Author: Maurice Druon
First Published: 1955
Publisher: HarperCollins
Series: The Accursed Kings #2
280 pages (paperback)
This is the second book of Maurice Druon’s The Accursed Kings series, titled The Strangled Queen. I was a little disappointed in the title as it is a big fat spoiler … okay, I suppose actual history is not really a “spoiler”, but I am not familiar with French history so it was a spoiler to me. So, the entire time I was reading this, I kind of expected that the queen was going to be, well, strangled. This, of course, removed some element of surprise from this novel. Still, it was an enjoyable read and I am excited to continue on with this series.
This second book picks up almost immediately after the events of the first book: King Philip IV, known as Philip the Fair, is dead, and his son, Louis X, ascends the throne. However, the son is not like the father at all. Louis X has trouble asserting his authority and is rather unsure of himself. He will be a weak king, those close to him can see this, and they try to take advantage of this. His uncle, Charles, Count of Valois, and the Rector-General of the kingdom, Enguerrand Marigny, become involved in an intense rivalry. Both the Count of Valois and Marigny bitterly fight with one another to try to become King Louis X’s most important advisor, and with Louis X being so inexperienced with authority, whoever rules Louis X will certainly be the most powerful man in France.
Besides the rivalry between the Count and Marigny, there is also the matter of Louis X’s wife to consider. In book one, his wife, Marguerite, was imprisoned (presumbly for life) for adultery; their daughter was declared a bastard. This would mean that Louis has no heirs, and would need to remarry in order to produce heirs. His attempts at getting Marguerite to admit that their daughter is a bastard and that they never consummated their marriage (which is pretty much the only legitimate reason they could get an annulment for) prove to be futile, as Marguerite refuses to admit to such lies. Well, I’m sure you can see how that plotline ended for Marguerite, based on the title.
Marguerite’s storyline is the most interesting part of this book for me. It’s kind of weird how in book one, I thought that Marguerite (and her cousin, Blanche) kind of got what they deserved, with the context of history kept in mind (I would never advocate for imprisoning adulterers for life in today’s society, hahaha). In book two, suddenly, I felt very sorry for Marguerite and Blanche. I suppose the book does this on purpose to make Marguerite’s inevitable death have more of a sorrowful effect on the reader. Though I never found the two ladies particularly likeable, I did feel bad for them, especially given the fact that they could have survived and lived their rest of their days out in a convent or something, if not due to a streak of stubbornness. I couldn’t help but think, “Take their offer! Save yourself!” I wanted her to live! Imagine finding out that you are now technically the Queen of France suddenly, the ultimate promotion in rank for a female in that time, but not having any power whatsoever. I suppose her refusal to admit to the lies is her only way of asserting any power at all, no matter how little. And then there was Blanche, who was growing loopier and loopier every day with imprisonment. All in all, I just felt really bad for these two ladies. Even though they were immature and tactless girls to end up where they were, I was hoping they would manage to survive the ordeal, despite the foreshadowing of the title.
As for the rivalry between the Count and Marigny, I must admit, I didn’t understand a lot of the political-ness of their rivarly. I don’t even really know what a Rector-General of the kingdom does, I just assumed it was a super important role since he got his own statue in the hall of kings (or whatever that room is called). I wouldn’t say the rivalry, which was a large portion of the story, was boring or anything like that. I just liked other parts of the book better.
Overall, book two certainly lived up to my expectations of the series. I liked it a teensy bit less than book one, but still, a great read. I am excited to read book three, The Poisoned Crown. Which, again, is a kind of spoiler-y title … But even with such obvious hints given in the titles of the books, the drama of the historical French royals is worth reading.
My Rating: 4/5
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