To Be Queen — Christy English

With captivating and lyrical prose, Christy English, author of The Queen's Pawn, brings to life a woman born to rule in a time when men dominated the throne....

Taught by her father, the Duke of Aquitaine, how to be powerful in the midst of the ruthless politics of the court, Eleanor learned at an early age to inspire love and loyalty in the people around her. Those lessons serve the fifteen-year-old well when -- after her father's sudden death -- she is crowned Duchess of Aquitaine and becomes the most eligible, sought-after woman in France.

Enamored of the young and beautiful Eleanor, King Louis VII claims her as his own, but the newly crowned monarch is easily manipulated by the Church and therefore bound to a way of life Eleanor does not believe in. Trapped in a loveless marriage and met with opposition at every turn, Eleanor fights to dissolve her estranged union with Louis and return to Aquitaine.

But Eleanor is soon charmed by the English upstart Henry of Normandy. If she can find the strength to leave her homeland behind, she may finally win the passion she has longed for and the means to fulfill her legacy as queen.