Katherine
by Anya Seton
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Book Summary Information
Author: Anya SetonForeword: Philippa Gregory
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2004-05-01
ISBN: 155652532X
Number of pages: 512
Publisher: Chicago Review Press
Book Reviews of Katherine
Book Review: Poorly written . . .
Summary: 1 Stars
The concept of this novel is fantastic; what a shame that it wasn't written up by someone with more skill at writing novels. This just wasn't a novel. For me, a novel must "get inside" the character's heads, there must be introspection. Anya Seton's inability to probe her characters and map out their interior realities meant for very tedious reading. In places where she should have been fleshing out the thoughts and feelings of key characters, she instead fills the story with an endlessly changing cast of minor characters, uninteresting (even distracting) descriptive details, and irrelevant dialogue that does little to explain the big "whys" behind the current political situation and her characters' actions. Frankly, the novel felt clunky and unfocused. And the love scenes were embarrassingly tacky in the setup and writing (e.g. John of Gaunt, depressed about the recent death of his wife, asks to meet with Katherine to thank her for fetching a priest for his wife before she died of the plague . . . within two pages of conversation, he is suddenly struck by how gorgeous Katherine is and starts forcing himself on her. Conveniently, there is a bed right there in the room . . . eeeeewwwww!!!! How unbelievable, what silliness.) Katherine and John of Gaunt were not believable or likeable characters and the reasons for their love eluded me; as far as I can tell from the book, the reason for their attraction was purely physical, which is very unsatisfying.
So, from the perspective of writing a good novel, this book was a failure. And, from the perspective of writing a good historical novel, it was additionally a failure. If name-dropping characters and dates counts, this book was "historical." But, a good historical novel should flesh out more of the "whys" behind those historical happenings. Instead, we get cardboard characters who act in predictable ways and many who act without any comment or interpretation from the author. I might as well have learned about what these people did by reading a wikipedia article.
So I would skip this one . . . if you are picky about good writing, you know who you are . . . this was a "fluffy" read and not worth your time. I am astonished that this book gets such excellent reviews.
Summary of Katherine
This classic romance novel tells the true story of the love affair that changed history-that of Katherine Swynford and John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, the ancestors of most of the British royal family. Set in the vibrant 14th century of Chaucer and the Black Death, the story features knights fighting in battle, serfs struggling in poverty, and the magnificent Plantagenets-Edward III, the Black Prince, and Richard II-who ruled despotically over a court rotten with intrigue. Within this era of danger and romance, John of Gaunt, the king's son, falls passionately in love with the already married Katherine. Their well-documented affair and love persist through decades of war, adultery, murder, loneliness, and redemption. This epic novel of conflict, cruelty, and untamable love has become a classic since its first publication in 1954.Historical Books
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