The Battle of the Queens (Plantagenet Saga #5)

By: Jean Plaidy

Sign Up Now! Already a Member? Log In
You must be logged into Bookshare to access this title. Learn about membership options, or view our freely available titles.

Synopsis: During the first half of the thirteenth century, two women dominated the scene. They were Isabella of Angouleme who had been Queen of England, and Blanche of Castile, who was Queen of France. Isabella -- one of the most sensually alluring women who ever lived and who was in her days compared with Helen of Troy -- became the wife of King John and the mother of Henry III. Blanche was the wife of Louis VIII and mother of Louis IX. After the death of John, Isabella took her daughter to Lusignan in order that she might be prepared for marriage with Count Hugh, Isabella's lover of long before; but when she saw him she decided to marry him herself. Thereafter he became her slave. Reckless, proud, vindictive, Isabella was determined to have her own way; and she and Blanche hated each other from the moment they first met. There could not have been two women less alike than the darkly flamboyant, passionate Isabella and the serenely virtuous blonde Blanche. Two qualities they shared though -- beauty and ambition.