Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience

I thought The Lady of the Ravens was a well-written and thrilling historical-fiction, which kept me turning the pages rapidly with the drama of it all but also my interest in Joan as a character. My only niggle would be the sexual/birth details, that is only my personal taste though. I very much look forward to reading more of Joan’s life in the Queens of the Tower, Book 2: The Queen’s Lady (2022).

Although this is not my normal genre, I really enjoyed The Lady of the Ravens, The characters were well thought out and the period in which it is set really came across.

It took me a little while to get into it, but once I did, I could not put it down!

Loved the cover....just look at it it's gorgeous!!
The title instantly made me intrigued and I am so pleased that I picked this one up, it's amazing!!
Thrilling, atmospheric, engaging, compelling and richly vivid, a definite must-read!!
I loved it so much I have now gone and purchased a copy for my bookcase!!

A historical novel that explores the lives of two women and how their lives entwine. If you are interested in the founding of the tudor dynasty and love novels then this is one for you

A really great historical fiction novel covering a part of the Tudor Dynasty I haven't seen covered much before. Giving an insight to family and court life during the early reign of Henry VII. Joan Vaux is a strong character and a great basis for the story.

I am really looking forward to Joanna Hickson's next novel in this series - The Queens Lady

I often find historical fiction to be quite slow moving and this was no exception, which is why it took me so long to get through it - I couldn't really get into it and found myself putting it down and then coming back to it.

However, there's a reason why I persevered. It is an interesting take on the early events of Henry VII's reign and how he had to deal with challenges from other claimants and his children are also an interesting addition, especially the next King Henry-to-be.

Overall, it was a good read and if you're a big fan of historical fiction of this era, you won't be disappointed.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC without obligation.

This wasn't my type book but I did enjoy it tho. The character well written.

I found it slow but could b cos it not my type book.

Unfortunately its taken me quite a few attempts to get through this book as I found it too slow and difficult to connect with.

Joanna Hickson has previously written several novels set during the Wars of the Roses, one of my favourite periods of English history. Her latest book, The Lady of the Ravens (2020), opens just after the final major battle in that conflict – the Battle of Bosworth, which resulted in Henry Tudor taking the throne as King Henry VII. This novel looks at the events of the early part of Henry’s reign from the perspective of Joan Vaux, lady-in-waiting to Henry’s queen, Elizabeth of York. We see how precarious Henry’s grip on the throne is, with challenges from various Yorkist pretenders, and the steps he takes to deal with these threats, and we are given some glimpses of his children, including Prince Arthur, his eldest son who is betrothed to Katherine of Aragon, and the future Henry VIII, seen here as a charming, confident young child, already popular with his father’s subjects.

Joan herself has very little, if any, direct involvement in the political intrigues of the court, which perhaps makes the story less exciting than it could have been, but she does form a strong bond with Elizabeth, bringing her close to the lives of the royal family. Joan’s own family life is also explored; I don’t know how historically accurate the book is regarding her personal relationships, but the fictional Joan appears to have been quite fortunate in her marriage to Sir Richard Guildford. It might not exactly be love at first sight, but she and Richard soon learn to get along with each other and, for an arranged marriage in the 15th century, it’s not an unhappy one. As for the ‘ravens’ of the title, they are the birds that live at the Tower of London; as legend has it, if the ravens ever leave the Tower, the kingdom will fall, so Joan, who has become fascinated by the birds, does her best to protect them from those who wish to do them harm.

I didn’t find this quite as interesting as Joanna Hickson’s previous book, The Tudor Crown, maybe because that one was about Henry Tudor and took us straight to the heart of the action, whereas the choice of Joan as narrator of this book, as I’ve said, means a slower pace and a more domestic story. Still, I enjoyed it and was pleased to see that there’s going to be a sequel.

