Thank you to NetGalley and Orion Publishing Group for this ARC.

This is the story of Queen Margaret of England, wife of Lancastrian King Henry VI, and Anne Beauchamp, Countess of Warwick, wife of Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, also called the Kingmaker, who famously switched allegiance from York to Lancaster to further himself and lost his head in the process. Throughout the book, they sent each other letters, but they were full of barbs as they behaved like cruel toddlers. There was hardly female friendship here and yet they continued to correspond. I don't know whether they did in real life but I seriously doubt it.

Gosh, this isn't a cheerful book. It's almost exclusively about how women had no agency and suffered extreme tragedies at the hands of men who left them powerless and penniless. Women were not allowed to participate in war, religion or politics, the three main topics of the time. They and their inheritance were seen as a man's property and their fate was either as a wife and mother, or as a nun in a convent. Even Queen Margaret who basically ruled England for a while, could only do so because her husband Henry was weak and allowed her to, even though she lacked neither the ability nor the confidence.

Today we decry arranged marriages, back then they were the norm, at least in aristocratic circles where the accumulation of and holding on to wealth and titles was more important than anything. Women had no role to play, no influence to exert but as wife of a traitor they were considered guilty too. Talk about injustice!

This is, as ever, meticulously researched but I have read about the historical political context and the backdrop of the War of the Roses better elsewhere. I was more interested in a woman's life back then but everything they did or thought was because of a man's actions in a world where betrayal and treason seemed to be the norm.

Much is made about Johane de Geneville, who was the subject of the author's previous book, being the great great grandmother of Anne Beauchamp. It looks like a lot of history did repeat itself throughout hundreds of years which is not a cheerful thought.

Those women might have been strong-willed but it didn't really help them in a world dominated by male power games. Also, I know there was plenty of story go get through but I would have wished for a tightening that got it under 400 pages. Still, I enjoyed reading about women history deemed not important enough and who come to life here.

3.5 stars

Finding the right voice for historical fiction can be very difficult. Sound too modern and it feels very inauthentic but sound too stilted and old fashioned and the same thing can happen. Anne O’Brien is experienced enough to make sure she treads the fine line perfectly and creates a real sense of time and place.

The story is set in the Wars of the Roses and centres around Margaret of Anjou, Queen of Henry VI, and Anne Beauchamp, Countess of Warwick. Both come from powerful families in their own right and now find themselves in the middle of the battle for the crown of England. This is such a complicated time in history and many authors find it hard to keep the timeline straight, particularly since so many people share the same few names, but by focussing on these two women, O’Brien handles it very well. The women are at the heart of what’s happening but slightly removed from the actual action, so they find out what’s happening from rumours and messengers, allowing us to find out at the same time. The impact on their own lives makes clear who is ahead and behind at various points and gives an excellent opportunity to explain the actions of those involved.

The story is very much based on the experience of the women and the men take second place, all of them flawed in their own way. Henry VI is a decent man completely unsuited to being King, his son grows up to be impetuous and obsessed with fighting, and Warwick is arrogant and prone to feeling he is not valued highly enough. Margaret, on the other hand, rules strongly as regent when Henry is unwell and Anne is loyal to her husband but also much more realistic about their own position. An imagined correspondence between the two allows the author to portray how they may have felt both about their own positions and each other.

There is obviously limited information on even the most important women of the era but historical fiction done well can help place them more in their own stories. Anne O’Brien is one of the finest writers in the genre and this is another excellent book. Highly recommended.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy in return for an honest review.

I have not read any of Anne’s books before, but now I have a new favourite author and a lot of her past titles to read.
This book covers a period of history which I am interested in, The War of the Roses, and includes correspondence between two strong prominent women of that time, Anne Countess of Warwick and Queen Margaret, wife of Henry V1.
I thought that the correspondence between the two women showed their strengths but also showed their softer side and gave a glimpse of the difficulties they had to overcome before their words were taken seriously.
I am very much looking forward to reading more about women in history from this very talented author.

Anne O’Brien always tells a good story & this novel is no exception. Two women, naturally on opposite sides of the Wars of the Roses, share many similarities. Margaret of Anjou is traditionally known as a powerhouse, refusing to give way & give up what was her husband & son’s right to the throne. Duchess Anne is no less affected by the conflicts, married to the Kingmaker who famously switched sides from York to Lancaster. The fall out from Richard Neville’s actions has far reaching consequences for his family. The two women form a respectful & honest relationship, told in letters to each other as well as the wider narrative. As a traditional Yorkist, I enjoyed reading the story from the opposite point of view, although I haven’t switched camps! I’m left with a lingering sadness for the women who had no choice in how their lives played out.

The Queen and the Countess by Anne O'Brien is one of my favorite read so far! So so good. I rated it 5 stars because it really is that good!

I enjoy Anne's books, highlighting the often forgotten women in history. This book is set during the War of Roses, focusing on 2 women on opposite sides of the battle for the crown - Anne Beauchamp the countess of Warwick and Margaret D'Anjou.

The story is told from both their perspectives, with an uneasy correspondence between the 2 tying it together. For some reason it took me a while to get into it but once I did I enjoyed it. It's not the author's best book but it was interesting to see this period of history from a different viewpoint.

A retelling of the history between Anne, Countess of Warwick and Margaret, Queen of England, wife of Henry VI.

I adore O’Brien’s writing and eagerly anticipate her new books. The stories are beautifully characterised and the reader really becomes involved in the lives of the women depicted. I thoroughly recommend, always a 5* read.

This one I’m not so sure about. The two women are quite different from other feisty females that O’Brien has focused on, and it took a while to get to grips with the story even though I am familiar with this period in history. Half the book I really liked. O’Brien gave us the Anne we all know and admire. A strong woman, who supports her husband and family through all the challenges thrown at her. Sadly, the voice of Margaret was very weak in comparison and her life was not so interesting. Knowing O’Brien’s skill I can only imagine she worked with what information she had. So a book of two halves for me, with a disappointing offering from Queen Margaret, shown up by the brilliance of Anne’s story.

The story takes us to the conclusion of Margaret’s life, and though the book is about both women and how their lives intertwined, a foot note on the rest of Anne’s life would have added interest to those unfamiliar with her ending.

With apologies, but not a favourite by this author, though still a good, if considered, read.


Thank you NetGalley and Orion Publishing Group.

A great novel! I think it was a very good idea to write this story through two powerful women! This way, the reader is more intimately linked to their lives as to their hopes, feelings and wants. This was fascinating as nowadays we definitely don't perceive life-planning the same way...
The Queen and the Countess are powerful, yes, but they will learn that power is relative. First, because they are "simply" women, second because of their absolute desire to remain in power despite many odds and whi holds the reins right now. One might find both women despicable: don't they have any feelings, integrity? Their upbringing was not based on emotional bonding, but rather on political bonding. They can't trust anyone because they can't be trusted.... Could both women become friends? Definitely not in our modern definition, I would say! However, they do need a friend!!

I found this novel very interesting and compelling even though I knew about that part of history. I have enjoyed it as much as I have enjoyed all books by the author.
I received a digital copy of this novel from NetGalley and I have voluntarily written an honest review.

I have read many of Anne's books and I used to enjoy them greatly. However, lately, I have found that something is lacking in the writing, I don't know exactly what it is; I have found myself in a reading slump because of it. On this occasion, the two points of view don't have a distinctive voice, which might have contributed to my perception of this story. Overall, is a good read but I was expecting more from it.