After the Welsh revolt of Owain Glyndŵr, Owen Tudor is taken into the English Court as a servant. He soon finds himself appointed as Keeper of the Wardrobe to the newly widowed Queen Catherine of Valois. In his position, Owen finds himself close to the lonely Queen as he runs the ins and outs of her daily life. He is also very close with the infant King, Henry. Owen is soon asked to spy on the Queen for the appointed Protector of the Realm, Duke Humphrey of Gloucester. With loyalty to the Queen first and foremost, Owen lets Catherine know of the duplicity and becomes one of her most trusted men. As the infant King grows, Queen Catherine's position becomes less stable and Owen stays beside her. Through a secret marriage, children, a sorrowful death and an English uprising, Owen Tudor's lineage will become essential to England's future.

As someone who loves all things Tudor, I did not know much about Owen Tudor except for his parentage of Edmund and Jaspar. Not much historical fact is known about Owen Tudor's life; however, Tony Riches has done a wonderful job filling in. Rich detail of the time period and everyday life in Queen Catherine's household gives background for their romance to take place and for the Tudor lineage to begin. One of the themes throughout the book is Fortune's Wheel. Fortune's Wheel turns many times for Owen throughout his life. I was continuously surprised at his ability to get back on his feet after tragedy or bad luck fell upon him: Owen marries Queen Catherine, but in secret, they are in hiding for many years, have several healthy children, but one birth will take Catherine's life, Owen receive the pardon of the King, but is still imprisoned. Through Owen's eyes I had an honest look at Queen Catherine, a young woman who showed strength and resilience throughout her life but fell to the same illness as her father, Charles VI of France. I was also very interested in Owen and Catherine's third son, Owen, who may or may not have lived. Overall, an exciting and engrossing foundation to the Tudor trilogy.

This book was received for free in return for an honest review. ( )

So very boring. How did the author make such interesting people and such exciting times so dull? I dislike present tense narration in general and it didn't serve the narrative here. The transitions from scene to scene weren't clear and smooth, either.

I was disgusted by the descriptions of Margaret Beaufort. She was not a courageous woman at the time described. She was a 12 year old girl who had been sold into marriage for the profit of her family and her new husband. The marriage was consummated and she impregnated at far too young an age, even by the standard of the time, so her husband could access her wealth. The author seemed to be trying to make this ok for his readers by writing about a courageous womanly look in her eye. Total BS.

Owen seemed to forget about his namesake son for most of the book. And he was oddly cool about his other two. All children of the woman he loved so passionately.

Two stars for giving me a framework of Owen's life and kindling an interest in seeking out further books on him. ( )

This start out well for me, but as I got towards the end it fizzled out. So about 2.5 stars for me. ( )

Author's guest post at my blog:
https://bookfare.blogspot.com/2017/05/foodfic-please-welcome-tony-riches.html