The King's Witch #1 - Tracy Borman

"In March of 1603, as she helps to nurse the dying Queen Elizabeth of England, Frances Gorges dreams of her parents’ country estate, where she has learned to use flowers and herbs to become a much-loved healer. She is happy to stay at home when King James of Scotland succeeds to the throne. His court may be shockingly decadent, but his intolerant Puritanism sees witchcraft in many of the old customs—punishable by death.

But when her ambitious uncle forcibly brings Frances to the royal palace, she is a ready target for the twisted scheming of the Privy Seal, Lord Cecil. As a dark campaign to destroy both King and Parliament gathers pace, culminating in the Gunpowder Plot of 1605, Frances is surrounded by danger, finding happiness only with the King’s precocious young daughter, and with Tom Wintour, the one courtier she feels she can trust. But is he all that he seems?"

This novel was written by a historian and you can tell, for better and for worse. I am not usually a fan of historical fiction as I prefer to read non-fiction regarding facts but this ones title intrigued me. The history surrounding this book was by far my favourite part. Reading about this tumultuous time was both suspenseful and fascinating. This historically accurate novel was also able to paint a painful portrait of women in court at the time which created a real sense of claustrophobia and lack of agency that isn't always associated with those of high social standing. I liked reading about Frances as a vehicle for describing women of this era but I found a few passages a little belittling to other women with more excepted interests of the time. Just because you like clothes doesn't mean your airheaded.The romance was too fleeting to be believable, I am not one for sappy romances but a few more pages and scenes together would have gone a long way. 

The writing itself isn't particularly descriptive which occasionally left me feeling like the physical setting was foggy, not quite being able to make out the details. I think this lack of description also came in to play with character building. Despite really enjoying Frances as an example for women of her time I didn't really feel a connection with her. Perhaps this is just the other side of the same coin. As someone who loves atmospheric novels I felt that this one could have used a wee bit more description to fully illustrate the setting. 

It had a slow start and I had no hints it was about such a famous plot. I don't think I will be continuing the trilogy but I would certainly recommend to someone who enjoyed this genre. 

Age Rating 13+. I am unsure if the scenes where people are quite publicly making out after banquets where historically accurate. I truly, for the sake of decency, hope not.