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Crown of Roses
Crown of Roses A SWEEPING HISTORICAL SAGA OF RICHARD III Petronel Faldene, married off at fourteen to the dour and spiteful Lionel Eynesby and taken far away from home to be chatelaine of his estate, never suspected that her destiny would become entangled with the future of England and the most powerful men in the land. But in the England of King Edward IV, torn by civil war and the bitter conflict between the houses of York and Lancaster, anything can happen, as public and private lives alike are touched by treacherous intrigue that hangs like a disease over the court, blighting loyalties, ruining lives, and dividing the people. And when King Edward marries Bess Woodville—graceful, beautiful, but lowly born—even his own supporters are incensed, and Edward must learn to rely on only a few loyal followers, among them his brother Richard of Gloucester and Petronel Eynesby, sent on a perilous undercover mission to France on behalf of the King. Having gained royal favor, however, does not win Petronel the esteem of her cruel husband who, desperate for a son and heir to his estate, holds his young wife responsible for their childlessness. But Petronel, having fallen in love with Lionel's nephew Geoffrey, has her own plans for producing the longed-for child—and taking her secret revenge against her husband. Soon, as dramatic events bring Richard of Gloucester to the throne, not only Petronel but also her young son are once again embroiled in the turbulent affairs of court. Crown of Roses is a stunning achievement, a rich and compelling saga weaving together public and private lives in the cataclysmic years leading up to the reign of Richard III.
404 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1989
2 people are currently reading
107 people want to read
About the author
Valerie Anand
19 books30 followersBorn in London, Valerie Anand knew at the age of six that she wanted to be an author. At the age of fifteen, she saw MGM’s film Ivanhoe. She walked into the cinema knowing that she wanted to be a novelist and walked out of it knowing that historical novels were the kind she most wanted to write.
Over the course of her long and distinguished writing career, Valerie has written many works of historical fiction and is well known for the Ursula Blanchard series of Elizabethan mysteries written under the pen name of Fiona Buckley.
Still living in London, Valerie Anand is a frequent visitor to Exmoor, the setting featured in The House of Lanyon.
Over the course of her long and distinguished writing career, Valerie has written many works of historical fiction and is well known for the Ursula Blanchard series of Elizabethan mysteries written under the pen name of Fiona Buckley.
Still living in London, Valerie Anand is a frequent visitor to Exmoor, the setting featured in The House of Lanyon.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
December 7, 2020
On its cover, this book claims to be a “sweeping historical saga of Richard III.” Not really. It tells two stories: that of a young woman Petronel Faldene told in the first person and the other story tells the fortunes of the House of York from 1466 until its fall in 1485 with the death of Richard III at Bosworth. The latter story is told in the third person, sometimes from the point of view of Bishop Alcock, but not always. After about page 100, we start getting some short passages updating us about what’s going on with Margaret Beaufort and her hopes for her son Henry Tudor.
Petronel’s story begins when, as a 14-year-old novice, she is recalled home by her parents and wed to a 50-year-old man, Lionel Eynesby, to settle a land dispute between the families. Petronel is intimidated by Lionel but she likes the looks of his 25 year-old-nephew Geoffrey who accompanies him. After the marriage, the three return to their homes in the North, near Middleham where both Lionel and Geoffrey are Warwick’s men. Lionel is desperate to have an heir, but has problems in the bedroom department. He becomes frustrated when Petronel fails to conceive and takes out his frustration and anger by brutalizing her.
Meanwhile, Petronel falls in love with Geoffrey and he seems to reciprocate her feelings and over the course of years he makes several propositions to her. Petronel learns that Geoffrey is the illegitimate son of the Duke of York and is thus half brother to the king and the Dukes of Gloucester and Clarence. Geoffrey’s mother, Alison, informs Petronel that she served in the household of the Duchess of York. The duchess was in labor and the duke became so distraught hearing the cries of anguish from his wife, he sought refuge in a linen closet where Alison was counting sheets. She gave him “comfort.”
After suffering a beating by Lionel, she begs Geoffrey to give her a child. She has a boy who is born around the same time as Edward of Middleham. The author makes the regrettable decision to dub the boy “Perky Dick” and he is ever after referred to with that moniker.
