Book Synopsis:Juana of Castile, the last queen of Spanish blood to inherit her country’s throne, has been for centuries and enigmatic figure shrouded in lurid myth. Was she the berefet widow of legend who was driven mad by her loss, or has history misjudged a woman who was ahead of her time? In his stunning new novel, C.W. Gortner challenges the myths about Queen Juana, unraveling the mystery surrounding her to reveal a brave, determined woman we can only now begin to fully understand.The third child of Queen Isabel and King Ferdinand of Spain, Juana is born amid her parents’ ruthless struggle to unify their kingdom, bearing witness to the fall of Granada and Columbus’s discoveries. At the age of sixteen, she is sent to wed Philip, the archduke of Flanders, as part of her parents’ strategy to strengthen Spain, just as her youngest sister, Catherine of Aragon, is sent to England to become the first wife of Henry VIII.Juana finds unexpected love and passion with her handsome young husband, the sole heir to the Habsburg Empire. At first she is content with her children and her life in Flanders. But when tragedy strikes and she inherits the Spanish throne, Juana finds herself plunged into a battle for power against her husband that grows to involve the major monarchs of Europe. Besieged by foes on all sides, her intelligence and pride used as weapons against her, Juana vows to secure her crown and save Spain from ruin, even if it could cost her everything.I admit it. I am a history snob. I don’t know what it is, but ever since I was young I found history boring and it was always my worst subject in school. But, I have been fortunate to have seen the error of my ways, and this book is a prime example. To be totally honest, I have never heard of Juana of Castile. This book has truly compelled me to learn more. After being part of an arranged marriage, Juana is unsure what is to become of her life. Her mother, Isabel, Queen of Castile, and Father, Fernando, King of Aragon, have worked hard to make their two countries unite and will do anything to ensure that their people are safe. They have arranged the marriage as a way of securing power and freedom for their people.Even though Juana is less than thrilled about marrying a complete stranger, she has the same tenacity that is characteristic of her mother and agrees for the good of the country. She is pleasantly surprised when she finally meets her husband, Philip, the Archduke of Flanders. Their marriage is riddled with love and passion that most newlyweds wish for and things seem to be going exceptionally well. Until Juana catches him in bed with another woman while pregnant with her first child. Philip is flabbergasted and apologizes profusely, but this is just the start of a life of betrayal that is to be Juana’s curse.Growing up, I think a lot of little girls (mine included) dream of being a princess. When you read a book like this, you realize that being royalty is not so much of a blessing as a burden. Everything you do is scrutinized and you are expected to act and carry yourself in a certain way. But we see, time and time again, that Juana was courageous and wouldn’t change her beliefs for anyone. Even after tragedy strikes, Juana is prepared to take her rightful place as Queen, even if it means fighting those she is closest too. In the end it just wasn’t enough. In a shocking turn of events she ends up a prisoner and is never allowed to fulfill her rightful place as Queen. Many historians have speculated that Juana was schizophrenic and that is what led to the imprisonment that she endures for most of her life. Mr. Gortner does and excellent job of portraying a vibrant woman whose sanity was stretched to its limits by the betrayal and cruelty that would likely break any “sane” person. I applaud his efforts to show us the other side of Juana la Loca and show that maybe she wasn’t insane after all, but simply a victim of circumstances.About the author: C.W. GORTNER’s fascination with history, in particular the Renaissance, is a lifetime pursuit. He holds a Masters in Fine Arts in Writing with an emphasis on Renaissance Studies from the New College of California and has taught university seminars on the 16th century. In addition, he travels extensively to research his books. He has experienced life in a medieval Spanish castle and danced a galliard in a Tudor great hall; dug through library archives all over Europe; and tried to see and touch—or, at least, gaze at through impenetrable museum glass—as many artifacts of the era as he can find. He has served on the board of the Women’s National Book Association/SF Chapter, an organization that promotes literacy, and he’s a regular contributor to the Historical Novels Review and Solander, publications of the Historical Novel Society. He is also a passionate advocate for animal rights and environmental issues. Raised in Málaga, Spain, C.W. Gortner is half-Spanish by birth and fully bilingual. He currently lives in Northern California. For more information, please visit www.cwgortner.comA special thanks to Pump Up Your Book Promotion for hosting this awesome book!
