Court Lady and Country Wife is a historical romp through Stuart England. Sisters, Dorothy and Lucy Percy were by turns rich, famous, beautiful and movers and shakers in the Royal Court. Dorothy was the country wife. She married a diplomat and gave birth to twelve children. As her husband spent much time away from home she managed their huge estates at a time when women were not even allowed to own property. Lucy was the court lady-- the beautiful, witty sister. She married a courtier and was involved in many a court intrigue--landing herself in the Tower of London later in her life. She was the confidente of Kings and Queens.
This book gives an interesting perspective on the lives of women (albeit aristocrats) of this period. The sisters had an unusual upbringing (their father spent many years in the Tower of London), so they became particularly strong willed women. The author is a scholar on Tudor and Stuart history, and she fills in much of the history of the time. They were born in the reign of Elizabeth and lived through the reign and later downfall of James I, and two civil wars!
I would recommend this not only to general history buffs, but in particular readers who are interested in women's history. My only criticism--you would do well to have a flow chart with names and ranks--there are lots of lords, earls and counts. I am not very familiar with this period of English history, but this makes me want to read more books on this period.
Do you remember I mentioned this book, The Highest Tide last week? For some reason the publisher sent a second copy to me. I won one through The Bookreporter.com. There must have been some sort of a mix-up, and they sent me another one. As I don't need a second copy, I would be happy to pass this along (hopefully this is not a no-no) to another reader. I have just started it, but so far I think it is very good. Whoever leaves me a note in the comment box first--I will be happy to send it to you.
Finally, I decided on a new nonfiction book to read! I chose A Perfect Red: Empire, Espionage, and the Quest for the Color of Desire. I can't wait to really get into it. I am just now reading the prologue. I have mentioned before--I am very interested in "color"--it's history, how it is made, etc, so I have been really looking forward to reading this book.