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Its often been said that a man can never outdo a woman when it comes to love or revenge. In a world ruled by power-hungry men, women only have two options in life. Be obedient to the husband and give birth to a son or be publicly humiliated and executed. For most women being a wife and a mother is enough to live out their days in contentment, but for some women, they go against their assigned roles and carve out their own paths in life. As a descendant of Melucina and the daughter of the Count of Luxembourg, the young and beautiful Jacquetta is married off to the Duke of Bedford and the English regent of France. Her husband not only introduces her to a mysterious world of learning and alchemy but to a world full of conspiracies and political intrigue. Upon the death of her husband, the widowed Jacquetta secretly marries the squire Richard Woodville who has been her only ally and companion throughout her time as the Duchess of Bedford. Upon the discovery of her second marriage, she is forced to pay a hefty fine and loses the remainder of her husband’s wealth and land as well as her Duchess title. Yet the dignified and well respected Jacquetta doesn’t stay down on her luck for too long and things start to look up for a brief period of time when she is invited as a lady-in-waiting to her maternal cousin from France Queen Margaret of Anjou. However, due to King Henry’s incapability of ruling, Queen Margaret is left with no choice but to rule the court. With constant rebellion from the people and the discontent from the unfavored members of the court, the flames of war begin to spark between the House of York and the House of Lancaster As the reign of Henry the 6th is threatened, Jacquetta and her husband must navigate through the war-torn England while trying to protect not only their King and Queen but their own family as well. This proves most difficult, however, as Jacquetta has foreseen a future where her daughter Elizabeth Woodville is destined to sit upon the English throne representing the symbol of the white rose. It is then Jacquetta begins to question her loyalty for the queen she has always sworn to serve and protect. The same Queen who remains adamant in her quest in eliminating the entire House of York as revenge for the loss of the Duke of Beaufort and putting her only son Edward on the throne. For those that love fiction, history, romance, the supernatural, mystery, and suspense Philippa Gregory’s The Lady of the Rivers is the perfect choice to read. This remarkable and captivating read is not only historically accurate but it proves that even in a time where women had no voice or even basic human rights, women just like their male counterparts are just as intelligent, powerful, strong, and capable enough of making decisions regarding how they should live their lives. I would give this book 4 out of 5 stars not only because such important points in history were told from the perspective of the woman who remained obscure in history despite having given birth to the notorious White Queen, but it makes one even hungrier for information on unexplained mysteries that have taken place during the Cousin’s war and makes one want to learn more about the hidden relationships between the Tudor and Plantagenets and why descendants of these bloodlines that have succeeded the throne had their dynasties always come to a tragic ending.