I enjoyed this book. It's definitely an interesting read about a rarely discussed but relevant topic. This is more of a read for people interested in this niche historical point. The breadth of the book was good and extensive.

I've always loved history so much especially this Era of time I loved this so much it was so interesting will definitely recommend for others

3 .5 rounded up ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you so much to Pen & Sword and NetGalley for an e-arc of this book.

I think this book was a really good overview of English Royal mistresses and is a good introduction to lots of people and to the roles these women played.

I would recommend it to those looking for a general overview or someone who is just starting out learning about English royalty in the medieval period.

Very interesting tales about the historical "Other Woman" of the Royals in history. Stop picking the differences and similarities between them.

This was a very comprehensive research on the women who became royal mistresses in England during the medieval time. The author covered not only the most famous ones, but even the more obscure, some of which we do not even know the name. I am not overly familiar with the time period, so I didn't know many of them. Of these my favourite was probably Nest of Wales, who lead an incredibly eventful and turbulent life.
On the other hand, the narration was a little dry, and sometimes the author spent too much time talking about the men in these women lives, especially their children and descendants, and I got a little bored. I would have enjoyed the book more if it was more focused on the mistresses.

Much the same information I've read about in other books about the mistresses of Kings.Some King's ladies though were given a little extra detail which was very helpful to know.Mostly based on historical records and little personal information.Seemed well researched but I absolutely did not care for the writing.

Although it is laudable that the author has undoubtedly undertaken a great deal of careful research from multiple sources, unfortunately, this book suffers from being rather overstuffed with a plethora of names, and it is consequently quite hard to follow.
It is true that, at the time, sources do tend to be limited in terms of detail, and are sometimes questionable in terms of veracity. Nevertheless, perhaps because of these limitations, and the vast number of people referred to by the author, it is difficult to fully engage with the characters as individuals, or to differentiate one from another. This makes it hard for the reader to maintain sustained interest throughout the book.

An additional problem arises from the fact that the writer at times has a somewhat insecure grasp of syntax and punctuation. This is rendered more problematic still by the very long sentences. again, this meant that this reader, at least, sometimes got rather lost in the midst of a maze of words, resulting in considerably reduced enjoyment of reading this book.

Consequently, although I reiterate my praise for the amount of detail and careful research that has undoubtedly preceded the writing, I am not able to wholeheartedly encourage others to read this particular book.

Medieval Royal Mistress was study case about women who shared the beds of medieval kings. Most of them were silenced, besmirched or consigned to the footnotes of history but their existence is negotiated between the private for expanding powers. A really interesting dark topic and thought provoking I want to see from a history book.

Although the premise is intriguing and I still capable to draw enough information but the writing isnt suited me. The book is provided alot facts and names but lack effort to give us narration that help all the women flesh out from the story. I know this is not reading HF but some pictures/illustration or depth of characters will make extra enjoyment in the process.

Thank you Netgalley and Pen & Sword History for provided me this copy.

Thanks Netgalley for allowing me to read this book. Kings during the medieval era held alot of power and even though they were married they hada at least one mistress on the side. The mistress could lose favor with the king easily. A mistress was always tried to show sone transgression. This book was an eye dropping look into woman during the medieval time period.

Honestly for a book titled "Medieval Royal Mistresses" I expected more of the women. Unfortunately, a lot of this book reads as a wikipedia footnote in the personal life section of various kings rather than fleshed out details about the lives of the women (and some men) who served as mistresses and what their lives were actually like. There's a lot of details on the various men as well as the children of the women but as to the personality and inner lives of the women, there is very little.

The book reads mostly as very dry, a bare bones account of these women and how they came to be mistresses of kings. I suppose a problem with this is that the time periods that these women lived in did not record a lot of anecdotes or tidbits from their lives, simply the speculation and facts. But that being said, I would have appreciated more of a glimpse into the mistresses. Were there interesting stories of their lives that didn't revolve around a king? Did they ever do anything funny or witty that was noted down?

I just wanted a bit more from this.

ARC provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

An interesting study of how women of this time were both powerless and powerful, but all too often defined by their relationship to men. Plenty of new information here, particularly for lovers of social history who crave insights into the cultural practices of the time.