The Merry Monarch's Wife

Queens of England #9

by Jean Plaidy

Charles II is restored to the English throne, and his court is lively and even scandalous. The country is eager for succession to be clear and The next king will be the son of Charles II and his queen, Catherine of Braganza. Yet Catherine, daughter of the king of Portugal and a Catholic, has never been popular with the English people. She is also having great difficulty conceiving an heir, even as many of Charles’s well-known mistresses are bearing his children with ease. Catherine is aware that courtiers close to Charles are asking him to divorce her and take another wife—yet she is determined to hold her title in the face of all odds.

The ninth novel in the beloved Queens of England series, The Merry Monarch’s Wife brings Catherine of Braganza to life and plunges readers into the tumultuous world of Restoration England.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Historical, British Literature, 17th Century, Romance, Royalty

352 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1991

About the author

Eleanor Alice Burford, Mrs. George Percival Hibbert was a British author of about 200 historical novels, most of them under the pen name Jean Plaidy which had sold 14 million copies by the time of her death. She chose to use various names because of the differences in subject matter between her books; the best-known, apart from Plaidy, are Victoria Holt (56 million) and Philippa Carr (3 million). Lesser known were the novels Hibbert published under her maiden name Eleanor Burford, or the pseudonyms of Elbur Ford, Kathleen Kellow and Ellalice Tate. Many of her readers under one penname never suspected her other identities.
-Wikipedia

Reviews

[H (trying to keep up with GR friends) Balikov · Rating 2 out of 5]

Captain Renault:
What in heaven's name brought you to Casablanca?

Rick:
My health. I came to Casablanca for the waters.

Captain Renault:
The waters? What waters? We're in the desert.

Rick:
I was misinformed.

This is my first encounter with Jean Plaidy's Queens of England Series. I thought I might be getting Hilary Mantel; I was misinformed.

This book dramatizes the life of Catherine of Braganza. She, a good Catholic, married Charles II of England whose good fortune it was to be available at the restoration of the British monarchy after the great Civil War. Charles' father was beheaded in that conflict. Catherine was married to Charles to cement a relationship between England and Portugal and provide some buffer between the warring parties in the Iberian peninsula.

Catherine's father got what he wanted in the deal, and was willing to pay a substantial price for it. Aside from the money in the dowry, England got concessions in north Africa and India --- items that led to Britain's later domination of India and other places in Asia.

Plaidy, instead, chooses to caste Catherine as a "pawn in the game of life." Everything happens to her. She seems to do nothing, take no initiative on her own.

The "Merry Monarch" of the title had romantic involvements both before and during his marriage to Catherine. Perhaps because of his bride's miscarriages and inability to produce an heir, Charles fathered and recognized many out of wedlock progeny. The book takes us on a long journey through Catherine's fidelity to Roman Catholicism. The English people had difficulty warming to her because her religion stood in the way. She was accused at various times of treason and other offenses. Charles, to his credit, was her strong defender. When he died, she stayed in England.

It was the Portuguese who, being among the first Western sailors to Asia, brought back tea. It became popular among their nobility. It was Catherine who, as part of her dowry, brought several chests of tea with her to England. She made it fashionable at Court and from there to the general public. Plaidy makes little note of this, and other things less titilating.

[S.Baqer Al-Meshqab · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5
The writing is slightly better than average to be honest.
The beginning of th story was very slow, and the ending felt very rushed.
However, it was an enjoyable read.

[Kelly A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Guess what?! I have a new favourite Queen. Sorry Tudor queens, but Catherine of Braganza has taken your place. For being a rarely talked about person in English history, she sure was a fascinating person. She may not have conducted scandalous affairs or had her head chopped off, but she is memorable in her own way.

