I finished this book last night, which is good because it is due back at the library today. I FLEW through this book. While I acknowledge that Philippa Gregory isn't the greatest for historical accuracy, she sure can give historical figures a character, and she sure can tell a story. She herself says in the acknowledgements, "some parts of this book are history, some are speculation, and some are fiction" which I feel is the essence of good historical fiction. After reading this book, I am really excited to read The White Queen, to get Elizabeth Woodville's view and to find some books to get the perspectives of Richard III (Sharon Kay Penman's The Sunne in Splendour), Henry VII, and others. I loved the character of Margaret Beaufort. Again, Gregory sums her up the best in her acknowledgements. "She is remembered by feminist historians as a 'learned lady', one of the very few who had to struggle for the privilege of study; by Tudor historians as the matriarch who founded their house; and by less reverent memorialists as 't' old bitch' who became the mother-in-law from hell. " What a wonderful and complex lady to read about. The other players in this drama are just as interesting.
In addition, I would like to give Gregory kudos for coming up with the idea to tell the same story from more than one side, but give each side it's own book. I'm not sure whether other authors have done this (probably), but I really liked it.
