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Edward III and his queen, Philippa had a lot of kids – about a dozen or so – and while the descendants of their sons would go on to fight each other a century later and be the subject of a number of books, not much is written about their daughters. The Lady Royal is about their oldest daughter, Isabel, a princess who managed to remained unmarried until she was in her early thirties, certainly unusual for the time.


As the eldest child, Isabella was spoiled and allowed to pretty much get her own way. Free spirited and outspoken, she is however, ready to do her duty and marry the Duke of Flanders in order to create an alliance. When the duke jilts his English princess a few days before the wedding, it is a quiet, artistic young nobleman named Bernard d’Albret who lifts Isabel’s spirits and makes her feel better.

An outbreak of plague forces the two into a perhaps unlikely situation and Isabel and Bernard develop strong feelings for each other. Eventually, Isabel gets her way, convincing her father to let the pair marry. But happily ever after is not to be and Isabel once again finds herself left at the alter.

So what does a princess do after she’s been dumped twice? She vows to never marry of course and live her life as she pleases and on her owns terms. And for several years, Isabel does just that. But a handsome Frenchman catches her eye and in spite of a misunderstanding at the hands of a troublemaking Joan of Kent , it turns out the third time is a charm.

This isn’t heavy duty historical fiction. But at 250 pages, it was a quick and easy read set in a time period little is written about.  The author manages to incorporate quite a few historical events and some politics of the time and it was interesting to read more about Queen Philippa and her relationship with her children.



In case the FTC asks: bought it used