(2 book Giveaway!) A Place Beyond Courage by Elizabeth Chadwick

Honor and loyalty like water..

A Place Beyond Courage by Elizabeth Chadwick
Sourcebooks USA edition September 1, 2012
{Published October 4th 2007 by Sphere UK}
Review copy provided by the publisher, thank you!
Burton Book Review Rating:

My other Chadwick reviews:
The Greatest Knight by Elizabeth Chadwick (2010, 4 stars)
The Scarlet Lion by Elizabeth Chadwick (2010, 4.5 stars)
Lady of the English by Elizabeth Chadwick (2011, 5 stars)*Favorited!
To Defy A King by Elizabeth Chadwick (2011, 4.5 stars)

The early twelfth century is a time for ambitious men to prosper, and royal servant John FitzGilbert Marshal is one of them. Raised high as the kin of the deceased King Henry battle each other for England’s throne, John reaps rich rewards but pays a terrible price for the choices he makes – as do his family. His wife, fragile, naïve Aline is hopelessly unequipped to cope with the demands of a life lived on the edge and, when John is seriously injured in battle, her worst nightmare is realised. Sybilla, bright, forthright sister to the Earl of Salisbury, finds herself used as a bargaining counter when her brother seeks to seal a truce with his troublesome neighbour, John FitzGilbert. And then there is Sybilla’s small son, William, seized hostage by the King for John’s word of honour. But sometimes keeping your honour means breaking your word.

Previous releases by Elizabeth Chadwick such as The Greatest Knight and The Scarlet Lion chronicle the honorable William Marshal and his family during times of war and unrest in the 12th century. