Historical Fiction and Classics Fans discussion

This is the place to discuss anything you want about Philippa Gregory and her books.
Is there any huge fans of PG here?

Gregory has been hit or miss for me. I enjoyed Virgin Earth and The Boleyn Inheritance a lot, The Other Boleyn Girl as a novel (it gets a lot of the history wrong), and others I've found from eh (The Queen's Fool) to downright unreadable (Wideacre, I'm looking at you).

Susanna - Censored by GoodReads wrote: "Gregory has been hit or miss for me. I enjoyed Virgin Earth and The Boleyn Inheritance a lot, The Other Boleyn Girl as a novel (it gets a lot of the history ..."
Did you read the Cousins' War series?

No, not yet. Have you?

Susanna - Censored by GoodReads wrote: "No, not yet. Have you?"
I read the The White Queen, The Red Queen, The Lady of the Rivers and The Kingmaker's Daughter and they were all excellent. I didn't read the last one.

Philippa Gregory is one of my favourite authors. I loved [book : The Other Boleyn Girl|269793]. The Virgin's Lover and The Queen's Fool.

Loved all but one of the cousins war series, can't wait for the last, the kings curse.

Emily wrote: "Philippa Gregory is one of my favourite authors. I loved [book : The Other Boleyn Girl|269793]. The Virgin's Lover and The Queen's Fool.

Loved all but one of the cousi..."
Really? I didn't know that the last book in the Cousins's War series is named The King's Curse. In the series page on goodreads, they put that the last book is named The Last Rose. I'm going to check on Philippa Gregory's website.

Susanna - Censored by GoodReads wrote: "Gregory has been hit or miss for me. I enjoyed Virgin Earth and The Boleyn Inheritance a lot, The Other Boleyn Girl as a novel (it gets a lot of the history ..."
Why was Wideacre so unreadable?

Lucrezia,

I read that the title of the last in the cousins war series, (the kings curse) on Philippa Gregory's face book page a couple of days ago.

Emily wrote: "Lucrezia,

I read that the title of the last in the cousins war series, (the kings curse) on Philippa Gregory's face book page a couple of days ago."
Oh yes you're right. They changed it on goodreads too. I'm so excited to read it!! Before, I have to read The White Princess, but now I'm reading Before Versailles by Karleen Koen.

Lucrezia wrote: "Why was Wideacre so unreadable?"

PG likes incest more than I do.

Susanna - Censored by GoodReads wrote: "Lucrezia wrote: "Why was Wideacre so unreadable?"

PG likes incest more than I do."
I understand but I want to read Wideacre, just to see.

There are some people who really liked that one; I just wasn't one of them. It might be a good read for you.

I haven't read any of her books yet, but there's an Ask Philippa Gregory group now.

Emma wrote: "I haven't read any of her books yet, but there's an Ask Philippa Gregory group now."
Really? I think I'll join it. I love Philippa Gregory so much... I recommend you her books, Emma.

I know, I have to read them!!! But first I'm going to read Chocolat and then The Count of Monte Cristo (it's a group read in two of the groups I moderate), so I'll read that afterwards. Thank you, though!

Oh, I love the Count.

If you want you can join my group (Giulianzo's Plato's Academy of Florence and the Confraternity of the Magi) and discuss it with us!

I feel the same as Susanna. I loved some books by PG, like The Other Boleyn Girl, The Boleyn Inheritance and The White Queen, but I found others terribly disappointing, like The Other Queen and The Red Queen. Her novels are surely entertaining, but I personally found some of them to be less well built than others.

Elena wrote: "I feel the same as Susanna. I loved some books by PG, like The Other Boleyn Girl, The Boleyn Inheritance and The White Queen, but I found others terribly disappointing, like The Other Queen and The..."
Really? The Red Queen is one of my favorite books. I love the way PG describes the characters, specially Margaret Beaufort, Margaret of Anjou and Elizabeth Woodville.

Lucrezia wrote: "Elena wrote: "I feel the same as Susanna. I loved some books by PG, like The Other Boleyn Girl, The Boleyn Inheritance and The White Queen, but I found others terribly disappointing, like The Other..."

I did not even finish it, unfortunately! It might be because I had it as an audiobook, and the reader was awful... I mean, she wasn't bad, but she had this weepy voice which I found incredibly annoying, and very soon I was completely mad at Margaret, so I abandoned it.

Elena wrote: "Lucrezia wrote: "Elena wrote: "I feel the same as Susanna. I loved some books by PG, like The Other Boleyn Girl, The Boleyn Inheritance and The White Queen, but I found others terribly disappointin..."
This is why I never listen to audiobooks... :( When I read the Red Queen reviews, 75% of the people said that they were really mad at Margaret and they didn't finish. I don't know why but I had some sympathy for her (except for the Princes in the Tower, of course)... She was married at thirteen, had her first child at fourteen, she became a widow the same year... Am I the only one?

Lucrezia wrote: "Elena wrote: "Lucrezia wrote: "Elena wrote: "I feel the same as Susanna. I loved some books by PG, like The Other Boleyn Girl, The Boleyn Inheritance and The White Queen, but I found others terribl..."

I think the real Margaret was a remarkable woman, and I would like to read a biography about her. But I just couldn't feel sorry for PG!Margaret, I lost my patience on her very soon...

I felt as though she had a destiny and tried to live her life accordingly. Life was difficult and she was very young.


I did like the White Queen better

Sue wrote: "I felt as though she had a destiny and tried to live her life accordingly. Life was difficult and she was very young.


I did like the White Queen better"
Yes, The White Queen was very good. The Lady of the Rivers was good also. I didn't know Jacquetta of Luxembourg before, so it was interesting.

I read two of her books, didn't like them, and gave up trying. Although, if everyone is speaking so favorably about the White Queen, I might try it. What do people like about it so much?

I just love Philippa Gregory's writing and the way she describes her characters. I discovered some historical figures that I didn't know before with her books. Anyway, if you didn't like the two books you've read I don't think you'll like The White Queen more.

Huge fan! I love her Tudor Court and the Cousin's War Books.

Ashley wrote: "Huge fan! I love her Tudor Court and the Cousin's War Books."
I didn't read The Tudor Court series yet (I have so many things to read before and I know that once I start Philippa Gregory's books I can't put them down) but I read the first four books in The Cousin's War series. I'll read The White Princess soon.

Huge fan! I love her cousin's war series, though I wish she would have written about Margaret of Anjou, she did a good job making her into an interesting character.