Title: The White Queen

Author: Philippa Gregory

Sarah’s pick

This is the first book in a new series “The Cousins’ War’”. Philippa Gregory goes back to the century before her popular Tudor Court novels to the time of “The Wars of the Roses” (known at the time as the Cousins’ war).

The novel is set in a time of constant conflict, murder, plotting and betrayal- “where brother fights against brother and no one can ever put their sword aside, or trust in the law”.The central character is Elizabeth Woodville, a young widow with two children. She catches the eye of King Edward IV. After her secret marriage to the king, Elizabeth and her mother help their family rise to power amidst rumours of witchcraft. Elizabeth and Edward have 10 children during their marriage (although not all survive past infancy). After Edward’s death Elizabeth fights for the survival of her family as well as their hold on power. The fate of two of her sons, known as the Princes in the Tower is still unknown to this day. 

I look forward to reading the next novel in this series.