Review: Isabeau...by N. Gemini Sasson

My first book of my 100 for the year was The Traitor's Wife by Susan Higgenbottom, the story of Lady Eleanor Despenser, the wife of Hugh Despenser, the overly-ambitious favorite of King Edward II of England.  Higgenbottom was sympathetic to the plights of Eleanor and Hugh, whose ambition, though regrettable, was the only catalyst that lead to their fall from grace.  This piece of historical fiction is the same story...from the opposing point of view.

Isabelle (the titular "Isabeau" is a moniker given to her by her French family) is a child when she is given in marriage to King Edward II.  She soon learns, however, that Edward treats her with nothing more than vague contempt, using her merely as a breeder for their many children and instead lavishing attention on his favorite, Hugh Despsenser, whom Isabelle suspects is his lover.  When his abuse of his throne and of Isabelle go too far, she retreats to her homeland of France and joins forces with Sir Roger Mortimer, a former traitor to the English crown whom Isabelle once allowed to escape the Tower and execution.  Together, they plan to lead an army into England to overthrow Edward, crush Hugh Despenser, and reclaim justice for Isabelle once and for all.

After reading about the "demon" Isabelle in Traitor's Wife, it was interesting to read a book where she is not only the protagonist, but also a heroine.  Portrayed as a wicked and traitorous queen by Higgenbottom, Isabelle is merely an abused mother and much-wronged wife in Sasson's work, a woman driven only by the desire to be revenged upon her husband's lover and to see her son crowned King. 

I was disappointed on a couple of fronts: I did not like the characters portrayed in such black and white means.  Isabelle and Mortimer were "good"; Edward II and Hugh Despenser were "bad", etc.  There were no redeeming qualities of the evil characters and nothing terribly sinful about Isabelle.  Also, the end of the book comes abruptly -- while it is long, there's buildup to a climax that happens so suddenly, you almost miss it, and Isabelle's declining years and ultimate fate are relegated to a mere "Author's Note" that doesn't really answer anything.

Nevertheless, it is interesting historical fiction, a light romance, and besides the characterization (which can neither be proven nor disproven), it is relatively accurate.

Rating: ***