Eleanor: A 200-Mile Walk in Search of England's Lost Queen

by Alice Loxton

An extraordinary historical journey from the author of Eighteen, the acclaimed Sunday Times bestseller.

In 1290, England mourned the death of a queen, Eleanor of Castile, beloved wife of King Edward I. Her body was carried on a 200-mile journey from Lincoln to London, a solemn procession that would become immortalised in stone. To mark the places where her cortege rested, a heartbroken Edward commissioned twelve magnificent Eleanor Crosses.

More than seven centuries later, bestselling historian Alice Loxton set herself an epic walking the entire 200-mile funeral route from Lincoln to London, following in history's footsteps on the corresponding dates in November and December 2024.

As Alice journeys in search of England’s forgotten queen, over ancient paths and modern motorways, history comes alive in surprising ways. Lively and entertaining, Eleanor uncovers the extraordinary life and formidable character of a royal, the hidden history of Britain and Eleanor’s inspiring legacy.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Travel, Biography, British Literature, Historical, Audiobook

335 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 13, 2025

Reviews

[charlotte, · Rating 1 out of 5]

i thought this would be your run of the mill popular history book, readability prioritised over serious academia-ness, but um. it's so much worse. the introduction has a fake interview with eleanor of castile which i thought i could get past but then it has lines like:

Today, she'd be winning prizes for Women in Business, photographed in a no-nonsense power suit surrounded by her brood of children. She'd write books like How Women Really Can Have It All. She'd be a judge on Dragon's Den, throwing out snappy remarks like, 'Your numbers are off, the presentation is sloppy. For that reason, I'm out.'

and,

She also loved to read. Eleanor was an early devotee of the Romantasy genre, particularly tales of King Arthur.

for that reason, i'm out.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eleanor: A 200-Mile Walk in Search of England's Lost Queen is a fascinating and delightful read, straddling multiple genres of historical non-fiction, personal memoire, biography and travelogue.

"'Pilgrimage is not about how far you travel, but about how deeply you travel.' It's different to a walk, because you're opening yourself up to experience the unexpected, heading towards an unknown destination. Tourists come with expectations, but pilgrims are open to what the journey will show and grow in them. Walking is for the body; pilgrimage is for the soul." (p.209)

In November-December 2024, historian Alice Loxton set out to retrace the route of the funeral cortège of Eleanor of Castile, wife of Edward I of England, matching date-for-date the procession's progress from the village of Harby in Nottinghamshire, where Eleanor died on 28 November 1290, to Westminster Abbey in London, where she was laid to rest on 17 December. Edward's and Eleanor's was a rare example of a royal love match, and the King honoured his late Queen by commissioning a series of elaborate masonry monuments, known as "Eleanor Crosses", twelve in all, to mark the places where her funeral cortège rested overnight on the 12-day, 200 mile journey from Lincoln to Westminster.

Along the way, she explores the history and present-day surrounds of the route south. Loxton spends five days in the cathedral city of Lincoln, where Eleanor's remains were embalmed in preparation for the journey, where she visits surviving mediaeval frontages, views remnants of the first Eleanor Cross in Lincoln Castle, and pays her respects at Eleanor's "visceral tomb" in Lincoln Cathedral. Sadly, the original brass effigy on the visceral tomb (where Eleanor's internal organs with the exception of her heart were interred), a facsimile of that atop her Westminster Abbey resting place, was destroyed during the Civil war of the 1640s-50s and has been replaced with a 19th century replica. Nine of the original twelve Eleanor Crosses and many other features of the original cortège route suffered the same fate, either during the dissolution of the monasteries in the 1540s or as a result of anti-royalist fervour during the Civil War (1642-51) and subsequent interregnum period (1649-60).