Jean Plaidy’s book, The Merry Monarch’s Wife, is written in the form of Catherine's memoir (J.P. likes to do this a lot...it's not really my favourite writing technique). I knew very little about her life in Portugal as an Infanta, so that was really interesting to read about. Her Portuguese relatives were rather....um, eccentric. I think I want to learn more about her crazy brother Alfonso. Catherine comes to England as an old lady of 23 and marries Charles. As the years pass, she must deal with Charles's numerous mistresses and bastard children, and also threats against her for being Catholic. When Charles dies, we learn about how she deals with the disasters of the succession and the Monmouth rebellion, and also the mounting prejudice she faces when William and Mary came to the throne. Fed up with England, she spends her remaining years back in Portugal.

Charles's and Catherine's relationship is my favourite part of the story. Catherine never had any children, thus skewing the succession (in favour of the Catholic James II). Charles was pressed by his advisors to divorce Catherine; he refused this suggestion and kept her safe, even though it was at the risk of the country. Also, he always defended her against his mistresses, she would always take precedence in his eyes. How adorable is that? It's certainly different that what I've read about with other English monarchs (ahem, Henry VIII).

Some interesting tidbits I found out about Catherine: she was the person who introduced the custom of drinking tea in England. The practice was virtually unheard of before she arrived. Can you imagine the country without its tea?! The English can also thank her for bringing the fork to tables. It is also speculated that Queens, the New York City borough, is named after her, though there is some debate about that.

This book just further reinforces the fact that I love Jean Plaidy! I recently bought The Loves of Charles II, which has another POV from Catherine (along with his mistresses, of whom you learn about in this book too). I'd even recommend this book to those who don't normal read historical fiction. It's a great book with plenty of action, culture, and a rather unconventional love story. 5 stars!

For those of you who have seen the Harry Potter films, remember Moaning Myrtle? Who can forget her whiny, simpering voice? Well, in The Last King, a British television series that chronicled Charles II’s life as King, Catherine of Braganza was played by the same actress who played Moaning Myrtle (I also saw her in Bridget Jones’s Diary....she sure has a wide range of characters). Surprisingly, she was AMAZING! Her portrayal of the queen is what truly made Catherine a favourite. (Speaking of Harry Potter nerdisms, Filch, Narcissa Malfoy, teenaged Tom Riddle and Oliver Wood are also in this series). Anyways, the entire mini-series about Charles II is wonderful, I highly recommend it.

[Vanda Ribeiro · Rating 4 out of 5]

Uma grande Sra, rainha de Inglaterra onde viveu durante 30 anos e depois ao regressar a Portugal, rainha regente durante 6 anos.
Gosto sempre de ler e aprender sobre pessoas reais, que fazem parte da história do mundo 🙂

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading Jean Plaidy's The Merry Monarch's Wife. Catherine of Braganza was the queen of Charles II. For those familiar with the reign of Charles II, you can imagine what a life she led for better or worse. The book seeks to capture her personal perspective of her husband, of her marriage, of her adopted country. (She's coming from Portugal to England.)

Plaidy's depiction has Catherine truly in love with the King, and oh-so-aware of his shortcomings. In her reckoning, Charles II could not help himself at all, he was completely incapable of fidelity. Readers catch glimpses here and there of Charles' many, many mistresses. But not as much as you might imagine. That is, the focus is on HER and not truly on him and his activities. She is aware of his favorites at any given time, and at times she's sought out in conversation by mistresses in and out of favor.

There is definitely a lot of POLITICS in Merry Monarch's Wife. Readers learn about various plots and threats and conspiracies. Readers meet men and women who are ambitious and manipulative and power-hungry.

I was familiar, in a way, with some of the details of his reign. But not of what life was like for her before and after. Before her arrival in England and after Charles II's death. This book tells a fairly complete story.

[Juliew. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this story of Catherine of Braganza's life.As the book begins we learn that Catherine is proposed as a bride for the prince of wales in England.But the government in england rises up to overthrow the monarchy making the marriage impossible for the now exiled Charles II.Yet Catherine's mother and Catherine herself hold out hope and after some years of waiting the marriage takes place.Catherine soon finds herself in a court without morals and with a husband who seems to have the least of them all.But Catherine slowly comes to realize through intrigue,deceit, plots and death she wishes to be no where else or with anyone else.I loved the ending.

