The Queens of Love and War Series by Ellen Jones

THEIR PASSION WOULD TEAR A KINGDOM ASUNDER It was a time of breathtaking pageantry --- of treachery and unbridled ambition --- when an aging King Henry I sowed the seeds of unrest and civil war throughout the land by naming his daughter, Maud, heir to the coveted throne of England... moreTHEIR PASSION WOULD TEAR A KINGDOM ASUNDER It was a time of breathtaking pageantry --- of treachery and unbridled ambition --- when an aging King Henry I sowed the seeds of unrest and civil war throughout the land by naming his daughter, Maud, heir to the coveted throne of England. Beautiful and headstrong, she vowed never to relinquish the crown that was rightfully hers --- defying the powerful forces that aligned against her and behind her golden-haired cousin, Stephen of Blois, Maud's most dangerous rival . . . and her secret lover. LUST FOR POWER WOULD TEST THEIR LOVE Both proud and willful, with the blood of William the Conqueror surging through their veins, the magnificent passion of Maud and Stephen would war with their separate, unquenchable thirsts for sovereignty --- yet a bold, breathless and forbidden love would miraculously endure the raging fires of history. less

In the twelfth century, as France and England compete for dominion, one woman’s passions and ambitions will change history . . . “Aquitaine is mine. It will never belong to anyone else.” With these words, fifteen-year-old Eleanor seals her fate. Aquitaine is under the French king’s safekeeping, and Eleanor, the Duke of Aquitaine’s eldest daughter, knows she must wed Prince Louis in order to insure the future of her beloved duchy... moreIn the twelfth century, as France and England compete for dominion, one woman’s passions and ambitions will change history . . . “Aquitaine is mine. It will never belong to anyone else.” With these words, fifteen-year-old Eleanor seals her fate. Aquitaine is under the French king’s safekeeping, and Eleanor, the Duke of Aquitaine’s eldest daughter, knows she must wed Prince Louis in order to insure the future of her beloved duchy. Fiercely independent, filled with untapped desire, the woman who would be queen must provide Louis VII, her monkish husband, with heirs. But it is young Henry of Anjou who catches Eleanor’s eye—and sets fire to her heart. Ruled by a raging drive to succeed, Henry vows that he will not be cheated of his rightful place on the English throne. Yet the newly christened Duke of Normandy is thoroughly enraptured by the French queen. In Eleanor, Henry knows he has found a woman whose hunger for life and glory matches his own. So begins a passionate love that will span decades and change the course of history. less

The long-awaited follow-up to The Fatal Crown and Beloved Enemy Set against the splendor and scheming of the Middle Ages, this enthralling historical novel brings to life the magnificent Eleanor of Aquitaine, a woman far ahead of her time and one of history’s most extraordinary queens Tumultuous. Passionate. Timeless. The marriage between Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry Plantagenet was like no other, born of power, politics, and an all-consuming, fiery love... moreThe long-awaited follow-up to The Fatal Crown and Beloved Enemy Set against the splendor and scheming of the Middle Ages, this enthralling historical novel brings to life the magnificent Eleanor of Aquitaine, a woman far ahead of her time and one of history’s most extraordinary queens Tumultuous. Passionate. Timeless. The marriage between Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry Plantagenet was like no other, born of power, politics, and an all-consuming, fiery love. Within two years of their wedding, Henry conquered England and together they ruled a vast kingdom. At first they worked to unify and repair their war-torn lands—before being torn apart by intrigue, adultery, and deadly revenge. Henry II dreams of enacting a new judicial system, a common law that would help foster peace. But a devastating betrayal by his closest confidante, Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, thrusts Henry into a rivalry that threatens to tear church and state apart. Eleanor, an accomplished ruler in her own right, steps in to help Henry quell the rebellions across their lands. But when she learns of her husband’s secret romance with the fair, young Rosamund de Clifford, it shatters her heart and ignites a bitter vengeance that will engulf their family in treachery and betrayal. As Eleanor takes the side of her sons against their father, these young royals, chafing for power of their own, wreak havoc across the continent, igniting a war whose tragic consequences Eleanor could never have foreseen. less