Over the following twelve days, Loxton keeps pace with the cortège's route to London, visiting the three surviving Eleanor Crosses, in Geddington, Northamptonshire, Hardingstone, near Northampton and Waltham Cross, Hertfordshire. She traverses as closely as possible the route the procession followed through modern London, viewing the original sites of Holy Trinity Priory, Grey Friars Monastery, Black Friars Monastery (where Eleanor's heart was buried), Charing Cross and Eleanor's grand tomb and bronze effigy in St. Edward the Confessor's chapel at Westminster Abbey. A side quest takes her to meet artist David Gentleman, who in 1979 was commissioned by London Transport to design the evocative mural adorning the walls of the Charing Cross tube station, depicting the construction of the Eleanor Cross on the site above. A 19th-century reconstruction of the original Cross that was demolished in 1647 now stands nearby in the forecourt of Charing Cross station.

Alice Loxton details Eleanor's life and legacy over the course of the book, revealing her to be an intelligent, politically astute and formidable woman. Married to Edward at 13 (he was 15), she bore at least 16 children over 29 years, of whom only five daughters and one son - the future Edward II - survived to adulthood. She accompanied Edward I on the ninth crusade, reputedly saving his life after he was seriously injured at Acre in present day Israel, and also during his later military campaigns in Wales. She amassed a sizeable property portfolio, not only making herself financially independent, but providing the basis for the dower property of Queens consort for generations to come (although some of her methods don't bear too much scrutiny!).

I'd heard of the Eleanor Crosses prior to reading Eleanor: A 200-Mile Walk in Search of England's Lost Queen, but had little pre-existing knowledge about Eleanor herself. I found the book informative and fascinating, prompting me to go down the rabbit hole of Google Earth, royal lineages and other online resources. The book features maps showing Alice Loxton's route through Nottinghamshire, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire, Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire, before traversing Greater London from the northern outskirts through to Westminster Abbey. Sprinkled throughout are the author's photographs from her travels, depicting important milestones from her journey and other curiosities from along the way.

I'd highly recommend Eleanor: A 200-Mile Walk in Search of England's Lost Queen to those interested in mediaeval history or historical-themed pilgrimages or themed walks. I applaud Alice Loxton efforts in undertaking the 200-mile journey despite unforgiving weather, modern road architecture and new boots!

[Eleanor · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

It's rare that I'm in the mood for non-fiction, but recently I had this itch to learn something new. I know nothing about Eleanor of Castile, and I was interested in having her story related to me in a unique way that combined some nice nature writing with it for good measure. Unfortunately, this book yearns to be quirky and humorous, and none of it landed for me. The constant (unoriginal) questions about how Eleanor might be feeling in a certain moment, the unending (unoriginal) speculative asides which were so unfunny and honestly kind of poorly written (I hope Loxton doesn't take up creative fiction writing), and the overly redundant prose--maybe it was all an elaborate metaphor, but by the end of the book I too felt I had walked 50,000 repetitive steps, and I still feel like I got the bare-bones of Eleanor's actual life story. All I really got was Loxton's projection of what she wanted Eleanor to be like, with a side of slightly condescending over-explanation of how using sources as evidence works.

I didn't know that Loxton was an influencer before I picked this book up, but it makes so much sense now. Everything is a fun fact, fed in bitesize chunks, and I don't think that Loxton's attempts to make serious or deep takes about the world were very inspired. History is all around us--no shit. It felt aimed at people who haven't touched grass in a while and may not realise that. Speaking of not touching grass, the Gen Z humour in this took me out because it felt so desperately millennial. From an awkward segue hinged on a GOAT joke to describing one of the historical crosses as 'thicc', it was all painfully unfunny. I feel you could tell that Loxton was running low on things to say when we had the full itinerary of her lunch every time she and her many companions stopped to eat (gotta respect the tangfastics game at least though).

I will say, this was readable and I did learn some interesting things. I think it leads with a strong concept, and did teach me about a period of English history that I'm not too familiar with. I'd recommend this if you've just started out reading historical non-fiction, but only if you can stomach one too many positive appraisals of Margaret Thatcher (I almost lost it at the end when Margaret Thatcher became one of the 'female friends we made along the way' - which is my phrase, though it wouldn't be out of place in Loxton's prose).

