Princess Victoria knows from a young age that she will almost certainly become Queen of England. Her mother, also acutely aware of Victoria's destiny, keep the princess under a watchful eye against dangers of scheming uncles—always, she constantly reminds her daughter, working for the good of Victoria. But during this protective (but stifling) custody it is the company of Victoria's sister Feodore, her governess Baroness Lezhen, and visits to her revered Uncle Leopold that makes life bearable as she waits impatiently for her eighteenth birthday, when she will be free. In fact, not long after this milestone, Victoria is crowned queen, beginning the longest reign that England's throne has ever known with the heartfelt promise, “I will be good.” The affectionate and energetic Victoria is instantly beloved by the English people and delighted with her prime minister, and she adapts to her new role during the early years of her reign. But the greatest change is yet to come. When Uncle Leopold's favorite nephew, Albert, becomes Victoria's husband, one of history's great romances begins. The mirthful Victoria and the serious, studious Albert become a devoted pair, and Victoria comes to be guided by Albert's political advice and his high moral standards. As the government changes leadership, the empire expands, and Victoria and Albert's family grows, we see Victoria evolve from a headstrong young princess into one of the world's great monarchs and, eventually, into a reclusive widow, as well. She struggles throughout her life to subdue her quick temper, protect her family, and keep her trusted advisers close at hand, but it is always the great warmth of their “little queen” that endears her to her subjects and her loyalty and honesty that she relies on to guide her reign

ANNE BOLEYN'S CLAIM TO FAME is distinct from that of every other woman in English history. It was for the love of Anne Boleyn that Henry VIII enacted a massive schism in the Catholic Church, renouncing the authority of the Pope and setting himself as the head of the Church of England—a move that shifted religious boundaries permanently. It was for the love of Anne Boleyn that Henry risked international war and domestic turmoil by leaving his wife of twenty years, Katharine of Aragon, which set a precedent for divorce in the English court. It was for the love of Anne Boleyn that Henry struggled bitterly with his advisors for six long years to make their union legitimate. Yet Anne Boleyn paid the ultimate price for Henry's mighty love. Three years after she was married to the king, she was beheaded at his orders. In this extraordinary tale of political treachery and romantic obsession, bestselling author Jean Plaidy spins Anne's story as never before. Weaving together impeccable historical research and an intuitive grasp of Anne's voice, Plaidy conjures courtly life in all its brocaded finery, complete with feasts and balls, deceptions and betrayals, political backstabbing and religious fanaticism. This guide is designed to help direct your reading group's discussion of The Lady in the Tower. After a childhood spent soaking up the sophistication and romantic intrigue of the fashionable French court, Anne Boleyn returns to her native England, expecting life to calm down considerably. Before long, the dark-eyed, wild-haired beauty finds herself in the court of King Henry VIII with none other than England's monarch fixated on her. Willful, proud, and virtuous, Anne will not play mistress to any man— even a king—who is already married. And so the desperate pursuit begins. Henry is up against his most trusted advisors, his queen, her royal Spanish family, the pontiff in Rome, and an increasingly critical public, as he turns his court upside-down to find a way to possess what he truly desires. And when Anne finally gives in to Henry's onslaught, she finds herself in a deadly game at the intersection of power and desire, where no amount of love or devotion will guarantee her safety. In Anne's unforgetable voice, The Lady in the Tower explores her astonishing career from the confines of the tower where she ekes out her last days, pondering what she could have done differently, and how she might have escaped her world-renowned fate as the first—but not the last—of Henry's wives to be executed

Eleanor of Aquitaine remains as intriguing today as she has in centuries past. In The Courts of Love, the inimitable Jean Plaidy brings this fascinating queen to life, allowing Eleanor to tell the captivating story of her life and loves in this fictional “memoir.” Intelligent, independent, and beautiful, at age fifteen Eleanor was named Duchess of Aquitaine, the richest province in Europe. She became Queen of France upon marrying King Louis VII, but their tepid union ended when Eleanor met Henry II, the first Plantagenet King of England. Their tempestuous pairing produced many sons and daughters—two of whom would reign over England—and generated a legend unsurpassed. A majestic and sweeping story set against a backdrop of medieval politics, intrigue, and strife, The Courts of Love is filled with fascinating themes: love, passion, betrayal, loyalty, and heartbreak. This guide is designed to help direct your reading group’s discussion of Jean Plaidy’s unforgettable novel

