Publisher: Poesy Quill
Pages: 310
Genre: Historical Fiction / Tudor Fiction
Publication Date: June 1st, 2026
Publisher: Libros de Seda S.L.
Pages: 320
Castile, 1490.
Doña Beatriz Galindo is an uneasy witness to the Holy War of Queen Isabel of Castile and her husband, Ferdinand, King of Aragon. A holy war pushing the Moors out of territories ruled by them for centuries.
Beatriz does not want a life like other women. She desires power over her own destiny. Even if this means walking a far harder road.
A passionate and respected scholar, Beatriz serves her friend Queen Isabel of Castile as her advisor. She also tutors the queen’s youngest child, Catalina of Aragon.
Dedicated to Queen Isabel and her children, Beatriz guides the young Catalina of Aragon to walk her own hard life road.
But can she prepare Catalina to be England’s queen?
Finalist in the 2020 CHAUCER Book Awards for pre-1750s Historical Fiction.
Praise for The Duty of Daughters:
"This is a captivating read, written with heart, significance and sensibility. Dunn is a careful writer. She doesn't exploit her characters; rather, she explores them and brings us along for the journey. This is a novel researched with integrity, and Dunn reaches out and lands beautifully in the winner's circle."
~ Historical Novel Reviews
~ Historical Novel Reviews
"This profoundly moving story helps us appreciate today's more enlightened world. The Duty of Daughters is historical fiction at its best!"
~ Readers’ Favorite ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
~ Readers’ Favorite ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
An interview with Wendy J. Dunn
What inspired you to start writing?
Books! I really can’t remember a time when I didn’t love to read. I was a passionate reader as a child. Absolutely loved books, and by eight I knew I wanted to one day write one. Of course, the journey wasn’t as simple as that. I had to live a life too.
What was the hardest part about writing this book?
Living so far away from Spain!
Does one of the main characters hold a special place in your heart? If so, why?
Goodness! That is such a hard question! Most of the characters in The Duty of Daughters hold a special place in my heart. I suppose my greatest affection has to go to the child Catalina. I LOVED imagining Katherine of Aragon as a child and adolescent.
If your book was to be made into a movie, who are the celebrities that would star in it?
Now, you have really made me start to dream. Hmmm – who for Beatriz? I like Keira Knightley – she has the right balance of strength and vulnerability.
Robert Downey Jr. for Ferdinand, Angelina Jolie would be quite fascinating for Isabel I. As for the child and teenage Katherine of Aragon…she would have to be paled skin, redhead and blue eyed, and her friend, Maria de Salinas, dark haired, dark eyed and with the promise of real beauty.
What do you hope your readers take away from this book?
The very human story that was the life of Katherine of Aragon – and how far the lives of women in the first world have come since the 16th century.
I think I will also share something from my novel to help answer this question.
Josefa placed her hand over Beatriz’s. She gave her a wry smile. “Escape ignorance? You know many ignorant women, si?”
“Josefa, you mistake my meaning.” Beatriz stared at the coverlet of Josefa’s bed. “All of us must walk our own roads, but ’tis wrong to prevent women from walking so many roads just because we’re women. Even Plato said, ‘Nothing can be more absurd than the practice of men and women not following the same pursuits with all their strengths and with one mind, for thus, the state instead of being whole is reduced to half.’ I so agree. Our world cuts off its nose to spite its own face by insisting the only purpose for women is to bear children and perpetuate the human race, as also said Plato. Surely ’tis far too hard a view to forever blame women for Eve’s sin.”
Josefa frowned. “But, Eve’s sin brought death to the world and condemned women to suffer.”
“Perchance you can see it that way. But our Lord Jesús welcomed women as his followers. Whenever I feel defeated, I keep that in mind and remind myself that the good lord knew women possess minds as well as hearts and encouraged them to use them. If our saviour believes this, then it must be right. That’s why I believe learning for the young to be so important. For not only do most of us then discover the road we are meant to walk, but good learning
also hands a child a light to guide them all their lives. Just because a child is female, does it mean she should walk in the dark?”
Buy this Book
Wendy J. Dunn
Award-winning Australian author of Tudor historical fiction, specialising in Anne Boleyn and Katherine of Aragon novels.
Wendy J. Dunn is an award-winning Australian author, playwright and poet fascinated by Tudor history – so much so she was not surprised to discover a family connection to the Tudors, not long after the publication of her first Anne Boleyn novel narrating the Anne Boleyn story through the eyes of Sir Thomas Wyatt, the elder. Her family tree reveals the intriguing fact that one of her ancestral families – possibly over three generations – had purchased land from both the Boleyn and Wyatt families to build up their own holdings. It seems likely Wendy’s ancestors knew the Wyatts and Boleyns personally.
Her second novel, The Light in the Labyrinth, set during final days of Anne Boleyn's life, revisits the Anne Boleyn story through the eyes of her niece Catherine Carey. The Duty of Daughters and All Manner of Things tells the story of Katherine of Aragon. Shades of Yellow tells the story of a woman writing a novel about Amy Robsart.
All Dunn's award-winning works weave together the lyricism of poetry with the pulse of history, creating stories of love, loss, and the endurance of the human spirit.
Thank you for hosting Wendy J. Dunn today, with a pretty book spotlight on her enthralling novel, The Duty of Daughters. It's so kind of you to join us.
ReplyDeleteTake care,
Cathie xx
The Coffee Pot Book Club