws that make The King's Concubine less satisfying. First, the interview with the author and "Questions for Discussion" give the book an air of sophistication that is unearned. This is a romance novel. It's not Shakespeare and doesn't deserve the scrutiny of discussion questions. Secondly, Alice needs an editor. There were 200 pages of material in a 448 book, over half the book was meandering and repetitive. Edit the book and represent it for what it is and you have a pleasant Saturday read.
As historical fiction, the book is loosely based on facts and tells Alice's side of the story. The author appears to be Alice's apologist and justifies her actions, especially when explaining the relationship with the two people she betrayed the most: 1) Queen Phillippa, to whom she owes everything, as she brought her to the court in hopes that the King would select Alice as his mistress and 2) the King, who gave her a license to find another man. Alice has been painted as a manipulative, conniving vulture in history, but we didn't understand her soft, loyal side. When you get to know her you can see that her actions were justified. It is hard to believe until you realize that this book is a romance novel not historical fiction.
If you look at the book as a romance novel, you can enjoy it as a kind of "mind-candy." A book club friend with a hard copy of the book saw the "Harlequin" mark on the back cover (I had an e-reader which does not have the Harlequin reference). That disclosure gave the right context to the book, Alice's story is a romance novel. Alice shares her bed with three men who respect her and show kindness and gentleness in three different ways. Love is a challenge and true love can overcome all. Classic romance novel themes.
There are two flaws that make The King's Concubine less satisfying. First, the interview with the author and "Questions for Discussion" give the book an air of sophistication that is unearned. This is a romance novel. It's not Shakespeare and doesn't deserve the scrutiny of discussion questions. Secondly, Alice needs an editor. There were 200 pages of material in a 448 book, over half the book was meandering and repetitive. Edit the book and represent it for what it is and you have a pleasant Saturday read.
July 14, 2012
Stories about the mistresses of Kings have always intrigued me. This story was made even more so because I had just read The King Must Die, which was about Edward's mother and his early years on the throne.
Not much is known about Alice Perrers, other than she served as a Lady in Waiting to Queen Phillipa and that she became the King's Mistress. Oh and she was intensely disliked by most people.
I think the why's of that dislike are pretty obvious.
Edward and Phillipa had a very good marriage as far as royalty is concerned. Yes, they loved each other. That's what makes the way O'Brien brings King and Lady together a little bit hard to take. Anne suggests that Alice became Edward's lover because the Queen wanted her too, because her illness prevented her from enjoying the marriage bed any longer.
Hmmm.
I'm not sure if that idea works well with me, but somehow Alice, who was obviously low born, made it to the inner circles of the monarchy. Lowborn though she was, she was also, oddly for that time, a very astute businesswomen.
This book does a lot to cast a more favorable light on Alice, mostly in the fact that she harbors some love for Edward, but I'm not sure if she deserved the light to be cast on her. Let's face it, she was greedy and power hungry. She managed to accumulate 50 manors during her time as the King's Mistress, and she even managed to get them back after a corruption trial. (She could have lost her life there, but she managed too to talk her way out of it)
I think if one thing can be said for Alice Perrers, it is that she was a woman hundreds of years before her time. In truth, I couldn't like Alice as I read this book. I could admire her though, because she rose from the ashes and for a time, ruled a kingdom.
Not much is known about Alice Perrers, other than she served as a Lady in Waiting to Queen Phillipa and that she became the King's Mistress. Oh and she was intensely disliked by most people.
I think the why's of that dislike are pretty obvious.
Edward and Phillipa had a very good marriage as far as royalty is concerned. Yes, they loved each other. That's what makes the way O'Brien brings King and Lady together a little bit hard to take. Anne suggests that Alice became Edward's lover because the Queen wanted her too, because her illness prevented her from enjoying the marriage bed any longer.
Hmmm.
I'm not sure if that idea works well with me, but somehow Alice, who was obviously low born, made it to the inner circles of the monarchy. Lowborn though she was, she was also, oddly for that time, a very astute businesswomen.
This book does a lot to cast a more favorable light on Alice, mostly in the fact that she harbors some love for Edward, but I'm not sure if she deserved the light to be cast on her. Let's face it, she was greedy and power hungry. She managed to accumulate 50 manors during her time as the King's Mistress, and she even managed to get them back after a corruption trial. (She could have lost her life there, but she managed too to talk her way out of it)
I think if one thing can be said for Alice Perrers, it is that she was a woman hundreds of years before her time. In truth, I couldn't like Alice as I read this book. I could admire her though, because she rose from the ashes and for a time, ruled a kingdom.
April 28, 2020
Raised in an orphanage, Alice expects little from the world but when she’s plucked from its confines to become a lady-in-waiting to Philippa of Hainaut, Edward III’s beloved wife and queen, she has little understanding of what dizzying heights she will climb to, ultimately becoming Edward III’s mistress and an uncrowned queen, wielding power unthought of for a woman, especially a lowborn woman at that, in 14th century England. But Edward is old and his health failing: what will become of Alice when he can no longer protect her?
I picked up Anne O’Brien’s The King’s Concubine with some trepidation. This is the fifth novel of hers that I’ve read and my previous responses have been ‘not as bad as I thought it’d be’, ‘average’, ‘I don’t hate it’ and ‘thanks, I hate it SO much’ – I keep reading her work because she keeps writing about fascinating women from Edward III’s reign to Henry VI’s, a time period I’m inordinately fond about, and hardly anyone else does. But I’d hoped this would be better, at least, than the first novel about Alice Perrers I read, Emma Campion’s The King's Mistress, which depicted an Alice sweeter than sugar and with no agency at all, just a poor little victim of vast, outlandish conspiracies that never actually existed and are deeply implausible.
If I say O’Brien’s take on Alice Perrers was better, it’s only because she didn’t go for an utterly unhinged, utterly unbelievable conspiracy that explains why Alice had no choice, none whatsoever, in anything that ever happened in her life. If I say O’Brien’s Alice was better constructed, with flaws, I then have to say that she was unlikeable to the point of irritating me greatly and I’m not sure I was actually meant to see Alice as flawed but a #badassqueen and if so, hard pass.
So let me begin by saying that I found O’Brien’s Alice insufferable. There seems to be a heavy suggestions that she really is just a victim. She didn’t do anything wrong, she didn’t really seduce Edward III from his beloved and deathly ill wife – Philippa chose her to be Edward’s mistress! Even so, Alice was wracked with guilt over it! Alice was just a pawn! Everyone was so mean to her! Edward loved her so much too! Just like she loved him! She didn’t steal Philippa’s jewels – Edward gave them to her! And he insisted she steal the rings from his dead fingers! And she was just a smart businesswoman, nothing corrupt or evil about her! And John of Gaunt tricked her! And Joan of Kent was out to get her! For Reasons!
Look, I’d love a sympathetic take on Alice Perrers, I really would. I think there’s ample room to challenge the historical narratives. But at the same time, I don’t want a version of her that’s completely and utterly whitewashed, I don’t want her declawed and defanged and made into this innocent little victim who’s ganged up on by the rest of the world. And I certainly don’t want this achieved by slinging mud at other historical women, implying that they’re to blame for all of Alice’s trials and traverses.
