The ​Women of the Cousins' War The ​real white queen and her rivals

Anne Gracie - The ​King, The Queen, and The Mistress
A ​king torn between two women could lead to a kingdom torn. Troubled by religious unrest in his kingdom and changing alliances with other countries, weighing most on King Henry VIII of England's mind is his impending divorce to Queen Katherine of Aragon. The matter is of extreme urgency, as the king desires an heir and has just met the woman who holds his destiny -- Lady Anne Boleyn, eighteen and in the flower of youthful beauty. But was their meeting by chance, or part of a plan devised by her father for the furthering of his family? As the new romance blooms, it causes heartache for the queen and headaches for the king's personal chaplain, Cardinal Wolsey, who once worked on behalf of the kingdom to organize diplomatic talks, but now toils to obtain the Church's approval for the king's divorce. As loyalties are questioned and the Church's influence is threatened by the emboldened king, the fate of the kingdom lies in the balance. An irresistible story of love, lust, ambition, and political intrigue, this novelization of season one of The Tudors introduces us to a young, virile king of one of the most powerful nations in the world, and the women who will cause him to forever alter the course of history.

Jean Plaidy - The ​Rose Without a Thorn
From ​the pen of legendary historical novelist Jean Plaidy comes an unforgettable true story of royalty, passion, and innocence lost. Born into an impoverished branch of the noble Howard family, young Katherine is plucked from her home to live with her grandmother, the Duchess of Norfolk. The innocent girl quickly learns that her grandmother’s puritanism is not shared by Katherine’s free-spirited cousins, with whom she lives. Beautiful and impressionable, Katherine becomes involved in two ill-fated love affairs before her sixteenth birthday. Like her cousin Anne Boleyn, she leaves her grandmother’s home to become a lady-in-waiting at the court of Henry VIII. The royal palaces are exciting to a young girl from the country, and Katherine ?nds that her duties there allow her to be near her handsome cousin, Thomas Culpepper, whom she has loved since childhood. But when Katherine catches the eye of the aging and unhappily married king, she is forced to abandon her plans for a life with Thomas and marry King Henry. Overwhelmed by the change in her fortunes, bewildered and flattered by the adoration of her husband, Katherine is dazzled by the royal life. But her bliss is short-lived as rumors of her wayward past come back to haunt her, and Katherine’s destiny takes another, deadly, turn.

Philippa Gregory - The ​Taming of the Queen
Why ​would a woman marry a serial killer? Because she cannot refuse... Kateryn Parr, a thirty-year-old widow in a secret affair with a new lover, has no choice when a man old enough to be her father who has buried four wives - King Henry VIII - commands her to marry him. Kateryn has no doubt about the danger she faces: the previous queen lasted sixteen months, the one before barely half a year. But Henry adores his new bride and Kateryn's trust in him grows as she unites the royal family, creates a radical study circle at the heart of the court, and rules the kingdom as Regent. But is this enough to keep her safe? A leader of religious reform and the first woman to publish in English, Kateryn stands out as an independent woman with a mind of her own. But she cannot save the Protestants, under threat for their faith, and Henry's dangerous gaze turns on her.The traditional churchmen and rivals for power accuse her of heresy - the punishment is death by fire and the king's name is on the warrant... From an author who has described all of Henry's queens comes a deeply intimate portrayal of the last: a woman who longed for passion, power and education at the court of a medieval killer.

Jean Plaidy - Murder ​Most Royal
One ​powerful king. Two tragic queens. In the court of Henry VIII, it was dangerous for a woman to catch the king’s eye. Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard were cousins. Both were beautiful women, though very different in temperament. They each learned that Henry’s passion was all-consuming–and fickle. Sophisticated Anne Boleyn, raised in the decadent court of France, was in love with another man when King Henry claimed her as his own. Being his mistress gave her a position of power; being his queen put her life in jeopardy. Her younger cousin, Catherine Howard, was only fifteen when she was swept into the circle of King Henry. Her innocence attracted him, but a past mistake was destined to haunt her. Painted in the rich colors of Tudor England, Murder Most Royal is a page-turning journey into the lives of two of the wives of the tempestuous Henry VIII.

Robin Maxwell - Virgin
Queen ​Elizabeth I, daughter of Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII and later England's most beloved monarch, was banished by her father at the age of two, but is readmitted to the Tudor fold at nine when Henry's sixth wife, Katherine Parr, softens his heart towards Elizabeth. After Henry's death, Katherine marries Thomas Seymour, a shallow man of reckless ambition. The amoral Seymour orchestrates his master plan to capture the crown, one that includes the seduction of the young and vulnerable princess.

