An epic feminist retelling of the War of the Roses

Cecily

DON'T MISS ANNIE GARTHWAITE'S NEW NOVEL, THE KING'S MOTHER, OUT NOW. 
 
'A startling heroine' SARAH MOSS, author of Summerwater 
 
 'A vividly female perspective on the Wars of the Roses' IMOGEN HERMES GOWER, author of The Mermaid and Mr Hancock 
 
'Wolf Hall for the 2020s' MANDA SCOTT, author of Boudica 
 
 'Absorbing' TIMES 
 __________________________________ 
 
 1431 is a dangerous time for a woman to be defiant. 
 
 England has been fighting France for 100 years. At home, power-hungry men within a corrupt government manipulate a weak king - and name Cecily's husband, York's loyal duke, an enemy. As the king's grasp on sanity weakens, plots to destroy York take root... 
 
 It will take all of Cecily's courage and cunning to save her family. But when the will to survive becomes ambition for a crown, will she risk treason to secure it? 
 
 Inside closed bedchambers and upon bloody battlefields, CECILY portrays war as women fight it. 
 
TO CONTINUE CECILY'S STORY, READ THE KING'S MOTHER - OUT NOW. 
 __________________________________ 
 
 ACCLAIM FOR CECILY - AN EPIC FEMINIST RETELLING OF THE WAR OF THE ROSES 
 
 'Has the new Hilary Mantel arrived?' SUNDAY TELEGRAPH 
 
 'Masterful and majestic; England's unspoken history told by one brilliant woman through the life of another. This important novel blazes on every page from its brutal first scene to its glittering final act' CHRIS CLEAVE, author of Everyone Brave is Forgiven 
 
 'Entirely absorbing and utterly compelling. Fifteenth century England leaps from the page, with all its political turmoil and bloodshed. I loved it' CAROLINE LEA, author of The Glass Women 
 
 'Cecily stalks the corridors of power like a female Thomas Cromwell. A vividly female perspective on the Wars of the Roses - what a feat' IMOGEN HERMES GOWER, author of The Mermaid and Mr Hancock 
 
 'Masterfully written and wholly immersive, with characters that live and breathe. Cecily is a tour de force. I loved every sentence' JOANNE BURN, author of The Hemlock Cure 
 
 'Annie Garthwaite writes about the past with the sort of intimacy, immediacy and empathy that can only come from graft and craft' TOBY CLEMENTS, author of Kingmaker 
 
 'BLOODY GREAT. So modern, so political, it could almost be set in Downing Street' KATE SAWYER, author of The Stranding 
 
'Shines a light into a dark corner of our history and reclaims the voice and story of a powerful and forgotten woman' LIZ HYDER, author of The Gifts 
 
'An extraordinary achievement . . .I could touch and breathe Cecily's world as if I was walking in her shadow' CAROL MCGRATH, author of The Silken Rose 
 
 'Impeccably researched, written with style and shot through with energy, heart and power. A perfectly paced tale of intrigue, influence and victory wrenched from defeat. Cecily has been overlooked for centuries. Not anymore' A J WEST, author of The Spirit Engineer

In vigorous, direct prose Garthwaite grippingly resurrects a remarkable woman

Utterly compelling, this brilliant novel shines a light into a dark corner of our history and reclaims the voice and story of a powerful and forgotten woman. A phenomenal read. I loved it

I look forward to hearing more from Annie Garthwaite and Cecily

Cecily is a vivid and compelling portrait of a formidable figure from the 15th century and a heroine for our times

In Garthwaite's hands, Neville proves as Machiavellian, manipulative and era-defining as any man

Cecily stalks the corridors of power like a female Thomas Cromwell. A vividly female perspective on the Wars of the Roses - what a feat

An extraordinary achievement . . . I could touch and breathe Cecily's world as if I was walking in her shadow

CECILY is the WOLF HALL for the 2020s... marks the start of a stellar career

I loved it . . . Annie Garthwaite writes about the past with a kind of restrained, earthy vim, and with the sort of intimacy and immediacy - and empathy - that can only come from graft and craft

'A startling heroine' SARAH MOSS, Summerwater 
'A vividly female perspective on the Wars of the Roses' IMOGEN HERMES GOWER, The Mermaid and Mr Hancock 
'Wolf Hall for the 2020s' MANDA SCOTT, Boudica 
'Absorbing' TIMES 
 
__________ 
 
1431 is a dangerous time for a woman to be defiant. 
 
England has been fighting France for 100 years. At home, power-hungry men within a corrupt government manipulate a weak king - and name Cecily's husband, York's loyal duke, an enemy. As the king's grasp on sanity weakens, plots to destroy York take root... 
 
It will take all of Cecily's courage and cunning to save her family. But when the will to survive becomes ambition for a crown, will she risk treason to secure it? 
 
Inside closed bedchambers and upon bloody battlefields, CECILY portrays war as women fight it. 
 