"The Last Queen" by C.W. Gortner is a historical novel which gives a fresh perspective on the life of the enigmatic Queen Juana of Castile. Gortner skillfully weaves together the loose threads of fact and fiction into a rare and subtle tragedy. The story of the daughter of Isabel of Castile and Ferdinand of Aragon, known to history Juana la Loca, is usually told with the emphasis on the passion between Juana and her faithless husband, Philip of Flanders. While Gortner’s retelling captures Juana’s passionate nature as never before, he also gives a fuller picture of her unique calamity by going beyond her relationship with miscreant Philip to the larger scope of the situations enveloping her. Until reading this book I had not fully grasped the fierceness of the political intrigues, the familial tug-of-war, and the basic struggle of good versus evil which rent Juana’s heart, mind and soul. Gortner realistically but sensitively paints her gradual descent into agony as she fights to keep herself from unraveling."The Last Queen" combines riveting action with a compassionate portrait of a woman haunted by mental illness. While some fleeting love scenes may not be suitable for very young readers, the gist of the story far surpasses the realm of mere sensuality but takes on the vast range of political, cultural, and spiritual issues that were at stake. Renaissance Europe springs to life in this carefully researched novel, replete with colorful details about the various historical characters. Of course, Juana upstages everyone else. The more wild the incident, the more one can be certain that it truly happened.Particularly vivid is the portrayal of Queen Isabel; her personality comes through so strongly in the book so that I almost feel that we have met face-to-face. Other than the fact that she was a queen and a matron, Isabel reminds me of the great St. Teresa of Avila, possessing similar determination and luminous faith. Juana’s father Ferdinand is a complex character. One cannot help but love him like Juana does, which makes his later actions all the more disturbing.Outraged in every way, Juana’s ordeal encompasses the full gamut of suffering so as to have universal relevance. Hers was a dauntless courage. Her love of her people caused her not to flinch from any sacrifice. I marvel at her tenacity and greatness of heart, qualities shared with her mother Queen Isabel, and with her sister Catherine of Aragon, Queen of England. Juana, like Catherine, had a long battle with the powers of darkness incarnated in a turncoat spouse. Like Catherine, Juana’s greatest love became her greatest foe and betrayer. Each queen had to endure disgrace and isolation for refusing to compromise on essentials. It is difficult to say which sister had the most complete immolation. They take their place with other tragic Catholic queens of history, such as Mary Queen of Scots and, of course, Marie-Antoinette.
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I gave this book two stars because I personally only thought it was okay, but I can see why other people would like it. This book reenforced my belief that I do not really enjoy reading fiction. I like history, and I like to learn, so I enjoy historical fiction that sticks close to the facts and close to what a majority of historians would agree happened - pretty much non-fiction with dialogue. I do not enjoy historical fiction that sensationalizes history by making things up or that takes a small minority's view of what possibility might have happened. I do not like historical fiction that keeps me wondering what is true and what is false.This book, about Juana La Loca (or Juana the Mad, Crazy, Insane - whatever you like), took the position that she was not really mentally ill after all. I find this very hard to believe. Her grandmother was mentally ill, and Juana had multiple descendents who were mentally ill. There was so much inbreeding within the royal houses of Europe (in order to keep the bloodlines "pure") that it's not surprising that mental illnesses and physical ailments developed. I was expecting a book that took a compassionate view of a woman's descent into madness, and instead it completely ignored it and pretended it didn't happen. I had looked forward to reading this book since about January, and I was very disappointed with it.
—Sara W
4 - 4.5 Stars. Excellent book. Although I was left feeling a bit unsatisfied with the ending. I wish there had been more explanation about her captivity. Why didn't her people revolt? Did Ferdinand visit her? What was her life in captivity like? However, I accept that the author may not have found any information on this. It's difficult for me to understand why none of her children helped her, and why Katherine and HenryVIII didn't try to help her. (In their early years, he was very devoted to her. It was during that period that she was in captivity.) Finally, I am left stunned by the misery Juana lived through. Her husband, her father, and even her sons treated her so badly that there are few words to describe it. I must assume she was somewhat crazed if no one ever helped her. Well, I would lose my mind too if I had lived such a life. A great book. My first of the author. I look forward to reading more of his books, especially his next release, which will be a novel of Lucrezia Borgia. ❤❤❤
—Brittany B.
I gave this three stars because I do respect the incredible amount of research C.W. Gortner has clearly put into bringing forward the life of Juana, daughter of Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain and sister to Henry VIII's first wife Katherine. She is a painstaking scholar who has devoted much time and energy to painting as accurate a portrait of Juana as the historical record will allow. The problem? Juana just isn't that interesting. At least not at the time of her life that Gortner chooses to focus on. Ultimately I wasn't sure what I was supposed to be taking away here. History has painted Juana as an unfortunate pawn in the endless game of power played by the royals of old Europe. She was married off for money and land and later confined to a castle as a mad woman by her own family. The Juana of those last years might have been an interesting character to devote a few hundred pages to. Unfortunately we barely catch a glimpse of her in the Afterward provided by Ms. Gortner. The book is devoted entirely to Juana's younger years, her relationship with her mother (which Gortner pushes as somehow key to Juana's whole personality but it never really clicks), father, sister's and husband. The book ends just as its getting interesting with Juana now fighting her beloved father for the right to rule her own kingdom. Again to Gortner's credit, she wanted to stay within the historical source material, little is known about Juana in her later years, but this is historical fiction. I would have happily forgiven some flights of fancy in the midst of this well written, but ultimately boring historical novel.
—Sara