Petronel’s story does intersect the other plot line briefly. She does attend Warwick’s daughters at Middleham, in particular Isabell, but she does not seem to spend that much time there. When Warwick and the Duke Clarence flee to France to forment a rebellion against the king, Petronel is chosen to go on a mission to deliver a message to Clarence to return to the Yorkist fold.
The other plot line recounting the historical events is fairly standard, although having Bishop Alcock’s perspective on events is worthwhile. (He was the Prince of Wales tutor at Ludlow, but was not arrested at Stony Stratford. In fact, he went on to serve Richard III). The portrayals of some of the historical figures is sort of interesting. Elizabeth Woodville’s actions are explained not so much by her arrogance and ambition for her family as by a deep seated insecurity. Thus, when the Earl of Desmond is executed at her insistence for making a joke that she is the king’s “grey mare” it is because she fears if such opinions go unchecked it will undermine her position, possibly leading to the king to set her aside. ( Richard himself remarks that she never meant the Desmond boys to die, but she just blundered. “but that is the point. She’s not great enough, not wise enough, to be fit as a queen.”
There are some other good sections. Richard’s handling of Elizabeth of York’s infatuation is pretty well done as is Richard’s “rescue” of Anne Neville from the cookshop. She is actually somewhat content there—and would have been content to enter a nunnery. She was tired of being used as a pawn and tells Richard that for all his pretty talk about being her cousin and not willing to leave her in a cookshop, she doesn’t believe that he or anyone cares a farthing about what happens to her, but he only cares about his own convenience and gain. Richard responds that he is fighting for her inheritance to secure it from Clarence. Marry him, and she will be safe and have the position she was born to. “It’s time I was married and you’re a suitable wife for me but the real reason I want to marry you is because we were once friends, and we could be again.” Using a northern accent,”I’d call it a reet good bargain lass. What about it?”
However, the plot lines are not woven together effectively—having the two stories just seems to slow the pace dramatically. Petronel’s story and Petronel herself becomes wearisome to read about. In my opinion, it would have better to have two separate books. So even with some interesting bits and pieces, I had to force myself to finish this book.
Petronel’s story begins when, as a 14-year-old novice, she is recalled home by her parents and wed to a 50-year-old man, Lionel Eynesby, to settle a land dispute between the families. Petronel is intimidated by Lionel but she likes the looks of his 25 year-old-nephew Geoffrey who accompanies him. After the marriage, the three return to their homes in the North, near Middleham where both Lionel and Geoffrey are Warwick’s men. Lionel is desperate to have an heir, but has problems in the bedroom department. He becomes frustrated when Petronel fails to conceive and takes out his frustration and anger by brutalizing her.
Meanwhile, Petronel falls in love with Geoffrey and he seems to reciprocate her feelings and over the course of years he makes several propositions to her. Petronel learns that Geoffrey is the illegitimate son of the Duke of York and is thus half brother to the king and the Dukes of Gloucester and Clarence. Geoffrey’s mother, Alison, informs Petronel that she served in the household of the Duchess of York. The duchess was in labor and the duke became so distraught hearing the cries of anguish from his wife, he sought refuge in a linen closet where Alison was counting sheets. She gave him “comfort.”
After suffering a beating by Lionel, she begs Geoffrey to give her a child. She has a boy who is born around the same time as Edward of Middleham. The author makes the regrettable decision to dub the boy “Perky Dick” and he is ever after referred to with that moniker.
Petronel’s story does intersect the other plot line briefly. She does attend Warwick’s daughters at Middleham, in particular Isabell, but she does not seem to spend that much time there. When Warwick and the Duke Clarence flee to France to forment a rebellion against the king, Petronel is chosen to go on a mission to deliver a message to Clarence to return to the Yorkist fold.
