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The Two Isabellas of King John
King John of England was married to two women: Isabella of Gloucester and Isabelle of Angoulême. The two women were central to shaping John and his reign, each in her own way molding the king and each other over their lives. Little is known about Isabella of Gloucester and she has largely become an historical footnote; Isabelle of Angoulême has a reputation as a witch and poisoner. However, both were products of their time, victims and pawns of the powerful men whose voices overwrote the experiences of women. By examining these two very different women through a modern feminist lens, The Two Isabellas offers new insight into one of England’s lesser-known queens and a different interpretation of one of its least popular kings.
In The Two Isabellas of King John , Kristen McQuinn offers new and intriguing insights into two of England’s important yet little understood queen-consorts, the wives of King John. Taking a feminist light, McQuinn brightly shines it on both England’s least well-known consort, Isabella of Gloucester, his first wife, and one of its least popular, Isabelle of Angoulême, his child bride.
In The Two Isabellas of King John , Kristen McQuinn offers new and intriguing insights into two of England’s important yet little understood queen-consorts, the wives of King John. Taking a feminist light, McQuinn brightly shines it on both England’s least well-known consort, Isabella of Gloucester, his first wife, and one of its least popular, Isabelle of Angoulême, his child bride.
216 pages, Hardcover
Published October 29, 2021
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
December 10, 2021
Precious little is known about the two Isabellas of King John. Isabella of Gloucester, his first wife, is but a shadow and left very little trace in historical record. Isabella of Angouleme, John's second wife, is a somewhat better documented figure but there is a vast amount of myths and misconceptions about her life, character and marriages.
It is the second Isabella that interests me the most. In 2015 I visited the Fontevraud Abbey where Isabella's effigy can still be admired today. I always wanted to learn more about the woman whose beautiful face was etched in the effigy but since she was a controversial figure during her lifetime, most historians repeat the assertions of medieval chroniclers who depicted her as evil seductress, adulteress and even a witch.
I had high hopes for Kristen McQuinn's book and wasn't disappointed. McQuinn provides a through analysis of what is known about the two Isabellas, both from contemporary and modern perspective. She analyses the historical sources but also delves into modern depictions of the two women.
This book was a joy to read, highly recommended.
It is the second Isabella that interests me the most. In 2015 I visited the Fontevraud Abbey where Isabella's effigy can still be admired today. I always wanted to learn more about the woman whose beautiful face was etched in the effigy but since she was a controversial figure during her lifetime, most historians repeat the assertions of medieval chroniclers who depicted her as evil seductress, adulteress and even a witch.
I had high hopes for Kristen McQuinn's book and wasn't disappointed. McQuinn provides a through analysis of what is known about the two Isabellas, both from contemporary and modern perspective. She analyses the historical sources but also delves into modern depictions of the two women.
This book was a joy to read, highly recommended.
August 25, 2021
*3.25
Arc received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I understand that there's a lack of information about both Isabella of Gloucester and Isabella of Angoueleme in historical records and I admire how the author has tried to work past that. However, the constant wonderings on certain topics grew tiring after a while. With the lack of information, whole chapters revolved around other things that may have related to the two wives, but also may have not. Still, I did ended up learning a lot from this book about medieval life and about King John's family and I clearly see that this is very well researched. Would definitely be interested to read more about the author's work.
Arc received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I understand that there's a lack of information about both Isabella of Gloucester and Isabella of Angoueleme in historical records and I admire how the author has tried to work past that. However, the constant wonderings on certain topics grew tiring after a while. With the lack of information, whole chapters revolved around other things that may have related to the two wives, but also may have not. Still, I did ended up learning a lot from this book about medieval life and about King John's family and I clearly see that this is very well researched. Would definitely be interested to read more about the author's work.
September 6, 2021
Since there is so little information known about these two women, there really wasn't a whole lot of light shined onto their lives. It was a tough read, one that I considered not finishing many times. It was on the dry side for me, and there were just too many suppositions about what their lives may have been like to be an enjoyable read. I knew little about the two wives of King John, and after reading this, I don't really know much more.
Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.
Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.
September 1, 2021
This is not quite the book I was hoping for.
Partly this is a factor of the subject matter: according to McQuinn, there's a serious lack of documentary evidence about either Isabelle of Gloucester or Isabelle of Angouleme; and what does exist in the latter case is often dreadfully prejudiced. So clearly that's a problem.
