Within The Hollow Crown by Margaret Campbell Barnes Review

Product Description from Amazon
Paperback: 368 pages

Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark (April 1, 2010)



"Within the hollow crown that rounds the mortal temples of a king..." -Shakespeare, The Tragedy of King Richard II


Unlike his father, the Black Prince, or his namesake, King Richard the Lionheart, Richard II never really wanted to be king. But the mantle of royalty is thrust upon his shoulders at age 11, at a time when England is racked by unrest and class warefare. A leader as unexpected as he is inexperienced, young Richard must find a way to triumph over a fierce conflict more destructive than any foreign enemy.
"Ms. Barnes captures the flavor, pageantry, and color of the Middle Ages...a distinguished novel."


-Philadelphia Inquirer


Richard's love for his wife, Anne of Bohemia, gave him the strength to outwit the schemes of his enemies and govern as he saw fit, providing England with years of properity under his reign. But when tragedy strikes, Richard begins to loose the common touch by which he had ruled so brilliantly, and begins a downward spiral from which his detractors would derive strength...


"Sympathetic picture of sensitive, peace-loving, and ill-beset Richard II, who had it in him to be one of the best kings England ever had."
-Booklist


This is another great historical fiction story by Margaret Campbell Barnes and tells the story of Richard Plantagenet who is the son of The Black Prince. He is also the nephew of John of Gaunt and grandson of King Edward III.His mother was Joan, Princess of Wales. Richard was crowned king of England at the early age of eleven. During the early years of his reign there was a variety of councils that ruled as a regency. Around 1380-1381 Richard played a major part in supressing the Peasant's Revolt. Richard was married to Anne of Bohemia, which according to this author, theirs was a very loving marriage. They were married at a very young age (15) and were married for 12 years with no children and Anne died of the plague at the age of 28. He did marry again to Isabella, daughter of Charles VI of France but she was only 6 at the time. After the death of Anne, Richard became very bereft and his rule over England became precarious as there are those around him that want to take over the throne. His fears are realized and he was seized and put in the Tower of London and after a time he was taken to Pontefract Castle, where he died around 1400. As with all of Margaret Campbell Barnes historical novels, this story was very well researched and even though this book was first published in 1948, the reader feels like this is brand new historical fiction. I like that Margaret's books are so easy to read and they are filled with all sorts of court intrigue, treason, murder,lots of secondary characters and even romance. I enjoyed this book very much and highly recommend it for all historical buffs.

I received this book from Sourcebooks for read and review. I was not monetarily compensated for my opinion.