[Liz · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a joy to read! And saying that, I know that this is a very niche book. By saying that, I understand I am a quirky reader at times. I love England, love royals and history. Add along a funeral hike over 200 miles bouncing around between those previous subjects, plus the journey of that hike? Apparently, that is my catnip.

[Sherrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have always loved the story of the Eleanor crosses, one man's terrible grief at the loss of his wife and the memorials he dedicated to her. Such a shame most of the crosses were destroyed during the civil war. I liked the authors writing style, a few colour photos would have been good.

[Lily Castle · Rating 2 out of 5]

A more accurate title for this would be "a disjointed history of the towns that Queen Eleanor's body went through," also featuring complaining about walking and wild conjecture about the queen's personality.

[Laura and Literature · Rating 4 out of 5]

I listened to the audiobook narrated by the author.

History buffs- you will love this book. I found it to be very fun, entertaining, and educational.

I honestly picked this up because my daughter’s name is Eleanor, and I thought it would be fun.

This isn’t a quick read, so go into this one ready to dedicate a good amount of time to it.

I also loved that the narrator took her mom along for the adventure. How fun!

[Laura Hutchinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an absolute delight to read - sparky and massively entertaining. Yes it’s about a forgotten English Queen and the remarkable act of love her husband Edward I made to remember her - 12 stone crosses, only 3 of which survive. But, it’s about so much more than that - it’s about the layers of history that surround us if we bother to look. It inspired me enough to get into a car and drive to Geddington to look at one of the crosses!

[Gabriella · Rating 5 out of 5]

WHAT. A. PLEASURE.

Here I find myself crying at ANOTHER Alice Loxton book.

“Who in life we dearly cherished, and who in death we cannot cease to love”

ELEANOR follows Alice Loxton’s 200-mile pilgrimage of the funeral route of Queen Eleanor of Castile. From Lincoln to London,
It is a tale of love, grief, community, remembrance and lots of tea. Accessibly written for non-experts, without spoon-feeding, this book is a gold-mine of information about England, and I have learnt so much from it. I love LOVE the emphasis on women’s history, and the telling of a narrative severely understated in our current-modern zeitgeist. I’ve rallied some friends up to visit Westminster Abbey sometime soon, so I will definitely be bombarding my unwilling subjects with countless Eleanor and Edward facts.
I cannot wait to see what Loxton does next.

[Albarnes · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is not non-fiction. The bulk of the content is about the author's assumptions of Eleanor and Edward's feelings, conversations, and relationship dynamics, with no factual or historical evidence to back these assumptions.

[Elli · Rating 5 out of 5]

Would give 6 stars if I could! Such an accessible and entertaining read, and absolutely full of fascinating historical tidbits. A wonderful story on a historic figure I knew nothing about, conveying the simple power of journeying by foot and the hidden historic wonders that are all around us :)

[Reason Restored · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF: at the outset I should say that though I enjoy ‘popular’ history I don’t like an author (even one who her own narrator in the audio version i listened to) talking to me as if she is a children’s TV presenter and I am 11. Still, I stuck with it for almost 3 hours.
It may be that there is scholarship behind the seemingly random historical insights into medieval English history, and its not that there were not interesting nuggets in here, but bound together by the weakest of threads, they didn’t make an engaging read.
Eleanor remains a ghost, it seemed as if any reference to her had to be caveated with ‘perhaps she might have said’ or ‘it may be that Eleanor did this or that..’ based on some bit of semi related historical evidence about some tangentially connected person (random reference to medieval womanhood), etc.
If this really is all we can know of the “Lost” Queen, she remains lost and the author should have abandoned the idea or approached her journey in Eleanors funeral
corteges footsteps for us with a much looser mission statement.
However our author doesn’t seem to let a lack of historical evidence prevent her from ascribing an entire proto-feminist character to this Eleanor, of whom I ‘expected at any moment to be assured in another age she would have been a female boxing champion at the olympics; when she wasn’t solving climate change as a scientist; or leading troops into some 21c conflict’.
So often are incongruous words put in her mouth and unknowable actions detailed so clearly, I almost fell for this Boudicca / Margaret Thatcher/Queen Elizabeth II/ Germaine Greer fiction.
But its almost all completely imagined on the flimsiest of pretexts, and with no acknowledgement that she may in fact have just been a bird in a gilded cage who was tossed about on the seas of life by fathers and husbands and protocols and the rigid political and religious requirements of the day.
It is possible that the narrator / author could repurpose this journey along Eleanors commemorative procession for TV, I am pretty sure theres an audience for her style and approach there, and it may work much better with her hand resting on some actual medieval foundation stone or caressing the faded tapestry hangings on some near ruined castle wall. But it isn’t going to be enough for me.
The phrase ‘knitting fog’ comes to mind.

