From #1 New York Times bestselling author Philippa Gregory, the little-known story of three Tudor women who are united in sisterhood and yet compelled to be rivals when they fulfill their destinies as queens.As sisters they share an everlasting bond; as queens they can break each other’s hearts… 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 unique sisterhood. 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.
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In Three Sisters, Three Queens by Philippa Gregory, the author does a superlative job in piecing together every bit of history and created an image of the sisters, especially Margaret, hitherto unknown to many. By detailing her traits and characteristics, the author managed to create a life-like image of Margaret which makes the reading all the more interesting. With Philippa Gregory trademark suspense and intrigue intact, and the usual fine writing, the book makes for an absorbing read.
I am a great admirer of Philipa Gregory’s historical fiction, and Three Sisters, Three Queen’s did not disappoint. The background, the historical research and the sense of the period are as you would expect from Gregory. However what makes this book a little bit special is the real connection that it makes these three women. As you read through the chapters you get a real emotional connection with the main characters.
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
Well I’m torn about this book but it’s well written and given that it’s historical fiction, I recommend it. Three women that are shallow, selfish, jealous and conniving, manipulative, downright cruel and evil and the men that helped make them what they are. What a tale! A little slow at times but overall a very interesting read. I’m just glad I don’t have any sisters!
I loved this book, gave a lot of information about Henry’s sitter Margaret who married king of Scotland
Despite the title of the book, make no mistake, this novel is really a first person account of Margaret Tudor, who lived at a pivotal time in the history of the British Isles:
– Daughter of King Henry VII, whose marriage united the Houses of Lancaster and York, ending the Wars of the Roses.
– Sister to King Henry VIII, of the multiple marriage melodrama
– Wife to King James IV of Scotland, whose reign kept unruly Scottish clans under control
– Mother to King James V
– Grandmother to Mary, Queen of Scots, whose son James would eventually unite the crowns of England and Scotland after the death of Queen Elizabeth I.
Yes, the other two queens (Katherine of Aragon, first wife of Henry VIII, and Mary Tudor, Margaret’s sister and briefly the wife of the much older King Louis XII of France) figure into the novel but largely through the letters they write to Margaret. Philippa Gregory’s explains in her Author’s Note that there is little written about Margaret so this novel explores what Gregory imagines would be the bond between the three women over decades of contact.
Margaret comes across as a not particularly likable figure. Impulsive, petty, jealous, tempestuous, judgmental and self-centered. Maybe that IS the most likely result of growing up as a pampered princess. The other two queens don’t fare much better.
Gregory begins the book with Margaret’s childhood (when Katherine of Aragon first appears) and covers Margaret’s own three marriages, struggle for power in Scotland and conflicted relationship with her reigning brother in England. The most interesting aspect for me was the exploration of the place women held during this time period and the ways in which they were dominated by the males in their lives — both family members and courtiers. From this perspective, Margaret comes across as a bit of a pioneering feminist — fighting to exercise power in a time when women just didn’t do that.
I felt the book ended a bit abruptly — not really finishing Margaret’s story. And using the device of the three queens was only somewhat successful. But it was great fun to learn MUCH more about Margaret’s life and of course, it’s another offering from the current Queen of Tudor novels, Philippa Gregory. So, I had to read it.
I knew next to nothing about Henry VII’s daughter Margaret, who married James IV of Scotland. Since this is a novel, I might not know much more that’s factual, but Ms. Gregory’s conjectures about her history are certainly pretty interesting. I like her use of the relationships between Margaret, her sister Mary and their sister-in-law Katherine of Aragon. I could have done without the somewhat explicit bits between her and her second husband. The book certainly made the point that women were at a terrible disadvantage in dealing with men and the Catholic Church.
Always enjoy reading the historical stories of Scotland and England. Gregory’s turn of events held me throughout the whole book, and I keenly kept reading it.
My favorite (so far) of the series, perhaps because I hadn’t heard much about Margaret Tudor Stuart before. I’ve never had any patience with women who think they need a man to survive, but Margaret grew out of that nicely.
I do not understand how/why the ruling house of Scotland gave Henry VIII, monarch of another country, the power over their country, policies and decisions that they did.
Margaret Tudor’s life is less well-known that most of her Tudor kindred but no less worthy of recounting. Philippa Gregory tells her challenging life story beautifully in this novel.
This book gave a new perspective on these three Queens. It was an interesting read but somehow sad and haunting. It gave me rare some insight into Margaret Tudor’s life, a Queen I Have not read much about
After reading this book I am glad we live in this century. How tragic lives were lost at the whim of a man and who he desired at the moment.
Good mix of fact and fiction!
Don’t waste your time, this book is boring and unreadable. I couldn’t bother to finish it, it was so awful.
Philippa Gregory always brings history to life in her novels. Big surprise here was that the main character was Henry VIII’s SISTER. First I’ve ever heard of her.
Not a favorite from Philippa Gregory.
I’ve read quite a few books about this time period and found this one most interesting. These three omen were used as pawns by Henry VIII but did their best to survive in a man’s world. Very informative.
I love reading about this time in history and this book was very good
I enjoyed reading it. Fascinated by the Tudor period of English history.
Very interesting,
4.5 Stars
Philippa Gregory’s unparalleled gift is to craft history’s inner world explaining the outer records—and Margaret Tudor’s little known history comes to life as she relates to her brother the King, her sister Mary and sister in law, Katherine of Aragon. Henry VIII’s older sister is a strikingly modern woman in her desire to marry for love, divorce a philandering, power-hungry husband and marry again—all the while struggling to hold political power for her children, one who is the future King of Scotland. Rich historical details set the scenes and the fictionalized first person point of view kept me riveted until the end. The ending comes fast and so unexpected that I turned the page looking for more. Margaret from the beginning is petulant and jealous, changeable throughout as she gains and loses and gains power again, but ever constant in her desire for her power and her son’s safety and kingdom. So when the ending came with little resolution to what happened next for them… I thought “Surely she didn’t end the book like that?” But she did! I just wanted more of her story.