The Lady of the Ravens was surprisingly topical. A Tudor family has its plans disrupted because of lockdown, avoiding the intended venue because deadly infections are rife in a particular area! It casts a whole new light on a period I felt I was fairly knowledgeable about.
Instead on Henry V111 blighting lives his father interferes in the marital status of court staff. Meddling in the single status of his wife’s lady in waiting has a surprisingly good outcome when she is cornered into marrying the King’s right hand man,
The ensuing marriage is a very real, human partnership and is interesting irrespective of the era or their royal employers. In addition to which there are fascinating insights into the tightrope walked by those who need to keep on the right side of the court. Sumptuary laws dictate the colours that can be worn and a million niggling little protocol snags that can harm a career in addition to open treasonous rebellions against the opportunist king.
Around all of this is a romance and family story which can be identified with by anyone.

I did enjoy this book and am sure others will too

Despite being a person who usually enjoys historical novels, I'm sorry to say that I struggled to get through this book.

The pace of the first section was little too slow for my liking and I almost abandoned the book. It took me a long time to get through it as I put it aside several times in favour of other novels, which is unusual for me. I think this is because although the book is clearly very well researched, I didn't really warm to the main character.

Plenty of historical facts interwoven with the story, so it was useful from that point of view.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for an ARC. All opinions my own.

I love a good historical story: give me a Phillippa Gregory and a cup of coffee and I won't move for a couple of hours. Fortuitously, I was accepted to read this just as I was searching for something to scratch that itch. Set in Tudor London, you're immediately transported to this time. There are all the details of the genre that you would expect, and I found that Ravens was a little darker in tone than, say, a Gregory. There's a touch of the mystical, as protagonist Joan has a deep connection to ravens, which is neatly intertwined with the wider story of her life balancing her duties as a lady in waiting and as a wife. 

The story was well-paced and I raced through the book, loving the use of language that fully evoked all the senses of Tudor London. It was a lot of fun and I look forward to what Hickson writes next.

I love historical fiction but I found this book to be a little slow for me. It's well written and well researched but just didn't hit the spot.

The Lady Of Ravens was a great introduction into historical fiction. The Tudor years seemed to be filled with the brutal way that life was and also the romantic way of living with the dress, the relationships and the dreams and aspirations. I enjoyed the experience of being transported back in time to a land where you could truly count your enemies and friends on the same hand, and not really distinguishing between the two. I did struggle with the speed at which the story pushed forward and would have benefitted from a faster pace.

Our protagonist, Joan Guildford was an honourable friend and a lady in waiting for Queen Elizabeth during the time of King Henry VII’s reign. Her ultimate role was to guide the Queen through the many challenges that she would ultimately face being the Queen. The births and deaths of children – giving Joan a standpoint in which she knew she wouldn’t want to be married or have children. This was an extremely rare and misunderstood viewpoint that others couldn’t get their head around. I admired her. Her strength and singular capability is what drew me immediately into her corner. She was a force to be reckoned with.

The Tudor era which was the focus in The Lady of Ravens is time that I am extremely unfamiliar with. I got excited by a lot of the imagery. It was skilfully and visually painted into my vision. Anyone that knows me, knows that I am obsessed with anything medieval and castles. The gender roles contained within the pages meant that the events that Joan was involved with were generally unexciting and a lot ended up happening behind the scenes.

For a book that is titled, The Lady Of Ravens I would have loved to have Joan’s obsession with the birds delved into deeper. I never thought that it was investigated fully, and I felt myself pulling towards answers, wanting more, why was she so enraptured with the birds? The author never really gave me the reasoning that I was requiring, and I was a bit disappointed.

The Lady of Ravens was an enjoyable read but I did close the book thinking that a lot of it fell flat for me. Information that wasn’t required, storylines that seemed to be dragged on for the sake of it. I enjoyed the writing style and I did fall in love with the descriptive nature of the authors work. I just wanted a more direct journey to the conclusion rather than a roundabout trip that felt at times, unnecessary.