[Mia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Perhaps I wasn’t prepared for what this book was going to be. It was very light hearted in its approach and its spattering of modern references gave me the impression that it wouldn’t age well in a few years. I was expecting, as I do with any history book, more depth in the writing. However, after looking at the bibliography (or lack there of), I wasn’t surprised by it feeling loosely researched.

Overall, it was a fast, enjoyable read, but I would only recommend it to those who are first dipping their toe into historic non fiction.

[Helen · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you've ever watched one of Alice Loxton's TikTok or Instagram videos you'll get the tone of this book:
*Posh English cheerful voice* Gosh! Wasn't Eleanor of Castile a medieval girl boss with her extensive property portfolio! And wasn't it sooooo romantic that her dreamy husband commemorated her funerary journey with twelve glorious stone monuments of luuurve!"

I put up with the tone because it's actually a really interesting bit of history and on her pilgrimage ("joyful saunter through the English countryside"), the author passes through a lot of places I know well. And I'm already planning to visit some of the places I don't know.

She does her best to also include the lives of the "hoi polloi" (an actual phrase she uses!), but her passion is clearly for the monarchy of it all. This is her description of Edward I, a king who is known as the Hammer of the Scots: "He was hot. He was valiant. He was everything a prince should be. Jilly Cooper would have had a field day. You can picture the steamy scenes after a tournament... Prince Edward jumping down from his stallion, face ruddy, flinging his breastplate aside...*cues Careless Whisper*"

And the things she decides to highlight from her 200 mile journey from Lincoln to London are very telling (*cough* Tory *cough*): "We sat on the churchyard wall, watching village life unfold around the cross. The postman doing the rounds. Friends stopping to chat. Little children wrapped in scarfs and hats, whizzing about on bikes and scooters."

[Judith · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think I’m being generous in giving this 2 stars. This isn’t my idea of history & it concerns me that people reading this book have said they’ve learnt from it. Some of Loxton’s facts are correct & some of her opinions I like, e.g. putting up an Eleanor style cross to Elizabeth ll. However, the facts that are known about Eleanor & Edward do not support the numerous sections of conversation & supposition and it is very difficult to separate truth from fiction. I just wish I hadn’t spent £22 on it!

[Lizzy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was a bit disappointed- the premise was great and easy to read but the content was extremely lacking. I didn’t earn anything new about Eleanor and I didn’t know a huge amount to start with. Alice Loxton doesn’t really come across as a historian of any substance.

[Robin Pelletier · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book recommendation!

This one just came out and it made me think of our senior trip to England! A historian walks 200 miles along the funeral procession route for Queen Eleanor of Castile on the same days it occurred in 1290. She passes the remaining of the 12 crosses that her bereaved King Edward commissioned for her. If ever there was a super pinpointed yet historically interesting modern pillgrimage, this is it. I thoroughly enjoyed the history, the insight and the honesty of this novel. It felt more like a travel blog to be honest. I highly recommend it if you liked Beowulf’s time period and you want to learn more about the Middle Ages. Medieval is derived from the Latin for Middle Ages. Learned in from this book.

And yes, I plan to binge the rest of Alice Loxton’s novels.

[Carolien · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the concept of this book - in 2024 the author followed the route taken by Eleanor of Castile's funeral cortege in 1290 from Lincoln to London, travelling on the same days as the original cortege. As she travels, we are introduced to Eleanor and her family and times. We can appreciate changes in the landscape and some parts that would be very familiar to Eleanor. We also get to appreciate the stamina of the medieval traveller as the author wends her way to Westminster Abbey. When I come out of Charing Cross station, I will be reminded of Eleanor and her husband's love. Highly recommend.