Partly, for me at least, it was the writing style. Because of that dearth of information, there's a HUGE whack of "maybe"s and "probably"s throughout. In order to make it a book at all, the first two chapters - on Childhood and Education, and The Role of Women and Queens - is a long, meandering discourse on "some of what we know about medieval women" and then occasional reference back to how this may possibly have impacted on either or both of the Isabelles. This vagueness really irked me. For me personally, it was also boring: in part because I already knew most of it (which I know isn't the case with every reader... but also, are your general reader going to pick up a book about John's wives? He's one of the least interesting of the English kings, surely).
Then there were phrases like "Romantic fantasies of teenage girls cannot truly have changed much over time" (p23) when part of of the book has been addressing both how we can't know exact details of their education, and also how noble girls were brought up to expect political marriages so... you can't have it both ways. I'm also going to say that claiming anything about your expectations of marriage as "entirely natural" is a problem. And "assuming that teenagers across time periods are at least a little bit similar" (p116) is just a big nope from me.
The sections where there's actual evidence about the two women were quite interesting, and McQuinn compared different perspectives in useful ways. I was particularly intrigued to learn that when the second Isabelle was quite young and early in her marriage to John, she was placed in the care of the first Isabelle - that is, the new wife is in the care of the previous wife. Which would just have been weird. Perhaps less so than you might expect for the women, though, given that there's a large age difference and that neither of them actually picked John.
I'll admit that I ignored the final chapter on literary representations of the two women.
Partly this is a factor of the subject matter: according to McQuinn, there's a serious lack of documentary evidence about either Isabelle of Gloucester or Isabelle of Angouleme; and what does exist in the latter case is often dreadfully prejudiced. So clearly that's a problem.
Partly, for me at least, it was the writing style. Because of that dearth of information, there's a HUGE whack of "maybe"s and "probably"s throughout. In order to make it a book at all, the first two chapters - on Childhood and Education, and The Role of Women and Queens - is a long, meandering discourse on "some of what we know about medieval women" and then occasional reference back to how this may possibly have impacted on either or both of the Isabelles. This vagueness really irked me. For me personally, it was also boring: in part because I already knew most of it (which I know isn't the case with every reader... but also, are your general reader going to pick up a book about John's wives? He's one of the least interesting of the English kings, surely).
Then there were phrases like "Romantic fantasies of teenage girls cannot truly have changed much over time" (p23) when part of of the book has been addressing both how we can't know exact details of their education, and also how noble girls were brought up to expect political marriages so... you can't have it both ways. I'm also going to say that claiming anything about your expectations of marriage as "entirely natural" is a problem. And "assuming that teenagers across time periods are at least a little bit similar" (p116) is just a big nope from me.
The sections where there's actual evidence about the two women were quite interesting, and McQuinn compared different perspectives in useful ways. I was particularly intrigued to learn that when the second Isabelle was quite young and early in her marriage to John, she was placed in the care of the first Isabelle - that is, the new wife is in the care of the previous wife. Which would just have been weird. Perhaps less so than you might expect for the women, though, given that there's a large age difference and that neither of them actually picked John.
I'll admit that I ignored the final chapter on literary representations of the two women.
September 18, 2021
At first, I imagined The Two Isabellas of King John might be a heavyweight academic read, reserved exclusively for students of history. So, I was pleasantly surprised to discover how ‘readable’ it was for those of us who have, but a passing interest in history and whose knowledge of King John may have been restricted to Shakespeare. Although this book is quite long, it was certainly not a challenge to read, and my interest didn’t wane at all.
Personally, I found it a fascinating insight into King John’s life and loves, that also offered a detailed exposé of his pettiness, his whims and of the callous, self-centred character I had previously assumed him to be. This really is a very enjoyable and well-researched book that throws some light on the two Isabellas, yet perhaps more on the power, politics and scheming, religion, superstition, prejudice, naivety/ignorance and popular culture of the medieval period.
It’s clear that the author Kristen McQuinn went to town on her research. She has done an excellent job in highlighting just how ruthless leaders could be in their quest for power, how appalling they subsequently were at practising leadership and how women were treated with contempt in a male-oriented society. I loved the frequent descriptions of Eleanor of Aquitaine – cultured, enlightened, as power-hungry as any of her male counterparts, and a real firebrand with a biting wit that could put anyone in their place.