The other plot line recounting the historical events is fairly standard, although having Bishop Alcock’s perspective on events is worthwhile. (He was the Prince of Wales tutor at Ludlow, but was not arrested at Stony Stratford. In fact, he went on to serve Richard III). The portrayals of some of the historical figures is sort of interesting. Elizabeth Woodville’s actions are explained not so much by her arrogance and ambition for her family as by a deep seated insecurity. Thus, when the Earl of Desmond is executed at her insistence for making a joke that she is the king’s “grey mare” it is because she fears if such opinions go unchecked it will undermine her position, possibly leading to the king to set her aside. ( Richard himself remarks that she never meant the Desmond boys to die, but she just blundered. “but that is the point. She’s not great enough, not wise enough, to be fit as a queen.”
There are some other good sections. Richard’s handling of Elizabeth of York’s infatuation is pretty well done as is Richard’s “rescue” of Anne Neville from the cookshop. She is actually somewhat content there—and would have been content to enter a nunnery. She was tired of being used as a pawn and tells Richard that for all his pretty talk about being her cousin and not willing to leave her in a cookshop, she doesn’t believe that he or anyone cares a farthing about what happens to her, but he only cares about his own convenience and gain. Richard responds that he is fighting for her inheritance to secure it from Clarence. Marry him, and she will be safe and have the position she was born to. “It’s time I was married and you’re a suitable wife for me but the real reason I want to marry you is because we were once friends, and we could be again.” Using a northern accent,”I’d call it a reet good bargain lass. What about it?”
However, the plot lines are not woven together effectively—having the two stories just seems to slow the pace dramatically. Petronel’s story and Petronel herself becomes wearisome to read about. In my opinion, it would have better to have two separate books. So even with some interesting bits and pieces, I had to force myself to finish this book.
February 12, 2022
3 stars I liked it.
The story begins in 1466, exploring the rivalry between the Woodwille and the Nevilles, although the story centers much of the argument on Petronel (fictional) a young woman who is stuck in a loveless political marriage, she interacts with historical characters such as the Neville family the book is told in the first person, but suddenly it moves away and a third person narrator appears, at first the story is intertwined between the events of Petronel's life such as: her complicated marriage, her bad husband, love affairs etc. But at the same time, Petronel is there to see or hear historical events, for example the way in which the relationship between Warwick and Edward is broken, and how the Wodwille family control the power of the court, from then on we follow historical facts but Petronel moves away from the story so that in the end this was like two books in one, so we read one chapter of the story of Petronel, and in another the story of the historical characters (RIII, Anne Neville, Edward IV, elizabeth Woodwille, Elizabeth Of York, Warwick, margaret of anjou ... etc ...) which honestly is a bit strange and does not work because you do not have the correct balance, it seems that the author could not decide that she wanted to tell and couldn't keep the characters or the story intertwined.
Even so the book has interesting moments, if you manage to stay interested in the story (which is not always the case) Petronel has a plausible story about a medieval woman, ignored, abused but who decides to take revenge and fight for her happiness, the idea is good but I think that very quickly it becomes predictable and I was no longer interested in what will happen to her or to the other fictional characters whose names I do not remember.
On the other hand the parallel story is much more interesting although as the book progresses it gets smaller, and this can be for my personal taste (I'm interested in the history of the cousin's war) , here we have Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodwille, she a Femme fatale and he a charismatic and golden King, then we have a Warwick who feels betrayed and that begins to lose control hitting employees and becoming desperate, his daughters in particular Anne supports him above everything and everyone including her childhood friend Dickon who in this book is nothing more than a GAME PARTNER to Anne and viceversa, Dickon finds his own way, he doesn't love the court even though he connects with some members like Anthony Woodwille, instead of just politics we read how he gets involved in some love affairs and we know that he seems to be completely in love with a mistress from York, Kate (yes again in a novel his first love will be her) when the Nevilles go to France, Anne stops justifying her father because she realizes that he has made serious mistakes, even so she must marry Edward who is not only bad but also