The Rogue Queen

Maxwell’s novel approaches its subject with great enthusiasm, but does little to illuminate the much-maligned Queen Isabelle of France, or the 14th-century Europe in which she lived. Maxwell avoids Isabelle’s childhood and her nearly 30-year widowhood as mother of the indomitable Edward III, sticking instead to her life with Edward II and the main fumbles of his reign—the failed war with Scotland, spats with his barons, and his reliance on the Despenser family. Maxwell’s Isabelle is hot-tempered and foul-mouthed, and yet curiously declawed, stripped of the historic queen’s household, court, and estates. Still, as a character she demonstrates a shade more complexity than the buffoonish Edward II, or his villainously caricatured “favorites.” Rather than a shy bride of 12 who develops political savvy and then hard ambition, Maxwell’s Isabelle resembles a suburban housewife and hands-on mom who, thwarted in her child-rearing and marriage, becomes a reluctant champion of the people, invades England for “justice and good governance” and “to make the king see reason,” and only inadvertently dethrones her husband and elevates her son. Historical fans may enjoy Maxwell’s largely dialogue-driven plot, but those interested in the real woman might prefer Alison Weir’s Queen Isabella for historical detail and depth. (BookLife)