Gower, Iris

(British, 1939– )

Destiny's Child (1999; previously published as Bride of the Thirteenth Summer, 1975), is set during the Wars of the Roses. Little Margaret Beaufort, sent to the court of Henry VI under the guardianship of the Duke of Suffolk, is married against her will to Suffolk's son. When the Duke is accused of treason the King declares her marriage null and void. At 13, Margaret marries the King's son, Edmund, whom she loves. In a static tale, Margaret works her tapestries and talks to her women, while occasional news is brought of the important events happening elsewhere. Sea Mistress (1995), fifth in the Cordwainers series, set in nineteenth-century Wales, includes much more action. It tells how Bridie Merchant, devastated at discovering that her beloved husband has married her for her fortune, joins forces with the newly widowed Ellie Hopkins to defeat the plans of the evil men who are plotting against them.

Norah Lofts, Josephine Cox  FS