But as much as O’Brien plays this “Alice is a perpetual victim” angle hard, her Alice is just… horrible. She’s greedy, selfish, self-obsessed and grasping, constantly making excuses for her behaviour. She stomps her foot when people tell her she can’t attend the Order of the Garter ceremonies because she’s not a Lady of the Garter. You’re still not a Lady of the Garter, Alice, and you’re not a toddler either. Grow up. She’s positioned as Philippa of Hainault’s “most loyal” lady-in-waiting, to which I snort derisively, and O’Brien tries so darn hard to foster a sense that she was genuinely fond of Philippa – yet her entire interior monologue during Philippa’s death scene is basically “I am uncomfortable when we are not about me”. She’s upset and jealous that Edward III loves Philippa so much and she’s second-place (despite an earlier scene where Edward is all “well I may have jousted in my wife’s name but you were foremost in my heart the entire time!”). Meanwhile, Philippa is actually dying, she literally does not finish the scene alive, and Alice is just “but Edward III doesn’t love me like that! I should be loved best of all! This dying lady is making me feel bad because everyone is paying attention to her when they should be talking about ME”.
There’s also a scene where Edward III is dying and Alice refuses to let two different priests be alone with him to take his confession so Edward can’t repent of having sex with her so Edward literally dies unshriven. This is probably not an issue for a modern reader but it would be considered an unforgiveable sin in Alice’s time. Like it or not, Catholicism was hugely important for medieval royals and the idea of dying unshriven was utterly repugnant and horrifying, to the point where, if a baby was expected not to survive the birth, midwives were allowed to baptise the child still in the womb because they believed that an unbaptised baby would go to hell. To put Alice’s actions in her own historical context and not with the gloss of “historical romance but superficially feminist” narrative O’Brien is trying to write, Alice is behaving like a woman who does not give jot about whether the man she loves dies unshriven and goes to hell because he might confess to having sex out of wedlock with her, something he absolutely did do. WTF?
And while I hoped there’d be an eleventh hour call-out where some friend or mentor-figure is like, “Alice you’re selfish and greedy and behave like a spoilt toddler” when this has happened in nearly every other O’Brien novel I’ve read – I was left frustrated. I was left wishing I could steal Philippa of Hainault’s jewels back from Alice myself because she’s just so irritating.
It also seems that O’Brien wanted her to be the Plucky/Badass Historical Heroine and have her “slay” her enemies with a perfect jibe or gesture but all it did was drag me out of the setting to cringe at Alice’s weak put-downs. In such moments, Alice is not a medieval woman but a two-dimensional Strong Female Character™ shoved into a vaguely medieval setting and it is blaringly obvious.
(Also opening the novel with a scene where tiny convent-raised Alice has no frigging clue who Mary, Mother of God is was certainly… a Choice. I was raised Catholic from birth and the idea of not knowing, at any age, who the pretty lady carrying baby Jesus was is pretty damn absurd and I wasn’t raised in a convent by nuns! And the fact that Alice is old enough to retain a memory of it (since the novel’s told in her first person POV, past tense) makes it even more bewildering.)
Alice’s world is so insular. The royal court during the last years of Edward III’s life was a fascinating time and place, with so many interesting personalities: Chaucer, Katherine Swynford, Joan of Kent, John of Gaunt, the Black Prince, Blanche of Lancaster, Froissart... But we barely see any of that. There’s only a handful of notable characters outside of Alice – Edward III as the dashing romantic hero turned vulnerable old man, Philippa of Hainault as the approving wife, their daughter Isabella as the bitch who puts Alice in her place until Joan of Kent can return to be the true villainess of Alice’s story and the sexily ambitious William de Windsor, Alice’s husband. None of Edward III’s sons do anything of significance (though we bewilderingly get Lionel, Duke of Clarence characterised as an arsehole for one brief scene – yeah, I don’t know why he’s an arsehole there either but if you want an arsehole son, Thomas of Woodstock and John of Gaunt are right there and famously dickish), there’s no Chaucer, no Katherine Swynford, no debates about the succession. And even when O’Brien references Alice doing things outside of boning Edward III and collecting jewels, like fighting for her properties or giving birth, she never actually shows us Alice doing these things but just refers to them for a couple of sentences.
There’s even a repeated flashback of Alice parading around as the Lady of the Sun and thinking she deserves this pre-eminence but we don’t even get to see the original scene! The fact we see it in flashback twice suggests that the first time was something incredibly special and meaningful to Alice. But do we see it? NO.
I think my biggest issue with this is the way that it treats the women around Alice. To avoid feeling like Alice is a horrible hussy, stealing a dying woman’s husband, O’Brien presents Philippa picking Alice out and raising her to the status of lady-of-waiting with the intention of Alice becoming Edward’s mistress. So it’s all okay, Philippa approves, it’s not really cheating. It even makes sense, to some degree, that Philippa would approve – she is very sick and dying, sex is probably out of the question for her.
But she insists on complete and utter secrecy which means Philippa is really making Alice her pawn and Alice has no choice but to sleep with Edward (even though their relationship is completely and utterly a love match and he never forces her) and Philippa is to blame when the secrecy leaves Alice exposed to the slings and arrows of public opinion. Now, it’s plausible that Philippa, sick and dying, might have approved of Edward taking a mistress or having a sexual relationship with Alice but I don’t find it plausible that Philippa picks Alice out just to be Edward’s mistress. I don’t find it plausible that her approval must remain secret from everyone but especially Edward. Because Philippa and Edward were a famously close and loving marriage – it’s way more likely she’d confide in him before anyone else. And, also, because Philippa’s approval is secret, it doesn’t remove the stink from Edward’s actions. If he doesn’t know she approves, he’s choosing to cheat on his beloved, sickly wife. Seriously. I mean, it’s great Alice has the seal of approval from Philippa so she’s not the homewrecking whore but if Edward doesn’t know his wife approves, he’s still a cheating scumbag and not a dashing romantic hero, y’know?
And there’s no reason for Philippa not to let him know she approves. They had a famously strong, loving relationship. She would trust him far more than Alice, some random person she’s just met and decided is wonderful because she picked up Philippa’s dropped beads.
Plus, while O’Brien never once addresses this, this set-up suggests that Philippa is grooming the young, vulnerable Alice to become her husband’s mistress. A) that’s disgusting, B) it’s all done in the name of denying Alice any responsibility for sleeping with a married man, and C) Philippa of Hainault has done NOTHING to deserve this.
The basic narrative of Alice Perrers’ life presents Philippa as her victim. She is the loyal, steadfast, devoted, seriously ill wife who is dying when Alice hooks up with Edward and is paraded as his mistress in front of everyone. So I’m not really comfortable with O’Brien’s narrative actually making Philippa the real reason for all the public condemnation Alice’s receives and a woman who groomed a vulnerable young woman to become her husband’s mistress.
And then there’s poor Joan of Kent. I was honestly surprised at this because O’Brien’s novel about Joan was quite sympathetic. Here, though – she’s just vain and selfish and out to get poor little Alice. There is absolutely no historical basis for this – I doubt Alice and Joan were friendly but there is not one shred of evidence that Joan thought anything at all about Alice. I also found it quite disturbing that Alice was so focused on Joan’s looks and sexual behaviour, derisively calling her Joan the Fat (in addition to this just being gross, there’s some thought that, like Philippa, Joan suffered from dropsy so yay, mocking a woman for a medical condition! What a badass queen Alice is and not at all a horrible person.) and Joan the Whore.
Wait. Seriously. Wait.
Alice “infamous whore” Perrers is slut-shaming Joan of Kent?