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jean Plaidy's Pleasures of Love is focused on the third Queen of England in the Stuart era, Catherine of Braganza. Growing up in a convent as her mother ruled Portugal as regent to her brother, Catherine lived a very sheltered life. Engaged to Charles II of England, Catherine and her mother never lost hope of the marriage even as Cromwell took power. This was because England recognized her country as independent from Spanish control and were willing to help on the agreement of marriage. When the day finally came, Catherine is head over heels for Charles, that is, until she realized Charles' heart will never truly belong to her when she finds out of his numerous infidelities with other women like Barbara Castlemaine. Though she tries to take a stand against the matters, it seems to drive Charles away from her more. She yearns for his affection and eventually submits herself to tolerate the presence of these other women, in turn, she becomes Charles' greatest friend and earns his respect for her much more. And in doing so, he would be her greatest protector, as when it became apparent that she would never birth an heir, he refuses any implications of a divorce, believing she was his true wife through it all.

She learns to make herself accustomed to the English ways, more so than her predecessor, Henrietta Maria, earning some sympathy from the court and public for her discretion on Catholicism. Despite her Catholic advisors insistence, and her religious bias, to turn the King Catholic, she knows in her heart that would never be possible in a country that is staunchly Protestant and keeps that matter at a backseat. Outside of her inability to conceive and mistresses' rivalries, the greatest dangers she ever faced were accusations from Titus Oates and the wake of the Glorious Revolution, in which she lived to see after the death of Charles. It was through her own ingenuity and Charles' protection that she was spared from any potential harm, though it costed her a lot of friends in the process as they were scapegoated her in the issues. After all these issues, it makes the ending a little more satisfying in that she not only got to return to Portugal and lived as an icon of strength by the people and her family for what she did, as she temporarily took regency for her nephew shortly before her death.

As I said before, Plaidy's ability to create sympathetic Queen protagonists while keeping true to history is a real treat for historical fiction readers. Because Catherine didn't keep much written documentation of her thoughts, nor is there much info on her for that matter, Plaidy likely to had to come up with the characterization of the Queen more so than any other Stuart Queen. In which, I believe she succeeded in so, Catherine starts out as a love-struck naive Infanta who eventually becomes a dignified, empathetic wife to a husband whom she could never win over and to courtiers of a country that never outgrew their suspicions of her. And after Charles' passing, she finds inner strength that not only kept her head intact, but also finally brought the happiness she so desired back in Portugal. Though she would've stayed in England until the end, the anti-Catholic reign of William & Mary pushed her out, Catherine still yearned to be in Charles' court for she finally found the true meaning of love from a man who showed her much more respect than any other person could have.

For such an overlooked Queen, I always wanted to know more her story. Jean Plaidy made one to my satisfaction, weaving the tone of the 17th century with major characters that appear to have played little in ruling, yet left a great impact of a legacy that shaped the way that England would transform itself in the centuries after. Seeing into the mind of a consort was a great pleasure, and now having finished the books on the three Stuart Queens: Henrietta Maria, Catherine & Mary II, I would say this one is the strongest. There is much intrigue that you are kept in your seats waiting to see what else pops up for Catherine on her journey of Queenship. Overall, this story was strong from start to finish, and overall the best one of the Stuart Queens books I would say in this series!

[MBenzz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. Behind Henry VIII, Charles II is my favorite monarch. I've read his story from the point of view of three of his main mistresses and both his nieces, Mary and Ann. I'm not sure why it took me so long to come around to Catherine, but it was certainly a very different look at the most licentious court England had seen in quite some time.

Catherine's mother started planning a marriage between her daughter and Charles when Catherine was just a little girl. England was under the puritan rule of Oliver Cromwell at the time, but she was certain that someday the monarchy would be restored. When it was, her daughter would be the one to join Portugal and England, which would help to drive Spain away from attacking the small country. Catherine grew up dreaming of a romanticized version of Charles. She couldn't wait for the time to come when she would leave for England...very unusual at the time since most royal Princesses dreaded leaving their homeland to marry a strange Prince from a far-away, unfamiliar land.

