The Last Queen: A Novel of Juana La Loca

by: C.W. Gortner

Published by: Two Bridges Press

Reviewed by Shaley Melchio

In The Last Queen, critically acclaimed author Christopher Gortner goes where few authors dare to go--into a dark, shadowy time of history, and into the life of one of history's most debated characters, Queen Juana of Castile, also know as La Loca.

Many historians feel that Queen Juana, because of her behavior, must have been mentally ill. In this novel, Gortner lets the reader draw their own conclusion, while also explaining some reasons that, if she was unstable mentally, may have contributed to her mental state.

A main theme running through the book is Juana's arranged marriage to the Archduke Philip of Flanders, a marriage that Juana greatly protested, yet agreed to marry Philip because of her sense of duty. From the moment she laid eyes on Philip, Juana found herself madly in love with him, yet his love leaned more towards lustful than emotional. Juana received much harsh treatment in her new marriage, both from her husband, and from his cruelly cunning counselors.

Juana's story is one of not only tragedy, heartbreak, and political intrigue, but also a story that may haunt the reader for years. Was she really insane, as has been suggested? Or was she merely caught up in her surrounding, a mere political pawn to her power-hungry husband?

Christopher Gortner allows the reader to draw their own conclusions, while sharing the fruit of his fast and careful research. The book is written in the first-person, from Juana's viewpoint, which surely must have been a task for the author. Not only is there a decided lack of information about Queen Juana/La Loca, but the author, a man, wrote it from a woman's viewpoint, something that many a male author has attempted without success.

Happily, Gortner succeeds in his mission to bring us a powerful, haunting, and deeply moving novel of a very misunderstood queen.

Armchair Interviews says: If you choose to buy only one historical novel this year, let it be this incredible story from critically acclaimed novelist Christopher Gortner.