"The Constant Princess" by Philippa Gregory

From Publishers Weekly
As youngest daughter to the Spanish monarchs and crusaders King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella, Catalina, princess of Wales and of Spain, was promised to the English Prince Arthur when she was three. She leaves Spain at 15 to fulfill her destiny as queen of England, where she finds true love with Arthur (after some initial sourness) as they plot the future of their kingdom together. Arthur dies young, however, leaving Catalina a widow and ineligible for the throne. Before his death, he extracts a promise from his wife to marry his younger brother Henry in order to become queen anyway, have children and rule as they had planned, a situation that can only be if Catalina denies that Arthur was ever her lover. Gregory's latest (after Earthly Joys) compellingly dramatizes how Catalina uses her faith, her cunning and her utter belief in destiny to reclaim her rightful title. By alternating tight third-person narration with Catalina's unguarded thoughts and gripping dialogue, the author presents a thorough, sympathetic portrait of her heroine and her transformation into Queen Katherine. Gregory's skill for creating suspense pulls the reader along despite the historical novel's foregone conclusion. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

My Thoughts:
Not as great as "The Other Boleyn Girl" but better than "The Virgin's Lover". I do love Gregory's books, and have yet to be truly disappointed by one. It was interesting to read Katherine of Aragon's point of view after seeing Gregory's other main character's POVs in other books. I highly recommend it if you like historical fiction, especially England. This was my final book of 2005, and not a bad way to go out!