Catharine's mother's intuition proved correct, and at the ripe old age of 23, she finally sailed to England to marry her dashing King. One thing that surprised me was Ms. Plaidy mentioning very pointedly that Catherine did NOT get married by proxy in Portugal, when in fact, she did. In Lisbon on April 23, 1662. This would have been to assure that there would be no doubt that she was the Queen of England during the journey from Portugal to England and married to King Charles II.

Upon Catherine's arrival, the dream she had built up was quickly shattered, and reality set in. She truly did love Charles, but she was shocked to discover that he kept mistresses...and a lot of them (over the years). It took her a while before she learned that she would never be the only woman to hold the heart of the King, but once she truly accepted him for who he was, they loved one another very deeply. Charles was extremely protective of his little Queen...he would not tolerate his mistresses speaking ill of her, and he refused to divorce her once it became apparent that she would never give birth to a son.

Overall, this was an excellent realistic look into the court of Charles II. This is not the sex-filled gossipy mistress version, but the real story from a loving wife and Queen who came to this country from a very different place and just wanted to fit in. My only issue with the book, and why I gave it 4 stars instead of 5, was the second half seemed much more rushed. There was a lot of 'As the years passed...', which would quickly fly over 3-5 years. It's almost like Ms. Plaidy realized the book would be way too long if she continued writing it in the same descriptive manner as the first half, so she cut back on the dialogue and descriptions dramatically in the second half. It didn't take away from the story too much, but some events were quickly told to us almost as an afterthought, instead of finding out how these events affected certain people. In the end, though, I absolutely recommend this book, especially if you love Restoration England. Yes, the mistresses are fun, and their side of the story is always more exciting, but it's definitely worth the time to get to know the wife of England's Merriest Monarch.

[Phil Syphe · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Queens of England series is Jean Plaidy's retelling of novels she's already written. The difference being the earlier novels are in the third person; TQOE books are in the first person. The books are stand-alone novels, not a series of sequels.

“The Merry Monarch’s Wife” is about Charles II’s consort Catherine of Braganza. I knew hardly anything about this former Queen of England, so while the story failed to excite me owing to how it’s written, it did interest me at times. Catherine was a Portuguese princess who came to England to marry Charles was she was twenty-two. I would’ve liked a bit more development of her time growing up in Portugal, which in turn would’ve better developed her character. Those twenty-two years are glanced over rather quickly.

What made this book better than most others in this weak (as I consider it) series is the portrayal of Catherine’s relationship with Charles. Despite all his infidelities, you sense he feels genuine love for her, while she loves him so much that she prefers sharing him than to being without him.

Like the other books in the series, this one features many events that the narrator has no direct involvement in, so the story has many dry second-hand reports. This, to me, makes the point of rewriting a third-person narrative as a first-person one pointless.

Below is an example of what I mean:

‘Lord Feversham kept me in touch with the news. These tête-á-têtes had become a custom with us, and from him I learned much more than I could from the gossip of the ladies or the scraps of news which came to me from other sources.’

Also this, of which the second sentence sounds more like a modern historian weighing up evidence from their research sources:

‘I heard the story of what happened. It was passed on by the servants and there were several versions, but they all agreed on the salient points.’

In cases like this, in which Catherine plays no direct part and instead reports on what she's been told, it’s like reading a textbook:

‘Oates told Tonge that he must make their declaration before a Justice of the Peace, since the King had not wished to go before the Privy Council. This was the duty of a good citizen, insisted Oates. So, accordingly, this was done. He and Tongue went to the offices of Sir Edmund Berry Godfrey and set their “discoveries” before him. They gave their oath on this, and, realizing the nature of their revelations, Sir Edmund decided that he must bring the matter to the notice of the Council.’

Regarding Charles II’s sister Henriette's visit to England, we get, ‘There was a good deal of gossip about her and some of it came to my ears,’ followed by dry accounts of Henriette and the French court. Catherine never goes to the French court, so this is all so irrelevant to her first-person narrative.

