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Plantagenet Saga #1
La pareja Plantagenet
Leonor de Aquitania, inteligente, elegante y hermosa, vivió asediada por su pasión por los hombres. Ella pasó a la posteridad como «la reina de las cortes de amor». La cristiandad se escandalizó por las infidelidades que cometió, ultrajando el honor de su marido, el rey de Francia. Enrique, duque de Normandía, bisnieto de Guillermo el Conquistador, doce años menor que la reina de Francia, será el objetivo de Leonor. Tan pronto lo conoció, ella decidió que se casaría con él, pasara lo que pasara. Leonor y Enrique, la pareja sensual, se unieron para desafiar al mundo de su época y para formar un reino vasto y poderoso que se extendía desde los Pirineos hasta el Mar del Norte.
356 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1976
117 people are currently reading
3581 people want to read
About the author
Jean Plaidy
186 books1,590 followersEleanor 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
-Wikipedia
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 103 reviews
October 5, 2015
Eleanor Hibbert, under a number of pseudonyms, the most frequent of which was Jean Plaidy, was one of the most prolific writers of historical fiction in, well, in history.
When about to read your first book by a prolific novelist, such as Jean Plaidy was, there is always the same mixed feelings of anticipation and unease. How can someone tossing out two or three novels a year write to a high standard, and if they can how the hell will I find the time to read all their work if I do take a shine to them?
Fortunately, after pushing myself, listless and plodding through The Plantagenet Prelude - which is just the first episode in a series of fourteen books, which itself is just one of the many epic historical series of books that Plaidy dashed off over a fifty year career of well over a hundred novels - I won't be needing to find any additional reading time to factor in more for Mrs Hibbert.
Eleanor of Aquitaine is undoubtedly one of the most alluring female figures of history. Wife to both the kings of France and England; mother of Henry III, King John and Richard the Lionheart; crusader, courtier and captive prisoner of the state for sixteen years, she was a thrilling and volatile woman.
By virtue of Plaidy's broad-brush approach, however, she comes across as little more than a vain, vacuous socialite, just as Henry II becomes little more than a lusty yeoman prone to the odd tantrum.
Their characters are entirely static, with even their grandest passions being merely expressed through endless repetitions of the same flat thoughts and statements.
Eleanor refers to her first husband, Louis VII, as being "monkish" about a hundred times, and for all Henry's monumental friendship and fall-out with Thomas Beckett, which forms the majority of the narrative here, all we learn is that the king indulged his chancellor for so long because he "amused" him like no one else could.
You can learn more by reading a history book, and there are not enough of the fiction writers arts on show here to elevate this novel above a factual account.
When about to read your first book by a prolific novelist, such as Jean Plaidy was, there is always the same mixed feelings of anticipation and unease. How can someone tossing out two or three novels a year write to a high standard, and if they can how the hell will I find the time to read all their work if I do take a shine to them?
Fortunately, after pushing myself, listless and plodding through The Plantagenet Prelude - which is just the first episode in a series of fourteen books, which itself is just one of the many epic historical series of books that Plaidy dashed off over a fifty year career of well over a hundred novels - I won't be needing to find any additional reading time to factor in more for Mrs Hibbert.
Eleanor of Aquitaine is undoubtedly one of the most alluring female figures of history. Wife to both the kings of France and England; mother of Henry III, King John and Richard the Lionheart; crusader, courtier and captive prisoner of the state for sixteen years, she was a thrilling and volatile woman.
By virtue of Plaidy's broad-brush approach, however, she comes across as little more than a vain, vacuous socialite, just as Henry II becomes little more than a lusty yeoman prone to the odd tantrum.
Their characters are entirely static, with even their grandest passions being merely expressed through endless repetitions of the same flat thoughts and statements.
Eleanor refers to her first husband, Louis VII, as being "monkish" about a hundred times, and for all Henry's monumental friendship and fall-out with Thomas Beckett, which forms the majority of the narrative here, all we learn is that the king indulged his chancellor for so long because he "amused" him like no one else could.
You can learn more by reading a history book, and there are not enough of the fiction writers arts on show here to elevate this novel above a factual account.
