Philippa Gregory

Cafe Society
1

I’m always on the lookout for good historical fiction.

My first experience with Philippa Gregory was The Other Boleyn Girl. I enjoyed it very much, until the ending. Specifically Anne Boleyn’s ending. Of course I knew what was going to happen to Anne Boleyn but I was repelled by her version of the details of Anne’s last few months.

But I enjoyed the rest of the book enough to try another by the same author. So I picked up Wideacre. I wish I hadn’t. The heroine was repulsive and totally unbelievable. The writing was good enough that I did finish it, but it left a bad taste in my mouth.

Are all of her books so sordid? If so, it’s too bad. I like her writing style.

Eleanor

2

I really enjoyed “The Virgin’s Lover,” which is about Elizabeth I. You’ll never view “The Virgin Queen” the same way again after reading this.

3

If you don’t like sordid, you won’t like her books The Wise Woman and Earthly Joy. Personally, I kind of like them. The Wise Woman was the first of her books that I read and it started out pretty much like a standard romance novel and then got really bizarro weird! I liked that twist. If I remember right, The Favored Child is a sequel to Wideacre, and you probably won’t like it, either.

4

Bumping this zombie

I got the White Princess last year after watching Satrz The White Queen and I has to give it up as it read like bad chick Lit.

Are all her books like that? The White Queen was such a good show.

5

I find Tracey Chevalier to be the better writer of historical fiction. I first read Girl With a Pearl Earring and have enjoyed everything else I read after.

6

Best historical fiction for me is Neil Stephenson’s The Baroque Cycle. Rip-roaring story and great research.

7

I find her later stuff pretty good, but I’m with you on Wideacre. Horrible. Stick with her newer stuff and you’ll be happier.

8

I gave up on it too, but because it was so poorly written, not because it felt like chick lit. Seriously, this is a popular writer? Her writing in **The White Queen **is worse than Stephenie Meyer’s in Twilight.

9

Didn’t like any of her books I’ve read. Best historical fiction (mid evil) Sharon Kay Penman , Elizabeth Chadwick . Well researched and written.

10

Medieval I meant

11

Georgette Hyer for me.

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Wow, old thread - I gave up on Gregory long ago, although she’s more popular than ever. She distorts historical fact in a way that I dislike.

I still read a lot of historical fiction, but it’s much easier to find new books to read now than it was in 2005.

I like Penman. I have her new book on Richard I lined up to read soon. I read one of Chadwick’s books about William Marshal, and I liked it pretty well, but I was turned off by a interview I read where Chadwick describes the way she does her research. (If you like her work, and you are opposed to woo, then don’t look this up. You don’t want to know.)

I love Georgette Heyer. A modern writer who writes old-fashioned Regency romances very similar to Heyer is Jude Morgan. Novels are Indiscretion, A Little Folly, and An Accomplished Woman.

13

I kinda liked Earthly Joys as I knew very little about the protaganist, and the whole gardening thing was oddly appealing. Not enough to read any other of her books though.

I’ve seen a bit of The White Queen on TV but again haven’t watched the whole series.

Overall I think Hilary Mantel has ruined all other Tudor-era historical fiction for me (although I do like C J Sansom’s *Shardlake *novels). I think she might even get a third Booker next year for her final Thomas Cromwell novel.

14

She’s top-of-the-game for dry humor, even aside from the well-handled historical romance stuff.

By the way: it’s a play, not a novel, of course, but what do you think of James Goldman’s The Lion in Winter? (Given your screen name.)

15

I’m GH’s greatest fan. I’ll note down the Jude Morgan name - though generally I find the Austen/Heyer imitators very disappointing

ooooh, another name to note down!

& I just snagged a Jean Plaidy from a local second hand book store’s closing down sale. I thought she was long out of print in this country (NZ) but this was quite a recent edition.

16

I thought I was burned out on the Tudors, but I really loved Wolf Hall. I found the quirky prose style fascinating. I liked the Shardlake mysteries, too - I’ve been reading a lot of historical mystery series in the last few years.

“He married out of love, a woman out of legend.” I’ve never read the play, but I adore the movie.

Sharon Kay Penman’s books about Henry and Eleanor are good; I was reading them when I joined the board, hence the username.

Absolutely the vast majority are disappointing, which is why I was so pleased by Morgan. *Indiscretion *is the best; while An Accomplished Woman is good, it does borrow noticeably from Austen’s plot and characters. Morgan’s work is closer to Heyer than Austen, though.

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Mantel’s Bring Up the Bodies is even better than Wolf Hall IMHO. If she can pull off the same level of quality in the third one (due next year I think) Mantel will have written one of the finest trilogies ever.

18

Added my reading list and thanks Milady for the recommendation:)

Is Morgan as well researched as Hyer though? She did meticulous research and while many times it made the story engaging (see Infamous Army) other times it seemed she was just showing off (Simon Coldheart)

19

Those three novels I listed are purely romances. There’s not much history in them except for the setting. Morgan has written some other historicals, though - I have Passion: A Novel of the Romantic Poets lined up, and there’s one about James, Duke of Monmouth (Charles II’s son) that looks good.

Aside from An Infamous Army, I’ve only really read Heyer’s Regency romances. I haven’t read her other historicals or her mysteries yet.