Robin Maxwell - The ​Queen's Bastard
Historians ​have long whispered that Elizabeth "the Virgin Queen's" passionate, lifelong affair with Robin Dudley, Earl of Leicester, may have led to the birth of a son, Arthur Dudley. In this exquisite sequel to The Secret Diary of Anne Boleyn, Robin Maxwell fashions a stunning fictional account of the child switched at birth by a lady-in-waiting who foresaw the deleterious political consequences of a royal bastard. Set against the sweeping, meticulously rendered backdrop of court intrigues, international scandals, and England's battle against the Spanish Armada, The Queen's Bastard deftly juxtaposes Elizabeth and Leicester's tumultuous relationship with the memoirs of the adventurous son lost to them -- yet ultimately discovered.

Robin Maxwell - The ​Wild Irish
The ​glorious, turbulent sixteenth century is drawing to a close. Elizabeth, Queen of England, has taken on the mighty Spanish Armada and, in a stunning sea battle, vanquished it.But her troubles are far from over. At home she is challenged at every turn by the brilliant but reckless Robert Devereux, Earl of Essex, whose dangerous mix of passion and political ambition drives the aging queen to distraction. Just across the western channel, her colony Ireland is embroiled in seething rebellion, the island's fierceuntamed clan chieftains and their "wild Irish" followers refusing to bow to their English oppressors. In the midst of the conflict is Grace O'Malley, notorious pirate, gunrunner, and "Mother of the Irish Rebellion." For years, the audacious Grace has plotted and fought against the English stranglehold on her beloved country. At the height of the uprising Grace takes an outrageous risk, sailing up the River Thames to London for a face-to-face showdown with her nemesis, the Queen of England. The historic meeting of these two female titans --perfectly matched in guts, guile, and political genius -- sets the stage for the telling of the little-known but crucial saga of Elizabeth's Irish war, a conflict at the very root of every subsequent Irish uprising. No one breathes life into these strong and pugnacious women as does Robin Maxwell in this captivating novel, a rousing tale that makes historygloriously real

Elizabeth Massie - King ​Takes Queen
Dissent ​rises in the kingdom of King Henry VIII of England. The king's ongoing dispute with the papacy over a desire for annulment is about to incite the Reformation, and his next step is to appoint a new archbishop in order to obtain his long-awaited marriage to Anne Boleyn. All crests that once bore the initials "H & K" are promptly replaced with an intertwining "H & A," the first of many significant changes to come. The birth of the new royal couple's first child, Princess Elizabeth, is followed by the death of Katherine of Aragon. New legislation decrees that any who dare commit an act against the king - or the kingdom's newfound beliefs - will face extreme consequences. With her husband growing increasingly impatient, it becomes apparent that the only crime Anne could commit against her king would be to deny him a male heir. As pressures rise in the kingdom, those who once found themselves in the king's good graces foresee a somber end to their reign. This rich novelization of season two of The Tudors follows the complicated relationship between Henry and Anne through to its historically significant and dramatic conclusion.

Elizabeth Massie - Thy ​Will Be Done
LONG ​LIVE THE KING. Anne Boleyn is dead and a Catholic rebellion is rising in the north. The king's army makes a bloody example of the traitors, and Henry VIII will not be satisfied until the defiant leaders pay with their heads. The virtuous and beautiful new queen of England, Jane Seymour, has convinced him to reconcile with his daughters, little Elizabeth and pious Mary, who the insurgents hope will one day restore the Church to power. Mary must wait her turn, however, when Jane blesses Henry with the one thing his other wives could not -- a son -- only she doesn't survive his birth. Devastated, the king locks himself in seclusion. A new leader is waiting for Henry's power to weaken, a jousting wound threatens his life, and disloyalty is brewing within the court. Fearful of England's waning alliances, the king's advisers convince him to marry homely Anne of Cleves, a political union in which he finds little comfort...until he meets a young, coquettish new mistress named Katherine. In the seductive and gripping third season of The Tudors, the king finally gets everything he ever wanted. But unrest is brewing, and he will stop at nothing -- and spare no one -- to hold on to the throne.