I’m actually speechless. People in glasshouses shouldn’t throw stones and the pot is calling the kettle black and let’s not slut-shame women. Actually, forget that, let’s talk about why Joan was labelled a slut. She, aged around 12, married a man twice her age, the marriage was consummated – and then was forced by her family to marry another man and, without consummating this second marriage, went through the scandal of having her case examined by the Pope and her second marriage annulled. Don’t call her a slut, you dipshit, call Child Protective Services.
Seriously, anyone that thinks Joan of Kent was a slut because of what happened when she was twelve needs their heads checked because WHAT.
Outside of these issues, the novel just dragged and it was a struggle to pick this up, knowing I’d be stuck with Alice and the stupid, ill-conceived storytelling decisions made to make Alice an eternal victim. I don’t know if this is any better than Campion’s The King’s Mistress but if it is, it’s only by a millimetre. After both of those, I’m ready to give up on my dream of a rehabilitated but not endlessly victimised Alice. Honestly, I understand why Alice was so hated because damn she’s insufferable even when she’s “good”.
I picked up Anne O’Brien’s The King’s Concubine with some trepidation. This is the fifth novel of hers that I’ve read and my previous responses have been ‘not as bad as I thought it’d be’, ‘average’, ‘I don’t hate it’ and ‘thanks, I hate it SO much’ – I keep reading her work because she keeps writing about fascinating women from Edward III’s reign to Henry VI’s, a time period I’m inordinately fond about, and hardly anyone else does. But I’d hoped this would be better, at least, than the first novel about Alice Perrers I read, Emma Campion’s The King's Mistress, which depicted an Alice sweeter than sugar and with no agency at all, just a poor little victim of vast, outlandish conspiracies that never actually existed and are deeply implausible.
If I say O’Brien’s take on Alice Perrers was better, it’s only because she didn’t go for an utterly unhinged, utterly unbelievable conspiracy that explains why Alice had no choice, none whatsoever, in anything that ever happened in her life. If I say O’Brien’s Alice was better constructed, with flaws, I then have to say that she was unlikeable to the point of irritating me greatly and I’m not sure I was actually meant to see Alice as flawed but a #badassqueen and if so, hard pass.
So let me begin by saying that I found O’Brien’s Alice insufferable. There seems to be a heavy suggestions that she really is just a victim. She didn’t do anything wrong, she didn’t really seduce Edward III from his beloved and deathly ill wife – Philippa chose her to be Edward’s mistress! Even so, Alice was wracked with guilt over it! Alice was just a pawn! Everyone was so mean to her! Edward loved her so much too! Just like she loved him! She didn’t steal Philippa’s jewels – Edward gave them to her! And he insisted she steal the rings from his dead fingers! And she was just a smart businesswoman, nothing corrupt or evil about her! And John of Gaunt tricked her! And Joan of Kent was out to get her! For Reasons!
Look, I’d love a sympathetic take on Alice Perrers, I really would. I think there’s ample room to challenge the historical narratives. But at the same time, I don’t want a version of her that’s completely and utterly whitewashed, I don’t want her declawed and defanged and made into this innocent little victim who’s ganged up on by the rest of the world. And I certainly don’t want this achieved by slinging mud at other historical women, implying that they’re to blame for all of Alice’s trials and traverses.
But as much as O’Brien plays this “Alice is a perpetual victim” angle hard, her Alice is just… horrible. She’s greedy, selfish, self-obsessed and grasping, constantly making excuses for her behaviour. She stomps her foot when people tell her she can’t attend the Order of the Garter ceremonies because she’s not a Lady of the Garter. You’re still not a Lady of the Garter, Alice, and you’re not a toddler either. Grow up. She’s positioned as Philippa of Hainault’s “most loyal” lady-in-waiting, to which I snort derisively, and O’Brien tries so darn hard to foster a sense that she was genuinely fond of Philippa – yet her entire interior monologue during Philippa’s death scene is basically “I am uncomfortable when we are not about me”. She’s upset and jealous that Edward III loves Philippa so much and she’s second-place (despite an earlier scene where Edward is all “well I may have jousted in my wife’s name but you were foremost in my heart the entire time!”). Meanwhile, Philippa is actually dying, she literally does not finish the scene alive, and Alice is just “but Edward III doesn’t love me like that! I should be loved best of all! This dying lady is making me feel bad because everyone is paying attention to her when they should be talking about ME”.
There’s also a scene where Edward III is dying and Alice refuses to let two different priests be alone with him to take his confession so Edward can’t repent of having sex with her so Edward literally dies unshriven. This is probably not an issue for a modern reader but it would be considered an unforgiveable sin in Alice’s time. Like it or not, Catholicism was hugely important for medieval royals and the idea of dying unshriven was utterly repugnant and horrifying, to the point where, if a baby was expected not to survive the birth, midwives were allowed to baptise the child still in the womb because they believed that an unbaptised baby would go to hell. To put Alice’s actions in her own historical context and not with the gloss of “historical romance but superficially feminist” narrative O’Brien is trying to write, Alice is behaving like a woman who does not give jot about whether the man she loves dies unshriven and goes to hell because he might confess to having sex out of wedlock with her, something he absolutely did do. WTF?
And while I hoped there’d be an eleventh hour call-out where some friend or mentor-figure is like, “Alice you’re selfish and greedy and behave like a spoilt toddler” when this has happened in nearly every other O’Brien novel I’ve read – I was left frustrated. I was left wishing I could steal Philippa of Hainault’s jewels back from Alice myself because she’s just so irritating.
It also seems that O’Brien wanted her to be the Plucky/Badass Historical Heroine and have her “slay” her enemies with a perfect jibe or gesture but all it did was drag me out of the setting to cringe at Alice’s weak put-downs. In such moments, Alice is not a medieval woman but a two-dimensional Strong Female Character™ shoved into a vaguely medieval setting and it is blaringly obvious.
(Also opening the novel with a scene where tiny convent-raised Alice has no frigging clue who Mary, Mother of God is was certainly… a Choice. I was raised Catholic from birth and the idea of not knowing, at any age, who the pretty lady carrying baby Jesus was is pretty damn absurd and I wasn’t raised in a convent by nuns! And the fact that Alice is old enough to retain a memory of it (since the novel’s told in her first person POV, past tense) makes it even more bewildering.)
Alice’s world is so insular. The royal court during the last years of Edward III’s life was a fascinating time and place, with so many interesting personalities: Chaucer, Katherine Swynford, Joan of Kent, John of Gaunt, the Black Prince, Blanche of Lancaster, Froissart... But we barely see any of that. There’s only a handful of notable characters outside of Alice – Edward III as the dashing romantic hero turned vulnerable old man, Philippa of Hainault as the approving wife, their daughter Isabella as the bitch who puts Alice in her place until Joan of Kent can return to be the true villainess of Alice’s story and the sexily ambitious William de Windsor, Alice’s husband. None of Edward III’s sons do anything of significance (though we bewilderingly get Lionel, Duke of Clarence characterised as an arsehole for one brief scene – yeah, I don’t know why he’s an arsehole there either but if you want an arsehole son, Thomas of Woodstock and John of Gaunt are right there and famously dickish), there’s no Chaucer, no Katherine Swynford, no debates about the succession. And even when O’Brien references Alice doing things outside of boning Edward III and collecting jewels, like fighting for her properties or giving birth, she never actually shows us Alice doing these things but just refers to them for a couple of sentences.
There’s even a repeated flashback of Alice parading around as the Lady of the Sun and thinking she deserves this pre-eminence but we don’t even get to see the original scene! The fact we see it in flashback twice suggests that the first time was something incredibly special and meaningful to Alice. But do we see it? NO.