My thanks to NetGalley and Pen & Sword for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Personally, I found it a fascinating insight into King John’s life and loves, that also offered a detailed exposé of his pettiness, his whims and of the callous, self-centred character I had previously assumed him to be. This really is a very enjoyable and well-researched book that throws some light on the two Isabellas, yet perhaps more on the power, politics and scheming, religion, superstition, prejudice, naivety/ignorance and popular culture of the medieval period.
It’s clear that the author Kristen McQuinn went to town on her research. She has done an excellent job in highlighting just how ruthless leaders could be in their quest for power, how appalling they subsequently were at practising leadership and how women were treated with contempt in a male-oriented society. I loved the frequent descriptions of Eleanor of Aquitaine – cultured, enlightened, as power-hungry as any of her male counterparts, and a real firebrand with a biting wit that could put anyone in their place.
My thanks to NetGalley and Pen & Sword for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.
August 31, 2021
Finally! A marvellous look at two forgotten English queens and an interesting account of King John's marital life.
Isabella of Gloucester was his first wife, a union that remained childless after it was annulled early on for reasons of consanguinity.
Not too much is known about this English bride but the author manages with brio to open a small window into her life.
Isabelle of Angoulême is my favorite and her union to John owes a lot to the very complex geopolitical issues prevalent at the time on the continent and the difficult management of the vast Plantagenets Empire.
Isabelle deserves today her full biography. As resilient and strong minded as her formidable mother in law, Alienor of Aquitaine, Isabelle was married twice and gave birth to 14 children who managed to reach adulthood. No small feat at the beginning of the 13th century! She was also the matriarch of the clan of the Lusignans whose subsequent move to England will prove to be a godsend for their half brother Henry III when it came later to destroy the Montforts' unquenchable quest to grab the crown.
Kristen McQuinn gives us delightful dual portrait of 2 medieval consorts during a troublesome period of English history. Highly recommended to anyone interested in Medieval history, women conditions and their history during the Middle Ages and the place of royalty in English and French societies at the time.
Many thanks to Netgalley and Pen&Sword for giving me the opportunity to read this terrific ARC prior to its release date
Isabella of Gloucester was his first wife, a union that remained childless after it was annulled early on for reasons of consanguinity.
Not too much is known about this English bride but the author manages with brio to open a small window into her life.
Isabelle of Angoulême is my favorite and her union to John owes a lot to the very complex geopolitical issues prevalent at the time on the continent and the difficult management of the vast Plantagenets Empire.
Isabelle deserves today her full biography. As resilient and strong minded as her formidable mother in law, Alienor of Aquitaine, Isabelle was married twice and gave birth to 14 children who managed to reach adulthood. No small feat at the beginning of the 13th century! She was also the matriarch of the clan of the Lusignans whose subsequent move to England will prove to be a godsend for their half brother Henry III when it came later to destroy the Montforts' unquenchable quest to grab the crown.
Kristen McQuinn gives us delightful dual portrait of 2 medieval consorts during a troublesome period of English history. Highly recommended to anyone interested in Medieval history, women conditions and their history during the Middle Ages and the place of royalty in English and French societies at the time.
Many thanks to Netgalley and Pen&Sword for giving me the opportunity to read this terrific ARC prior to its release date
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October 3, 2021Nothing remotely resembling anything close to a biography on either women - just a lot of "academic" twaddle and assumptions with the occasional mention of either one or both. A lot of "concepts" being explored but not a lot substance so far." In fact, I was ready to chuck the whole thing in there and then. But I persevered through dry and boring monotone, page after page, on the role of women, queens and mothers, childhood and childbirth, fashion, trade, architecture and education, with little to endear this reader and nothing this reader had not discovered in other tomes previously written, many of which stand as the pre-eminent works not only of their own times but even now.
Based upon the fact the McQuinn constantly tells us that there is a distinct lack of knowledge on either woman, that they themselves left no personal accounts, and that contemporary accounts show neither woman in a positive light, how can one make the sweeping statement that they were "central to shaping John and his reign".
I found the blurb to be incongruous with the actual content. Suffice to say, not overly impressed.