[Becca Daley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this travelogue with historical musings, but felt it was a bit heavy on what the author hoped Eleanor might have been like, rather than an insight into what the evidence might actually tell us. I know that getting a genuine sense of medieval personalities is incredibly challenging, and I don't mind a decent amount of creative licence or speculation, but I have read much better efforts at this more firmly grounded in contemporary evidence.

[Louise Culmer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Queen Eleanor, wife of King Edward III, died in November 1290 in Harby, a village in Lincolnshire. Her devoted spouse decreed that her body should be brought back to London, to be buried in state in Westminster Abbey, and that at every place where her corpse rested, a stone cross should be built in her honour. Twelve of these crosses were erected, but owing to the destructiveness of the Reformation and the Puritans during the Civil War, only three remain intact. Alice Loxton decided to follow the route of the funeral procession from Harby to London, on foot, and at the same time of year. This book describes her journey, the people she met, and her thoughts on Eleanor and the times she lived in.
It’s an enjoyable book full of interesting information. I particularly enjoyed the part where she has a go at stone carving in the medieval manner. There are interesting black and white photos, some of the crosses or what remains of them or what they have put in their place (I particularly like the attractive modern statue of Eleanor in the Eleanor Cross shopping Precinct in Dunstable) and some of various places and people she encountered on her journey. Alice Loxton is an enthusiastic and knowledgeable historian and through her words Eleanor emerges as a vivid personality. I would enjoy seeing a TV programme made about this journey (she wouldn’t have to walk the route again though).

[Emilija · Rating 3 out of 5]

2026 52 Book Challenge - 46) Non-Fiction About Character In Prompt 45 (I used The Damask Rose by Carol McGrath about Eleanor of Castile)

This was a different type of biography. Honestly, I wouldn't personally have called it a biography considering that it's more a discussion about a funeral march, some statues and random history along the way. I did enjoy the book, and I think Loxton has a really nice manner of writing, but it really feels more like she's trying to bitesize history rather than actually write a biography. I've finished this book, and I don't know much more about Eleanor than I did when I started. I am a historian, so maybe I wasn't the target audience.

I do think the Eleanor Crosses are pretty cool though.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

"Whom in life we dearly cherished and whom in death we cannot cease to love." - Edward I wrote this to the Abbott of Cluny after Eleanor's funeral and it just really gets me :(((((((( its such stark human emotion that reaches across 800 years. He was DEVASTATED at her death

Alice did a really excellent job with the narration of this book. The bits in Lincoln made me a bit emotional as she did such a vivid job of describing Lincoln that it almost gave me chills. Hearing her describe the antiques shop on the corner of the hill, or the Jew's House, or the pub at the top of the hill made me homesick.

I think she also did a good job with the overall theme of the book of remembrance and how we chose to memorialize people after they're gone. And especially bringing people from the past back to life. Her writing was very accessible too.

This was such a fun audio book listen to hear her describe all the different places she walked through. I liked when she mentioned different areas of historical interest not just from the medieval period,

I liked when she drew a parallel between Catherine Eddows and Queen Eleanor; that was a really strong parallel between two women whose bodies lay in the same space 600 years apart but one was brutalized and one was honored.

I'm also sooooo jealous that she got to go to Edward the Confessor's Chapel in Westminster Abbey and got to see all these tombs up close. How do I do that in the future? How much work do I have to do in the history field to get the dean of Westminster to give me private tour please I need to know. New career goal dropped ig

It also took me an embarrassingly long time to realize the author Alice, was historyalice on instagram lol

[Naomi · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5
So, I picked this audiobook with no research and must be honest, I'd assumed it was another Eleanor.
However, it was absolutely fascinating getting to learn about another one! I enjoyed the walk as the author follows in the footsteps of the procession of Eleanor's funeral procession and the pathway which her crosses then spanned.
I didn't quite gel with the authors narration style, but, I did very much enjoy the facts contained within - particularly around Eleanor's influence in our homes and gardens.