Philippa Gregory - Three ​Sisters, Three Queens
As ​sisters they share an everlasting bond; As queens they can break each other’s hearts. “There is only one bond that I trust: between a woman and her sisters. We never take our eyes off each other. In love and in rivalry, we always think of each other.” When Katherine of Aragon is brought to the Tudor court as a young bride, the oldest princess, Margaret, takes her measure. With one look, each knows the other for a rival, an ally, a pawn, destined—with Margaret’s younger sister Mary—to a sisterhood unique in all the world. The three sisters will become the queens of England, Scotland, and France. United by family loyalties and affections, the three queens find themselves set against each other. Katherine commands an army against Margaret and kills her husband James IV of Scotland. But Margaret’s boy becomes heir to the Tudor throne when Katherine loses her son. Mary steals the widowed Margaret’s proposed husband, but when Mary is widowed it is her secret marriage for love that is the envy of the others. As they experience betrayals, dangers, loss, and passion, the three sisters find that the only constant in their perilous lives is their special bond, more powerful than any man, even a king.

David McDowall - An ​Illustrated History of Britain
An ​Illustrated History of Britain traces the development of the nation from prehistoric times to the present day. It looks at British history not merely in terms of kings, queens and battles, but also emphasises economic, social and intellectual forces and how these affected the everyday lives of people from different sections of society. An Illustrated History of Britain is a history of Britain, not just of England. It looks at major developments within Scotland, Wales and Ireland as well as their relations with England.

Alison Weir - Katherine ​of Aragon
The ​lives of Henry VIII's queens make for dramatic stories and Alison Weir will write a series of novels that offer insights into the real lives of the six wives based on extensive research and new theories. In all the romancing, has anyone regarded the evidence that Anne Boleyn did not love Henry VIII? Or that Prince Arthur, Katherine of Aragon's first husband, who is said to have loved her in fact cared so little for her that he willed his personal effects to his sister? Or that Henry VIII, an over-protected child and teenager, was prudish when it came to sex? That Jane Seymour, usually portrayed as Henry's one true love, had the makings of a matriarch? There is much to reveal ... Alison will write about the wives in the context of their own age and of the court intrigues that surrounded these women and - without exception - wrecked their lives. She will transport readers into a lost and vivid world of splendour and brutality: a world in which love, or the game of it, dominates all.

Paula Byrne - Belle
From ​acclaimed biographer Paula Byrne, the sensational true tale that inspired the major motion picture Belle (May 2014) starring Tom Wilkinson, Miranda Richardson, Emily Watson, Penelope Wilton, and Matthew Goode—a stunning story of the first mixed-race girl introduced to high society England and raised as a lady. The illegitimate daughter of a captain in the Royal Navy and an enslaved African woman, Dido Belle was sent to live with her great-uncle, the Earl of Mansfield, one of the most powerful men of the time and a leading opponent of slavery. Growing up in his lavish estate, Dido was raised as a sister and companion to her white cousin, Elizabeth. When a joint portrait of the girls, commissioned by Mansfield, was unveiled, eighteenth-century England was shocked to see a black woman and white woman depicted as equals. Inspired by the painting, Belle vividly brings to life this extraordinary woman caught between two worlds, and illuminates the great civil rights question of her age: the fight to end slavery.

Philippa Gregory - The ​Lady of the Rivers
Jacquetta, ​daughter of the Count of Luxembourg and kinswoman to half the royalty of Europe, was married to the great Englishman John, Duke of Bedford, uncle to Henry VI. Widowed at the age of nineteen she took the extraordinary risk of marrying a gentleman of her house-hold for love, and then carved out a life for herself as Queen Margaret of Anjou's close friend and a Lancaster supporter - until the day that her daughter Elizabeth Woodville fell in love and married the rival king Edward IV. Of all the little-known but important women of the period, her dramatic story is the most neglected. With her links to Melusina, and to the founder of the house of Luxembourg, together with her reputation for making magic, she is the most haunting of heroines.

Dan Jones - The ​Hollow Crown
The ​fifteenth century experienced the longest and bloodiest series of civil wars in British history. The crown of England changed hands violently seven times as the great families of England fought to the death for power, majesty and the right to rule. Dan Jones completes his epic history of medieval England with a new book about the the Wars of the Roses - and describes how the Plantagenets, tore themselves apart and were finally replaced by the Tudors. With vivid descriptions of the battle of Towton, where 28,000 men died in a single morning, to Bosworth, where the last Plantagenet king was hacked down, this is the real story behind Shakespeare's famous history plays.

