This is what you might call an easy read. It’s laid out like a magazine in that alongside the main narrative, you have little text blocks inserted here and there that cover related topics, and such like, plus it features many illustrations.

It’s also aimed at readers with a general interest in history, rather than for anyone looking to expand their knowledge on certain personages. On that theme, I skipped the main narrative of certain chapters because it was nothing new to me, and instead I read the asides and related info.

The writers have an engaging style, though at times the grammar is lacking. For example: “him and his parliament”.

Also, I spotted two factual errors in the chapter on the Wars of the Roses. Of all the history I’ve read, TWOTR is the period I’m most familiar with, so I only read the asides in this chapter, therefore it’s possible that there might be more errors.

One of the two mistakes I spotted was the claim that Elizabeth of York (Henry VII’s wife) was “The only daughter of Elizabeth Woodville”. Elizabeth Woodville gave Edward IV *seven* daughters.

The second mistake relates to the Battle of Stoke, 1487. According to this book, the Yorkist leaders “were captured and imprisoned”. This is completely wrong. Apart from Francis Lovell, who escaped the field, the other leaders were all killed.

I think with this type of book it’s not unusual for factual errors to occur. It’s not a heavily researched affair with 100s of footnotes, after all, but it’s careless nonetheless.

Overall, though, this is a pretty good read. ( )