Root of the Tudor Rose is a 2014
historical novel written by Griffith. It concerns Queen
Catherine of Valois, widowed at 21 by the premature death of her husband King
Henry V, shortly after which her father King
Charles VI of France dies too. Catherine is now left adrift at the English court, defending her 10-month old son from political rivals, such as the ambitious
Duke of Gloucester, who seeks the throne for himself. She manages to form a friendship with a young Welsh servant,
Owen ap Maredudd ap Tudur. Gradually their friendship deepens, but as a widowed queen, Catherine is not allowed to marry another man, certainly not a servant. The book became a Number 1 best seller and became the
Welsh Books Council's Book of the Month for July 2015. Griffith explained that her aim in writing the book was to explore the Welsh ancestry of the Tudor dynasty, stemming from Owen Tudor himself. The book was followed by a 2016 sequel,
The Witch of Eye. == References ==