December 24, 2016
Book basically introduces us to the Plantegenet dynasty of Medieval England. It begins with the rule of King Stephan and ends with the death of Thomas Beckett. Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry II are the main focus. From what I know of this turbulent marriage, what Plaidy presents is accurate. It's also not as romantic in language as many of her books are, so it was was more palatable for me. I'll continue with the series.
December 18, 2020
Como ya mencioné en otra reseña, La rebelión contra Enrique II, se trata de una autora muy prolífica, que ha escrito cientos de novelas, muchas de ellas sobre la historia de Inglaterra. Aunque los temas son interesantes, el desarrollo suele ser muy plano y decepciona.
En el caso de esta novela, un personaje magnífico como es Leonor de Aquitania - una de las mujeres más interesantes de su tiempo (siglo XII) - queda muy poco definido y su historia no nos acaba de llegar. A pesar de no estar muy bien narrada, la lectura no deja de ser apasionante ya que Leonor estuvo casada con el rey francés y posteriormente con su mayor enemigo, el rey de Inglaterra. También puso de moda las cortes de amor y la lírica de los trovadores. El estilo de Jean Plaidy es sencillo - y bastante repetitivo -y se lee muy rápido, pero nos deja con la impresión de no haber profundizado en la historia.
En el caso de esta novela, un personaje magnífico como es Leonor de Aquitania - una de las mujeres más interesantes de su tiempo (siglo XII) - queda muy poco definido y su historia no nos acaba de llegar. A pesar de no estar muy bien narrada, la lectura no deja de ser apasionante ya que Leonor estuvo casada con el rey francés y posteriormente con su mayor enemigo, el rey de Inglaterra. También puso de moda las cortes de amor y la lírica de los trovadores. El estilo de Jean Plaidy es sencillo - y bastante repetitivo -y se lee muy rápido, pero nos deja con la impresión de no haber profundizado en la historia.
May 8, 2014
Recently I reread this and another Jean Plaidy book and was kind of appalled at how bad they were. As a pre-teen and teenager, I read pretty much every Plaidy novel I could get my hands on. The one good thing about her books, at least for me, is that they started my life-long fascination with English and European history. I'll always be grateful to the prolific author who set me on my way.
February 16, 2014
Jean Plaidy opens her Plantagenet Saga with the stories of Eleanor of Aquitaine, Henry II and Thomas Becket. While the language might occasionally seem a slight bit antiquated (likely on purpose, as the book was first published only about 4 decades ago), this doesn't diminish the enjoyment provided by the tale itself: a well-crafted historical fiction novel that remains a good read long after it first came out.
October 26, 2016
My full review can be found on my blog:
https://brooklynthebookworm.wordpress...
Truthfully this book was a massive disappointment to me. I loved Jean Plaidy's book, "St Thomas's Eve" and as a massive history buff, I had huge expectations to enjoy this, but alas, it wasn't to be. I will continue reading the author, but I can't say I'll rush and continue this 14 part book series. *sigh*.
https://brooklynthebookworm.wordpress...
Truthfully this book was a massive disappointment to me. I loved Jean Plaidy's book, "St Thomas's Eve" and as a massive history buff, I had huge expectations to enjoy this, but alas, it wasn't to be. I will continue reading the author, but I can't say I'll rush and continue this 14 part book series. *sigh*.
April 3, 2023
Great book, great history, great writing. I'm looking forward to all the other books in this series and every book this author has ever written.
September 14, 2010
I’ve heard very mixed reviews about Jean Plaidy and her historical novels. Some claim that she is their favorite historical fiction author EVER. Some complain that she is a terrible writer.
Jean Plaidy (real name Eleanor Hibbert) was an extremely prolific author who published scores of books throughout the second half of the twentieth century. Her historical novels were very popular with the reading public, and she dealt with many time periods and dynasties including the Plantagenets, the Tudors, the Stuarts, and the Georgians.
