Dark Queen Rising by Paul Doherty
Stacey • August 6, 2019
England during the 14th and 15th Century was a bloody mess of wars and a pretty serious game with the throne. The 100 years war really took its toll on England and all its people. The war of the roses, the infamous battle between the Lancastrians and the Yorks was the pivotal turning point for England as a whole.
Fast forward to the tail end of the war and we find Margaret Beaufort. Ruthless, intelligent and the matriarch of the Tudor dynasty, knows she could never take the throne in her own birth right so pins all her dreams on her malleable son Henry.
During this time being a Lancaster may as well be wearing a bright neon sign saying traitor to the throne right here. This still did not stop Lady Margaret.
I adore historical fiction. It’s been my go to genre for quite some time. I am well versed in the Tudor dynasty and have a vast knowledge base starting with the war of the roses, all the way to the death of Elizabeth I. I half wondered if this would be a blessing or a curse and it turned out to be a curse for the author. There are some pretty acute inaccuracies in the historical parts of the book. They did grate on me a bit, I have to be honest but for for the most part, the writing is good enough for me to overlook the inconsistencies. The beginning of the book didn’t flow well for me, way too much talking and no story building. I hated that. Building into the story would have been better. I rather felt that the first chapter was picking up from somewhere else. It felt like I was starting a book from the middle of the story rather than the beginning.
Margaret Beaufort comes across a little less of a tyrant in this rendition. The author gives her a certain motherly humanity that made her a little easier to swallow. I couldn’t imagine having my only son so far away from me and not knowing if he was going to stay safe or if he was even alive. It must have taken its toll on Margaret being in fear constantly. I really can’t help wondering if the hardening of her heart started as young girl with no stabilty, rather than from all the upheaval with the realm.
When I read the synopsis for the book I was excited! A Tudor murder mystery!! How creative. I felt very let down with the whole story. The whole mystery surrounding the murders were not the star of the book as I was lead to believe. For me, if the part about the murders were removed from the summary, I would have gone in with a different mind set and I think you would have seen a very different review from me.
Instead this book is about a highly ambiguous woman with an ambition to rival any man. You never fully understand if it’s her love for her son that drives her or whether she loves the glory her son can give her by claiming the throne and ultimately, giving her the control of the realm.
‘She was determined to weave the web she wanted..’ That doesn’t sound like a woman who is just trying to navigate her way through a dark time in history. She is actively going against the grain and is putting her life and her sons in mortal danger in the process.
This book switches between the points of view of Margaret and Christopher Ulswicke. Ulswicke was one of only two people Margaret trusted in the world. I actually enjoyed his story more so than Margarets. He's funny, determined and could feel his need to do his very best. He was much more genuine a character than Margaret. He did what he did for the good of his mistress and for someone who kills people, was a much more believable human than Margaret comes across as. Other than the gruesome and overly descriptive deaths being described, there wasn’t much that stood out.
The pace of the book wanes a lot and other times you get far too much information thrown at you. I can still see the potential this book has but for a seasoned reader like me, it didn’t hold the water it should have. There were no twists and turns, nothing to drive you forward to continue to read. I did finish it. It was mediocre at best and a real let down for me. I did a happy dance when I first started to read it. I was excited. By the end I was just glad it was over.
I have never read any other of his work and in all honesty, I probably won’t be seeking his work out again. It’s a real shame that I didn’t have something better to say about this book. I really wanted to love it.
I would give it 2.5 stars out of 5. I even had to go and read parts again because my mind wandered and that never happens to me.
