CBR4 #16 - The Lady of the Rivers by Philippa Gregory

A story rich in passion and legend, The Lady of the Rivers is the story of Jacquetta, Duchess of Bedford, a woman who navigated a treacherous path through the battle lines in the Wars of the Roses.When Jacquetta is married to the Duke of Bedford, English regent of France, he introduces her to a mysterious world of learning and alchemy. Her only friend in the great household is the duke’s squire Richard Woodville, who is at her side when the duke’s death leaves her a wealthy young widow. The two become lovers and marry in secret, returning to England to serve at the court of the young King Henry VI, where Jacquetta becomes a close and loyal friend to his new queen.The Woodvilles soon achieve a place at the very heart of the Lancaster court, though Jacquetta can sense the growing threat from the people of England and the danger of their royal York rivals. As Jacquetta fights for her king and her queen, she can see an extraordinary and unexpected future for her daughter Elizabeth: a change of fortune, the throne of England, and the white rose of York.

This book is the third in the Cousin's War series.  It was hard to get started reading this book as I had to familiarize myself with the basic story again. I struggled to get through a good portion of this book mostly because I had "read" this same "story" two other times with the other books in the series.

I found the mythical part of the plot was not as prevalent as I thought it would be.  The always changing political atmosphere during this time period in England caused me to focus extra hard on trying to remember who was on which side at any point in time.

Over the summer I read a book about Cecily Neville called Queen By Right.  It was cool to see Cecily make an appearance in this book as well.  Philippa Gregory has brought history to life for me in the past, but I can't say that I enjoyed these Cousin's War books as much as her Tutor's series.