For my first foray into Jean Plaidy, I selected the first volume of her fourteen-book Plantagenet Saga entitled The Plantagenet Prelude. Part I tells the story of Eleanor of Aquitaine, her marriage to Louis of France, her dissatisfaction with him and her notorious love affairs, and her subsequent marriage to Henry Plantagenet. Part II relates the growing estrangement between Eleanor and Henry but also focuses on the rocky relationship between Henry and the Archbishop Thomas Becket.
One commonly touted rule of writing is, “Show, don’t tell.” This rule is not something that Jean Plaidy adhered to. Throughout the book, she constantly tells us what we should think about the characters, sometimes reiterating the same thing multiple times over the course of a few chapters. Eleanor is “sensual.” Matilda is a “virago.” Sometimes her assessments fail to jive with the few anecdotes that she reveals about the characters. Even though she continually tells us that Thomas Becket, as chancellor, is very “amusing” he seems much more of a bore than an entertaining fellow.
As I was reading the first part of the book, I found myself frequently wondering about the historical accuracy of some of the events. I was willing to accept the fact that Eleanor might have had an affair with her uncle, Raymond of Antioch, since I had read elsewhere that there were rumors to that effect. But when Eleanor struck up a liaison with Saladin the Turk, my skepticism got the better of me. Looking up the facts, I learned that Saladin would have been eleven years old at the time Eleanor was in the Holy Land. Hmmm. However, I also learned that Jean Plaidy did not manufacture the story out of thin air. A medieval romance, written at least a century after Saladin’s life, painted a love interest between the two, and it is on this source that Plaidy draws to spin her spurious yarn.
The second half of the story, Henry’s conflict with Thomas Becket, was one that I was quite familiar with (see The Life and Death of Saint Thomas Becket), so I was in a better position to evaluate Plaidy and her historicity. In this section I found that Plaidy adhered to the primary source material (almost to a fault), many times quoting directly from the medieval chroniclers. This sometimes created an odd discontinuity between the pieces of dialogue she invented and the pieces of dialogue she lifted from source material. Once again, I discovered that Plaidy was indiscriminate in the use of her sources, intermingling apocryphal stories from a later period (like the tale that claimed Becket’s mother was a Saracen princess) with eyewitness accounts of Becket’s life.
Although it may seem that I am complaining about Plaidy’s choice of sources, all in all, she was far more accurate than many other historical fiction writers are. That said, I must acknowledge that her writing style is somewhat tedious. I doubt that I will be able to make my way much further through her massive Plantagenet Saga. But at the same time, I have no regrets about finishing The Plantagenet Prelude. It’s always good to know what’s out there in the realm of historical fiction.
Jean Plaidy (real name Eleanor Hibbert) was an extremely prolific author who published scores of books throughout the second half of the twentieth century. Her historical novels were very popular with the reading public, and she dealt with many time periods and dynasties including the Plantagenets, the Tudors, the Stuarts, and the Georgians.
For my first foray into Jean Plaidy, I selected the first volume of her fourteen-book Plantagenet Saga entitled The Plantagenet Prelude. Part I tells the story of Eleanor of Aquitaine, her marriage to Louis of France, her dissatisfaction with him and her notorious love affairs, and her subsequent marriage to Henry Plantagenet. Part II relates the growing estrangement between Eleanor and Henry but also focuses on the rocky relationship between Henry and the Archbishop Thomas Becket.
One commonly touted rule of writing is, “Show, don’t tell.” This rule is not something that Jean Plaidy adhered to. Throughout the book, she constantly tells us what we should think about the characters, sometimes reiterating the same thing multiple times over the course of a few chapters. Eleanor is “sensual.” Matilda is a “virago.” Sometimes her assessments fail to jive with the few anecdotes that she reveals about the characters. Even though she continually tells us that Thomas Becket, as chancellor, is very “amusing” he seems much more of a bore than an entertaining fellow.
As I was reading the first part of the book, I found myself frequently wondering about the historical accuracy of some of the events. I was willing to accept the fact that Eleanor might have had an affair with her uncle, Raymond of Antioch, since I had read elsewhere that there were rumors to that effect. But when Eleanor struck up a liaison with Saladin the Turk, my skepticism got the better of me. Looking up the facts, I learned that Saladin would have been eleven years old at the time Eleanor was in the Holy Land. Hmmm. However, I also learned that Jean Plaidy did not manufacture the story out of thin air. A medieval romance, written at least a century after Saladin’s life, painted a love interest between the two, and it is on this source that Plaidy draws to spin her spurious yarn.