Based upon the fact the McQuinn constantly tells us that there is a distinct lack of knowledge on either woman, that they themselves left no personal accounts, and that contemporary accounts show neither woman in a positive light, how can one make the sweeping statement that they were "central to shaping John and his reign".
I found the blurb to be incongruous with the actual content. Suffice to say, not overly impressed.
April 7, 2022
King John married twice, once as Prince, once as King - Isabella of Gloucester in 1189 while his brother Richard was on the throne and Isabella d’Angoulême in 1200 shortly after he became King (incidentally why does McQuinn insist on “of Angoulême” instead of the more commonly used d’Angoulême but confuses the simplification by consistently adding the accent in ‘Angoulême’ - weird! Also weird is that the book is titled ‘Isabella’ but McQuinn calls both women ‘Isabelle’ throughout. A minor detail I know but niggling and annoying.) The former was childless, the latter, which alienated the powerful Lusignan family in Poitou into which Isabella had previously been betrothed, produced a number of children a guaranteed the survival of the Plantagenet dynasty after the disaster of both Henry and Richard’s childlessness.
Although boasted as a looking at the subjects through “a feminist light”, I have to say that I didn’t find that - this was simply a traditional, and non-sexist, view of John and his two Queens. Do not be put off by publicity, McQuinn is a better historian than is suggested by the “feminist” line in the publicity.
Given the extreme paucity of source material, something that McQuinn readily acknowledges more than once in her text, this is an excellent book. There is a feeling however that the book is somewhat padded beyond the subject itself and perhaps half of the book is not directky concerned with biographies, in the widest sense of the term, of the two Isabellas. The bibliography is much larger than many similar books but, sadly, there is often little in those sources beyond the odd reference and nothing to add materially to the subject and I do wonder if some of those sources actually contributed anything to McQuinn’s text.
This lack of actual hard information accounts for the fact that perhaps half of the text is, at best, tangential to the title and subject of the book and whilst it is fascinating information it is not germane to ‘The Two Isabellas of King John’. For example the book’s final chapter, ‘Representation in Literature’, which takes some thirty of the books one hundred and ninety text pages, is justified as being “…a very interesting and enlightening exercise.” In a larger book this might indeed have been ‘interesting’ but here speculation on appearance, relationships, conversations, etc. serves no actual purpose beyond ‘padding’ of a thin text and has nothing to add to our actual knowledge of either woman.
The other problem arising from this lack of hard facts is the unfortunate necessity for McQuinn to speculate on actual events and sequences and interplay between John and his wives. Again, as suggested above, this is probably unavoidable in a book of this sort.
McQuinn has produced an interesting book, and an excellent read. She has incorporated probably everything that is known about John’s two queens and it is a very useful addition to the paucity of the literature on the much-maligned monarch. She is almost certainly correct that two women helped shape John and his reign, most especially the situation with d’Angoulême, but that must in actuality remain speculation, it is not proved here - there simply isn’t the surviving evidence.
All in all, as I have said, a very worthwhile addition to ‘King John literature’ but overall somewhat of a disappointment within the subject proclaimed by its title. In truth it would be hard to do different and there probably isn’t enough hard information to produce the book that McQuinn wanted to.
Although boasted as a looking at the subjects through “a feminist light”, I have to say that I didn’t find that - this was simply a traditional, and non-sexist, view of John and his two Queens. Do not be put off by publicity, McQuinn is a better historian than is suggested by the “feminist” line in the publicity.
Given the extreme paucity of source material, something that McQuinn readily acknowledges more than once in her text, this is an excellent book. There is a feeling however that the book is somewhat padded beyond the subject itself and perhaps half of the book is not directky concerned with biographies, in the widest sense of the term, of the two Isabellas. The bibliography is much larger than many similar books but, sadly, there is often little in those sources beyond the odd reference and nothing to add materially to the subject and I do wonder if some of those sources actually contributed anything to McQuinn’s text.
This lack of actual hard information accounts for the fact that perhaps half of the text is, at best, tangential to the title and subject of the book and whilst it is fascinating information it is not germane to ‘The Two Isabellas of King John’. For example the book’s final chapter, ‘Representation in Literature’, which takes some thirty of the books one hundred and ninety text pages, is justified as being “…a very interesting and enlightening exercise.” In a larger book this might indeed have been ‘interesting’ but here speculation on appearance, relationships, conversations, etc. serves no actual purpose beyond ‘padding’ of a thin text and has nothing to add to our actual knowledge of either woman.
