A queen’s ambition. A kingdom on the edge. One woman’s hunger for power will set Portugal ablaze—unless she’s devoured first.
Portugal, 1367. The court is a powder keg, and Leonor Teles de Meneses is the spark. Born noble, married off for duty, Leonor aches for more—freedom, passion, a place at the heart of power. Her wit is sharp, her enemies sharper. Her king? He’s both lover and battleground.
As the crown changes heads and alliances shift like sand, Leonor fights for a voice in a world that wants her silent. She’s hemmed in by jealous sisters, a mother-in-law from hell, and a husband who’d rather write poetry than rule. But when the king’s eye lands on her, the stakes soar. Now, every whispered rumor, every stolen glance, every calculated risk could mean everything—or nothing.
Palace intrigue, forbidden love, and betrayal pulse through every corridor. In this world, trust is a luxury, and secrets are currency. Leonor’s choices will tip the scales of dynastic conflict and decide the fate of a kingdom hungry for an heir.
If you crave the courtly drama and rich detail, get ready to lose yourself in a tale of ambition, desire, and survival—where every move could be your last.
Writing Interview Questions.
Why did you choose to write your book in this era?
Since middle school age, I have loved medieval history. My history degree was focused in the period though in Britain.
It was not so much this era, which I love, but a story that possessed my thoughts. On a trip over Christmas a decade ago, we walked down the aisle of Alcobaça Abbey and found the sarcophagi of Inês and Pedro. Eventually, I decided to write their story for I could not find books in English about them. As I started pitching the book to agents, editors, and publishers, I proposed Inês as part of a trilogy. Histria Books offered a contract. As the contract was finalized, the publisher asked me to amend it to include the trilogy. I said yes. Now we have Leonor: Queens of Portugal Trilogy publishing a year after Inês: Queens of Portugal Trilogy.
Did you find researching this era particularly difficult? What was the hardest thing to find out, and did you come across anything particularly surprising?
There are few resources in English for Portuguese history of this period compared to what is available for England or France. In 2024, the Chronicles of Fernão Lopes, written decades after the events in Leonor, became available in English. The material is not written in the orderly way we expect of a history book.
Then the massive earthquake just off of the coast of Lisboa on November 1, 1755 destroyed books, records, and buildings along with the lives of tens of thousands of people. Historical records were further damaged by Napoleon’s troops who desecrated graves, stole artifacts, and burned libraries. Actual historical records have massive gaps.
There are so many dates we do not have. We do not know when or where Leonor was born, anything about her early years, nor the date she died.
It is these gaps, deep and wide, that offer the novelist great opportunity to explore the emotions and humanness of the historical figures. Was Leonor really as evil as portrayed? The answer is yes as she was willing to sacrifice relationships to further her plans. I came to believe her fear of losing her position was so great she would make poor choices in some actions with unintended consequences.
As to the surprising find, yes I did find something, and it is addressed in the next question.
Can you share something about the book that isn’t covered in the blurb?
Leonor denies and abandons her toddler son. It is early in the book. It is a clear indication of the kind of woman she is and the lengths she will go to. While I found it incomprehensible and reprehensible, it is a fact.
If you had to describe your protagonist(s), in three words, what would those three words be and why?
Beautiful – if she had not been, the events might never have happened.
Opportunistic – when she wants something and sees a path to get it or a person is hindering her, she acts in ways that are not always rational though often consequential.
Ruthless – people do die even if she is not physically committing the act. People flee to Castile in fear. Lives are altered.
What was the most challenging part about writing your book?
Time – balancing obligations for work with family life and publisher deadlines created stressful moments. The first novel, Inês, was coming out, adding marketing obligations. Writing is the quiet time, a place I go in my head that shuts out the world. Writing is challenging yet fun. Carving out that time from other obligations is the most difficult aspect.
Was there anything that you edited out of this book that would have drastically affected the story, should it be left in?
Not edited out, but interpreted in the vacuum of historical documents. To say more is to give away too much.
What are you currently working on?
Philippa: Queens of Portugal Trilogy, which is already late in delivery to the publisher. Getting the story right is far more important than a deadline.
What would you tell an aspiring author who had some doubts about their writing abilities?
Join a writing group. Writing is both solitary and community based. Listening with care to experienced writers will help hone craft, and gain guidance. Confidence comes when you are comfortable to trust and share your work with other writers.
Personal Interview Questions.
What do you like to do when you are not writing?
Traveling with my husband to places we have not been before.
Spending time with the grandchildren ages 9 and 11.
Work as a financial adviser, a job I do love.
Reading.
Cooking, though I do less than I would enjoy.
Collecting outsider art with visits to artists, sites, galleries, and auctions.
What did you want to be when you grew up?
An archeologist.
What’s for dinner tonight? What would you rather be eating?
I arrive home from work an hour or more after my husband. Dinner is what he fixes, it is always yummy.
As fall starts there is less grilled chicken and more tagine dishes.
Salmon stuffed with spinach and pine nuts, steamed broccoli, and roasted sweet potatoes, a favorite meal.
What would be a perfect day?
There are days in my life that shined with joy, now living as perfect ones in memory. For a more run of the mill perfect day, it would be sleeping well past 6, a slow morning reading the paper on the porch, time for a walk, dinner with friends, and the cats hopping on the bed after lights out all with my husband nearby.
What is the best part of your day?
When I can work from home, rather than commute in Atlanta traffic.
Coming home – and sitting on the porch.
Either or!
Tea or coffee: Coffee in the morning and tea the rest of the day
Hot or cold: 68 to 72 degrees – love central heat and A/C
Movie or book: Book
Morning person or Night owl: Night owl
City or country: City
Social Media or book: Book
Paperback or ebook: Paperback
Catherine Mathis writes stories set in medieval Portugal, bringing legends to life by sharing Iberian Tales.
Mathis was born in Berlin, the daughter of an American spy. She grew up in the Washington, D.C. area. She self-funded her degree from Sewanee, majoring in history with a medieval focus, and she had a career in finance.
Travel brought her the opportunity to return to an earlier love of all things Middle Ages, both as a writer and a reader.
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