The second half of the story, Henry’s conflict with Thomas Becket, was one that I was quite familiar with (see The Life and Death of Saint Thomas Becket), so I was in a better position to evaluate Plaidy and her historicity. In this section I found that Plaidy adhered to the primary source material (almost to a fault), many times quoting directly from the medieval chroniclers. This sometimes created an odd discontinuity between the pieces of dialogue she invented and the pieces of dialogue she lifted from source material. Once again, I discovered that Plaidy was indiscriminate in the use of her sources, intermingling apocryphal stories from a later period (like the tale that claimed Becket’s mother was a Saracen princess) with eyewitness accounts of Becket’s life.
Although it may seem that I am complaining about Plaidy’s choice of sources, all in all, she was far more accurate than many other historical fiction writers are. That said, I must acknowledge that her writing style is somewhat tedious. I doubt that I will be able to make my way much further through her massive Plantagenet Saga. But at the same time, I have no regrets about finishing The Plantagenet Prelude. It’s always good to know what’s out there in the realm of historical fiction.
August 7, 2020
Элинор стерва, Генрих бабник, один Беккет хороший. Собрание слухов и сплетен, переживших столетия и обстряпывание в виде псевдохудожественной прозы.
Сочувствовать особо некому, да и изложено неизящно и поверхностно. Освежить в памяти историю можно и поинтереснее.
Даже не пытайтесь сравнивать с Мантелл и ее Кромвелем.
Сочувствовать особо некому, да и изложено неизящно и поверхностно. Освежить в памяти историю можно и поинтереснее.
Даже не пытайтесь сравнивать с Мантелл и ее Кромвелем.
October 31, 2012
I read this based on fairly positive reviews and the fact that I normally love reading anything about the Plantagenets. This is one of the few books that I have started that I did not make myself finish. From the first few pages I was annoyed by the author's habit of repeating the same information over and over (and over) again. By the time I was told the 10th time in the first chapter that Eleanore's father desired a male heir and Eleanore was offended by this idea, I was quite disappointed. However, I pressed on hoping for the writing, or at least the story, to improve. Eleanore continues to be presented not only as the strong, bold, intelligent woman I believed her to be, but a conniving, sleezy, two-dimensional one as well. By the time she was contemplating an affair with Saladin (which, historically, could not have actually happened), I was done. I didn't even get as far as my beloved Henry II being introduced. How people make it through this 14 book series, I have no idea. The writing is ameteurish and condecending, the characters poorly developed, and the storyline historically inaccurate. I wanted to like it. I was excited about finding a new lengthy series to read, but I will not be carrying on with this one.
August 30, 2011
I was really looking forward to reading this book since I didn't really know anything about this time period. An I stayed optimistic for the first 50 pages or so, but then it kind of fell from there. Not that the book was bad, it wasn't that. It just wasn't good either. Everything was rushed and the prose was strange and clipped.
Just a thought I had while reading - Louis and Eleanor reminded me of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. Especially when she cast her greedy eyes on Toulouse.
Just a thought I had while reading - Louis and Eleanor reminded me of Macbeth and Lady Macbeth. Especially when she cast her greedy eyes on Toulouse.
February 23, 2022
One of my favorite historical fiction writers. Plaidy is historically accurate with an easy read feel. A great way to read history and get a feel for our past.
This book give the into into the plantagenet dynasty. Focusing on Henry the Second and Elenor of Aquitaine this book leads us down the brilliant rabbit hole that was her life. From one move to the next she showed the world that women can have a mind of their own and follow their own chosen destiny
This book give the into into the plantagenet dynasty. Focusing on Henry the Second and Elenor of Aquitaine this book leads us down the brilliant rabbit hole that was her life. From one move to the next she showed the world that women can have a mind of their own and follow their own chosen destiny
June 22, 2020
I really enjoyed this book, its a historical fiction about the famous Leonor of Aquitania and her relation with her first husband the king of France, her adventours while she was queen in this country until she finally mets Geoffrey Plantagenet and his son the future king of England.
