I'm always a big fan of historical nonfiction that focuses on women, and Alison Weir truly excelled in writing this book. While it is a hefty read at the page count, there aren't excessive words added in purely to bulk it up; rather, the text includes the elements it needs in order to best show off these many powerful and intricate women. Highly recommended for any fans of court intrigue and historical fiction, Queens of the Crusades doesn't read like a dense nonfiction tome but instead like a doorway to a time many think they know much about.

I'm on the fence, where on one side, the book is quite interesting and I was learning delicious history, yet on the other side, the formatting/pace/writing style of the book was slowing me down or plain just holding me back from wanting to continue. And sadly, the latter won. It's an odd juxtaposition of feeling like I'm reading a list of facts, but a list that's really well written. So, 2.5 stars that I will post as 3.

Another issue I took that's worth noting is how some facts were presented, in that they would be stated only to be followed with something that said the thing, etc likely didn't happen because of such-and-such, like the pettiness of the writer. It was confusing if not misleading, because I'm preparing myself to remember these facts, but then have to try and dismiss it because oops, not true. I felt it would have been better to lead with the dismissal and then state the possible fact or gossip.

A little long but long but fascinating and well researched. Love Weir's account and research about the important queens in the medieval age almost as much as I enjoyed her accounts of the Tudor dynasty. Reads more like a story than a nonfiction book, which is important in nonfiction reading.

Recommended for people who are interested in the Medieval time period.

Thanks to Netgalley, Alison Weir and Random House Publishing Group Ballantine Books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Available: 2/23/21

I love Alison weir’s books and this one was no different! A different period than I usually read but I still really enjoyed it.

This is the second of Alison Weir's nonfiction quartet about England's medieval queens. I haven't read the first one (yet), but the books don't have to be read in order. This one begins with a biographical account of the legendary Eleanor of Aquitaine. Years ago, I read a series of books about the Plantagenets by Jean Plaidy, and Alison Weir's book brought back a lot of memories of Plaidy's historical saga.

Weir's version of events is easy to digest. She gives an overview of the queens, but she doesn't go into a great deal of detail, and the writing is fairly straightforward.

The other four queens in the book are less well-known that Eleanor of Aquitaine, and they're not quite as interesting. Their husbands are better-known, especially to fans of Robin Hood, which focused on Richard the Lionhearted and his younger brother, John. The family dynamics between the Plantagenets is fascinating--mothers plotting against sons, brothers trying to kill brothers, etc.

Overall, I enjoyed this book of history. Weir's book will give you a fairly good overview of their lives, but you will want to do further research or read additional books if you want more more detailed biographies.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my opinions.

I am very biased towards Alison Weir and her historical writing, I've read almost every single history she has written and have enjoyed them all. Weir writes with a very accessible tone, even through the most dense of English history and the almost continual name changes that come with inherited titles (so many Earls of this and Dukes of that). Queens of the Crusades was no different as Weir charts the lives of several Medieval queens beginning with Eleanor of Acquitaine (who was a badass) and her successors in queenship. The book interweaves the queens with their husbands stories and the political machinations of England and France during the Middle Ages. This was an in-depth history of several women who are often relegated to footnotes in history and it was wonderful to see them get more complete histories.

Being an Allison Weir junkie I eagerly looked forward to reading Queens of the Crusades.. As usual Ms. Weir did not disappoint! True to her style she made history come alive. Although this is a book of nonfiction it portrays the lives of the Crusader Queens in a dynamic and fascinating way. It is difficult for an author to make the dry facts of history, come alive and wet the appetite of the reader.. Alison Weir seems to have mastered this art.
Beginning with the well known Eleanor of Aquitaine and ending with the lesser known Eleanor of Castile this book portrays the 5 English queens dominating this period in history. Although Eleanor of Aquitaine was by far the most dominant queen of this time, her two daughters-in- law are portrayed with strengths and personalities of their own. Berengaria of Navarre, wife of Richard, I and Isabella, wife of John, are brought to life through the skill of the author.. These two lesser queens deserve more than a footnote in history.
Alienor of Provence, wife of Henry III, seems to have had a strong influence on her marriage. Elevating her family and patronizing them above others cost Henry much discontent with. his subjects. Seeking to forge alliances to strengthen his reign he arranged the marriage of his son Edward to Eleanor of Castile just 12 years old at the time. This marriage, although arranged when they were children, turned out to be rather successful..
Although Alison Weir portrays this book as the “Queens of the Crusades” it is impossible to write this history without including the influence of the kings. I found it to be more of the 150 year history of the early Plantagenets rather than an exploration of only the queens. Because of the repetition of similar names and the way the book was written it was difficult at times to follow the chronological sequence of events.

Great read! So much info highly recommend. Never disappointed with her writing. It’s always informative and super detailed. You can’t go wrong.

This author is amazing. I cannot even imagine how much time she spends doing research. And she publishes fairly frequently. It's stunning.

This is the second in the series about the queens of England. This one covers the time period coinciding with the Crusades. Instead of looking at the kings, the author delves into the lives of the queens. It covers early lives and goes through widowhood. It looks at contemporary accounts and tries to pull truth out of other people's opinions. She manages to have an opinion and be unbiased all at the same time.