It is England, just after the War of the Roses. ‘The Lady of The Ravens’ by Joanna Hickson starts with the new Tudor King Henry VII on the throne and the country awaiting his marriage rumoured to be to Elizabeth of York, older sister of the Princes in the Tower. The marriage is intended to heal divisions between the two warring factions after Henry’s defeat of King Richard III at Bosworth Field, so allowing peace to settle on the land. But of course it is not that simple.
Twenty-four year old Joan Vaux is a servant to the princess and follows her to court on her marriage to the king. Watching the childbirth experiences of Queen Elizabeth, her own sister and other women of the court marry and bear children - some dying in the process - Joan develops a phobia of childbirth. But the king requires his courtiers to be married and a husband for Joan is proposed, but the situation is complicated as while she dithers a proposal is received from an unexpected source. Joan must make her choice, a decision which echoes throughout her life.
Joan has an affinity with the ravens, starting from when as a child she first saw the ravens at the Tower of London. Their presence there is said to herald a continued royal reign; their absence means trouble. And so the birds become a bellweather for the state of the nation in a politically turbulent time in Europe. Now living in luxurious married quarters at the Tower, the adult Joan admires these clever glossy black birds; but someone does not share her view. Their nest boxes are destroyed and set on fire. Her new husband refuses to give credence to her suspicions.
Meanwhile the country’s political future is vulnerable as the Yorkist threat to regain the throne from the usurper Henry has not disappeared. As heir, young Prince Arthur grows and his betrothal to the Spanish princess approaches but this is threatened as a Yorkist pretender to the throne gains support from England’s enemies. Joan is an observer at the highest level of the court, privy to secrets, defender of ravens, confidante of the queen.
Occasional modern phraseology – toddler, doggy treats – wrenched me out of the period and off the page but the character of Joan drew me straight back. A novel for lovers of Tudor historical mysteries this is the story of one woman, her family, choices, strengths and vulnerabilities in a country riven by war but where peace is fragile and the wrong choice can mean banishment, poverty or death.
After I finished reading it, I learned that ‘The Lady of the Ravens’ is the first in the Queen of the Tower series. Good!
Read more of my book reviews at http://www.sandradanby.com/book-reviews-a-z/

I really enjoy this which was a pleasant surprise! It was quite hard to get into but once I did, I loved it :)

I loved the detail of this book which transported me back to Tudor England and was excited to see that it is ‘book 1’. I came to it having just finished a novel about modern day American politics, so it is a testament to the writing that it did not take me many pages to be immersed in fifteenth century England.
The story is one of a commoner, Joan Vaux (Gigi) who rises to the court of Henry VII as a lady in waiting to his Queen, Elizabeth. This is of course at the coming together of the houses of York and Lancaster following the war of the Roses when threats to the throne are constant and the perspective of somebody outside of the royal circle adds a new dimension to anything the reader might already know about that marriage. Joan has a fascination with the ravens at the Tower and there are several threads to follow making this book so much more than a history text book. Joan’s own fears about childbirth are recounted and other aspects of social history are visited and that is what makes this book an immersive experience. Travel between the many palaces and residences used by both the royals and Joan’s own family is often and laborious and the reader is given a sense of time by these kinds of activities which filled days rather than hours. That said, it is fascinating to consider the distances travelled both at home and abroad despite the lack of infrastructure and means. The author is clearly very knowledgeable about this period and whilst this isn’t an action packed romp through battles and beheadings (both of which do feature), it has the ability to place you there through describing the seemingly mundane and focusing on the life of someone who history does not remember as the central character of the time. Joan is an immensely likeable character and I very much look forward to finding out what came next for her.

Joanna Hickson has done it again!

The Lady Of Ravens is yet another intriguing and beautifully written historical tale. It's atmospheric and thought provoking.

A genuinely fantastic read for fans of this genre AND this author, a definite recommendation from me!

This was a quietly compelling novel. The story that unfolded was fascinating and gave a great historical insight into court etiquette and customs of the period. This is a great book for those who love character development and historical fiction. It's not a thriller or an action novel but why should every book be noisy? This book raises its voice from time to time and that is enough. A very satisfying read.