January 3, 2010
Jean Plaidy's Plantaganet books were my favorites.
May 15, 2025
I really like how Eleanor was portrayed here as more of a manipulative domineering person rather than the “poor damsel” role a lot of historians place on her. I think the former fits her more considering she launched multiple revolts on her own husband lol.
As much as I say I liked that trait there’s one aspect I didn’t. Eleanor is portrayed here as kind of a promiscuous woman who takes up various lovers. These lovers in the book actually do have historical basis, but the basis is that they were made up by people back then to discredit her. I just felt like it made the story feel a BIT disingenuous to include these considering they weren’t true to her actual character.
Fine story though, the Plantagenets and especially Henry II are always interesting to me.
I guess knowing that historical tidbit kinda made me like this a little less lol but still a decent read
As much as I say I liked that trait there’s one aspect I didn’t. Eleanor is portrayed here as kind of a promiscuous woman who takes up various lovers. These lovers in the book actually do have historical basis, but the basis is that they were made up by people back then to discredit her. I just felt like it made the story feel a BIT disingenuous to include these considering they weren’t true to her actual character.
Fine story though, the Plantagenets and especially Henry II are always interesting to me.
I guess knowing that historical tidbit kinda made me like this a little less lol but still a decent read
July 5, 2022
3.5/5
Tem a façanha de ser o livro mais repetitivo e, ao mesmo tempo, mais frenético que já li. Nunca aconteceu tanto em tão poucas páginas! A 2° parte sofre da mínima participação de Eleanor de Aquitânia e sua energia caótica deliciosa.
Tem a façanha de ser o livro mais repetitivo e, ao mesmo tempo, mais frenético que já li. Nunca aconteceu tanto em tão poucas páginas! A 2° parte sofre da mínima participação de Eleanor de Aquitânia e sua energia caótica deliciosa.
October 27, 2021
It Wasn’t Just Me
First, thank you for giving me my reading life back to Lizzy of Lizzy’s Literary Life blog. I was, per habit, going to wait and read her thoughts on this book AFTER I finished it. But, I’ve been reading this turkey for about a month and still hadn’t passed page 100! Plus, my eye had been drawn to “…affair…age 11…” [something like that] in her post. So I went back and read it. A true “a-ha!!” moment. It wasn’t just me! It wasn’t the struggle I’ve been having with print reading since the COVID lockdown. It was a terrible book! Or, to be charitable a popular book of its day that did not age well.
What I DID like in the book
So, I was expecting The Lion in Winter with Katherine Hepburn. Instead, I got just about every historical fiction pet peeve in one book. In the book, I did agree with her preference for overtly-manly men. And, I did like that she had what we today call “leadership skills” (back then–“bossy”). That’s about all
First, thank you for giving me my reading life back to Lizzy of Lizzy’s Literary Life blog. I was, per habit, going to wait and read her thoughts on this book AFTER I finished it. But, I’ve been reading this turkey for about a month and still hadn’t passed page 100! Plus, my eye had been drawn to “…affair…age 11…” [something like that] in her post. So I went back and read it. A true “a-ha!!” moment. It wasn’t just me! It wasn’t the struggle I’ve been having with print reading since the COVID lockdown. It was a terrible book! Or, to be charitable a popular book of its day that did not age well.
What I DID like in the book
So, I was expecting The Lion in Winter with Katherine Hepburn. Instead, I got just about every historical fiction pet peeve in one book. In the book, I did agree with her preference for overtly-manly men. And, I did like that she had what we today call “leadership skills” (back then–“bossy”). That’s about all
November 2, 2021
What a struggle! Historical fiction has come so far since Plaidy’s heyday …
February 28, 2015
The Plantagenet Prelude by Jean Plaidy is the story of Eleanor of Aquitaine. It begins with her as a 15-year-old girl, a wealthy heiress who is “ripe for marriage.” She marries the gentle, pious, naïve King Louis of France and they have two daughters. Yet Louis does not satisfy the passionate Eleanor. So she haves affairs with her uncle and an infidel. Then she meets the future King Henry of England, falls in love, divorces Louis and marries Henry. Their marriage creates a powerful empire and many children, but it falls apart because Henry cheats on her.
