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Blood of the Red Rose
Edmund Beaufort finds himself exiled in France when Warwick the Kingmaker puts Edward IV on the throne of England. Desperate to return the throne to the rightful King Henry VI, Beaufort finds himself caught between Henry's bitter wife Marguerite of Anjou and the French 'Spider' King Louis until Edward and Warwick fall out in spectacular style and, at Louis' urging, Warwick becomes their unlikely ally. Set on the rich stage of the Wars of the Roses, this is a tale of intrigue, love and war that can only end in tragedy.
- GenresHistorical Fiction
429 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
May 23, 2015
This is a fictional account of Edmond Beauford, grandson of John of Gaunt and Katherine Swynford. This is a possible reason for him committing treason at the Battle of Tewkesbury in 1471. An interesting read.
September 13, 2018
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I really enjoyed this story – it is the fictional account of Edmund Beaufort, Duke of Somerset who was the grandson of John of Gaunt (son of Edward III) and Katherine Swynford and the lead up to the first Battle of St Albans, he is a really interesting character but one who doesn’t get too much focus.
It is set in the period of the tumultuous War of the Roses, a period of history I have read an awful lot on and adore so I was delighted to finally be able to read a copy of this book, it is one I have had my eye on for a while!
I really enjoyed the pace and the plot and the writing style was great, it is a well written historical fiction novel and one I thoroughly enjoyed. It has handy family trees and a list of the characters at the start of the book and I really hope that people use the story as a jumping board to find out more about this incredible time in English history.
Four stars from me for this one, a really enjoyable story – highly recommended!!
I really enjoyed this story – it is the fictional account of Edmund Beaufort, Duke of Somerset who was the grandson of John of Gaunt (son of Edward III) and Katherine Swynford and the lead up to the first Battle of St Albans, he is a really interesting character but one who doesn’t get too much focus.
It is set in the period of the tumultuous War of the Roses, a period of history I have read an awful lot on and adore so I was delighted to finally be able to read a copy of this book, it is one I have had my eye on for a while!
I really enjoyed the pace and the plot and the writing style was great, it is a well written historical fiction novel and one I thoroughly enjoyed. It has handy family trees and a list of the characters at the start of the book and I really hope that people use the story as a jumping board to find out more about this incredible time in English history.
Four stars from me for this one, a really enjoyable story – highly recommended!!
September 10, 2014
This book is set during the War of the Roses, The characters are mostly real , but the author has added the heroine as an illegitimate daughter to The Earl of Warwick Richard Neville. Sometimes called the King Maker.
Our hero is Edmund Beaufort known to his friends and family as Beau, a very loyal subject to the Lancastrian throne . He is in exile with Queen Marguerite and Prince Edward. He is a man with no doubts over where his loyalty lies. He is also very much in favour with the ladies. He has lost his father and older brother to the cause, but his younger brother is in exile with him. His job is to train the young Prince while his father is imprisioned.
Our heroine is Kathrine Neville, A daughter that Warwick brought into his wife´s household to be raised with her half sisters. She is very much the daughter of his heart. He doesn´t have to worry about finding her a husband that will help him in his political maneuvering. The Earl of Warwick has changed his alliance to the Lancastrian side of the war .He already has one daughter married to George The Duke of Clarence. Who is on the York side of the war. When he manages to get his younger daughter married to the young Prince Edward.
The trials of the war on the loyalties of all concerned is shown in this story . The problems the main characters have trying to find time for themselves without damaging Kathrine´s reputation or upsetting a very volatile Queen.It´s an emotional journey . I cried all through the last few pages.
This book is a must for true medieval romance fans.
November 9, 2017
Just like Mr Gray I am a Yorkist. Born & bred in Yorkshire I was astounded at the amount of empathy I felt towards Edmund "Beau" Beaufort Duke of Somerset & his lovely Lady Katherine Neville that I almost changed sides & willed the Lancastrians to win. Sacre Bleu. Her selfish, hypocritical father "traitor" to the Yorkshire cause didn't help matters either. The death of said, Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick was almost poetic justice. I learnt much about The Battle of the Roses, the characters involved & would recommend this book to anyone, be they interested in this particular time in history or purely for a blockbusting dollop of blood, guts & romance. I cannot wait to read more of PJ Gray's books
August 16, 2018
Whilst Warwick’s relationship with his illegitimate daughter Kate is loving and caring, it doesn’t gel with the way he uses his other children to create political bridges and liaisons. In fact the way he barters with Anne and Isobel, or rather their worth as brides, is a more accurate representation of the way men viewed and treated women at that time in history. Although it is moving and more sentimental from a storyline perspective, keeping in mind that Kate is a fictional addiction to the historical events, it is probably more likely that Warwick would have used her in the same way as her half-sisters.