The other problem arising from this lack of hard facts is the unfortunate necessity for McQuinn to speculate on actual events and sequences and interplay between John and his wives. Again, as suggested above, this is probably unavoidable in a book of this sort.
McQuinn has produced an interesting book, and an excellent read. She has incorporated probably everything that is known about John’s two queens and it is a very useful addition to the paucity of the literature on the much-maligned monarch. She is almost certainly correct that two women helped shape John and his reign, most especially the situation with d’Angoulême, but that must in actuality remain speculation, it is not proved here - there simply isn’t the surviving evidence.
All in all, as I have said, a very worthwhile addition to ‘King John literature’ but overall somewhat of a disappointment within the subject proclaimed by its title. In truth it would be hard to do different and there probably isn’t enough hard information to produce the book that McQuinn wanted to.
June 25, 2022
I liked this book a lot. I read a couple of negative reviews which criticized this book for not containing enough information on the two women in the title: Isabella of Gloucester and Isabella of Angloueme. Personally, although I think that's a valid position its not really a fair criticism of this title.
The author was always quite upfront about the lack of source material, especially pertaining to Isabella of Gloucester. She tried her best to recreate a picture of what these women's lives may have been like from the general conditions, social attitues, norms and practies of the period. Which is akin trying to put together a puzzle with pieces missing, and pieces from other puzzles mixed in.
Suffice it to say, both Queens were controversial. Isabella of Gloucester was divorced, childless after 1o years of marriage and made a royal ward again. A act which must have been humilating since she was a grown adult by that time. The second Isabella was quite possibly adducted as a preteen, and understandably showed little to no political acument, nor did she seem to play the traditional role as a Queen. Even so, she left little in the way of documentation behind, and all that is really known is that chroniclers hated her.
This was good study on women's roles in politics in 13th century England, even if I did not agree with all the conclusions. Still a useful and readable book.
Thanks to Pen and Sword for approving my request of a PDF of this item. This did not influence my review, and all opinions are freely given and my own.
The author was always quite upfront about the lack of source material, especially pertaining to Isabella of Gloucester. She tried her best to recreate a picture of what these women's lives may have been like from the general conditions, social attitues, norms and practies of the period. Which is akin trying to put together a puzzle with pieces missing, and pieces from other puzzles mixed in.
Suffice it to say, both Queens were controversial. Isabella of Gloucester was divorced, childless after 1o years of marriage and made a royal ward again. A act which must have been humilating since she was a grown adult by that time. The second Isabella was quite possibly adducted as a preteen, and understandably showed little to no political acument, nor did she seem to play the traditional role as a Queen. Even so, she left little in the way of documentation behind, and all that is really known is that chroniclers hated her.
This was good study on women's roles in politics in 13th century England, even if I did not agree with all the conclusions. Still a useful and readable book.
Thanks to Pen and Sword for approving my request of a PDF of this item. This did not influence my review, and all opinions are freely given and my own.
February 2, 2022
Central to nothing…..
The title of this book piqued an interest with me; having read about the women in fiction and seeing portrayals on tv (Patricia Hodge as Isabella of Gloucester and Cory Pulman as Isabella of Angoulême) in 80’s series Robin of Sherwood.
However, this book is nothing remotely resembling close to a biography on either woman - there are a lot of assumptions, but no evidence is presented to corroborate what the author is trying to tell us and she does not endear herself to the reader by investigating other topics whilst neglecting what she is actually writing about.
And how can McQuinn claim they were “central to shaping John and his reign” when the blurb and the content do not go hand in hand.
Not overly impressed with what could be a very interesting subject.
Many thanks to Pen & Sword and Netgalley for sending me an ARC of this book.
The title of this book piqued an interest with me; having read about the women in fiction and seeing portrayals on tv (Patricia Hodge as Isabella of Gloucester and Cory Pulman as Isabella of Angoulême) in 80’s series Robin of Sherwood.