aggressive, Margaret of Anjou is as bad as her son, together they mistreat Anne who in this book is no a simple and stupid mat so she defends herself as she can, with courage and pride. Things advance Edward of Lancaster dies and for first and last time Anne and Margaret connect with eah other and cry together Anne for her father Margaret her son, and Margaret speaks to express her perspective and explain her ruthless behavior, Richard obviously seeks Anne as his bride but only for political and practical reason, she does end up in a kitchen but when Richard comes to rescue her, its clear that she is not a damsel in disgrace, in fact she faces him being aggresive and telling him that he is only looking for her money and that she will marry him but only because she has no voice in the matter, Richard shows himself as a true gentleman, promising patience and a good union for her financially and also stability also he is honest accepting his bastards and telling that his beloved Kate died, so Anne and him can start from zero, after this the book becomes tedious and we basically stop reading about Richard , although it explains a bit why people have difficulties in understanding whether his actions have good or bad intentions, we come to the crisis of 1483 that is super summarized but basically we read about a Richard who is stuck in a super uncomfortable position which leads him to make decisions that later he will regreat and that even provokes him to lose his aptetite and sleep, life becomes difficult and horrible, he has the support of Anne who we discovered has fallen in love with him not in a childish or cloying way, but a realistic one , she loves him so much and wants to avoid another civil war so she offers to divorce him peacefully but he rejects the idea, Christmas 1484 arrives and YES we have Elizabeth of York flirting disrespectfully with her uncle, who takes it lightly, Ane maintains the dignity for which she was brought up but inside she suffers thinking in the possibility of losing her man "fortunately" in her own words she will soon die which will prevent her from being thrown out of Richard's life in a humiliating way, because of not being able to give him another child or a healthier one, Richard was never very emotional towards Anne or not with words, but he is a good husband in a normal way nothing dramatic, but it is not until Elizabeth's letter appears that he expressed the true feelings he had for Anne and how life without her ceased to have value for him, Elizabeth is not only the girl in love but a manipulative and shameless (like the mother) Richard leads with her without being too rude nor too soft, he gives her important information about her brothers that will help her to understand the future, in the same way I liked this part because it explains why Richard did not marry Elizabeth to someone else to reduce the threat of Tudor, the end is well achieved although too accelerated .
I wish we could have a full book with the things that are important because in general we jump from one year to another and sometimes we skipped 3 years or more , and many times the events are more written as an introduction or summary . So for me the good parts worth the bad parts that are many but I don't think that many other people will think like me so it's up to if you want to give a chance to this book .
The story begins in 1466, exploring the rivalry between the Woodwille and the Nevilles, although the story centers much of the argument on Petronel (fictional) a young woman who is stuck in a loveless political marriage, she interacts with historical characters such as the Neville family the book is told in the first person, but suddenly it moves away and a third person narrator appears, at first the story is intertwined between the events of Petronel's life such as: her complicated marriage, her bad husband, love affairs etc. But at the same time, Petronel is there to see or hear historical events, for example the way in which the relationship between Warwick and Edward is broken, and how the Wodwille family control the power of the court, from then on we follow historical facts but Petronel moves away from the story so that in the end this was like two books in one, so we read one chapter of the story of Petronel, and in another the story of the historical characters (RIII, Anne Neville, Edward IV, elizabeth Woodwille, Elizabeth Of York, Warwick, margaret of anjou ... etc ...) which honestly is a bit strange and does not work because you do not have the correct balance, it seems that the author could not decide that she wanted to tell and couldn't keep the characters or the story intertwined.
Even so the book has interesting moments, if you manage to stay interested in the story (which is not always the case) Petronel has a plausible story about a medieval woman, ignored, abused but who decides to take revenge and fight for her happiness, the idea is good but I think that very quickly it becomes predictable and I was no longer interested in what will happen to her or to the other fictional characters whose names I do not remember.