Events like the Great Plague and the Great Fire likewise are presented passively. Catherine was safely out of harm’s way, so again the reader is left with dry second-hand reports of, for example, Charles and his brother James's heroics in tackling the fire. This could've been exciting if dramatized, but not when told matter-of-factly.

It would've made more sense if the author had used her imagination and invented scenes featuring Catherine and her frustrations of not knowing what was happening, and perhaps have her sharing confidences with one of the court ladies, which could've developed her character.

The author needlessly makes her prose dry and passive with flowery language like: ‘He had died on the third of September of that year 1658.’ It would’ve read smoother if condensed to, ‘He died in September 1658.’ Mentioning the year makes sense because it locates the reader in the given period, and stating the month makes sense in all literary genres, but as it’s not a textbook, the reader doesn’t need to know the exact day of the month unless it's relevant to the story.

Telling is one of the author’s worse traits: ‘Charles was clearly perplexed.’ Was he? Telling me this shows me nothing.

Something about Jean Plaidy’s books keep me coming back for more. Perhaps it’s her obvious love for English and French history, which I share, that draws me back. I wish she’d focused less on turning out as greater quantity of novels as possible and concentrated more on quality writing. A novel like this one should be revised about 20 times, yet this at best feels like a third draft. Endless second-hand reports, most of which have no relevance to Catherine, spoil what could've been an entertaining novel.

[Alice · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unfortunately for Catherine of Braganza, she is one of those queens who is overshadowed by a larger than life husband and king and by his many dynamic mistresses. Presented here as a dutiful, demure, and permissive wife, Catherine is the reader's eyes and ears to the English Restoration and the years afterwards. She paints an unforgettable portrait, and in the process, she becomes unforgettable herself.

When Catherine comes to England, she is utterly ignorant of English customs, the language, and the nature of the man she has married. Despite being in her early twenties, she is like a child. According to the book, Catherine's powerful mother had been holding out for an alliance with England for a long time, which is why it boggles my mind that she wouldn't think to employ and English-language tutor for her daughter, who was apparently quite studious. Seems like the proactive thing to do, but what do I know?

That said, Catherine is far more adaptable than her predecessor Henrietta Maria was. It is this adaptability that endears her to Charles II who, by all accounts, is flippant about controversy but willing to hold onto the throne no matter what the cost. Here, he's painted as a rather relaxed monarch, both in morals and policy, but if one reads between the lines, we see a statesman who is astute and cunning. He knows how to keep his subjects happy, though there are time when he could and should assert his rights as king more, especially when it comes to the Popish Plot.

A lot of historical events are covered here, and they're quite thrilling to read, almost as thrilling as the various mistresses that cross the page. Ironically, through them, we see Catherine grow into herself and even acquire some agency, though it is minimal. There are Barbara Castlemaine, Nell Gwynne, and Louise Keroualle. Each of them offers the king something different, but none of them offer the stability and tranquility that Catherine promises. It's this hold she has on Charles that prevents him from divorcing her, despite her inability to have children. Moreover, she is able to leverage her position as England's queen to influence events from her native Portugal. Her naivety enhances her patriotism, and she comes off as a monarch determined to do good.

This is where the book unceremoniously cuts off. Just as Catherine is about to ascend to the regency of her homeland Portugal, long after Charles has died and his brother James has been deposed, Plaidy ends the book. It's so disappointing because the book isn't that long. There was definitely space to explore this chapter of Catherine's life where she wielded unprecedented power to protect her nascent Portugal from the clutches of Spain during her brother's ill health. I would have loved to learn more but, alas, I must rely on other sources to do that.

Overall, this is a moving book. Sometimes pitiable, sometimes exciting, but always intriguing. I know very little about the Stuart dynasty and the Restoration, so I appreciated this glimpse into that time period. Another entertaining entry by Plaidy that I must recommend to historical fiction lovers.