Sincerely, The Lioness
I just finished Falling for You Again by Kerry Lonsdale and here are my musings. Meli is a furniture artist. She crafts the most amazing pieces and looks forward to taking over the family business. She is blind-sided when her uncle plans to sell the business. When she finds out the company that is buying has someone she knows working for them… Aaron. A man she hasn’t seen in years… The man she married and divorced after a night in vegas… A man who might just be able to help her destroy the deal. Wow wow wow! This second chance story really took a unique twist by having the main characters meet by chance on a plane and get married in Vegas with the agreement they annul it after. They don’t see each other again until this deal. I loved the chemistry between them. The narration was absolutely wonderful and I loved how the whole book came to life in this beautiful way. I liked Meli a lot. I loved that she had a job outside of “pink” jobs that come up a lot in romance books. She was a rockstar with A wood-lathe and that was bad ass. I thought the plot was clever and unique. It really was a fun read. I liked the ending too. It was definitely an all round epic romance read! 4.5 stars Thank you @netgalley and @brilliancepublishing for my gifted ALC! You can find all my reviews at thelionessofliteracy.com And my podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/5kKN96RNPNh4uNDZzpIE1A #bookish #bookalorian #bookalicious #bookishblog #bookstagrammer #candianbookblogger #bookishbusiness #bookpodcast #litdulterous #readingbook #readersofbookstagram #bookrecs #fallingforyouagain #audiobookreview
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I just finished The Fourth Daughter by Lyn Liao Butler and here are my musings. Liv Kuo was a star on the rise in the kitchen until a traumatic incident in her kitchen has her hiding in her apartment. She wants to stay there… Safe but when her grandmother calls her begging for her help, she jumps on a plane and flies to Tawain.. She needs help to find the daughter, a woman she thinks she just saw, her 4th daughter, who was rehomed by the child’s father decades earlier. Ah-Ma tells Liv all about her life before she was born and the while they spend time together and search for her missing aunt, they allow their love of food to bring them closer together. OK this was one of the best books of the year for me. I absolutely loved the straddling of timelines and how Ah-Ma had such a love for her children but after her youngest daughter was taken and given away…. The loss was tangible. It came across so acutely I could not help sobbing. Watching her struggle to be a wife to a monster in a time and place where she had no rights… UGH my heart. Her beautiful friendship with an abused woman was one of the best things I have ever read. I liked the cooking parts in the book too and the fact that Liv had PTSD and her struggles with the anxiety and panic attacks was done with such care, I couldn’t put it down. I felt bereft for Ah-Ma and I love that we got the story from the perspective of the family her daughter was placed with. It was beautiful, heartwarming in the sadness because she never gave up hope. It was beautiful and I highly recommend it. 5 stars Thank you to @brilliancepublishing for my gifted copy. Make sure you check out my store Bookaloriandesigns.com Bookaloriandesigns.etsy.com Unique bookish merch for the book dragon connoisseur. You can find all my book reviews at thelionessofliteracy.com And my podcast at https://open.spotify.com/show/5kKN96RNPNh4uNDZzpIE1A Youtube.com/@litdulterous #thefourthdaughter #bookreview #bookishreview #bookalorian #bookworm #booksbooksbooks #booktok #litdulterous #bookishpost #bookishpodcast #booklover #reading #readersofig #booksofbookstagram
Book review - Non-Fiction - Psychology - Self Help - Science I just finished Why We Click by Kate Murphy and here are my musings! Did you know that subconsciously we mirror people's tone, mannerism, postures and more when we are communicating? I knew this. It’s a sales tactic we were taught. Mirror the customer and they feel more at ease and familiar with you that they will automatically trust you. That’s the surface part.. Did you know that we also sync our blood pressure, moods, brainwaves and heart rates as well? COLOR ME BLOWN AWAY. I had no dang idea and this book clued me right in and I found myself learning more and more. This book was truly fascinating. The book was clear and easy to follow. Nothing overtly complicated and it was a super interesting read. The topics covered… Things like relationships in a social setting, working remotely all with real life offerings makes everything more relatable. Have you ever wondered why some connections feel right and others don’t? This book will give you the insight you always wondered about but never actually asked outloud. I don’t read a lot of self-help books, they tend to lean towards a certain type of person but I actually really enjoyed this book and ended up lending it to my husband who is basically a social pariah and he understood some things about himself that he put into action. If you are looking into the psychology of how to understand social bonds then this book is one to look for! 4 stars Thank you to @celadonbooks for my gifted copy. Out 27th January 2026 #celadonbooks #bookblog #readersofig #booksbooksbooks #readingallday
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The storm by Rachel Hawkins Have you read any books by this author before? I’m a fan of hers so I’m a teeny bit biased but this book was amazing! The Rosalee inn sets a scene. Geneve owns the place and when her old friend returns after she left through a scandal.. all the secrets bubble to the surface! What will cause more carnage? The lies of the past or the hurricane heading directly for them? The book had a slow but brilliant start. One thing I love about her books is she knows how to set the stage and when things really get going… Oohh watch out! I loved the tone and the pace: the writing is always excellent but I felt the more dark edge in this one. The characters are all well developed and I wanted to learn more about them and hello!! Set in an inn!! Love that! Not always a massive fan of weather related plots in books but I actually quite liked that there was something coming that couldn’t be stopped! Felt the ending was done right and all in all.. solid book! 4 stars Thank you to @stmartinspress for my gifted copy. SMP early reader - book influencer - book review - thriller
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