Hilda Lewis (1896–1974)

I love historical fiction but I really struggled with Harlot Queen and was only able to read one chapter at a time. Disappointingly, I found it slower than the slowest snail in a slow snail competition; I positively crawled through it and felt like I deserved a medal for getting to the end.

The story revolves around Isabella of France who at 9 years old was betrothed to Edward II of England. She crosses the channel with dreams of love and finds a man who has no interest in her. It sadly reminded me of Charles and Diana as Edward had already fallen in love, with Piers Gaveston. After so many rejections from her husband, Isabella realises that she has something she can exploit: power as the Queen of England. We follow her journey as she gathers her allies and sees off her enemies, and finally finds love.

Drier than a cracker with no cheese, only read this if you have a keen interest in Edward II otherwise you will lose the will to live. I did find the second half of the book more interesting as Isabella's son, Edward III, comes to the throne in suspicious circumstances, but unfortunately this isn't a book I would recommend.… (más)

Interesting novel about Catherine of Braganza and Charles II, 3.5 stars.

The description on the back is somewhat at odds with the contents - you might expect a romance, but the book contains a surprising amount of historical and political detail, which I liked, but might not be to everyone's taste. Lewis uses very little dramatization, she follows the historical facts to the letter; no flights of fancy here, no wild over-the-top characterizations, not even of the ghastly Barbara Castlemaine. The book is written in 1965 and the style seems a bit dated and flat to me. While the contents are interesting, the writing is somewhat boring in places and the author sometimes goes on and on about the same thing. I liked it, but didn't love it - a library read, imo.… (más)