I think my biggest issue with this is the way that it treats the women around Alice. To avoid feeling like Alice is a horrible hussy, stealing a dying woman’s husband, O’Brien presents Philippa picking Alice out and raising her to the status of lady-of-waiting with the intention of Alice becoming Edward’s mistress. So it’s all okay, Philippa approves, it’s not really cheating. It even makes sense, to some degree, that Philippa would approve – she is very sick and dying, sex is probably out of the question for her.
But she insists on complete and utter secrecy which means Philippa is really making Alice her pawn and Alice has no choice but to sleep with Edward (even though their relationship is completely and utterly a love match and he never forces her) and Philippa is to blame when the secrecy leaves Alice exposed to the slings and arrows of public opinion. Now, it’s plausible that Philippa, sick and dying, might have approved of Edward taking a mistress or having a sexual relationship with Alice but I don’t find it plausible that Philippa picks Alice out just to be Edward’s mistress. I don’t find it plausible that her approval must remain secret from everyone but especially Edward. Because Philippa and Edward were a famously close and loving marriage – it’s way more likely she’d confide in him before anyone else. And, also, because Philippa’s approval is secret, it doesn’t remove the stink from Edward’s actions. If he doesn’t know she approves, he’s choosing to cheat on his beloved, sickly wife. Seriously. I mean, it’s great Alice has the seal of approval from Philippa so she’s not the homewrecking whore but if Edward doesn’t know his wife approves, he’s still a cheating scumbag and not a dashing romantic hero, y’know?
And there’s no reason for Philippa not to let him know she approves. They had a famously strong, loving relationship. She would trust him far more than Alice, some random person she’s just met and decided is wonderful because she picked up Philippa’s dropped beads.
Plus, while O’Brien never once addresses this, this set-up suggests that Philippa is grooming the young, vulnerable Alice to become her husband’s mistress. A) that’s disgusting, B) it’s all done in the name of denying Alice any responsibility for sleeping with a married man, and C) Philippa of Hainault has done NOTHING to deserve this.
The basic narrative of Alice Perrers’ life presents Philippa as her victim. She is the loyal, steadfast, devoted, seriously ill wife who is dying when Alice hooks up with Edward and is paraded as his mistress in front of everyone. So I’m not really comfortable with O’Brien’s narrative actually making Philippa the real reason for all the public condemnation Alice’s receives and a woman who groomed a vulnerable young woman to become her husband’s mistress.
And then there’s poor Joan of Kent. I was honestly surprised at this because O’Brien’s novel about Joan was quite sympathetic. Here, though – she’s just vain and selfish and out to get poor little Alice. There is absolutely no historical basis for this – I doubt Alice and Joan were friendly but there is not one shred of evidence that Joan thought anything at all about Alice. I also found it quite disturbing that Alice was so focused on Joan’s looks and sexual behaviour, derisively calling her Joan the Fat (in addition to this just being gross, there’s some thought that, like Philippa, Joan suffered from dropsy so yay, mocking a woman for a medical condition! What a badass queen Alice is and not at all a horrible person.) and Joan the Whore.
Wait. Seriously. Wait.
Alice “infamous whore” Perrers is slut-shaming Joan of Kent?
I’m actually speechless. People in glasshouses shouldn’t throw stones and the pot is calling the kettle black and let’s not slut-shame women. Actually, forget that, let’s talk about why Joan was labelled a slut. She, aged around 12, married a man twice her age, the marriage was consummated – and then was forced by her family to marry another man and, without consummating this second marriage, went through the scandal of having her case examined by the Pope and her second marriage annulled. Don’t call her a slut, you dipshit, call Child Protective Services.
Seriously, anyone that thinks Joan of Kent was a slut because of what happened when she was twelve needs their heads checked because WHAT.
Outside of these issues, the novel just dragged and it was a struggle to pick this up, knowing I’d be stuck with Alice and the stupid, ill-conceived storytelling decisions made to make Alice an eternal victim. I don’t know if this is any better than Campion’s The King’s Mistress but if it is, it’s only by a millimetre. After both of those, I’m ready to give up on my dream of a rehabilitated but not endlessly victimised Alice. Honestly, I understand why Alice was so hated because damn she’s insufferable even when she’s “good”.
April 14, 2019
Nope. I lack the will to keep trying this bloated, draggy snoozer. The prospect of pushing onward fills me with ambivalence at best, sheer dread at worst; it's just SO BORING, & I don't GAF about anything that's happened (or will ever happen) to these people. Alice keeps banging on about how ugly she is, & how she wants security, & how everyone hates her...blah blah blah. I just DO NOT CARE.
Bye-bye.
Normally I'd give this a standard 2-star DNF rating, but Alice's continual burbling & the author's meandering prose pissed me off enough to round down. Oops. Guess I'm feeling mean today. :D
Bye-bye.
Normally I'd give this a standard 2-star DNF rating, but Alice's continual burbling & the author's meandering prose pissed me off enough to round down. Oops. Guess I'm feeling mean today. :D
May 1, 2020
4 stars - It was great. I loved it.
I have read little historical fiction set in the 1300’s, and nothing that I can recall of King Edward III and his royal mistress, Alice Perrers. Nor had I read anything by this author prior to this book. It was wonderful on all fronts - engaging and with well fleshed out characters. I will be looking for other works by this author.
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Favorite Quote: I had shown that their hostility meant nothing to me. I would make no excuses, I would not retaliate, I would keep my own counsel. They would see that I had no fear of them. For the first time I learned the true power of self-control.
First Sentence: ‘Today you will be my Lady of the Sun,’ King Edward says as he approaches to settle me into my chariot.
I have read little historical fiction set in the 1300’s, and nothing that I can recall of King Edward III and his royal mistress, Alice Perrers. Nor had I read anything by this author prior to this book. It was wonderful on all fronts - engaging and with well fleshed out characters. I will be looking for other works by this author.
-------------------------------------------
Favorite Quote: I had shown that their hostility meant nothing to me. I would make no excuses, I would not retaliate, I would keep my own counsel. They would see that I had no fear of them. For the first time I learned the true power of self-control.
First Sentence: ‘Today you will be my Lady of the Sun,’ King Edward says as he approaches to settle me into my chariot.
August 1, 2012
Little is known about the life of Alice Perrers, but The King's Concubine strives admirably to fill in the gaps and to paint positive intentions and motivations onto a woman whom history has branded as a villain.
I'm a sucker for English historical fiction, so on many levels I enjoyed the book. It was an engaging and thorough look at a fascinating time period, and at a fascinating monarch.
I thought the love between Edward and Philippa was handled with a perfect touch, and I found the premise that Philippa arranged for the king to have a mistress completely plausible. The complex relationship was well-written and evocative.
However, my enjoyment was marred a little by the choices O'Brien made to justify Alice's actions. While I applaud her for giving Alice agency (as opposed to so many books where the main character is just carried along by fate and makes no choices for herself) Alice made such a series of blatantly bad or dangerous choices that I found it increasingly hard to sympathize with her.
If the book is woven around very few known events, then I'm led to infer that the justifications for Alice's choices were O'Brien's addition. Doing what you know is wrong (or, at least, sure to backfire) for the right reasons doesn't make it right. I wanted to see Alice doing what is right for the right reasons sometimes. Once in a while. Or at least, letting the reader hit a few major crossroads without lines like "I would come to regret that." I wanted some time to relate to and approve of her choices BEFORE learning that they would lead to trouble. It would have gone a long way toward making me sympathetic to the character.
