A review by xxstefaniereadsxx
The Lady Queen: The Notorious Reign of Joanna I, Queen of Naples, Jerusalem, and Sicily by Nancy Goldstone

informative medium-paced

3.0

 Joanna was born around 1325 to Charles, Duke of Calabria and Marie of Valois. Her grandfather was Robert the Wise, King of Naples. He appointed her his heir upon the untimely death of her father. Upon Robert's death, Joanna became Queen Joanna I. She married Andrew of Hungary, though she did not seem to care for him much. She controlled all of the finances, and banned him from entering her room without permission. They only met at state functions. There were a lot of conflicts during her reign, which I will not go into detail about here, but it was absolutely filled with drama and intrigue. She wound up marrying three more times after the death of her first husband, Andrew. Her death was a bit shocking to me.

I really enjoy Nancy Goldstone's works, and I also enjoy her social media presence. She does a great job on her research, and I like the way she conveys the facts into an interesting story. She makes these historical figures and their activities somewhat relatable as people, which is another thing that I really like. I hadn't learned much about Joanna I up to this point, so this book was exceptionally valuable to me. If you are unfamiliar with this author, I would strongly suggest checking into her work.