On the other hand the parallel story is much more interesting although as the book progresses it gets smaller, and this can be for my personal taste (I'm interested in the history of the cousin's war) , here we have Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodwille, she a Femme fatale and he a charismatic and golden King, then we have a Warwick who feels betrayed and that begins to lose control hitting employees and becoming desperate, his daughters in particular Anne supports him above everything and everyone including her childhood friend Dickon who in this book is nothing more than a GAME PARTNER to Anne and viceversa, Dickon finds his own way, he doesn't love the court even though he connects with some members like Anthony Woodwille, instead of just politics we read how he gets involved in some love affairs and we know that he seems to be completely in love with a mistress from York, Kate (yes again in a novel his first love will be her) when the Nevilles go to France, Anne stops justifying her father because she realizes that he has made serious mistakes, even so she must marry Edward who is not only bad but also aggressive, Margaret of Anjou is as bad as her son, together they mistreat Anne who in this book is no a simple and stupid mat so she defends herself as she can, with courage and pride. Things advance Edward of Lancaster dies and for first and last time Anne and Margaret connect with eah other and cry together Anne for her father Margaret her son, and Margaret speaks to express her perspective and explain her ruthless behavior, Richard obviously seeks Anne as his bride but only for political and practical reason, she does end up in a kitchen but when Richard comes to rescue her, its clear that she is not a damsel in disgrace, in fact she faces him being aggresive and telling him that he is only looking for her money and that she will marry him but only because she has no voice in the matter, Richard shows himself as a true gentleman, promising patience and a good union for her financially and also stability also he is honest accepting his bastards and telling that his beloved Kate died, so Anne and him can start from zero, after this the book becomes tedious and we basically stop reading about Richard , although it explains a bit why people have difficulties in understanding whether his actions have good or bad intentions, we come to the crisis of 1483 that is super summarized but basically we read about a Richard who is stuck in a super uncomfortable position which leads him to make decisions that later he will regreat and that even provokes him to lose his aptetite and sleep, life becomes difficult and horrible, he has the support of Anne who we discovered has fallen in love with him not in a childish or cloying way, but a realistic one , she loves him so much and wants to avoid another civil war so she offers to divorce him peacefully but he rejects the idea, Christmas 1484 arrives and YES we have Elizabeth of York flirting disrespectfully with her uncle, who takes it lightly, Ane maintains the dignity for which she was brought up but inside she suffers thinking in the possibility of losing her man "fortunately" in her own words she will soon die which will prevent her from being thrown out of Richard's life in a humiliating way, because of not being able to give him another child or a healthier one, Richard was never very emotional towards Anne or not with words, but he is a good husband in a normal way nothing dramatic, but it is not until Elizabeth's letter appears that he expressed the true feelings he had for Anne and how life without her ceased to have value for him, Elizabeth is not only the girl in love but a manipulative and shameless (like the mother) Richard leads with her without being too rude nor too soft, he gives her important information about her brothers that will help her to understand the future, in the same way I liked this part because it explains why Richard did not marry Elizabeth to someone else to reduce the threat of Tudor, the end is well achieved although too accelerated .
I wish we could have a full book with the things that are important because in general we jump from one year to another and sometimes we skipped 3 years or more , and many times the events are more written as an introduction or summary . So for me the good parts worth the bad parts that are many but I don't think that many other people will think like me so it's up to if you want to give a chance to this book .
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 13, 2018
thru the life of petronel faldene, we get a full story of the last of the plantagenets - from edward the fourth marriage to commoner elizabeth woodville, to the unfortunate richard the third, maligned by the tudors, shakespeare and history - it's a good and honest portrait of dickon of gloucester and his lady queen anne as well - I was less interested in the problems of petronella, her love story and bad marriage
March 3, 2009
This book is a creation of bald story-telling. There is little to no investigation of the reasons behind actions and important events are presented as simple facts without elaboration. We are told what happened but the connections which make a novel flow are not there.
I found the use of nick-names for various personages irritatingly similar to the uncouth habits of George W. Bush, of unlamented memory. Also the atmosphere of the period was thread-bare in many places and I kept falling out of the story because of these jolting lacunae.
The author does have some unconventional interpretations of certain historical characters, notably Elizabeth Woodville, and tries for a cunning plot twist. The latter does not quite come off because the surprise is obvious to the dullest intellect. Bah!
My principal complaint with this book is too much chick-lit, not enough Richard. I do not like chick-lit.
I found the use of nick-names for various personages irritatingly similar to the uncouth habits of George W. Bush, of unlamented memory. Also the atmosphere of the period was thread-bare in many places and I kept falling out of the story because of these jolting lacunae.
The author does have some unconventional interpretations of certain historical characters, notably Elizabeth Woodville, and tries for a cunning plot twist. The latter does not quite come off because the surprise is obvious to the dullest intellect. Bah!
My principal complaint with this book is too much chick-lit, not enough Richard. I do not like chick-lit.
