Cousins War Series Book 6

So there’s Margaret – she’s a Plantagenet, she’s Henry VII’s cousin, and he’s got her packed away in the country so that people don’t get any ideas about her royal lineage. She’s married to Sir Reginald Pole, just kind of chilling in the countryside. Until she becomes guardian of Henry’s son Arthur and his new wife Katherine of Aragon.

She becomes attached to the young couple, and her heart is broken when (spoiler alert), Henry dies. She remains as close as she can to Katherine, but things don’t go well for her and her family. Margaret is forced to place a few of her children away from home with the church, and with relatives. Things also don’t go very well for Katherine. Until Henry VIII is old enough, and marries Katherine. So Margaret becomes a lady in waiting and rejoins the court. She tries to reunite her family, with limited success.

Henry VIII was such an ass. I mean seriously, was there anyone that he didn’t totally destroy in the end? And Margaret Pole is no different. This book is the usual Philippa Gregory Tudor story, and if you like those stories, you’ll like this one.