However, this book is nothing remotely resembling close to a biography on either woman - there are a lot of assumptions, but no evidence is presented to corroborate what the author is trying to tell us and she does not endear herself to the reader by investigating other topics whilst neglecting what she is actually writing about.
And how can McQuinn claim they were “central to shaping John and his reign” when the blurb and the content do not go hand in hand.
Not overly impressed with what could be a very interesting subject.
Many thanks to Pen & Sword and Netgalley for sending me an ARC of this book.
July 17, 2025
Contemporary sources vilify King John and have little positive to say about his second wife, Isabella of Angouleme. Historians usually sift the evidence to see how much truth there is in the portrayal of John, and while a definitive answer is impossible, they will advance an argument based on the available evidence.
McQuinn makes no attempt to do any of this. The book's value lies in the fact that most of the information available out Isabelle/Isabella of Angouleme is here. But it's a frustrating book to read.
'Isabelle may have been a factor in why thirteenth-century women in England saw a bit of a rise in the misogyny that appears in writings of the time, or it may be unrelated to her or anything she actually did.'
'May have been'. 'A bit of a rise'. 'May be'.
McQuinn makes no attempt to do any of this. The book's value lies in the fact that most of the information available out Isabelle/Isabella of Angouleme is here. But it's a frustrating book to read.
'Isabelle may have been a factor in why thirteenth-century women in England saw a bit of a rise in the misogyny that appears in writings of the time, or it may be unrelated to her or anything she actually did.'
'May have been'. 'A bit of a rise'. 'May be'.
April 25, 2022
I really struggled with reading this book. I set it down multiple times and came back to it, hoping to get through it. I am not sure if it was the writing style or the real lack of information (new or otherwise) on these ladies that just failed to capture my attention.
We know almost nothing about the first Isabella, but the second is better documented - to a point. John was a larger than life, in your face, can't get around him person - and women were just shadowed due to the norms of the day. While the author did her best to bring some new information to the front - I didn't learn or read anything new that I had not seen already.
We know almost nothing about the first Isabella, but the second is better documented - to a point. John was a larger than life, in your face, can't get around him person - and women were just shadowed due to the norms of the day. While the author did her best to bring some new information to the front - I didn't learn or read anything new that I had not seen already.
August 28, 2021
An interesting read about medieval life and king John’s reign. Sometimes history books can be a bit dense, but this book was well written. And for a non-native speaker as myself easy to read. The title is a bit misleading. The two Isabelles are not as you would expect the main characters. The first half of the book is more about medieval life and the second about king John. Because the information about the two Isabellas is (understandably) scarce so the writer uses a lot of could have, would have, very likely when she mentions them and that gets a bit annoying after a while.
December 15, 2021
I started this book not knowing much about the two wives of King John and having read it, still feel none the wiser, purely because there is not enough evidence about them to warrant an entire book.
I did, however, learn a great deal about medieval life, I feel that this would be more aptly presented as such a text as opposed to one about the lives of the Isabelles.
Many thanks to Netgalley for the ARC copy in exchange for an honest review.
I did, however, learn a great deal about medieval life, I feel that this would be more aptly presented as such a text as opposed to one about the lives of the Isabelles.
Many thanks to Netgalley for the ARC copy in exchange for an honest review.
June 20, 2025
This was a very interesting dual-biography, suffering only from a lack of sources for the first Isabella, but in the absence of any other writing, I'll take it!
August 4, 2022
I would put this more at a weak 3.5. The fact that there is very little documentary evidence to work with makes a book about the two wives of King John difficult. Isabella of Gloucester is known only for being married to John, nothing of her person, her history, her personality remains in writing. Kirsten McQuinn uses this to give us a base understanding of what life was like for women, and some cultural context for what could have been her childhood until she was married, but does acknowledge that we have nothing to base anything on. Isabelle of Angouleme has more of a record, but also has some known biases in the record. Kirsten does balance the two, but again, the weakness of what is in the written record just makes the book thin. It does have some wonderful fleshing around the cultural and historical understanding of woman's roles, queen's roles, how they would have failed and succeeded, and what John did, and more importantly didn't do to help set up his second queen to succeed. It is a fascinating look at these women and their role, but sadly the record fails them and this book.
Thank you to NetGalley and Pen & Sword History for the copy of this book.
Thank you to NetGalley and Pen & Sword History for the copy of this book.
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