There are many versions of this tale by many modern lady-authors. I have read this story a half-dozen times, by such other authors as Alison Weir and Sharon Kay Penman. They are all very similar.
This version of Eleanor’s story is older than the others, so includes less sweaty details and takes a sterner line with the heroine. Plaidy’s Queen Eleanor is a selfish lady, crueler and shallower than her more modern incarnations. Henry is still a jerk, but Eleanor also reaps what she sows. Louis is more sympathetic, and Thomas a Becket is his traditional, saintly, noble figure.
The Plantagenet Prelude does not tell Eleanor’s complete story. It cuts off at a turning point – the murder of Thomas a Becket.
There are many versions of this tale by many modern lady-authors. I have read this story a half-dozen times, by such other authors as Alison Weir and Sharon Kay Penman. They are all very similar.
This version of Eleanor’s story is older than the others, so includes less sweaty details and takes a sterner line with the heroine. Plaidy’s Queen Eleanor is a selfish lady, crueler and shallower than her more modern incarnations. Henry is still a jerk, but Eleanor also reaps what she sows. Louis is more sympathetic, and Thomas a Becket is his traditional, saintly, noble figure.
The Plantagenet Prelude does not tell Eleanor’s complete story. It cuts off at a turning point – the murder of Thomas a Becket.
August 28, 2011
Un genial comienzo para una saga histórica sobre una interesante porción de la dinastía inglesa, la de los denominados "Reyes Plantagenet". Este libro en particular relata la historia de una de las mujeres (a mi parecer) más admirables de la historia: Leonor de Aquitanía; carismática, sabia, artística y de mente abierta. En fin, una mujer totalmente adelantada a su época a quien obligaron a casarse con el santurrón Luis VI pero que luego de lograr disolver ese matrimonio, encontró el amor con el joven y muy temperamental Enrique II, rey de Inglaterra. Otra importante parte del libro habla también de la interesante vida de (santo) Thomas Becket, Arzobispo de Canterbury quien llevó una profunda relación de amistad con Enrique, la cual terminó con su muerte debido a sus constantes discusiones sobre los poderes del clero frente al Estado. Un libro lleno de intrigas, traiciones, amor, infidelidad, muerte y manipulaciones; brillantemente escrito por Jean Plaidy...¡ahora tengo que leer los otros!
April 3, 2008
This book starts out being a book about Eleanor of Aquitaine and her first marriage to Louis VII, King of France and the crusade they went on together, then her subsequent annulment and her marriage to Henry II, King of England and Normandy. Where the story fell over for me, was that this woman was portrayed as an independent strong woman with a will of her own, then in the middle of the book, she became nothing more than a breeder for Henry II and by the end she was vaguely described as bitter and twisted. The way that Eleanor was described in the middle of the book didn't seem to match up to the woman described in the beginning.
From my research it appears to be historically accurate and the history in the book was certainly very interesting. But if you are going to read this book don't expect to get emotionally caught up in the characters and their stories because it will not arouse anything more than a vague curiosity.
From my research it appears to be historically accurate and the history in the book was certainly very interesting. But if you are going to read this book don't expect to get emotionally caught up in the characters and their stories because it will not arouse anything more than a vague curiosity.
March 30, 2013
I love history, and have just moved from historical biographies to historical fiction. Jean Plaidy's Plantagenet Prelude was interesting, it was easy to read, and obviously well-researched. Though as I'd expected, there were some 'moments' that were historically inaccurate or purely fictional.
I could also overlook Jean's tendency to repeat certain phrases and adjectives, as the book was entertaining and some of history's greatest characters were brought vividly to life within its pages.
She's not for everyone, and I wouldn't say she's my favourite historical fiction writer, but I'm more than content to sink into her books with a hot cuppa on hand - historical inaccuracies and some tedious repetition that can be overlooked...
