The War Within Me (Queens of Navarre)
The French Wars of Religion (1562-98) are an endlessly fascinating period, not the least because the actions of female rulers were so instrumental in the years of death and destruction they involved. Ryan is in the process of a trilogy that examines three of these figures: Marguerite de Navarre in The Queen’s Apprenticeship (2023), her daughter Jeanne D’Albret in The War Within Me (2025), and (to come) Jeanne’s daughter-in-law, Marguerite de Valois. D’Albret is particularly compelling as a character because her marriage to Antoine de Bourbon in the chaotic years of the end of the Valois dynasty produced the first Bourbon king, Henry IV. She, a fervent Calvinist and the powerful queen in her own right of the wealthy region of Navarre, was also one of the main sources of support for the Huguenot rebellion – and her friendship with her sister-queen Elizabeth I yielded significant financial resources for the rebels as well.
Ryan narrates these events from Jeanne’s point of view exclusively, which is challenging because her heroine’s extreme piety makes her an extremely narrow-minded and grim character. Ryan’s attention to detail is more meticulous than dramatic, with dialogue that reads like transcripts from the formal letters of the characters and little internal conflict on Jeanne’s part. This very long novel follows Jeanne back and forth across France as she tries to mediate between Catherine de Médicis and the treacherous French nobility, and the desperate plots of her own Protestant allies. The plot covers much the same ground as the popular TV series The Serpent Queen, but fans of the show hoping for a similarly entertaining treatment of the sexual and political intrigues of the time will be disappointed. Those interested in historical accuracy, however, will appreciate this novel’s careful research.
