Until I read The White Queen, I had not been a fan of historical fiction, having read only ones that seem to put me to sleep. Not so with this delightful book. Philippa Gregory and The White Queen kept me up as late as I could manage, reading every word and skipping nary a line. She makes history truly palatable. She does extensive research, reading and traveling, and though classified as fiction, the story is bolstered with as much historical fact as exists. I'll be looking for her past books and eagerly awaiting the publication of new works.

I am about to make some little comment, but again it happens. Our eyes meet, and I can think of nothing to say to him. We just stand, staring at each other for a long moment, until my mother passes him a glass and says quietly, Good health, Your Grace. I sink down into a curtsey but I cannot look away. Instead, I gaze up at him, as a woman might stare with hot eyes at a man she adores.In what ways are women especially vulnerable during this tumultuous time? What power do women have? How do Elizabeth, Jacquetta, Cecily, and other female characters in the novel use their intelligence and influence? Gregory's newest may not be as fresh as earlier efforts, but she captures vividly the terrible inertia of war." - Publishers Weekly

Eleanor Tomlinson as Lady Isabel Neville, Duchess of Clarence, wife of George, Duke of Clarence and elder sister of Lady Anne Neville Controller of BBC Drama, Ben Stephenson, says: “One of the most ambitious series the BBC has made, this 10-part series is an epic drama that makes real history as gripping as the best fiction, featuring a cast of extraordinary new talent and some of our finest actors."In Ghent filming took place in the Castle of the Counts ( Gravensteen), Saint Peter's Abbey (Sint-Pietersabdij), Saint Bavo's Abbey (Sint-Baafsabdij), Cloth hall (Lakenhalle), Castle of Gerald the Devil ( Geeraard de Duivelsteen), Saint Bavo Cathedral (Sint-Baafskathedraal), and Agustijnklooster (Academiestraat). Elizabeth paid a high price for the throne, losing her father, brothers, and two of her sons. What, if anything, do you think she would do differently if given the chance? What would you have done in her situation? I raised you to be the best that you could be, she says simply. I didn’t know what that would be, and I still don’t know. But I didn’t raise you to be a lonely woman, missing her husband, struggling to keep her boys safe; a woman alone in a cold bed, her beauty wasted on empty lands.

Rudi Goodman and Dean-Charles Chapman as Richard Grey, son of Elizabeth Woodville and Sir John Grey of Groby The White Queen is a stunningly rich tale of love and loss, seduction and deception, betrayal and murder, vibrantly woven through the stories of three different, yet equally driven, women in their quest for power as they manipulate behind the scenes of history – Elizabeth Woodville, Margaret Beaufort and Anne Neville.

I look at him from under my eyelashes. I don’t propose to sell myself at all, I say. I am not a yard of ribbon. I am not a leg of ham. I am not for sale to anyone. Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography in Television Movie/Mini-Series – David Luther for Episode: "War at First Hand" (nomination) [19]