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A Tapestry of Treason

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A Tapestry of Treason

By: Anne O'Brien
Narrated by: Gloria Sanders
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 ‘Gripping’ The Times ‘Fans of Philippa Gregory and other historical fiction writers will love Anne O’Brien’s A Tapestry of Treason’ Yours Her actions could make history – but at what price?

1399: Constance of York, Lady Despenser, proves herself more than a mere observer in the devious intrigues of her magnificently dysfunctional family, The House of York.

Surrounded by power-hungry men, including her aggressively self-centred husband Thomas and ruthless siblings Edward and Richard, Constance places herself at the heart of two treasonous plots against King Henry IV. Will it be possible for this Plantagenet family to safeguard its own political power by restoring either King Richard II to the throne, or the precarious Mortimer claimant?

Although the execution of these conspiracies will place them all in jeopardy, Constance is not deterred, even when the cost of her ambition threatens to overwhelm her. Even when it endangers her new-found happiness.

With treason, tragedy, heartbreak and betrayal, this is the story of a woman ahead of her time, fighting for herself and what she believes to be right in a world of men.

Praise for A Tapestry of Treason

‘O’Brien’s page-turner vividly brings to life the restriction of women, and the compassion and strength of this real-life figure from medieval times’ Woman

‘Anne O’Brien does not disappoint . . . there are so many twists and turns . . . If you love Philippa Gregory or Alison Weir, you will love Anne O’Brien too’ My Weekly

‘A wonderful novel . . . a rich, gripping, enchanting read. Anne’s vivid writing took me straight to the year 1400 and kept me wonderfully lost there throughout’ Joanna Courtney

©2019 Anne O'Brien (P)2019 HarperCollins Publishers Limited Fiction Historical Historical Fiction Medieval Science Fiction Middle Ages Royalty Romance Heartfelt
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I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. It was clearly read by Gloria Sanders and Anne O'Brien portrayed Constance of York very well during the early period of the Wars of the Roses. I feel that she would have served well in WW2 in the SOE. She was an independent woman, well before her time, living on her wits in a court full of treachery and ambition. Married at first to Thomas Despenser she was a dutiful and shrewd, if not loving wife. She gave him 3 children. She was daughter of Edmund of Langley, Duke of York, Edward III's 4th son; cousin to King Richard II; sister to the future King Edward IV, who became the Duke of York after his father Edmund of Langley died in this book. Her younger brother (Dickon) Richard, was Earl of Cambridge and his grandsons Edward IV and Richard III both became Yorkist Kings of England, through his son Richard, Duke of York.

Tapestry of Treason

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A strange - if slightly mad - main character and not one well-known in history. Right from the start she tries to explain her decisions but it does make you want to say "why on earth did you do that?". But it held my interest to the end!!
As I'm quick enough to complain about poor narrators I must say that Gloria Sanders is very good. A couple of little puzzles, like why the main character has no discernable accent and her brother is broad northern. But it only matters if you think about it. I've dropped one star because I noticed chunks of text containing information and/or description being repeated after several pages or in a different chapter. It felt like padding, which is hardly necessary in a 16 hour read. And it's a good 16 hour read.

Interesting book, well read

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when I started this book I was unsure if I would finish it. The characters didn't draw me to them, indeed I felt a dislike for Constance, the main character. She was a selfish woman, who never saw herself at fault, even though she committed treason. Against my better reason I carried on and am now happy to say I am glad I finished the book.
I enjoyed the story, I didn't know much of the Yorks during this time in history except for their treasonous actions and although this book is factual, it is based on historical fact. So take it as it is, a factual book of the life of Constance, who lived, as cousin to the king, overlook her selfishness and you too may enjoy the story.

An interesting story

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This is a really well written story with lots of action and plots although the main character is sometimes infuriating doing really stupid things but I guess it wouldn’t be much of a story if she didn’t. The one big niggle is the fact that brothers and sister have entirely different accents from entirely different parts of the country. They were all brought up together according to the story so there’s not really a reason for it. It’s not a deal breaker with enjoyment of the book, but it’s enough to be irritating. All this said, I did enjoy the book.

Confusing accents

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Anne creates such a wonderful insight into our Royal heritage and this book for me has been pure joy to listen to Brilliant!

Tapestry of Treason

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