[Dayanara Ryelle]

I decided not to rate this, because it's partially my fault for not doing my research and learning that Caterina Bragança was basically hated for being a Catholic and unable to have children, which makes for a flat tale to begin with. Add it to Jean's low-key storytelling style and the whole thing ends up being a no-go for me.

I was going to hang on until Caterina's first encounter with one of Charles's mistresses, but I found a big enough mistake that I decided to quit early.

Charles says that Hampton Court Palace was built "some 400 years ago" (so about 1262), it was bought by Cardinal Wolsey and then Henry VIII "took it from him".

In reality, the only thing Thomas Cardinal Wolsey bought was the land. Construction on HC started in 1512 and in 1529, he donated the palace to Henry VIII as a way to burnish his favor. At the time Charles was telling Caterina about the palace, it was already 148 years from the beginning of construction, not 400.

[Judith · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've always enjoyed Jean Plaidy's novels. This story of Charles II's long suffering Catherine of Braganza is one of the better ones. While Catherine is overlooked by many writers, she actually changed the course of history and the British monarchy. Her inability to give Charles an legitimate heir allowed the crown to pass eventually to his nieces Mary and Anne and then to the Hanovarians.
This novel is written though the eyes of Catherine. We see the great love she born for her husband and her pain in disappointing him. We also get a picture of Charles and his fear of having to go roaming again.

[Ana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh. Not bad, but not great either. This book covered a fairly interesting historic figure and did a decent job of considering what Catherine's personality and thoughts might have been like. However, many parts of this book, especially the parts about the Popish Plot, read like a Wikipedia entry.

Plaidy's hallmark is presenting the facts without overdramatizing or making stuff up. However, at a certain point, a little emotion and drama is called for. This is supposed to be a novel, not a biography.

[Lynn Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

aka The Merry Monarch's Wife the story of Catherine of Braganza wife of Charles II of England.
Synopsis:
Charles II is restored to the English throne, and his court is lively and even scandalous. The country is eager for succession to be clear and certain: The next king will be the son of Charles II and his queen, Catherine of Braganza. Yet Catherine, daughter of the king of Portugal and a Catholic, has never been popular with the English people. She is also having great difficulty conceiving an heir, even as many of Charles’s well-known mistresses are bearing his children with ease. Catherine is aware that courtiers close to Charles are asking him to divorce her and take another wife—yet she is determined to hold her title in the face of all odds.

The ninth novel in the beloved Queens of England series, The Merry Monarch’s Wife brings Catherine of Braganza to life and plunges readers into the tumultuous world of Restoration England.

[Jean · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jean Plaidy always writes great books. This one is abou King Charles the 2nds wife. What a strange time they lived in. Everyone thinks being royal was or maybe is, so wonderful. But I wonder just how wonderful it really was after reading these books.

[Meredith · Rating 3 out of 5]

I recently read a book about Frances Stuart so I thought I would enjoy a book from a different perspective about the same people, but this was a bit plodding in comparison.

[Hans · Rating 3 out of 5]

The monarch is merry. His wife certainly less so.
A little surprise in the end though.

[Heather C · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Merry Monarch’s Wife by Jean Plaidy

Genre: Historical Fiction

Catherine of Braganza is a quiet, reserved, and innocent young lady when she comes to marry the Merry Monarch at the licentious court of Charles II. Her eyes are rather quickly opened when she is introduced to her new husband’s mistress, Barbara Palmer. Catherine would have to figure out how to handle her husband’s many mistresses: Barbara Palmer, Louise de Kerouaille, Nell Gwyn and many others. Catherine also has to handle the many plots that implicated her in attempts on the King’s life, hatred toward her for her Catholic religion, and failure to conceive an heir.

Plaidy does a great job at describing the many mistresses that Charles II has. We get to see not only how the court and countrymen reacted to these many women but also have an insight into what Catherine might have felt about them. She is a character that you can find much sympathy for, especially as another woman. I can imagine that it would be hard enough to handle one mistress, never mind several at once.

