The Lady of the Rivers by Philippa Gregory

Whispers of the Story

The mediaeval English court is fraught with plots, treachery, secrets, and a race for power. However, in a male-dominated world, women occasionally played important roles. 

Jacquetta comes from a French noble family that claims to be descendants of the water goddess Melusine and that some women have supernatural abilities related to water. She is forced in a marriage to be exploited for her abilities, but soon becomes a very wealthy widow. When there are rumors of a second marriage, she chooses love and marries a commoner, against the customs of the English court. But she fights for her family and her status by gaining a higher position at the court.

Jacquetta expertly navigates the shifting politics of the court, remaining loyal to a foreign queen, plotting and scheming in the War of the Roses, raising a powerful family, and preparing her children to survive in the world. With water in her blood and power in her grasp, she helps bring not one, but two queens to the English throne. History may forget her name, but her legacy shaped a kingdom.

Review of The Lady of the Rivers by Philippa Gregory

Let me begin by saying I fell in love with this book, I fell in love with Jacquetta and her story. She is an extraordinary woman, with a clear set of goals, who calculated her every move and achieved what she wanted. I admit, I did not do my research, and the first books I read were The White Queen and The White Princess which tell the story of Jacquetta’s daughter and granddaughter. I can understand where the strength of these two queens comes from because Jacquetta was a strong role model for them. If you click the titles of the books you can read my reviews on them as well.

In a world ruled by men, and women from the age of 12 are nothing more than transactions based on the presumption they will birth male heirs, Jacquetta was lucky. Not only did she marry a very wealthy powerful man, but she was kept secure and safe, her well-being being a priority for her husband. She was lucky again to be a young widow with considerable wealth. From that moment on she was the master of her own life, making decisions that would benefit her and her happiness, even if that meant taking great risks. She chose her husband and loved him all her life.

I noticed that Philippa Gregory looks very kindly towards the women she writes about, finding clear motivation for their actions so that it is quite impossible to hate them for it. Jacquetta’s family is portrayed to be close to perfection. Against customs, she wants to be there for her every child and makes sure not only that they are well cared for, but that they feel loved by their parents. They as a family are so close that they know they can rely on each other no matter what. But Jacquetta strives for a better life and offers them the education they need to strive at the English court. She is also a very good politician, mastering different political plans alongside her queen.

Some things, such as the model of a perfect Woodville family, I find to be unreal for those times. But it is a fiction novel in the end, even thou it presents real characters and real events. Of course, the part with Jacquetta’s power is purely fiction, there were only rumors of her powers planted by her enemies to justify some events. But I believe Philippa Gregory does a wonderful job bringing Jacquetta to life and making her so lovable, even though her enemies considered her to be a cruel character, somewhat showing that life stories are much more complex.

One thing is for sure, her ambitions put two queens on the throne of England. Her successors become key figures in history, her daughter being the woman who conquered a king just by staying on the side of the road, to her granddaughter whose marriage united the two houses, the mother of Henry VIII and the grandmother of Queen Elisabeth I. History is funny in this way, how Jacquetta’s line ends with the greatest queen in the history of England.

There isn’t a TV show adaptation for this novel, but you can see Jacquetta playing a key role in the TV drama The White Queen, which depicts the story of Elisabeth Woodville. Janet McTeer plays wonderfully the role of Jacquetta, so don’t forget to check out this adaptation to put a face to the character.

Happy reading!