'The Symbol Maker's Daughter' by Clare Gutierrez weaves an interesting spin on English history following the death of King Edward IV. His sons vanish within the walls of the Tower of London. His brother-in-law Lord Rivers is murdered. His brother Richard usurps the throne to become the infamous King Richard III. His reign is short-lived, ending in his own death on the battlefield at Bosworth Field. The victor, Henry Tudor, becomes King Henry VII, thus starting the ever fascinating Tudor dynasty.
Gutierrez's spin is to add the characters of Lord Weldon, his daughter Lady Nicola, and Prince Drue, among others. Weldon and then his daughter have the mission of giving Henry Tudor a very important symbol, proving that he will be king. It's a treacherous road Nicola and Drue travel, full of death and destruction.
Despite knowing from my own personal reading that there was no symbol maker, the story drew me and held me captive. The idea of this one young woman being the person that gives Henry the resolve to stay the course and fight for the throne was quite appealing. However, there were times that Nicola and Drue were too stubborn for their own good, particularly Nicola. Something I've noticed is that too many authors, particularly female authors, think strength in a woman means be overly hard-headed. That's not strength to me...that's unnecessary foolishness because the female character is trying too hard to "an independent woman".
Aside from this, I enjoyed the book. It was a good mix of factual events and fictional characters that the reader can connect with. Definitely a keeper for fans of historical fiction deal with the last phase of the Wars of the Roses.

This book was mostly enjoyable. The writing style is strong enough to keep the reader engaged throughout the story.

I really had problems with this novel I found very confusing, not really credible. I couldn't connect with the characters (as well as their interactions) who were for me poorly drawn.