[Chloë-Louise · Rating 3 out of 5]

Informative and interesting but this is my second Alice Loxton book and I doubt I’ll be back for more.

I’m unsure what her audience is for this, at times it very much felt like an informative non fiction for adults but then had moments sprinkled throughout that felt very childish and as though they’d be more at home in a horrible histories book for children.

[Monica Lynne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the concept of walking the route and most of what she wrote about the walk and the crosses. However, there was way too much of Eleanor thought or she said or must have thought/said. We don't know any of that. And she was a woman of her time, and the author tries too hard to place her in the current time in describing her life.

[Silverboggle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Whilst some of the writing about Alice’s journey is mildly entertaining, there are great tracts of writing which are pure conjecture-where she’s trying to guess what Eleanor might have thought, or how Edward and Eleanor perhaps interacted, or what the original Eleanor procession must have been like. This continuous guesswork saturates the whole endeavour with improbable sentiment and really grates. There isn’t much historical fact about Eleanor. Much of the history within these pages is about other periods and people to fill the gaping hole where the facts might be laid out but aren’t. I’m left wondering what on earth the draw to Eleanor was in the first place for Alice. As an aside, no one wants to encounter unexpected Thatcher admiration in an unrelated book. Nearly threw it away at that point. ( not my own book so I resisted). Lastly, the photos were terrible- a particular highlight the black and white photo ( blurry print) telling me about the red plaque in the bottom left corner where I couldn’t discern anything vaguely plaque shaped in b&w either! All in all a disappointing read from a book that sounded very promising.

[m]

dnf because why are you putting a fake interview with eleanor in the introduction like this is an author's note on fanfiction.net in 2009

[Erin · Rating 2 out of 5]

I went into Eleanor with high hopes. I enjoy history and this particular narrative style, but this book ultimately fell flat for me. Despite its subject, I didn’t feel I learned much about who Eleanor actually was in a historical sense. In fact, I found myself turning to Wikipedia afterward to fill in basic context the book failed to provide. Equally disappointing was the lack of information about the author herself, who is an important part of the journey. I never felt I truly got to know her motivation and perspective sufficiently, which made the framing device feel thin. Overall, the stakes simply weren’t high enough, and my interest waned fairly quickly.

The historical interpretation also raised concerns. King Edward I’s actions are repeatedly whitewashed, with the narrative focusing almost exclusively on the most flattering aspects of both Edward and Eleanor. The author seems to decide early on that Eleanor must have been a particularly capable, likable, modern-feeling figure and builds the story around that belief, despite this being historically unlikely and at odds with contemporary accounts from the time. Edward I is remembered primarily for his brutal campaigns in Scotland and the immense bloodshed of his reign, yet the author urges readers not to judge him by modern standards and seems to imply that his affection for his wife somehow mitigates or excuses the near-genocide that occurred during his reign. I found this deeply troubling and difficult to move past. Overall, this book managed to be neither educational or entertaining, a big disappointment.

[Mariana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not really a Biography on Eleanor - but still an interesting book

I finished the book not knowing as much as I wanted about Queen Eleanor, despite the title.
A more fitting title would have been "Eleanor and Alice - a 200-Mile walk in search of a Queen's Legacy".
It's still an endearing and lighthearted book, it just isn't what I was expecting.

It's not a biography because it's not a book about Eleanor's life, but about her death.
And sometimes I felt I was learning less about Eleanor, and more about Alice, the author.

The book is about Alice's experience recreating the 200-mile walk that Queen Eleanor's funeral cortège took, from the moment she passed, until her burial at Westminster Abbey.

Although the author tells us what the places and people were like in Eleanor's time, she often enphasizes more about what those are like today: what Eleanor's legacy is now - which is an interesting point of view, don't get me wrong - it's just not my go-to book.

It's very easy to read, very lighthearted, delightful, informative, but it's almost like a blog-type of experience-based writing. Not at all what I expected from a biography written by a historian.
Very Gen Z, if you ask me..!!

