{"title":"Books by Lauren Johnson","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"9781789541649","title":"Margaret Beaufort","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eSurvivor. Rebel. Conspirator. Mother and grandmother of kings. Margaret Beaufort was one of the most remarkable and influential women of the Middle Ages.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMargaret was born into a century of conflict. The daughter of the Duke of Somerset and a descendant of Edward III, she was married at twelve; a mother, orphan and widow at thirteen. She rode the vicissitudes of the Wars of the Roses, and two further marriages, to see her only son Henry ascend the throne of England as the first monarch of the Tudor dynasty. Margaret helped to bring about the marriage of Henry VII to Elizabeth of York, a union that helped heal the wounds of a bitterly divided nation.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDuring Henry’s reign, she exerted considerable influence at court and played a part in the upbringing of her grandson, the future Henry VIII. She was a lifelong artistic patron and supporter of academia. By the time of her death in June 1509, Margaret had outlived by two months the son whose birth had so nearly killed her.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLauren Johnson’s life of Margaret Beaufort brings its subject vividly and memorably to life. She delineates the decades of political upheaval that were the backdrop to Margaret’s long and resilient career, but also tells her story with a profound and touching humanity. This was a woman who endured the trauma of childbirth when she was little more than a child herself; who saw her baby on only a handful of occasions before he reached manhood; who braved decades of danger and uncertainty, and who succeeded in guiding her son – through courage, political astuteness and sheer persistence – to the greatest prize of all: the crown of England.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Hardback","offer_id":55896464884085,"sku":"9781789541649","price":30.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":57682737791349,"sku":"9781789541656","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781789541649_70788ce1-7bc2-46b8-b08e-9919c4464bae.jpg?v=1792511654"},{"product_id":"9781784979645","title":"Shadow King","description":"\u003cp\u003eA thrilling new account of the tragic life and troubled times of Henry VI. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'The best life of Henry VI now in print'\u003c\/b\u003e DAN JONES. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Vivid, absorbing and richly detailed'\u003c\/b\u003e HELEN CASTOR. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'A well-crafted moving account of a tragic reign'\u003c\/b\u003e MICHAEL JONES. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFirst-born son of a warrior father who defeated the French at Agincourt, Henry VI of the House Lancaster inherited the crown not only of England but also of France, at a time when Plantagenet dominance over the Valois dynasty was at its glorious height. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAnd yet, by the time he was done to death in the Tower of London in 1471, France was lost, his throne had been seized by his rival, Edward IV of the House of York, and his kingdom had descended into the violent chaos of the Wars of the Roses. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHenry VI is perhaps the most troubled of English monarchs, a pious, gentle, well-intentioned man who was plagued by bouts of mental illness. In \u003ci\u003eShadow King\u003c\/i\u003e, Lauren Johnson tells his remarkable and sometimes shocking story in a fast-paced and colourful narrative that captures both the poignancy of Henry's life and the tumultuous and bloody nature of the times in which he lived.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56312846221685,"sku":"9781784979645","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781784979645_6796b628-82f1-476e-a984-d79543102674.jpg?v=1786025643"},{"product_id":"souffle-also-rises","title":"The Souffle Also Rises","description":"It's 2008 and Lizi just can't catch a break. On the heels of a nasty divorce and a paltry settlement agreement - barely enough to reload her Starbucks card - Lizi is laid off from her job during the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. Flat broke, Lizi takes a job at Whole Foods where she meets Frankie, a twenty-seven-year-old artist half her age whose overly simplistic worldview is exactly what Lizi needs to get on with her life. But after an unfortunate incident involving her ex-husband, his pregnant girlfriend, and a carton of cage-free eggs, Lizi finds herself, once again, out of a job. So what does a fifty-four-year-old woman with no money, no job, and no prospects do? She sells all her possessions and goes to Paris in search of her long-lost dream: to write her first novel. But when the airline loses her luggage and offers her a meal voucher for the famed Hotel Jolie, Lizi pounces on the opportunity while unwittingly setting off a chain of events which land her at the center of the notorious Harry Winston jewel heist. And when her young partner-in-crime joins her in Paris, the two must outrun the Serbian mafia while trying not to trip over the dead bodies left in their wake.","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57509968675189,"sku":"9781998672448","price":16.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781998672448.jpg?v=1787130132"}],"url":"https:\/\/backstory.london\/collections\/author-lauren-johnson.oembed","provider":"Backstory","version":"1.0","type":"link"}