Katherine of Valois was born a princess, the daughter of King Charles VI of France, but her father was known to most of the nation as “Charles the Mad” by the time Katherine was old enough to know him. Given to unpredictable fits of insanity, the monarch was not a reliable parent. The young princess lived a secluded, unsteady life with her brothers and sisters, awaiting their father’s sane moments, suffering through his madness, watching their mother take up with their uncle, and wondering what the future would hold. Katherine’s fortunes appeared to be changing when she was married off at age nineteen to King Henry V of England. Within two years, she gave birth to an heir, but her happiness was fleeting—soon after the birth of her son, she lost her husband to an illness acquired in battle. Exiled from court, forbidden to return to France, and no longer allowed access to her child, Katherine’s every action was watched carefully; with Joan of Arc inciting the French to overthrow English rule, the Queen’s loyalty to England was a matter of intense suspicion. A relic of a former age, Katherine had brought her dowry and borne her heir, what use was she to England? The matter was quickly settled, she would live out her remaining years alone, far from the seat of power. But no one, even Katherine herself, could have anticipated that she would fall in love with and secretly marry one of her guardians, Owen Tudor—or that a generation later, their grandson would become the first king of the great Tudor dynasty

Anne Neville, daughter of the Earl of Warwick, first met and befriended Richard, Duke of Gloucester, at her father's castle, where he had been sent to learn the arts of chivalry and war. Anne's father, known as the Kingmaker, had set Richard's brother, Edward the Fourth, on the throne and was his strongest supporter until the king's marriage brought the rapacious Woodville family on to the scene. Disaster followed and the Earl of Warwick turned Kingmaker once again. But this time he was to use Anne as a bargaining counter in a treaty. She now faced a future which she dreaded with a man whom she already feared and by now she was in love with Richard

CATHERINE OF BRAGANZA was raised during a tumultuous time in Portugal. Although her father was called King Juan IV, the Pope (due to pressure from Spain) refused to recognize him as anything other than a duke. Looking for an advantageous political alliance, Catherine’s mother, Donna Luiza, sets her sights on the English throne. Even when Oliver Cromwell takes power in England, Donna Luiza does not lose hope in marrying Catherine to the young Prince Charles, and when Charles is restored to England’s throne, marriage negotiations begin immediately. Catherine’s marriage, like so many royal marriages, is arranged out of strategy, yet Catherine and Charles begin their lives happily together. As a Catholic, she is not trusted by the people — they believe she will convert Charles, just as his brother James had been converted by their mother. Catherine spends her marriage as Queen in name, yet is sadly unable to keep her merry husband King in her bed. Her inability to produce an heir, despite the fact that all of Charles’s mistresses have healthy boys, sets the people of England and the court strongly against her. Charles, however, remains faithful to Catherine by never divorcing her, not even to legitimize at least one of his “bastard” sons. Outliving her husband and witnessing the brief reign of James II before the co-regents, William and Mary, overthrow the Catholic king, Catherine returns to Portugal as her life comes full circle

Queen Mary II started her life in the court of her uncle, the Merry Monarch, King Charles II. Charles’s England was a Protestant country with a great disdain for Catholicism. The people remembered the great persecutions Queen Mary I had enacted during her reign and would always be reluctant to accept another Catholic on the throne. Charles knew that under their father’s care, Mary and her sister, Anne, would be raised Catholic, since James was a practicing Catholic. In the interest of keeping the royal line Protestant, King Charles looked after the girls and even arranged Mary’s marriage. When Mary was fifteen she was married to her first cousin William of Orange, a stern and cold man. Mary moved to Holland to be with her husband, leaving behind her sister and her father, with whom she was very close, despite their religious differences. Mary spent her life torn between her duty as a daughter and her loyalty as a wife. After the death of her uncle Charles, her father became King James II, which proved to be an ephemeral reign as his religion was unpopular, and William of Orange had his ambitious sights set on the crown. Mary supported her husband in his deposing of her father, and although she was reluctant, was crowned queen with William ruling as king