__________ 
 
ACCLAIM FOR CECILY - AN EPIC FEMINIST RETELLING OF THE WAR OF THE ROSES 
 
'Has the new Hilary Mantel arrived?' SUNDAY TELEGRAPH 
 
'Masterful and majestic; England's unspoken history told by one brilliant woman through the life of another. This important novel blazes on every page from its brutal first scene to its glittering final act' CHRIS CLEAVE, author of Everyone Brave is Forgiven 
 
'Entirely absorbing and utterly compelling. Fifteenth century England leaps from the page, with all its political turmoil and bloodshed. I loved it' CAROLINE LEA, author of The Glass Women 
 
'Cecily stalks the corridors of power like a female Thomas Cromwell. A vividly female perspective on the Wars of the Roses - what a feat' IMOGEN HERMES GOWER, author of The Mermaid and Mr Hancock 
 
'Masterfully written and wholly immersive, with characters that live and breathe. Cecily is a tour de force. I loved every sentence' JOANNE BURN, author of The Hemlock Cure 
 
'Annie Garthwaite writes about the past with the sort of intimacy, immediacy and empathy that can only come from graft and craft' TOBY CLEMENTS, author of Kingmaker 
 
'BLOODY GREAT. So modern, so political, it could almost be set in Downing Street' KATE SAWYER, author of The Stranding 
 
'Shines a light into a dark corner of our history and reclaims the voice and story of a powerful and forgotten woman' LIZ HYDER, author of The Gifts 
 
'An extraordinary achievement . . .I could touch and breathe Cecily's world as if I was walking in her shadow' CAROL MCGRATH, author of The Silken Rose 
 
'Impeccably researched, written with style and shot through with energy, heart and power. A perfectly paced tale of intrigue, influence and victory wrenched from defeat. Cecily has been overlooked for centuries. Not anymore' A J WEST, author of The Spirit Engineer

Annie Garthwaite

Elegant and propulsive . . . I had to fight myself to put it down

Ferdia Lennon, author of GLORIOUS EXPLOITS

History at its most powerful: intimate and personal, visceral and devastating

Family dynamics at their most fierce - timeless and brilliant!

Intense and personal, with stakes as great as kingdoms and a mother’s love

It is impossible not to root for Cecily: fierce mother and ambitious power player

Utterly gripping, beautifully judged and deeply feminist

Elizabeth Buchan, author of TWO WOMEN IN ROME

Breathes life into these women, wives, daughters and mothers. It is rare that historical fiction is so immersive and transporting.

Utterly compelling storytelling in crisp prose that is by turns witty, lyrical, moving and brutal.

Victoria Mackenzie, author of FOR THY GREAT PAIN HAVE MERCY ON MY LITTLE PAIN

A totally propulsive read, which plunges us into the 15th century and shifts our understanding of the roles mothers in history have played.

Harriet Constable, author of THE INSTRUMENTALIST

Brings the women of the Wars of the Roses dazzlingly to life and puts them where they belong: at the heart of events that shaped England.

Garthwaite is a beautiful writer with an incisive pen; the kinship she feels with her characters—heroes and villains both—is evident on every page.

Katherine J. Chen, author of JOAN: A NOVEL OF JOAN OF ARC

An utterly compelling protagonist – Brilliant, determined and ruthless.

A vivid and gripping powerhouse of a novel

Moving and majestic. I honestly don’t think there’s another writer like Annie Garthwaite in British literature.

Explores the lives and loves of noble women in the 15th century in unflinching, terrifying detail.

Sara Sheridan, author of THE FAIR BOTANISTS

Garthwaite’s dialogue marries political intrigue with emotional heft in a way I haven’t seen on the page since Hilary Mantel.

Four mothers fight for their sons as the Wars of the Roses rage

1461. Through violent war and great sacrifice, Edward IV has won England's coveted throne. Cecily, having piloted her family's rise to power, stands beside him as the nation's first King's Mother. 
 
But competition is ferocious and Cecily has met her match: three other women, driven by ambition, necessity and fear, who will stop at nothing to put their own sons on the throne. 
 
Their conflict is desperate, the cost of failure high, and Cecily must sacrifice everything she has to secure her dynasty. For there can only be one King, and there can only be one King's Mother. 
 
Spanning England's bloodiest civil war through the 15th century and into the Tudor era, this is a story about mothers and sons; about maternal ferocity and female ambition - all it can achieve and all it can destroy.

Annie Garthwaite

Praise for The King’s Mother

Elegant and propulsive . . . I had to fight myself to put it down

Bold, unique and gripping

History at its most powerful: intimate and personal, visceral and devastating

Elegant and propulsive . . . I had to fight myself to put it down

Bold, unique and gripping

History at its most powerful: intimate and personal, visceral and devastating

Elegant and propulsive . . . I had to fight myself to put it down

Bold, unique and gripping

History at its most powerful: intimate and personal, visceral and devastating

Books by Annie Garthwaite

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