I'm a sucker for English historical fiction, so on many levels I enjoyed the book. It was an engaging and thorough look at a fascinating time period, and at a fascinating monarch.
I thought the love between Edward and Philippa was handled with a perfect touch, and I found the premise that Philippa arranged for the king to have a mistress completely plausible. The complex relationship was well-written and evocative.
However, my enjoyment was marred a little by the choices O'Brien made to justify Alice's actions. While I applaud her for giving Alice agency (as opposed to so many books where the main character is just carried along by fate and makes no choices for herself) Alice made such a series of blatantly bad or dangerous choices that I found it increasingly hard to sympathize with her.
If the book is woven around very few known events, then I'm led to infer that the justifications for Alice's choices were O'Brien's addition. Doing what you know is wrong (or, at least, sure to backfire) for the right reasons doesn't make it right. I wanted to see Alice doing what is right for the right reasons sometimes. Once in a while. Or at least, letting the reader hit a few major crossroads without lines like "I would come to regret that." I wanted some time to relate to and approve of her choices BEFORE learning that they would lead to trouble. It would have gone a long way toward making me sympathetic to the character.
May 4, 2012
My thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin UK (Mira) for an early digital edition to read and review.
The King’s Concubine is set during the reign of Edward III, and describes his relationship with his wife, Philippa of Hainault, and his mistress, Alice Perrers. Little is truly known about the life of Alice Perrers, and yet Anne O’Brien has woven a skilful and believable story about how, in the mid 1360’s, young Alice became one of the Queen’s waiting women. The way in which Alice colluded with Queen Philippa in order to begin a sexual relationship with the King, is described in a compassionate and romantic manner. The story quickly evolves into a sympathetic and warm account of an aging king and his love affair, not just with his astute young mistress, but also with his wife, and courtiers. The medieval court is beautifully described and is perfectly placed within the context of the story.
There is much debate about Alice Perrers, and the influence she had on the aging King, she is often depicted as an avaricious, scheming harpy, or as a femme fatale, but in The King’s Concubine, Anne O’Brien has given a lighter and possibly more sympathetic view of this charismatic medieval mistress.
I enjoyed this version of Alice’s early life, and would definitely recommend this book to my friends who enjoy historical fiction by Philippa Gregory, Vanora Bennett and Emma Campion
The King’s Concubine is set during the reign of Edward III, and describes his relationship with his wife, Philippa of Hainault, and his mistress, Alice Perrers. Little is truly known about the life of Alice Perrers, and yet Anne O’Brien has woven a skilful and believable story about how, in the mid 1360’s, young Alice became one of the Queen’s waiting women. The way in which Alice colluded with Queen Philippa in order to begin a sexual relationship with the King, is described in a compassionate and romantic manner. The story quickly evolves into a sympathetic and warm account of an aging king and his love affair, not just with his astute young mistress, but also with his wife, and courtiers. The medieval court is beautifully described and is perfectly placed within the context of the story.
There is much debate about Alice Perrers, and the influence she had on the aging King, she is often depicted as an avaricious, scheming harpy, or as a femme fatale, but in The King’s Concubine, Anne O’Brien has given a lighter and possibly more sympathetic view of this charismatic medieval mistress.
I enjoyed this version of Alice’s early life, and would definitely recommend this book to my friends who enjoy historical fiction by Philippa Gregory, Vanora Bennett and Emma Campion
March 7, 2016
na knjizi pise Bolja od Philippe Gregory
hmm svaka knjiga koju sam procitala gdje je pisalo bolje od... e tu je slijedilo razocarenje
Knjiga sama po sebi nije losa ali bolja od Gregory ma nema sanse
Dok me Gregory svakom knjigom suptilno uvlacila u dvorce, kraljevstva, zivote aktera knjige, tijekom citanja mogla sam osjetiti atmosferu tog vremena, bila je opipljiva.
Ovo je prva knjiga od Anne O'Brien i naravno procitat cu i druge dvije koje imam ali osim dogadjanja u knjizi nisam osjetila atmosferu tadasnje Engleske ni dasak tog vremena.
Sve u svemu OK za razbibrigu i onog tko voli povijesne romane pogotovo prije i za vrijeme Tudora :)
hmm svaka knjiga koju sam procitala gdje je pisalo bolje od... e tu je slijedilo razocarenje
Knjiga sama po sebi nije losa ali bolja od Gregory ma nema sanse
Dok me Gregory svakom knjigom suptilno uvlacila u dvorce, kraljevstva, zivote aktera knjige, tijekom citanja mogla sam osjetiti atmosferu tog vremena, bila je opipljiva.
Ovo je prva knjiga od Anne O'Brien i naravno procitat cu i druge dvije koje imam ali osim dogadjanja u knjizi nisam osjetila atmosferu tadasnje Engleske ni dasak tog vremena.
Sve u svemu OK za razbibrigu i onog tko voli povijesne romane pogotovo prije i za vrijeme Tudora :)
June 17, 2018
I must admit, this was a very enjoyable read. I expected not to like to like it. Who would have ever thought I could feel sympathy for let alone like Alice Perrers? Not me certainly but Anne O'Brien did the unthinkable and made a believer out of me. I enjoyed the spin on her character immensely. I also enjoyed William Windsor's character very much. He was a likable gent. I didn't find many dull moments throughout this read. Although I knew what was going to happen with some historical events, I was still on the edge of my seat during those moments. Obviously as this is historical fiction so there are some historical inaccuracies as we know it. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the spin.
Narration was good---at times I found it hard to distinguish the characters so 4 stars.
I would recommend this book.
Narration was good---at times I found it hard to distinguish the characters so 4 stars.
I would recommend this book.
May 7, 2019
In this novel, Anne O’Brien undertakes a difficult task – resurrecting one of the most notorious women in British royal history – King Edward III’s mistress, Alice Perrers. She not only gives her a voice, but emotional depth, purpose and places her within the context of both the judgemental court and period. The result is, frankly, stunning.
Not much is known about Alice Perrers, a woman whose humble origins remain shrouded in mystery and yet who nevertheless rose to become one of the most powerful and influential women in the court of King Edward III. Freely called avaricious, “ugly”, a “whore” and a variety of other unflattering names, there’s no doubt that Alice used her position as the king’s concubine to her advantage but, as Warner has made clear is this fictitious account of her life, what other options did she have?
Literate and clearly an astute business woman, Alice becomes a damsel to Edward’s wife, Queen Philippa, by all accounts, a woman beloved by the people, court and, above all, the king. History tells us that even though the king adored his wife, he took Alice as his mistress. Warner seeks to explain the rationale for this in an original and believable fashion.
As Alice’s star rises, she also attracts a great deal of jealousy and resentment. She is a commoner and, worse, she (because, of course, it’s always the woman’s fault) is making a fool of the queen by seducing the king. Aware her status is subject to change with no notice, Alice accumulates property as well as tokens of the king’s affection earning her even more enmity from within the ranks of the nobles – male and female. While the king lives (and, indeed, the queen), she is protected but, as the years pass and, firstly, Philippa dies and the king’s frailty increases and his mortality becomes ever more evident, it’s clear that Alice has to look to her future and that of the four children she bears the king.
Without spoiling it for those who don’t know the little history there is, what Alice does to protect herself and her children is dangerous and the consequences should she get caught, dire. Warner joins the existing dots the contemporary chronicles give us, telling the tale from Alice’s point of view.
