Book Review: The Kingmaker's Daughter

In the White Queen we see her as the petite second daughter of Warwick. She was just another pawn in her father's schemes. Towards the end of that side of the story we see her rise into the throne of her father's making. Here, we read her story as Anne Neville reveals her tender hearted soul gradually hardened by her experiences on the battlefield.


Reading the first few pages I already knew what events to expect, having read the other two books of this war. What intrigued me then as I read this were three things: one, why did she not order her gown for the young prince's coronation; two, what was the nature of her relationship with Richard-- was it genuine or a strategy for both or either of them; and three, did she have a hand in the loss of the princes in the tower? I indulged myself in this book keeping those questions in mind and found that I got more answers to questions that I left unasked. More particularly, I was surprised to see how George's thoughts influenced her and her husband. I knew George was a green-eyed monster but I never thought he could run his influence deep into this young couple's minds. I was alarmed at this because this coupled with the fact that they were moving under the pretenses that the Queen, Elizabeth Woodville, was after their lives to secure her power on the throne was a dangerous formula for their decisions. This was a disconcerting dilemma they had that I think ultimately lead them to believe that they were doing the best for the throne and for their country. But I think if I were in those times, I would also think that, but I don't think I would have planned my life around it. Then again, these are different times.



                                   

                                                      The Cousins' War Series

 

                                           The Kingmaker's Daughter

                                                           By

                                                 Philippa Gregory





What I loved most about the book is the way the transition in Anne's life and thoughts were shown. If you could do a summary combined with her growth, you could paint her out as this little girl who was ruled with fear over her mother, and who could not do to be without her sister. After her tragic rise and fall at fourteen-- being married to the enemy then losing her husband at the blink of an eye-- she changed dramatically. She was still fearful of others but now she thought more strategically and more like how a queen would. Still, she did not lose her soft edge. The third part of her life, I would describe as her happiest and most dramatic. It is the happiest because she got most of what she wanted, and dramatic because she lost them all almost at the same time. 


I guess one part of the book I enjoyed very much was the bond between her and her sister. I think what's funnier even is I could see their relationship being very similar to the way my older sister and I are to each other. It was refreshing to think that part of someone else's life thousands of years ago resonated with yours today. As for her adolescent years, I enjoyed reading about her courtship and early marriage to Richard because it was wholesome and it was just a whirl of romance for a girl her age to have the boy she liked for so long be her husband. The only dilemma I had was on Richard's part. I keep thinking whether this was all genuine for him as we'll or just a tactical approach at getting her fortunes, or the best of both. Seeing as how he is a military commander I think it is both. In the latter part of her life I began to pity her. I pitied her for loving and losing her only son and her husband. I pitied her because she lived under a pretentious fear of Elizabeth Woodville and continued cursing her. I pitied her because she dared to go down the path that her father always did. I pitied her because in that moment of crucial advice to Richard, she chose to upscale her ambition, her father's ambition, over the welfare of England and their family. In that moment I think she was lost. With no guidance from her mother or her sister, she was lost. Still, I adored her for having a genuine heart and for being brave through the years of living in fear. I admire her for her courage to muster up herself despite her fears. And for this, I came to respect her. But, I also learned from her moment of weakness in morality that too much ambition on the wrong side can take you down. 


Needless to say that I loved her character here not much for her tactical thinking, but for her genuine heart and soul. She does have many weaknesses, her fears being the greatest, but I admire her because she learned to live through them. As for her husband Richard, I also grew to like him without much effort. The only problem I have is I cannot see through to his actions precisely. I could not figure out whether he was true to his words to her or merely playing his own games. But I guess in a way that is the mystery of this "sometime king of England".


As usual I commend the author for giving a voice, a very unique voice to this character in history. Not much is known about her but through this book, I think she did her character justice and shed new light into not only her life, but also her husband's and her family's.





Watch out for The White Queen series adaptation on BBC one :)



Dani

June 28, 2013- 4:17PM

Whatever you do

Whatever you say

Neither fear nor ambition

Should rule your way