Prior to reading this book I had no experience with the court of Charles II. Charles is quite the interesting person. He was always lively and jovial and quick to brush off personal problems. It is amazing how carefree his life seems to be. While he cares about how his dalliances with other women affect his wife, he also expects her to handle them with decorum and not pay any attention to it (the nerve!).

Of the few Plaidy novels that I have read so far this is one of my favorites. The characters are very well developed and I could really feel for Catherine. Enough background information is given for a solid understanding of these people without having to look anything up to feel comfortable in that time period.

Plaidy is definitely becoming one of my favorite authors!

4.5 out of 5 stars

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am new to the Stuarts, and the previous novel I read (Myself My Enemy) was a tragic introduction to the
Charleses. Catherine of Braganza is an unlikely heroine, the contrast between her innocence and Charles II's widespread experience could not be greater. She had some adjustments to make - but with all their efforts, she could not produce an heir, which fact endangered her position. After all, Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII weren't all that long before...

In spite of myself, I like Plaidy's first person narratives. This technique works well for Henrietta Maria in the previous reign described by the abovementioned novel, and is equally effective for Catherine of Braganza even though two women could hardly be more different. One can only have a lot of respect for Catherine in how she comports herself and faces the dangers that have arisen from the uncertainty of the succession. Charles is sympathetically portrayed through her eyes, and here we have a wonderful love story as well.

This may be among my top five Plaidys.

[Elisa Santos · Rating 3 out of 5]

Li este livro com uma certa curiosidade em saber o que é que uma escritora inglesa teria a dizer ácerca de uma rainha inglesa, de origem portuguesa, e para mais uma rainha tão marcante quanto Catarina de Bragança. Após ler o romance de Isabel Stilwell, quiz fazer essa comparação.

Os livros são similares na sua perspectiva da relação de Carlos e Catarina, que, apesar da insaciabilidade do rei, era uma relação de amor e companheirismo: ela amava-o e ele procurava nela a calma, a devoção, o bom-senso que faltavam a tantas das suas amantes.

Só tive pena que não desenvolvesse um pouco mais em algumas partes, porque a infancia dela foi passada "a correr", as gravidezes e o sofrimento associado á perda de cada um dos bébés, a vinda dela para Portugal,no fim da vida, e a fase em que foi Regente, enquanto seu irmão estava doente.

É um livro de fácil leitura e compreensão, mesmo que não se saiba muito ácerca da época da Restauração em Inglaterra.

Gostei, mas só dei 3 estrelas porque me pareceu que faltou algo mais.

[S · Rating 1 out of 5]

I did not finish this book - after 247 pages of practically nothing happening, it did not seem worth any more of my time. Much of the so-called plot takes place only through narratives that Charles tells Catherine in retrospect. She seems to live through nothing, experience nothing, do nothing, feel nothing, and think nothing. She is intensely dull as a character. Even Catherine's somewhat well-known loyalty to Charles is bland and feels hollow.

The first third or so was alright. After that, Ms. Plaidy would remind readers continually about the same facts. This is one of my pet peeves as far as novels go. We don't need to be reminded so very often that Catherine is barren, or James becomes Catholic, or Charles dotes over this or that person. It simply felt to be an anemic tale about a queen whose story could say much about interpersonal relationships, but ended up saying nothing of interest or import at all.

[Cayleigh · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the story of Catherine of Braganza, the wife of King Charles II. I read a lot of novels about English I do believe I have read some stories of King Charles II and his (many) mistresses but this is one of the only ones I’ve read solely from Catholic wife Catherine’s point of view. I liked it, and I will definitely be picking up another of Plaidy’s many Queen’s of England books but I didn’t 100% connect with Catherine. How she was written it seemed as if every event was happening to her, but that she had absolutely no impact on which way the event would go. Typically I read books with much stronger female characters and Catherine’s placidity grated my nerves a bit Which is why I will try another of Plaidy’s books, perhaps it was this particular Queen herself and not the writing. I suppose if one did not have too much of a presence in her time it can’t be faked in a historical novel.

