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Katherine Rediscovered Classics Anya Seton Philippa Gregory 9781556525322 Books

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Katherine Rediscovered Classics Anya Seton Philippa Gregory 9781556525322 Books

The original copyright on this book is dated 1954. Thus, this is a relatively old work as things go these days. Nonetheless, it still reads well and does not have a dated, stale sense to it. A major challenge facing the author, Anya Seton, is that rather little is known of Katherine Swynford. As she says (Page x): "Of her, little is known, except when her life touched the Duke and there are few details of that." She notes that although this is fiction, she has tried to ground it in authentic history of the time. Does it work? If you understand that there is little known about Katherine, this book--as well as Alison Weir's "Katherine Swynford"--is remarkable for creating a real live human being out of a few scraps of information.

That said, what a story in this book, as detailed by Seton. Released from a nunnery to the Court of the King of England, young Katherine de Roet becomes a member of that august circle. A knight, Hugh Swynford, described in this book as a rough character, ends up marrying her--although she did not want this to be the case. In those days, though, marriage was often a business and she got a pretty good deal. Their home, the Swynford "estate" at Kettlethorpe, was run down--hardly like the Court from which she had come. The story outlines her rather brief life with Swynford, birth of two of her children, and her effort to run the estate. And then, John of Gaunt, third son of the King, entered her life. After Swynford's death in battle (with poison added in, a plot device that I did not find convincing), Katherine and John became lovers and she bore him four children during John's rather empty marriage to his second wife--Constance of Castile. She was notorious as John's mistress. There follows the tale of rebellion, the loss of Katherine's daughter by her husband, her flight from John out of a sense of having violated morality.

Returning to Kettlethorpe, she once more ran the estate; her children by John moved in with her.

Then, an almost unbelievably happy ending (and this appears to comport with the historical record).

Once I started reading this book, I could not put it down. Fifty years old, with a lot of life left in this volume. A truly good read!


Tags : Katherine (Rediscovered Classics) [Anya Seton, Philippa Gregory] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. <DIV>This classic romance novel tells the true story of the love affair that changed history—that of Katherine Swynford and John of Gaunt,Anya Seton, Philippa Gregory,Katherine (Rediscovered Classics),Chicago Review Press,155652532X,Historical - General,Romance - General,20TH CENTURY AMERICAN NOVEL AND SHORT STORY,Duke of Lancaster,FICTION Historical General,FICTION Romance General,Fiction,Fiction - Romance,Fiction Historical,Fiction-Historical,Fiction-Romance,GENERAL,General & Literary Fiction,General Adult,Historical fiction,John,Katharine,,Romance,Romance - Historical - General,United States,duchess of Lancaster,of Gaunt,,FICTION Historical General,FICTION Romance General,Fiction Historical,Romance - Historical - General,Fiction - Romance,20th Century American Novel And Short Story,Duke of Lancaster,John,Katharine,,duchess of Lancaster,of Gaunt,,Fiction,General & Literary Fiction,Historical fiction,Romance

Katherine Rediscovered Classics Anya Seton Philippa Gregory 9781556525322 Books Reviews

Anya Seton wrote two historical novels with English settings. Katherine is set in the time of Edward III and gives an excellent background for the lead up to the War of the Roses. Katherine Swynford is one of the most remarkable women in history. She is ancestor to both sides of the war of the roses and managed to survive and thrive in a man's world. Anya Seton puts lots of romance in her novels and does it well. She never puts in any false history for the sake of the story. Consequently, when you are done with the book, you are really prepared to understand the period of history covered by the book. I am an English history buff and already knew most of the history in and around this time but Anya Seton fill in the blanks in a very entertaining way, and it makes you remember and understand the major events of the time. It's a really great read.
What they said.

Seriously, I can't believe so many people wrote what I was going to say! This is one of those books you will want to read many times. I'm on #4 but it's the first time on . I am an English history buff, and reading Katherine was like nirvana! It even helped me when I got to college and took English History for a grade! I remember so much more from this novel than from any history book!
It is the most romantic, obstacle ridden love story I have ever read, with the possible exception of Scarlett and Rhett. It is long book but you won't want it to end. I spent many a night reading my aunt's hard copy by flashlight under the covers back when I was a teen with a bedtime!
It's set during the time of Edward III, and against the backdrop of the Wars of the Roses that followed his death. History books will mention the importance of John of Gaunt in being the progenitor or the Tudors, through his Beaufort daughter. Katherine is rarely mentioned, other than as his mistress. This is her story. Meticulously researched and written in a style that brings the history alive!, it is compelling as any I've ever read. world lost a true talent when Anya Seton left it.
The original copyright on this book is dated 1954. Thus, this is a relatively old work as things go these days. Nonetheless, it still reads well and does not have a dated, stale sense to it. A major challenge facing the author, Anya Seton, is that rather little is known of Katherine Swynford. As she says (Page x) "Of her, little is known, except when her life touched the Duke and there are few details of that." She notes that although this is fiction, she has tried to ground it in authentic history of the time. Does it work? If you understand that there is little known about Katherine, this book--as well as Alison Weir's "Katherine Swynford"--is remarkable for creating a real live human being out of a few scraps of information.

That said, what a story in this book, as detailed by Seton. Released from a nunnery to the Court of the King of England, young Katherine de Roet becomes a member of that august circle. A knight, Hugh Swynford, described in this book as a rough character, ends up marrying her--although she did not want this to be the case. In those days, though, marriage was often a business and she got a pretty good deal. Their home, the Swynford "estate" at Kettlethorpe, was run down--hardly like the Court from which she had come. The story outlines her rather brief life with Swynford, birth of two of her children, and her effort to run the estate. And then, John of Gaunt, third son of the King, entered her life. After Swynford's death in battle (with poison added in, a plot device that I did not find convincing), Katherine and John became lovers and she bore him four children during John's rather empty marriage to his second wife--Constance of Castile. She was notorious as John's mistress. There follows the tale of rebellion, the loss of Katherine's daughter by her husband, her flight from John out of a sense of having violated morality.

Returning to Kettlethorpe, she once more ran the estate; her children by John moved in with her.

Then, an almost unbelievably happy ending (and this appears to comport with the historical record).

Once I started reading this book, I could not put it down. Fifty years old, with a lot of life left in this volume. A truly good read!