Not always likeable, the reader nonetheless grows to understand this pragmatic, strong woman and you cannot help but admire even her poor choices as Alice herself is the first to chide herself for bad decisions and seeks to own them and set them to rights. I found myself championing this thoroughly maligned woman and so appreciate Warner’s take on her story and the unfair epitaphs this resilient, honest and hard-working woman earned.
As I was reading, I couldn’t help but liken her to another strong woman of the time – albeit a fictitious one – Chaucer’s The Wife of Bath – also an astute business woman who uses the means available to her – not only marriage and sex, but within those, her other formidable talents, to create a comfortable existence. It was no surprise then to read in Warner’s very brief notes that some historians (I admit, I haven’t found one yet) believe Chaucer’s portrait of the wife was loosely based on Alice. I like to think the feisty wife was an amalgam of a few women of the time, but there’s no doubt, Alice would have been tempting to immortalise in poetry the way history and then men who recorded it denied her anything but a toxic place.
Altogether, this was a fabulous book that allowed a defamed woman, denied her voice and rights in history, a chance to shine – not always in a positive light, but with understanding, compassion, toughness and an awareness of the limitations the times she lived in created. It also points to the fact that though women of the era were largely marginalised and oppressed, there were still those who challenged, overturned and even worked within the patriarchal structures and were thus able to advance, survive and even thrive. I’m thinking specifically here of John of Gaunt’s mistress, Katheryn Swynford – but there are many others just in that period (Margery Kemp, Julian Norwich etc) as well as Alice Perrers - and it’s wonderful to read Herstory as much as it is History.
Not much is known about Alice Perrers, a woman whose humble origins remain shrouded in mystery and yet who nevertheless rose to become one of the most powerful and influential women in the court of King Edward III. Freely called avaricious, “ugly”, a “whore” and a variety of other unflattering names, there’s no doubt that Alice used her position as the king’s concubine to her advantage but, as Warner has made clear is this fictitious account of her life, what other options did she have?
Literate and clearly an astute business woman, Alice becomes a damsel to Edward’s wife, Queen Philippa, by all accounts, a woman beloved by the people, court and, above all, the king. History tells us that even though the king adored his wife, he took Alice as his mistress. Warner seeks to explain the rationale for this in an original and believable fashion.
As Alice’s star rises, she also attracts a great deal of jealousy and resentment. She is a commoner and, worse, she (because, of course, it’s always the woman’s fault) is making a fool of the queen by seducing the king. Aware her status is subject to change with no notice, Alice accumulates property as well as tokens of the king’s affection earning her even more enmity from within the ranks of the nobles – male and female. While the king lives (and, indeed, the queen), she is protected but, as the years pass and, firstly, Philippa dies and the king’s frailty increases and his mortality becomes ever more evident, it’s clear that Alice has to look to her future and that of the four children she bears the king.
Without spoiling it for those who don’t know the little history there is, what Alice does to protect herself and her children is dangerous and the consequences should she get caught, dire. Warner joins the existing dots the contemporary chronicles give us, telling the tale from Alice’s point of view.
Not always likeable, the reader nonetheless grows to understand this pragmatic, strong woman and you cannot help but admire even her poor choices as Alice herself is the first to chide herself for bad decisions and seeks to own them and set them to rights. I found myself championing this thoroughly maligned woman and so appreciate Warner’s take on her story and the unfair epitaphs this resilient, honest and hard-working woman earned.
As I was reading, I couldn’t help but liken her to another strong woman of the time – albeit a fictitious one – Chaucer’s The Wife of Bath – also an astute business woman who uses the means available to her – not only marriage and sex, but within those, her other formidable talents, to create a comfortable existence. It was no surprise then to read in Warner’s very brief notes that some historians (I admit, I haven’t found one yet) believe Chaucer’s portrait of the wife was loosely based on Alice. I like to think the feisty wife was an amalgam of a few women of the time, but there’s no doubt, Alice would have been tempting to immortalise in poetry the way history and then men who recorded it denied her anything but a toxic place.
Altogether, this was a fabulous book that allowed a defamed woman, denied her voice and rights in history, a chance to shine – not always in a positive light, but with understanding, compassion, toughness and an awareness of the limitations the times she lived in created. It also points to the fact that though women of the era were largely marginalised and oppressed, there were still those who challenged, overturned and even worked within the patriarchal structures and were thus able to advance, survive and even thrive. I’m thinking specifically here of John of Gaunt’s mistress, Katheryn Swynford – but there are many others just in that period (Margery Kemp, Julian Norwich etc) as well as Alice Perrers - and it’s wonderful to read Herstory as much as it is History.
June 20, 2021
I purchased this book from a second hand book seller, I didn’t have my glasses on at the time, but it was in the historical fiction section.
When i got home, my daughter saw it lying around ready to read and to my horror she thought I come home with a “bodice ripper” lol
What a lovely surprise to find it was indeed historical fiction. The book takes you through the life of Alice Perrers, left as a baby at a convent, the great determination she has to better herself and her life. Through some unexpected opportunities and guile, she eventually becomes mistress and finally concubine to Edward III. A great story of the trials and tribulations of her life at court and an insight into historical events of the time, and how women were treated at the time. Well worth a read
When i got home, my daughter saw it lying around ready to read and to my horror she thought I come home with a “bodice ripper” lol
What a lovely surprise to find it was indeed historical fiction. The book takes you through the life of Alice Perrers, left as a baby at a convent, the great determination she has to better herself and her life. Through some unexpected opportunities and guile, she eventually becomes mistress and finally concubine to Edward III. A great story of the trials and tribulations of her life at court and an insight into historical events of the time, and how women were treated at the time. Well worth a read
May 5, 2022
Good historical fiction. Similar to other hf books in the same vein (kings and courts and mistresses) but I still enjoyed this a lot and wouldn't mind reading other books by this author.
May 7, 2012
This is the first historical I have read about King Edward III and Queen Phillipa of Hainault and its really good. Most of what I read is usually set in the Tudor age or during the Wars of the Roses. The King's Concubine was refreshing, and from the first page it immersed me in the medieval era. Alice at first was naive, but then as I followed her story, and her ups and downs at court, you realise how two faced life was then. One minute she was the favourite and a very powerful woman. The next banished and cast away.
This book serves as a great background to the upcoming troubles that follow ie...the Wars of the Roses. Descendents of Edward III and their claim for the throne.
Richly and lavishly described, the book kept me captivated throughout.
Thank you Anne a beautiful book!
This book serves as a great background to the upcoming troubles that follow ie...the Wars of the Roses. Descendents of Edward III and their claim for the throne.
Richly and lavishly described, the book kept me captivated throughout.
Thank you Anne a beautiful book!
November 17, 2013
I do not really know what happened, it could have been growing all week. I was all come on, 600 pages? Why is that needed? Cos honestly nothing happened in the book.
I started to read, it felt ok, but then I started to skim and skimmed to the end. I could have worked through it and given it a good rating but it was a library book which means...I gave up and skimmed. I have too many books. I need awesome, if the library do not give me awesome I go all eh.
I am also not a fan of the this is me, the narrator, I am old now and telling my story. I want to live in the moment. I do not want the narrator as a old woman there with me at the same time looking back.
The book deserved more, I could just not deliver this time.
I started to read, it felt ok, but then I started to skim and skimmed to the end. I could have worked through it and given it a good rating but it was a library book which means...I gave up and skimmed. I have too many books. I need awesome, if the library do not give me awesome I go all eh.