Another interesting aspect of the book was the way the author portrayed Margaret of Anjou. Known in history as a strong woman with a fierce sense of loyalty to her own cause and a ruthless approach to achieving or retrieving what she believed to be rightfully owing to her family.
In this book we see the bitter, vindictive and disappointed woman. Her reaction is interesting considering the rumours that either Edmund Beaufort, 2nd Duke of Somerset, or James Butler, 5th Earl of Ormond, were possibly the real biological father of her son, Edward of Westminster, Prince of Wales. There is however no evidence to support these rumours and Henry VI acknowledged him as his son and heir.
Despite the machinations going on around them Kate and Beau are drawn into a passionate affair with possibly disastrous implications for a young girl who has a less than solid standing in life.
Gray has combined historical facts with fictional characters and scenarios. It’s so realistic and sails so close to true events that I had to double-check some of them were actually fictional events and characters. What she does exceptionally well is capture the intrigue and the lack of certainty during that era. The war between the houses of Lancaster and York determined the path of British history and the royal lineage. A time of betrayal, destruction and lack of trust, whilst grown men and women played their own game of thrones.
In the midst of the intrigue a mutual attraction leads to an ill-fated affair which ends tragically and leaves one of them in a precarious position. It’s a detailed venture into a era full of conflict and disruption with a doomed mutual attraction featured in the midst of it all.
*I received a copy courtesy of the publisher.*
Another interesting aspect of the book was the way the author portrayed Margaret of Anjou. Known in history as a strong woman with a fierce sense of loyalty to her own cause and a ruthless approach to achieving or retrieving what she believed to be rightfully owing to her family.
In this book we see the bitter, vindictive and disappointed woman. Her reaction is interesting considering the rumours that either Edmund Beaufort, 2nd Duke of Somerset, or James Butler, 5th Earl of Ormond, were possibly the real biological father of her son, Edward of Westminster, Prince of Wales. There is however no evidence to support these rumours and Henry VI acknowledged him as his son and heir.
Despite the machinations going on around them Kate and Beau are drawn into a passionate affair with possibly disastrous implications for a young girl who has a less than solid standing in life.
Gray has combined historical facts with fictional characters and scenarios. It’s so realistic and sails so close to true events that I had to double-check some of them were actually fictional events and characters. What she does exceptionally well is capture the intrigue and the lack of certainty during that era. The war between the houses of Lancaster and York determined the path of British history and the royal lineage. A time of betrayal, destruction and lack of trust, whilst grown men and women played their own game of thrones.
In the midst of the intrigue a mutual attraction leads to an ill-fated affair which ends tragically and leaves one of them in a precarious position. It’s a detailed venture into a era full of conflict and disruption with a doomed mutual attraction featured in the midst of it all.
*I received a copy courtesy of the publisher.*
August 21, 2018
Now I must start by saying that this genre and story is very different to what I usually read, but I gave this book a chance… Surprisingly I really enjoyed it!
I will admit it took me a while to get use to all the characters and into the story but then I sailed through it. The author sets out the story perfectly, especially with a character list and family trees at the beginning of the book. I did find it a long read but one which was worth while and throughly enjoyed.
The author takes the reader back to the 1470’s. There’s love, loss and war! I found I really lost myself into this story and the characters. A well desereved four stars. I would recommend it to you all. Different but good!
I will admit it took me a while to get use to all the characters and into the story but then I sailed through it. The author sets out the story perfectly, especially with a character list and family trees at the beginning of the book. I did find it a long read but one which was worth while and throughly enjoyed.
The author takes the reader back to the 1470’s. There’s love, loss and war! I found I really lost myself into this story and the characters. A well desereved four stars. I would recommend it to you all. Different but good!
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews