Review: The King's Curse

The King's Curse by Philippa Gregory

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



Margaret Pole has been married into obscurity and is gladly hiding behind her husband’s name. She is the cousin of Elizabeth of York (the White Princess) and only wants to serve her husband and be a good wife. Her husband, Sir Richard, has been put in charge of the governorship of Wales and with the new Prince and Princess of Whales returning to continue their honeymoon, Margaret does everything she can to hide her own royal blood. After the unspeakable happens, the death of Prince Arthur, Katherine leaves for London with Margaret by her side. Katherine wishes to keep a deathbed promise to her husband and marry his younger brother, Henry VIII. Margaret is no longer able to live a small and isolated life and the drama of the king’s court follows her around like the hangman’s noose.

The King’s Curse is the final book in The Cousins’ War series. Although this is the sixth book in a series, the story brought to the reader is self-sustaining and can be read by itself. This is probably one of the most well-known stories of the Tudors, yet Gregory tells it from an often overlooked angle to bring additional insight into this historical time period. The information rolls off the page as if Margaret is sharing the story of her life and the characters are lovingly brought to the reader. I have found while reading books about this time period that the author creates villains out of some of the characters, yet in this book these historical figures are just people. Yes, some had made mistakes that are still talked about (and written about), yet Gregory is able to portray their actions without overplaying these decisions. This is a wonderful read and I recommend it for anyone who enjoys historical fiction or the Tudor time period.





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