I am also not a fan of the this is me, the narrator, I am old now and telling my story. I want to live in the moment. I do not want the narrator as a old woman there with me at the same time looking back.
The book deserved more, I could just not deliver this time.
April 11, 2015
I started this book with more than a little trepidation. Other books I've read from this time period both fiction and non-fiction did not paint a flattering picture of Alice Perrers. Anne O'Brien has painted a wonderful and engaging portrait of a woman who started with nothing and at one point was a very wealthy woman. She knew her royal patronage would not last forever and planned accordingly. I liked that she was shrewd and conniving but was also very loyal to Edward III. I also think that telling the story in first person narrative was a wise choice so that the reader had more of an idea of where her motivations came from. This book was a wonderful read and I highly recommend it.
May 6, 2015
I found Alice Perrers (or Alice de Windsor, as we should really call her), to be an uninspiring heroine. She was greedy and self-serving. Maybe she wasn't really like that but Ms. O'Brien would have you believe she was. She was constantly stealing (calling a spade a spade) and justifying her actions on every other page. Enough already. I get it. She wants money. She wants land. Life for a medieval woman of no rank was rough. She had to look out for herself and her children, I get it. I didn't feel sorry for this woman at all.
August 18, 2020
This book captures very well the famous saying "Women in power make men uncomfortable".
I knew little of Alice Perrers before this book and that's because history has had the bad habit of overlooking women in history. I have enjoyed Alice's thoughts, strategies, the ability to stand up for herself and of course her growth to understand that she is a woman with her own heart. William de Windsor... what can I say? One wolf can recognise another with a quick glance and smile. This is why I enjoy O'Brien books so much: she gives these women the voice that history has interestedly silenced. Yet some may ask: isn't she greedy? isn't she too much ambitious? isn't she cold and calculated? She might have been. Evil or not, what Anne O'Brien captures is human nature and even though this is historical fiction, the chessboard that the Court was isn't a surprise to anyone.
Would definitely recommend it and I can't wait to get my hands on the next one!
I knew little of Alice Perrers before this book and that's because history has had the bad habit of overlooking women in history. I have enjoyed Alice's thoughts, strategies, the ability to stand up for herself and of course her growth to understand that she is a woman with her own heart. William de Windsor... what can I say? One wolf can recognise another with a quick glance and smile. This is why I enjoy O'Brien books so much: she gives these women the voice that history has interestedly silenced. Yet some may ask: isn't she greedy? isn't she too much ambitious? isn't she cold and calculated? She might have been. Evil or not, what Anne O'Brien captures is human nature and even though this is historical fiction, the chessboard that the Court was isn't a surprise to anyone.
Would definitely recommend it and I can't wait to get my hands on the next one!
December 10, 2018
I went into reading this book thinking I had read it before (but it was actually another historical fiction novel also based on Alice Perrers by a different author and truthfully I preferred that one more). In the beginning, I felt like I was being beaten by the exposition stick - there was just so much info dump and I believe that there are better ways to set the scene rather than explaining it all so bluntly. It was not the kind of novel I was expecting, but once I got over that, an interesting story developed and the second half was definitely more pronounced and nuanced. At times, dialogue was a bit clunky, which surprised me with this author. It was a good book, but it could have been so much better. For the lost potential, I give it 3.5 stars.
March 31, 2018
I picked up this book at a book sale in my local library.
This is the story of Alice Perrers, the mistress of King Edward III. Until I read this book, I hadn't heard of her, but she was a fascinating woman. Starting with nothing, she rose to be the most powerful woman in England at the time.
I sat reading this book with my iPad next to me so I could read more about her life. It was an interesting story.
This is the story of Alice Perrers, the mistress of King Edward III. Until I read this book, I hadn't heard of her, but she was a fascinating woman. Starting with nothing, she rose to be the most powerful woman in England at the time.
I sat reading this book with my iPad next to me so I could read more about her life. It was an interesting story.
August 1, 2025
I’d give it 4.5 stars. The author brought the forgotten Alice Perrers to life. Historically vivid the author paints King Edward IIIs mistress as not only a scandalous court subject but a clever ambitious woman navigating a male dominated world of power and politics. Very much enjoyed reading this fascinating book of 14th century England.
May 20, 2017
Re-read for the 3rd or 4th time, Alice is such a strong character and one of my favorites!
July 22, 2023
2.5*. Think I’ll stick to Philippa Gregory in future for all my royal historical fiction.
May 12, 2012
The King’s Concubine is the story of Alice Perrers the infamous mistress of King Edward III in the 1360’s. I didn’t know anything about this woman in history when I started to read this story, but I found her to be such a fascinating character.
Abandoned as an infant at a convent, Alice was destined to become a nun but she wasn’t too convinced of this. At age 15 she was sent off as a servant to Janyn Perrers and wedded to him in a sham of a marriage but at age 16 years was deemed a widow, homeless and penniless- except for the piece of paper that said she owned some land with thanks to a broker/ agent who took her under their wing. This piece of land was the first placed in her path of planning a life of financial security and stability.
When she returned to the convent she captured the eye of Queen Phillippa who requested she relocate to the Royal Court and Alice eagerly agrees, presumably to become a servant. However, that was not the role the Queen had in mind for this candid young woman. The Queen was ailing and although deeply in love with her husband, the King, she wanted his physical needs to be satisfied by someone she trusted. Her plan was successful when Edward takes an interest in Alice and she then becomes his mistress at just 17 years of age. For 13 years, long past the time of the queen’s death, Alice held the role of mistress of the King despite her brutal reputation by the court people.
Alice was such a fascinating character, an orphan with no real sense of what it is to be loved unconditionally and the only person she could ever rely on was herself. She is painted as a young woman who isn’t afraid to speak her mind which is advantageous for her in capturing the attention of the King and Queen despite her plain looks. Alice gives her youth to Edward and bears four of his children and despite her determination to remain a woman of status and power in the court she faces many, many challenges in remaining there including forfeiting any chances of making friends.
Late in relationship with Edward when his health is waning and they are no longer intimate, Alice fears her position in court is vulnerable, for without Edward she would surely be kicked out- especially if Princess Joan has her way. Alice manages to acquire an extensive collection of manors during her time as mistress with the hope of securing financial stability for her children once the King dies. The abrupt and Charming William de Windsor has a business proposition for her that she cannot deny, to marry him and have further security when the King dies by having a husband who can make a joint-claim on all her properties and protect her from the court.
But their relationship seems to deepen beyond the realm of business and Alice fights her true feelings for Windsor despite her undying loyalty to the king. However, her provisions for stability when she steps down from role of mistress may actually cause what she most feared, to be thrown out of court anyway.
I honestly didn’t know what was going to happen next in The Kings Concubine and I really admired Alice for her resilience, resourcefulness and her drive to survive which blatantly comes across as greed and power hungry, but I think she had a deep sense of wanting to succeed and overcome the adversity she was born into. There were times when I just wanted to shake her and make her appreciate everything she had achieved and all of her wealth when all she wanted was more. But there were also times when I thought you go girl when she put the snooty princesses in their place. There’s no doubt Alice was a strong, powerful woman but what I enjoyed the most was the last part of the book when she finally succumbed to her true feelings for Windsor and experienced what it was like to have a relationship based on equity and honesty, not playing the role of mistress which had taken over most of her life. It hasn’t got a happily ever after ending, but it is satisfactory no doubt. I really recommend this novel to historical fiction fans who would like to delve into the life of a strong, dogmatic woman who is both frustrating and likeable in her own way.
