LONGLISTED FOR THE WOMENS PRIZE FOR NONFICTIONWATERSTONES BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR HISTORYThe boldly original dramatic intertwined story of Catherine de Medici Elisabeth de Valois and Mary Queen of Scots three queens exercising power in a world dominated by men.Alluring gripping real an astonishing insight into the lives of three queens ALICE ROBERTSTakes us into the hearts and minds of three extraordinary women AMANDA FOREMANConveys the vitality of the past as few books do. An enviable tour de force SUZANNAH LIPSCOMBCatherine de Medici Elisabeth de Valois and Mary Queen of Scots lived together at the French court for many years years that bound them to one another through blood and marriage alliance and friendship love and filial piety. When they scattered to different kingdoms they would learn that to rule was to wage a constant war against the deeply entrenched misogyny of the sixteenth century. A crown could exalt a young woman. Equally it could destroy her.Young Queens masterfully weaves the personal stories of these three queens into one revealing their hopes dreams desires and regrets at a time when even the most powerful women lived at the mercy of the state.