The Autumn Throne by Elizabeth Chadwick
Imprisoned by her husband, King Henry II, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Queen of England, refuses to let her powerful husband bully her into submission, even as he forces her away from her children and her birthright. Freed only by Henry’s death, Eleanor becomes dowager Queen of England.
Eleanor will need every ounce of courage and fortitude as she crosses the Alps in winter to bring Richard his bride, and travels medieval Europe to ransom her beloved son. But even her indomitable spirit will be tested to its limits as she attempts to keep the peace between her warring sons, and find a place in the centres of power for her daughters.
GUIDE
THEMES
A loving mother. A betrayed wife. A queen beyond compare.
SETTING
Set in Europe and England in the 12th and 13th centuries.
SERIES
Book 3 in the Eleanor of Aquitaine series which is better read in order.
Review
The Autumn Throne should have been a thrilling conclusion to Alienor’s story considering it is set in one of the most exciting eras in history, however it falls completely flat because everything happens “off screen”. As a prisoner, Alienor is reliant on visitors bringing her news and since Chadwick persists on the book being mainly from the queen’s point-of-view, the reader only knows what Alienor knows which makes for tedious reading. Most of the first half of the book is centred around Alienor moving from one prison to another, complaining about her treatment, as history swiftly passes her by. While I appreciate this makes it all the more real, Chadwick’s insistence on staying with Alienor means we never really get a feel for the other characters and they don’t seem fleshed out as a result.
The annoying thing is Chadwick isn’t adverse to changing the point-of-view when it suits her, mainly as a plot device to underline someone’s bad behaviour or exploit a particular situation but it only results in making the narrative disjointed. I also found myself getting increasingly annoyed by the inclusion of William Marshal who has a far bigger role than any of Alienor’s children and seems to be the only noble character. While I appreciate Chadwick has written a whole series on Marshal’s exploits and obviously loves him, his scenes with Alienor were a little too fangirl for me and I found myself rolling my eyes at the purple prose.
Although the story plays out over a thirty year period, the plot moves so swiftly it is hard to keep track of Alienor’s age and many of the more important events are just brushed aside if they don’t fit into the plot line. In fact, when Alienor’s children start to die, I’d forgotten who half of them were since so much of the story is focused on her sons rather than her daughters who made important marriages in their own right. I know it would be impossible to cover absolutely everything in Alienor’s life but she had so much time on her hands during her imprisonment, a brief mention of her married daughters wouldn’t have gone amiss.
While I’m glad I stuck with this trilogy, I’m not convinced Chadwick is for me so I’m not sure if I will be reading any more of her books.