Abandoned as an infant at a convent, Alice was destined to become a nun but she wasn’t too convinced of this. At age 15 she was sent off as a servant to Janyn Perrers and wedded to him in a sham of a marriage but at age 16 years was deemed a widow, homeless and penniless- except for the piece of paper that said she owned some land with thanks to a broker/ agent who took her under their wing. This piece of land was the first placed in her path of planning a life of financial security and stability.
When she returned to the convent she captured the eye of Queen Phillippa who requested she relocate to the Royal Court and Alice eagerly agrees, presumably to become a servant. However, that was not the role the Queen had in mind for this candid young woman. The Queen was ailing and although deeply in love with her husband, the King, she wanted his physical needs to be satisfied by someone she trusted. Her plan was successful when Edward takes an interest in Alice and she then becomes his mistress at just 17 years of age. For 13 years, long past the time of the queen’s death, Alice held the role of mistress of the King despite her brutal reputation by the court people.
Alice was such a fascinating character, an orphan with no real sense of what it is to be loved unconditionally and the only person she could ever rely on was herself. She is painted as a young woman who isn’t afraid to speak her mind which is advantageous for her in capturing the attention of the King and Queen despite her plain looks. Alice gives her youth to Edward and bears four of his children and despite her determination to remain a woman of status and power in the court she faces many, many challenges in remaining there including forfeiting any chances of making friends.
Late in relationship with Edward when his health is waning and they are no longer intimate, Alice fears her position in court is vulnerable, for without Edward she would surely be kicked out- especially if Princess Joan has her way. Alice manages to acquire an extensive collection of manors during her time as mistress with the hope of securing financial stability for her children once the King dies. The abrupt and Charming William de Windsor has a business proposition for her that she cannot deny, to marry him and have further security when the King dies by having a husband who can make a joint-claim on all her properties and protect her from the court.
But their relationship seems to deepen beyond the realm of business and Alice fights her true feelings for Windsor despite her undying loyalty to the king. However, her provisions for stability when she steps down from role of mistress may actually cause what she most feared, to be thrown out of court anyway.
I honestly didn’t know what was going to happen next in The Kings Concubine and I really admired Alice for her resilience, resourcefulness and her drive to survive which blatantly comes across as greed and power hungry, but I think she had a deep sense of wanting to succeed and overcome the adversity she was born into. There were times when I just wanted to shake her and make her appreciate everything she had achieved and all of her wealth when all she wanted was more. But there were also times when I thought you go girl when she put the snooty princesses in their place. There’s no doubt Alice was a strong, powerful woman but what I enjoyed the most was the last part of the book when she finally succumbed to her true feelings for Windsor and experienced what it was like to have a relationship based on equity and honesty, not playing the role of mistress which had taken over most of her life. It hasn’t got a happily ever after ending, but it is satisfactory no doubt. I really recommend this novel to historical fiction fans who would like to delve into the life of a strong, dogmatic woman who is both frustrating and likeable in her own way.
November 22, 2012
As a novel, the story of a rise of Alice Perrers might seem a bit dry, but as a historical account of a magnificent woman who achieved so much way ahead of her time? It's glorious!
I loved Alice Perrers because no matter what she faced she kept her integrity. I'm actually really fascinated with that time period and Plantagenets are my favorite royal branch of British monarchy.
The narration is led by Alice Perrers largely from her memories. She talks about her common upbringing in the Abbey on the outskirts of London and a strange series of events that made her rise up so unexpectedly high.
What surprised me most was that Alice is not pretty, she is considered ugly but her features are just striking. Because she is convinced that her appearance is worthless she relies on her sharp wit, business instinct and for the most of her life avoids mirrors. Her forthrightness and charm is what attracts the men in her life.
Edward III is portrayed in the sunset of his reign, but he is still blinding Alice with his golden glow and when she meets him she is truly admiring him and slowly falls in love despite the huge age difference between them (she is 17 and he is 50+). Edward is such an interesting monarch!
His marriage to Philippa when they both were just kids became a love match and they raised 12 children together, however Philippa is dying from a grave illness (I'm guessing it might be a severe rheumatoid arthritis because she is in a lot of pain most of the time and the slightest touch feels like torture) so when she meets Alice she decides to push her in Edward's path so she would become his mistress in her own stead.
Two women make a sort of a silent pact. Alice's respect and admiration for Philippa is running deep, but she has to keep silence and be despised by the court for capturing King's heart and betraying the Queen.
There are so many yummy bits in this novel I'm at loss as to what to talk about. Alice herself is one of these rare women who manage to create incredible path for themselves. When she is married for the first time, she makes a decision to buy her first property with her husband's secretary help. By the time she's been King's mistress for 10 years she is an owner of 56 properties around London. 56! Do you know how incredibly rare this is for a woman of common upbringing or any upbringing in those days? I was in awe of her.
She stays loyal to the King especially when his health falters and he starts to deteriorate physically and mentally. She tries to protect him no matter what.
Her second husband reminded me of Rhett Butler. William de Windsor is an ambitious, cold-hearted son of a bitch but at the same time over the years between cutting remarks and ugly truths which pepper his verbal exchanges with Alice they develop genuine affection for each other which get them through the hardships of King's final days and his death.
The King's Concubine is a very interesting novel, full of charismatic intense characters, and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.
I loved Alice Perrers because no matter what she faced she kept her integrity. I'm actually really fascinated with that time period and Plantagenets are my favorite royal branch of British monarchy.
The narration is led by Alice Perrers largely from her memories. She talks about her common upbringing in the Abbey on the outskirts of London and a strange series of events that made her rise up so unexpectedly high.
What surprised me most was that Alice is not pretty, she is considered ugly but her features are just striking. Because she is convinced that her appearance is worthless she relies on her sharp wit, business instinct and for the most of her life avoids mirrors. Her forthrightness and charm is what attracts the men in her life.
Edward III is portrayed in the sunset of his reign, but he is still blinding Alice with his golden glow and when she meets him she is truly admiring him and slowly falls in love despite the huge age difference between them (she is 17 and he is 50+). Edward is such an interesting monarch!
His marriage to Philippa when they both were just kids became a love match and they raised 12 children together, however Philippa is dying from a grave illness (I'm guessing it might be a severe rheumatoid arthritis because she is in a lot of pain most of the time and the slightest touch feels like torture) so when she meets Alice she decides to push her in Edward's path so she would become his mistress in her own stead.
Two women make a sort of a silent pact. Alice's respect and admiration for Philippa is running deep, but she has to keep silence and be despised by the court for capturing King's heart and betraying the Queen.
There are so many yummy bits in this novel I'm at loss as to what to talk about. Alice herself is one of these rare women who manage to create incredible path for themselves. When she is married for the first time, she makes a decision to buy her first property with her husband's secretary help. By the time she's been King's mistress for 10 years she is an owner of 56 properties around London. 56! Do you know how incredibly rare this is for a woman of common upbringing or any upbringing in those days? I was in awe of her.
She stays loyal to the King especially when his health falters and he starts to deteriorate physically and mentally. She tries to protect him no matter what.
Her second husband reminded me of Rhett Butler. William de Windsor is an ambitious, cold-hearted son of a bitch but at the same time over the years between cutting remarks and ugly truths which pepper his verbal exchanges with Alice they develop genuine affection for each other which get them through the hardships of King's final days and his death.
The King's Concubine is a very interesting novel, full of charismatic intense characters, and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.
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