[Sonya Wanvig · Rating 4 out of 5]

Poor Catherine of Braganza. Considering the arguably most important job of an English queen hundreds of years ago was to produce a male her, she was a failure. She carried none of her babies to term and there was no doubt that Catherine was the one to blame. Her husband, King Charles II had over a dozen children with no less than four mistresses. However, God gave her chance to be the mother of her native country Portugal. After surviving the death of her husband and the abdication of the Catholic James II, she returned home after 30 years in England to rule as regent during the incapacitating illness of her brother, King Pedro. She defeated the Spanish and was loved in Portugal as the savior of the country from their ancient enemy, Spain. A terrific read.

[Margo Penhall · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found the historical detail and background fascinating, but Catherine was irritatingly insipid. Many times I felt like shaking her and telling her to wake up - really, she is Queen, isn't she? I find it hard to believe that anyone can be so naïve during the whole time she is Queen of England and then suddenly take over as Regent of Portugal. She comes across as am impossibly innocent victim of the entire Court of England, including her husband Charles II. So it was interesting but disappointing. I would love to read something about this Queen which really shows how she kept her position. She must have had some political instincts, understanding, followers or ability to manipulate. In this book she was too good to be real.

[Sara G · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book about Catherine of Braganza, the Portuguese wife of King Charles II of England. It's written in the form of a fictionalized memoir where she reflects on her long and interesting life. She's definitely a lesser known queen (I confess I didn't know much about her other than little bits from reading Forever Amber as a teenager!) and it was fascinating to read about everything happening during her life. After reading the really dull Sweet Lass of Richmond Hill by Plaidy recently, it was nice to read some of her better historical fiction.

[Sara W · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is told from the point of view of Charles II's wife Catherine Braganza. It's interesting to compare this book with Plaidy's earlier books about Charles II. Most things are similar, but in this book (which was written considerably after the Charles II trilogy) she has Charles dying willingly as a Catholic as opposed to being forced to it like at the end of the trilogy (which her author's note even discusses). I haven't read any non-fiction about Charles, so I'm not sure what the current thoughts might be on this subject, but it's interesting to see how Plaidy's views changed over the years.

[Hannah Wilkinson · Rating 1 out of 5]

I like historical fiction, but the way this story was told seemed more like a history book than a novel. It is a perfect example of the author telling me what is going on rather than showing me. The main character, Catherine from Portugal, repeats many of the same thoughts until I started scanning pages just to get through. She really doesn't do anything, or grow as a person. She is simply Charles II's wife and lets him do what he pleases. I know this is historically based, but there just didn't seem to be enough story to it. Some of the historical references, Captain Blood, and other events were interesting but nothing that really held my interest or kept me in any suspense.

[Stella · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting story of the Restoration of the Monarchy after the puritan rule of Oliver Cromwell. The story focuses on Catherine of Braganza,the Portugese wife of Charles II. Catherine comes to England and marries Charles to strenghten the aliance between England and Portugal against their mutual enenmy of Spain. It charts her struggle with Charles' mistresses which were many, and the dangers faced by a Catholic Queen in a Protestant country. Only let down for me was that there were lots of typo's in the book..

[Danielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite the somewhat dull and placid personality of this Queen of England, Plaidy creates a simple and relatively enjoyable story of her life. Though I found the lives of her enemies - could one call them that? - the mistresses of Charles II such as Nell Gwynne and Lady Castlemaine. Unfortunately they took the show away from Catherine.

However, Plaidy is such a talented writer, it is hard to fault the tone she manages to capture of famous people of the time. Not a favourite but that may be because I'm a Tudor kind of girl.

[Laura Finger · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my favorite of Plaidy's novels. Catherine, who failed in her attempts to give Charles II a child, is another Queen of England who is rarely more than a footnote in the history of Britain.

Plaidy does what she does best, humanizing Catherine's story and telling the complicated story of Catherine, Charles II and his many mistresses. This was a quick read that I really wished would never end.