Also, I would have preferred that she followed the story through the rise of Henry VII: Weir stops after the restoration of Edward IV, which I suppose was the end of the main conflict between York and Lancaster, but I would have liked for the book to continue with the story of Richard III and his eventual overthrow (this is covered, I believe, in Weir's book The Princes in the Tower). It's a little harder to get involved when there's so much happening.
Of course, this could be because this story follows not one person but at least a dozen main characters. This book is no exception, but she's not quite as engaging as in, say, her biography of Elizabeth I or Eleanor of Aquitaine. Weir is one of my favorite popular historians for her style: she's straight-forward and clear, gives you all the information you need to understand the subject, but still manages to keep you reading. Alternatively, she could've written a seperate volume on Edward III's sons through to Henry V to cover the earlier period.Last word: "The Wars of the Roses" is a very good read, but drags and overwhelms at times. Had the author not begun so far in advance of the wars and instead summed up all those earlier times in one concise chapter, and subsequently started the main course with the births of Henry VI and the Duke of York, surely that would've simplified things, making it more accessible. In short, thorough research is comendable, but name-checking anyone and everyone is a little overwheilming. It was hard to keep up with the players, a bit like reading a work of fiction with too many characters. I'm interested in all eras of pre-WW1 England, but it tends to annoy me when I choose to read a biography on a historic period or personage, yet spend page after page reading about a different topic or persons.At times it also felt like reading information overload. Even so, I feel this could've been condensed, as it feels too off-topic.
I think there was too much time devoted to the period building up the wars, though I understand why we get coverage of Richard II, Henry IV, & Henry V's reigns. This is another of Alison Weir's thoroughly researched biographies, this time covering one of the most facinating periods of English history.My interest in the Wars of the Roses, along with Alison Weir being one of my favourite authors, should've meant that this would be one of the best books I've ever read.
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