Amazon Best Seller – Historical Fiction > Biographical
“A refreshing and captivating read.” – Nathen Amin, Author of Tudor Wales
England 1422: Owen Tudor, a Welsh servant, waits in Windsor Castle to meet his new mistress, the beautiful and lonely Queen Catherine of Valois, widow of the warrior king, Henry V. Her infant son is crowned King of England and France, and while the country … of England and France, and while the country simmers on the brink of civil war, Owen becomes her protector.
They fall in love, risking Owen’s life and Queen Catherine’s reputation—but how do they found the dynasty which changes British history – the Tudors?
This is the first historical novel to fully explore the amazing life of Owen Tudor, grandfather of King Henry VII and the great-grandfather of King Henry VIII. Set against a background of the conflict between the Houses of Lancaster and York, which develops into what have become known as the Wars of the Roses, Owen’s story deserves to be told.
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The legacy of King Henry VIII has always fascinated me, but I knew very little about the earlier accounts of the Tudor dynasty. Thus, I selected “Owen: Book One of the Tudor Trilogy” by Tony Riches to learn more about how the Tudor Dynasty was established. The story of Owen, the great-grandfather of Henry VIII, is as fascinating as the tales about the legendary king. Told in the first-person perspective of Owen, the story begins in 1422 when he first meets his new mistress, Queen Catherine of Valois, the young widow of King Henry V. The queen’s young son, Harry (Henry VI), is crowned King of England and France. Nobles responsible for the young king’s upbringing tightly control the queen’s life and her influence on her son. Owen, serving as the Keeper of the Wardrobe, loyally serves and befriends Queen Catherine and gains her trust. Rumors of Catherine’s affair with the 2nd Duke of Somerset prompts a parliamentary statute that forbids her to remarry until her son comes of age. Soon after, Catherine and Owen fall in love and secretly marry in the backdrop of political turmoil that ultimately leads to the War of Roses.
Author Tony Riches has masterfully written a poignant love story narrated by Owen in the present tense. The moment-by-moment narrative helps the reader more actively engage with Owen’s life journey. The story is rich with vivid descriptions and natural dialogue that highlights Owen’s wit and cleverness. Although his childhood has been shattered by the loss of his Welsh noble parents and heritage, Owen becomes the unlikely second husband to Queen Catherine and the father of her children. Their secret love and marriage have tragic consequences in the backdrop of the War of Roses. Yet Owen’s firstborn son, Edmund, ultimately becomes the father of King Henry VII, the first monarch in the Tudor Dynasty.
“Owen: Book One of the Tudor Trilogy” is one of my favorite novels that I’ve read this year. I highly recommend this book to historical fiction readers, particularly those interested in the Tudor Dynasty.
This is a triumph in terms of historical writing and a delight for lovers of historical fiction. Revel in the intricate details of the period and enjoy a superbly researched and well presented series of books.
Sam Burnell – author of the Mercenary For Hire Series of Historical Fiction Novels.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07WWJPMTR/ref=series_rw_dp_sw
I’m a sucker for anything Tudor, so when I discovered this title about a Tudor I knew next to nothing about, I bought it and devoured it. Excellently written with fascinating characters and settings, plus I felt like I learned a lot as I read it.
Owen Tudor’s story is one of those wild tales that one would never believe as straight fiction, but which really happened. Imagine a servant marrying a queen and siring one of the most famous royal houses in English history. Author Tony Riches could have fallen into the trap of a syrupy romance, but luckily he spared us the indignity. Instead he gave us an engaging first-person memoir told by a modest Welshman who knew his own worth but was quiet about it. I couldn’t help but like Owen who didn’t really aspire to gaining the hand of the lonely Catherine of Valois, but who wasn’t afraid to take chances, either. It seems that he paid the price of his rashness and then some, for his troubles lasted many more years than the sum of his happiness with the queen. But he was proud of his sons Edmund and Jasper who had such a profound influence on history, so Owen could congratulate himself on playing a major part in the birth of the Tudor dynasty.
I found this book easy to read and full of colorful details that enhanced the telling. The characters were believable to me and I came away anxious to know more about the next generation.
I loved history at school but it was never taught in depth. Central figures such as Elizabeth I, Queen Mary of Scotland and of course Henry VIII were mentioned, as were major battles or events in their lives. But you never got to know the person behind the crown or those around them in great detail.
I discovered Bernard Cornwell at an early age and have read all his books. And that is why I am delighted to have discovered Tony Riches, who writes his books with the people as the focus, with the events being incorporated into their story, rather than the other way around. This accomplished with not just superb story-telling but by giving Owen Tudor his own voice.
It is 1422 a few years after the Welsh rebellion led by Owen Glendower against Henry IV fails, and his supporters, including his cousins the Tudor family, have also lost lands and titles.
Owen Tudor has been a soldier serving in France, but is now a servant in a privileged position at Windsor castle when the young widow of Henry V, Queen Catherine of Valois arrives with her baby son, Prince Henry later to be King Henry VI. Their first meeting was to be fateful, and during the following years of civil war in England, would lead to the founding of the Tudor dynasty.
Tony Riches takes us through the next 40 years in this first book in the trilogy. It begins as a love story that would change the course of history, but it also provides a clear and engrossing background to the beginning of the hostilities between the Houses of York and Lancaster.
Alliances change rapidly with the English throne as the ultimate prize. What might be dismissed as minor engagements are given the respect they deserve, as integral moves in a chess game that spans decades, and is played adjacent to, and part of the 100 years war between the English monarchy and the French House of Valois.
The characters, even those with a less regal role, are richly drawn and deliver a much enjoyed respite from the destructive and violent events of the time. Sympathy grows for the young royal brides barely in their teens who are traded for land, alliances and truces. The cost of disloyalty is harsh and usually brutally extracted, unless there might be more to gain from clemency.
I would recommend the book as one that brings the cast members of this long drawn out struggle for power into the spotlight. History is a wonderful subject; but can be very dry and indigestible in the wrong hands. That is not the case with the Tudor Trilogy and whilst Tony Riches has created additional fictitious characters and events within the story, they serve to bring the lead cast members to life.
Owen, Book One of the Tudor Trilogy by Tony Riches, was a beautifully written historical fiction account of the life of Owen Tudor, Welsh servant who became the second husband of Catherine of Valois, widow of King Henry V of England. Much of the story is documented through history; some of it is historical conjecture, but enjoyable, none-the-less. It begins as Owen is appointed Keeper of the Wardrobe in the queen’s household, a job it takes to with relish. When Catherine’s brother-in-law, Duke Humphrey comes to Owen with the proposition that he catalog and report all of the queen’s visitors, he quickly acquiesces, but reports immediately to the queen so that they become cohorts. She grows to trust him as does Duke Humphrey. Years down the road, it becomes time to set the young king, her son, up in his own household. Owen is assigned to stay in hers.
This is beautifully written historical fiction about a man who had a good life, sometimes. He loved his wife and missed her when she was gone. He loved his children and did his best for them. If anything, it is written with modern sensibilities in mind, not middle age’s sensibilities so actions and motivations for them may not have been as they are portrayed. His grandson was to be Henry VII, the first of the Tudor dynasty, eventually leading to Elizabeth I. The passing of time is portrayed convincingly by Riches and the reader ends up admiring Owen Tudor, whether he deserves it or not. I recommend this story to any Tudor aficionado or historical fiction fan. I look forward to the others in the series.
I received a free ARC of Owen, Book One of the Tudor Trilogy. Any opinions expressed herein are solely my own. #netgalley #owenbookoneofthetudortrilogy