I could also overlook Jean's tendency to repeat certain phrases and adjectives, as the book was entertaining and some of history's greatest characters were brought vividly to life within its pages.
She's not for everyone, and I wouldn't say she's my favourite historical fiction writer, but I'm more than content to sink into her books with a hot cuppa on hand - historical inaccuracies and some tedious repetition that can be overlooked...
May 26, 2013
Eleanor of Aquitaine is not content to be heiress of the duchy of Aquitaine and rule over her Courts of Love. She is determined to be queen, and so she is - twice. Divorcing King Louis of France, she marries Henry Plantagenet, and helps him to the throne of England. No man could master Eleanor until King Henry: he must suffer the consequences. Eleanor has a beloved revengeful son, Richard the Lionheart, and Henry has a rival for power, Archbishop Thomas Becket.
I started to reread this because I was in the mood for something light in this time period. After 30 years I had forgotten how very flat the style is. These are exciting if extraordinarily selfish people. To me, the style the author chose for her Jean Plaidy pen name squashes the life out of them.
I started to reread this because I was in the mood for something light in this time period. After 30 years I had forgotten how very flat the style is. These are exciting if extraordinarily selfish people. To me, the style the author chose for her Jean Plaidy pen name squashes the life out of them.
November 25, 2018
Actually rating 2.5 stars
Compared to The Summer Queen by Elizabeth Chadwick I found this first volume of the Plantagenets a little too dull, it is like reading a history book without feeling the dialogue and emotions of the characters.
Eleanor was a very modern woman compared to the women of that time but she was also vain, selfish and greedy for power. I will continue this series and I hope that the writing will become much more entertaining and detailed.
Compared to The Summer Queen by Elizabeth Chadwick I found this first volume of the Plantagenets a little too dull, it is like reading a history book without feeling the dialogue and emotions of the characters.
Eleanor was a very modern woman compared to the women of that time but she was also vain, selfish and greedy for power. I will continue this series and I hope that the writing will become much more entertaining and detailed.
November 15, 2013
This is a story of Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitane and, of course, Thomas Beckett. It starts off in the usual Plaidy way with a lot of falling in love and big men (Plaidy's favourite word is 'vitality' and I actually started counted how many characters had this charming trait!!!)
However this particular book then improved greatly when she moved into the political world and disputes between Henry and Thomas. It gives a good overview of that sequence of events that leads to Thomas' murder and manages to show both men's motives but she gives the overall approval to Thomas.
Enjoyable - not that challenging but as a mini history lesson it serves well!
However this particular book then improved greatly when she moved into the political world and disputes between Henry and Thomas. It gives a good overview of that sequence of events that leads to Thomas' murder and manages to show both men's motives but she gives the overall approval to Thomas.
Enjoyable - not that challenging but as a mini history lesson it serves well!
December 18, 2018
I used to love reading Jean Plaidy, which is why i picked up this book off the second hand book stall at the library. However, sadly it shows its age as the writing is quite stilted - she has tried to write the conversations between characters in faux olde-English (lots of "mayhaps" etc) I did like the gentle history lesson it provided however, and I have continued to research on Wikipedia on the life of Eleanor of Aquitaine, Henry II, his mistresses etc.
September 23, 2010
It was a struggle to finish this book. It was well researched but the author obviously has little love for Eleanor of Aquintaine while I think she's pretty awesome. It was hard for me to get thru her continual bashing of Eleanor's decisions when I found most of her choices head strong and brave. More historical than fiction, I think I'll stick to Alison Weir.
September 3, 2012
This book seemed to be half novel, half biography and failed dramatically at being either. The historical facts were all over the place (I can't believe that the author included that old chestnut about Thomas Becket's mother being a Saracen princess) and the writing wasn't much cop either. Oh well. I'm pleased I read it if only because it adds to my book count for the year.
November 22, 2008
She has another style than SKP since her book is mainly based on historical facts without the use of dialogues to tell us the story. But I really liked the beginning of Plantagenet's saga written by another greater writer on HF. I hope I will be able to get all books in this series.
August 12, 2012
This book is a load of old dross. Over dramatic, full of repetition and very little substance.
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