June 29, 2009
This is really a book of two parts. One written in the first person from the POV of a young woman, and the other written third person from the POV of a bishop.
Without wishing to be too harsh, I don't think this book is Anand's finest hour, not by a long way. (She is actually a very decent writer and at her best is up there...) However, the first-person part of the book is at times unintentionally comic. I mean, how can a writer keep a straight face when awarding a character the nickname of 'Perky Dick'?
Without wishing to be too harsh, I don't think this book is Anand's finest hour, not by a long way. (She is actually a very decent writer and at her best is up there...) However, the first-person part of the book is at times unintentionally comic. I mean, how can a writer keep a straight face when awarding a character the nickname of 'Perky Dick'?
May 15, 2017
Interesting take on Richard iii and Perkin Warbeck. This was my first book by the author. I picked it up for my interest in Richard. I will definitely look into reading more my this author.
November 6, 2017
I struggled to finish this book as I felt it was poorly written in parts. However, the 1400's are a favorite genre of mine so I completed the book. I did like her opinion on who killed the princes in the tower.
September 15, 2018
A nice change
Yes, it’s fiction but I did enjoy reading about John Alcock. This prompted me to do some research on him. I would like to think that the authors perspective is correct. I’m sure we’ll never know. I also liked the “Pretender” angle.
Yes, it’s fiction but I did enjoy reading about John Alcock. This prompted me to do some research on him. I would like to think that the authors perspective is correct. I’m sure we’ll never know. I also liked the “Pretender” angle.
January 2, 2014
Excuse me while I gush for a little while.
This book might very well be (dare I say it?) better than Penmen’s epic Sun in Splendor.
A far more balanced portrait of Richard III and a much more realistic depiction of him and Anne Neville. They are neither villain and victim like Shakespeare and Greggory go for, nor Penmen’s (and some copycat romance writers) star crossed lovers, but still remain quite the best relationship in the entire War of the Roses. Anne even gets this epic speech where she tells Richard he and the entire male gender can do whatever they want to her, ‘cause those are the rules and she gets it that she has to live in this world, but don’t you dare tell her to smile about it! But then! They actually learn how to have a healthy relationship, and become such a good couple that she becomes the only person he fully trusts (which, sadly, leaves him screwed in Act III)
Margaret of Anjou, after being shown as well and truly living up to her nickname of “she-wolf” gets her say as well, pointing out that things were going to go wrong, no matter what, given her age and the king’s mental stability, but she did the best she could, as she saw it. Also, loved the little detail about her being too poor for diamond rings, but her larger but cheaper topaz rings actually work better for inflicting more damage when smacking someone. And wow her son was a real horror, huh? Can’t think of anyone who didn’t portray him as a psycho in the making.
Loved that Anand worked with all known research available circa 1985. Cleary she believes the two skeletons found during those Tower renovations were the princes, and works in the discoveries about the jaw bone of one of them. But she’s also convinced there is merit to Perkin Warbeck’s claim, and manages to have her cake and eat it too with some creative use of illegitimately.
Speaking of research, she portrays Richard III as convinced he was going to lose the Battle of Bosworth – I think the current research refutes that point, but, for the time period she was writing in, this was an accepted theory amongst historians, and in this book it leaves the reader all kinds of horrified to watch a man going knowingly to his death.
Also, she uses that tantalizing rumor about a certain letter Elizabeth of York may or may not have written to great effect, leading to a scene where Richard III, of all people, gives Princess Elizabeth the kind of verbal smack down that just about every dumb, hormonal driven teenager needs to hear at some point.
And- and- AND! And we get a few original characters thrown in the mix who rub elbows with the historical characters in way that feels refreshingly plausible instead of the usual drivel about a lower class original character (cough Mary Sue cough) becoming super besties with Elizabeth I or George Washington or Lawrence of Arabia or whoever and being the “relatable” eyewitness to famous events.
The jumping back and forth between real and made up characters works very well here, leading in a clash of the two that took me by surprise when we see what all that set up was building towards.
In the end, the main character is right back where she started – except for her mind, which has grown, built memories, and learned what she can do for herself, even if everything round her is taken away.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews