Firstly thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the advance copy of this book .

I am a huge history buff so love all things Plantagenet and Tudor so knew this book would interest me. I found it very interesting to see from Anne’s perspective as opposed to Richard III’s . Writing was easy to understand with useful character notes and family trees . In all an enjoyable history lesson . 3,75 ⭐️

Disclaimer: ARC via the publisher and Netgalley.

How one feels about this book will depend on how much one knows about the War of the Roses and/or Richard III. And that is not Batley’s fault.
The problem with historical figures such as Anne Neville is that by and large their voices have been lost. In cases like Anne Neville, even though she was a public figure, she wasn’t as public or as powerful as her husband and father, so her actions are always overshadowed by theirs.
In other words, much of this book is simply an overview of the War of the Roses and how it may have affected Anne Neville in addition to the facts that are known about her life. Batley does a good job of this. She uses details that are known about other noble and royal women to flesh out who Anne Neville might have been. Batley, to her credit, makes it very clear that she is making educated guesses. Additionally, Batley does cover all the most likely possibilities. So for instance, in discussing the marriage between Anne and Richard as well as Anne’ s death, Batley details the various possibilities – from Richard being a cruel husband to a loving one, from Anne having a hand in her marriage to her not. In regards to Richard and his nephews, Batley, at least here, does not take a side. So if you are or are not a Ricardian, you can read this book.
That is the advantage to this book. If you are just entering into a look at the War of the Roses because of the various Gregory books and shows, or because you just got interested, this is a good starting point. Batley writes well, she is engaging. I would pay good money to see her lecture. She is also fair and clear.
In short, if you are just starting to explore the War of the Roses, this is a good start. If you have already read several books on the subject, there isn’t anything here that you most likely don’t already know.

I requested and received an eARC of Anne Neville: Queen and Wife of Richard III by Rebecca Batley via NetGalley. I was very excited to see this title! I have read about the War of the Roses through several different lenses and Anne Neville has always been a sort of prominent background figure who has always interested me. As the Kingmaker’s daughter, it is easy to simply cast Anne Neville aside as a political pawn, but she was much more. Batley’s book seeks to draw her forth from the shadows and does an admirable job with the task.

The book opens by setting up the circumstances surrounding Anne’s death. As she withers away in her bedchamber, the court is abuzz with gossip. Is her husband, Richard III, truly aiming to take his niece as his next wife? Is he responsible for untimely demise? Batley asserts that Anne wouldn’t have been immune from the gossip reaching her ears. These rumors reduce her to the sort of woman consumed by rage and grief that Shakespeare would imagine in his Richard III, or as the blurb suggests, “a passive victim of the men who used and exploited her.” I’m a sucker for a good introduction, so this had me hooked. As Batley unpacks history through Anne’s perspective, it becomes evident that she was much more complicated than meets the eye.

The author’s writing style was very engaging. I found this study of Anne Neville to be both entertaining and informative. It certainly challenged my understanding of the woman that was previously informed by anecdotes in other historical nonfiction works and pop-culture representations. Despite the limitations in researching the lives of women during this period, with even women of high status like Neville largely confined to the margins, Bartley is able to develop a fascinating assessment of what her experience must have been like. An added bonus for me was the helpful biographical notes at the front of the book! While many books will simply include a few family trees, Bartley has provided brief descriptions of the major players in Anne’s life and the War of the Roses to help avoid confusion. Love that! This was a great read and definitely a nice way of supplementing my knowledge of the period.

Anne Neville: Queen and Wife of Richard III by Rebecca Batley is an interesting and entertaining nonfiction that I enjoyed.

I have always been totally fascinated with Queen Anne and King Richard III, so it was great to find a newer biography of Anne Neville. It always seems as if details are sparse and more often than not, it is a hit or miss with conjectures and what ifs.

This book seems to be well-researched and the author clearly has interest and passion with her subject. Unfortunately, even royal women were not documented as their male counterparts no matter what the status, therefore the author has to connect the dots in many circumstances, but she seems to do this well. That being said, because there is not as much to draw upon, those dots have to be presented information on Richard III, and in turn, information can be gleamed about the book’s namesake.

I did not learn anything new with this book, but as I said, I have read quite a bit on her, the Plantagenets, and Richard III in particular. I just wish that Anne would have been able to have a stronger voice centuries later, as I am sure she had plenty to say.

4/5 stars

Thank you NG and Pen & Sword | Pen & Sword History for this wonderful arc and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR and Bookbub accounts immediately and will post it to my Amazon, Instagram, and B&N accounts upon publication on 7/30/24.

This was so interesting. Like I feel that people don't really get to know the personal lives of royalty and this did a good job telling us who Anne was

This book is excellent. It contains a huge amount of information I had no clue about and illuminated Anne Neville’s life. Shedding light on a woman that is usually forgotten about.
The author is detailed and meticulous in his research and writing.
I will be recommending that we stock copies.

I was given an ARC copy of this book by NetGalley for purposes of review. All opinions are my own.