This historical novel takes place in France in the 1560s and 1570s and features Marguerite de Valois and her marriage to Henri de Navarre. The story is an interesting one. Unfortunately, the writing does not do it justice. The writing style is often awkward and unnecessarily wordy. The beginning of the novel was somewhat confusing, with too many people being introduced at once. One source of confusion is that three of the main male characters are all named Henri/Henry. The author finds a way to deal with this that keeps the characters distinct. There will be a sequel published later this year, although I am not yet sure if I will read it. Overall, this was a ho-hum read for me.