Stephen Clarke - 1000 ​Years of Annoying the French
The ​English Channel may be only twenty miles wide, but it's a thousand years deep. Stephen Clarke takes a penetrating look into those murky depths, guiding us through all the times when Britain and France have been at war - or at least glowering at each other across what we Brits provocatively call the English Channel. Starting With the Norman (not French) Conquest and going right up to the supposedly more peaceful present, when a state visit by French President Nicolas Sarkozy bacomes a series of hilarious historical insults, it is a lighthearted - but impeccably researched - account of all our great fallings-out. In short, the French are quite right to suspect that the last 1000 years have been one long British campaign to infuriate them. And it's not over yet...

James Hobson - Dark ​Days of Georgian Britain
In ​Dark Days of Georgian Britain, James Hobson challenges the long established view of high society during the Regency, and instead details an account of a society in change. Often upheld as a period of elegance with many achievements in the fine arts and architecture, the Regency era also encompassed a time of great social, political and economic upheaval. In this insightful social history the emphasis is on the life of the every-man, on the lives of the poor and the challenges they faced. Using a wide range of sources, Hobson shares the stories of real people. He explores corruption in government and elections; "bread or blood" rioting, the political discontent felt and the revolutionaries involved. He explores attitudes to adultery and marriage, and the moral panic about homosexuality. Grave robbery is exposed, along with the sharp pinch of food scarcity, prison and punishment. It is not a gentle portrayal akin to Jane Austen's England, this is a society where the popular hatred of the Prince Regent was widespread and where laws and new capitalist attitudes oppressed the poor. With Hobson's illustrative account, it is time to rethink the Regency.

Dan Jones - The ​Plantagenets
The ​first Plantagenet king inherited a blood-soaked kingdom from the Normans and transformed it into an empire stretched at its peak from Scotland to Jerusalem. In this epic history, Dan Jones vividly resurrects this fierce and seductive royal dynasty and its mythic world. We meet the captivating Eleanor of Aquitaine, twice queen and the most famous woman in Christendom; her son, Richard the Lionheart, who fought Saladin in the Third Crusade; and King John, a tyrant who was forced to sign Magna Carta, which formed the basis of our own Bill of Rights. This is the era of chivalry, of Robin Hood and the Knights Templar, the Black Death, the founding of Parliament, the Black Prince, and the Hundred Year’s War.

Eric Ives - The ​Life and Death of Anne Boleyn
Anne ​Boleyn is the most notorious of Englands queens, but more famous for her death as an adulterer than for her life. Henrys second wife and mother of Elizabeth I, Anne was the first English queen to be publicly executed. Yet what do we know of the achievements and legacy of her short reign?In The Life and Death of Anne Boleyn Eric Ives provides the most detailed and convincing portrait we have of the queen. He reveals a person of intellect with a passion for the new culture of the Renaissance, a woman who made her way in a mans world by force of education and personality. She played a powerful and independent role in the faction-ridden court of Henry VIII and the unceasing struggle for royal favour that was Tudor politics. The consequences can still be detected today. Indeed, Ives shows that it was precisely because Anne was a powerful figure in her own right that it needed a coup to bring her down. She had to be stopped even by a lie.

Philippa Gregory - The ​Constant Princess
Splendid ​and sumptuous historical novel from this internationally bestselling author, telling of the early life of Katherine of Aragon. We think of her as the barren wife of a notorious king; but behind this legacy lies a fascinating story. Katherine of Aragon is born Catalina, the Spanish Infanta, to parents who are both rulers and warriors. Aged four, she is betrothed to Arthur, Prince of Wales, and is raised to be Queen of England. She is never in doubt that it is her destiny to rule that far-off, wet, cold land. Her faith is tested when her prospective fahter-in-law greets her arrival in her new country with a great insult; Arthur seems little better than a boy; the food is strange and the customs coarse. Slowly she adapts to the first Tudor court, and life as Arthur's wife grows ever more bearable. But when the studious young man dies, she is left to make her own future: how can she now be queen, and found a dynasty? Only by marrying Arthur's young brother, the sunny but spoilt Henry. His father and grandmother are against it; her powerful parents prove little use. Yet Katherine is her mother's daughter and her fighting spirit is strong. She will do anything to achieve her aim; even if it means telling the greatest lie, and holding to it. Philippa Gregory proves yet again that behind the apparently familiar face of history lies an astonishing story: of women warriors influencing the future of Europe, of revered heroes making deep mistakes, and of an untold love story which changes the fate of a nation.