Sandra Worth Reviews

Added February 1, 2004

The Rose of York: Love and War

Author: Sandra Worth
Publisher: End Table Books
Available At: Bookstores Everywhere
Publishing Date: October 2003
Genre: Historical Fiction
Format: Trade Paperback
Price: $16.95
ISBN: 0-9751264-0-7
Author Email/Website: www.sandraworth.com
Reviewer: Sharyn McGinty

With her debut novel, author Sandra Worth takes readers on an unforgettable journey through the life of Richard Plantagenet the Third.

The Rose of York: Love and War opens with Richard as a young boy. Along with his older brother George and his adult cousin Warwick the Kingmaker, they are fleeing England. The Queen of England, Marguerite d'Anjou, is determined to kill all who oppose her, especially those whose right to the throne of England is as great or greater than her husband's. Richard leaves behind everything he knows and is forced due to these uneasy times to part with his childhood.

Two years later, Richard returns from exile to learn the art of war. At Middleham Castle, the home of his cousin Warwick, he is to become a knight. It is here Richard meets the love of his life, Warwick's daughter Anne, and finds a life-long friend in John Neville. Preferring a life of peace, Richard nevertheless studies and applies himself to the duties of knighthood, becoming a great warrior and tactician. As the relationship between his brother King Edward and Warwick the Kingmaker become strained, Richard is constantly subjected to hours of both trying to make him see their point of view.

Happiness is elusive, and for Richard it only comes when he's in Anne's company. He would like nothing better than to marry her and live a life of peace. Alas, his destiny, like England's, does not see peace for many a year. As his brother completely alienates many of his loyal friends by marrying a scheming woman, Richard finds himself torn between the king to whom he has pledged fealty and to the father of the woman he loves.

Will Richard ever find his happiness with Anne? Or like England, will he be constantly torn between two equally great leaders?

I have to admit, writing the review for The Rose of York: Love and War was one of the harder things I've ever done. How do you condense a person's life to a few mere paragraphs, especially such a man as Richard? Ms. Worth is an extremely gifted writer with the ability to immerse her readers into the lives and world of her characters. The late 1400's come alive and no longer are just bare facts.

The Rose of York: Love and War isn't historical fiction; it is a time machine. We are given a chance to know Richard before he becomes the villain of Shakespeare's play. His reasons behind the actions, the doubts, the faults, fears and loves; we are given the chance to know him as we know ourselves. No longer is he someone to be despised; he is someone we look up and care deeply for.

The first in planned trilogy The Rose of York: Love and War is a masterful novel by a very talented author. I know shall be placing this novel on my keeper shelf and anxiously await the remaining books.

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