FYI: this book was actually 531 pages for me, including the Epilogue and Author's Note.

This book was pretty middle of the road for me. First of all, I applaud Joanna Hickson for writing about someone as formidable and complicated as Cicely Neville. She's a woman that I've been fascinated with for some time, and I was glad of the opportunity to read about her.

Some pros were the interesting characters and plot. The historical detail added another dimension to the story and made it easier to imagine these people living their lives, as chaotic as those would've been.

The biggest con for me was the writing. There were quite a few, distracting typos, but that wasn't the biggest problem. Hickson is very expository in her writing. Part of that is because the history of the Wars of the Roses is very complex, but it felt like she tried to cram every English nobleman into her story. She would explain who so-and-so was when they only appeared for a paragraph, never to be seen again, and that was annoying. I lost track of everyone after awhile, and I completely forgot about the family trees in the front of the book. I'm sorry to say that if I hadn't read Philippa Gregory first, I would've been completely lost here.

The other annoying thing about Hickson's writing was that she over-explained every situation until the emotional punch was removed from the scene. This got a little better towards the end, but the end also suffered from a generalized overview of the events that I was bored and desperate to finish.

I'm torn on how Hickson employed a second POV in her story. Red Rose, White Rose is told from the perspective of Cicely Neville and her half-brother Cuthbert. On the one hand, I loved reading about battles while being in the thick of them and being privy to scenes where our heroine (and other women) would've been absent. That said, Cicely is a fascinating person, and she witnessed a lot of history in her life, a lot of humiliation and triumph. I would've enjoyed hearing more from her.

This is a longer book, so I wouldn't recommend it to casual fans of medieval history. You'll get lost before you even get started. If you're like me and you're fascinated by Cicely Neville, or you just want to learn more about the Wars of the Roses, then this book is for you. Just be prepared to be in it for the long haul. ( )

I so loved this book and the author that I ordered 5 more books of hers! Great story of the Duchess of York (Cicely) - mother of King Edward IV and Richard III of England. Story told in her words and her half brother Cuthbert (who is a fictional character). Great insight to this woman. Another definite recommend to those that enjoy this genre. ( )

I found the book to be interesting, but it was difficult to keep my interest as it flipped from Cicely to her half-brother. It also jumped time periods pretty rapidly as well. It was nice to get the chance to see Cicely as a young girl, rather than the widowed Duchess/mother of King Edward. ( )

An interesting novelization of the life of Cecily Neville, the mother of Edward IV of England, and a critical figure in the 15th-century Wars of the Roses. Cecily makes for a like-able heroine, but through much of this novel, I felt as through events primarily happened to Cecily, rather than she influenced much, which may be historically realistic, but somewhat frustrating to character development. I did enjoy the addition of an illegitimate brother for Cecily and his story throughout the novel. A good piece of historical fiction for fans of the Wars of the Roses. ( )

Lots of historical detail, but I became bored with the endless battles between the houses of York and Lancaster for the crown of England. The characters weren't depicted vividly enough for me to care very much about any of them. ( )