I hope there will be more of these.

Alison Weir is one of my favorite authors and I always read her novels because the details are always captivating. I particularly love her fiction works, but even her non-fiction work like Queens of the Crusades is a pleasure to read.

Written in Weir's now well-known informative voice, this tome covers the lives of powerful women of the Plantagenet dynasty: Eleanor of Aquitaine, Berengaria of Navarre; Isabella of Angoulême; Alienor of Provence; and Eleanor of Castile. While Eleanor of Aquitaine has had countless books written about her, it was refreshing to read one focused on the effects of the Crusades in her life, and I enjoyed learning more about the other women Weir includes in the book. For Weir's fans, this will be a treat; for other readers seeking recent popular writing on the Plantagenets, it will also be a go-to book. Historians will argue with some sources and presentations.

I love anything Alison Weir writes and once again she did not disappoint. One of the things I love about her books is you feel you are in the book watching everything take place while you are learning about these fascinating women. I highly recommend this book.

Alison Weir once again uncovers the women behind the men who ruled England. She takes a fresh look at the original sources that mention the queens, and dispels the myths created centuries later about Eleanor of Aquitaine, Berengaria of Navarre, Isabella of Angouleme, and Eleanor of Castile. Detailed and informative, yet with an enjoyable narrative.

Book Review for Queens of the Crusades by Alison Weir
Full review for this title can be found at: @fyebooks on Instagram!

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC.
I enjoyed this. I'd previously read Weir's longer book on Eleanor of Aquitaine and loved it, and I liked this too, although I'm not sure the different spellings of the Eleanors helped me always keep everyone straight. If one is not familiar with this period, I am afraid that keeping people straight might be a challenge; even I struggled with this and I for nerdy reasons memorized all the Norman and Plantagenet kings and queens when I was about 14. Not a ton of new info, and my copy did not have the illustrations (bummer). I liked it, not sure how widely applicable and attractive it will be for the average American.

Alison Weir has written a number of novels based on the royal houses of Europe. She now puts that research into an easy to read non fiction book. Queens of the Crusades covers 5 of the Plantagenet queens in separate sections of the book; Eleanor of Aquitaine, Berengaria of Navarre, Isabella of Angouleme, Alienor of Provence and Eleanor of Castile. This format allows us to delve deeply into the life of each queen. I have been a fan of the Plantagenet history for a long time, and I learned a number of things from this book. History has normally told us of the men, Henry, Richard, John, etc with their wives as a side story. This time we get the women of history!! Thank you #NetGalley for granting me this book in exchange for my honest review. I thoroughly enjoyed#QueensoFTheCrusades and would highly recommend it.

While Eleanor of Aquitaine has been explored extensively, and I knew something of Richard's queen Berengaria from the books of Sharon Kay Penman, I didn't really know anything about the succeeding Plantagenet queens, so this was highly informative. Although accessible, with a concerted attempt to convey the personality of the queens as well as the details of their exploits, it frequently devolved into a series of lists. These were interesting, and certainly showed the level of research Weir conducted, but they could be a little dry in comparison to the other parts of the story. As someone who's spent quite a bit of time with the Tudors and their excesses, I found it intriguing that royal abuses of power seem more the norm than an aberration. In the pursuit of power, gold, and land, apparently there are no boundaries too far for the divinely appointed. The hypocrisy of how they stole so much from the nobles, landed, and Jews, but then gave generously in alms for the poor and donations to religious houses was rather amusing.

Thorough review to come as I digest what I've read, but initially, I'm blown away. Women's history is often overlooked, and we rarely get a glimpse of what even the most powerful women did. This book is for you if you would like to fill that gap. As always, Alison Weir does an excellent job. She starts with Eleanor of Aquitaine, a thoroughly fascinating woman who had a huge impact on the kingdoms of France and England. Weir always does a great job retelling history in a way that is engaging and brings her subject to life - a difficult feat for the medieval period.

What an amazing creative read. I always know I’m in for a great read when I get one of this authors books. And this one was didn’t let me down. The storyline was captivating and intriguing the characters were engaging and believable. You could almost see it playing out as you read. If you enjoy historical fiction you’ll enjoy this book. Can’t wait to read what this author has for us next

560 pages

5 stars

The research for this book must have been exhaustive. My hat is off to Ms. Weir for her dedication and determination to fully examine any available documents of the day in order to put this book together. Covering so many important personages in one book is a serious undertaking. The reader gets a full picture of what life was like for these queens. Most I had not heard of – only their husbands. (Isn't that just the way?) I was very glad to read about these courageous women who made a difference in their world. Alison Weir has been a favorite author of mine for years and I very much look forward to reading her next book.

We learn that the Plantagenet queens mentioned in the book were not just royal consorts of their husbands, but took an active part in the making of policy and the contributions to the monarchy were valuable. For over three hundred years, these women influenced the court. During a period of time when wives were completely subjugated to their husbands or fathers, being listened to and assisting with decision-making was quite an achievement. (Although not all of their decisions or machinations were for the good.)

I want to thank NetGalley and Random House Publishing – Ballantine/Ballantine for forwarding to me a copy of this instructive and interesting book for me to read, enjoy and review.