P.S. - one giveaway that the book is as much (or more) about Alice, than Eleanor, is that the photos in the book all include the author - vacation-esque and selfies kind of vibe... I would've prefered photos of the monuments, alone (and more of them).

(I have to say that I absolutely love the cover!)

*Portuguese*

Não é propriamente uma biografia sobre a Rainha Leonor — mas continua a ser um livro interessante.

Terminei o livro sem saber tanto quanto gostaria sobre a Rainha Leonor, apesar do título.
Um título mais adequado teria sido "Leonor e Alice - uma caminhada de 200 milhas em busca do legado de uma rainha".
Continua a ser um livro cativante e leve, simplesmente não é o que eu estava à espera.

Não é uma biografia porque não é um livro sobre a vida de Leonor, mas sim sobre a sua morte.
E, por vezes, senti que estava a aprender menos sobre Leonor e mais sobre Alice, a autora.

O livro descreve a experiência de Alice ao fazer a caminhada de 200 milhas que o cortejo fúnebre da Rainha Leonor percorreu, desde o momento da sua morte até ao seu enterro na Abadia de Westminster.

Embora a autora nos diga como eram os lugares e as pessoas no tempo de Leonor, muitas vezes dá mais ênfase a como esses locais e pessoas são agora: ou seja, qual é o legado de Leonor na atualidade — o que é uma perspetiva interessante, não me interpretem mal - apenas não é o meu tipo de leitura preferido.

É muito fácil de ler, bastante leve, agradável e informativo, mas é quase como uma escrita do tipo "blogue", baseada numa experiência pessoal. Não é o que eu esperava de uma biografia escrita por uma historiadora.
Muito “Geração Z”, na verdade..!

P.S. — um indício de que o livro é mais sobre Alice do que sobre Leonor é o facto de as fotografias incluírem sempre a autora — do género "foto de férias ou selfies com monumentos"… Eu teria preferido fotografias apenas dos monumentos (e em maior número).

(Tenho de dizer que adoro o desenho da capa!)

[Amanda Borys · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was not what I expected, in both a good and a not so good way.

This is definitely not a history book in the traditional sense of the genre. And Eleanor and the Crosses are more a guiding template then the actual centre pieces of the story. Eleanor's story is told in bits and pieces, with many deviations and straying from the path (forgive the pun please). So if you are a devotee of history and looking for an actual history of Queen Eleanor of Castile and her life in chronological order, this is not the book for you.

The author, Alice Loxton, is a You tube historian. So her facts and stories come in short spirts which are intersected with her own history of the walk and lovely tidbits of history of the location she visits and events that happened. I really enjoyed this, though sometimes I had to stop and marvel at the history being shared. When Eleanor was alive, Europe didn't even know my continent existed! But it is also reassuring in some ways. All that history, which included some very dark times, and yet the UK is still here. Makes the dark times we are living in seem less scary that this is the end of the world.

It was also sad to discover that all the Eleanor crosses were different and the vision of the local mason picked to create the monuments. If they were all the same, you could look at one and admire them all. But the loss of so many unique markers is sad. And a good reminder to think on what our legacy will be to the generations to come after us.

The only downside I really have to the book are nothing to do with the writing. First off, for a slightly more expensive than average hard cover, the binding and actual construction of the book is very poor. The binding kept cracking with every page turned and I fully expected pages to start falling out. They didn't, but it was still distracting. The second issue was that there were a fair amount of photos included in the book, all in black and white. I get that having glossy coloured pictures would have increased the cost of the book significantly, but the pictures were of poor quality and often distracted from the story. And were kind of odd, a somewhat blurry black and white picture taken at dawn (poor lighting) on the outskirts of London, showing some overgrown plants in the foreground and construction cranes in the distance. They reminded me of the pictures you take on a trip that seem so lovely when you are at the site, but slightly lame when you get back home.

Overall, Eleanor was an easy read and an enjoyable romp through England without getting your feet wet or getting shin splints.