An epic feminist retelling of the War of the Roses

Cecily

'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

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

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

The King’s Mother

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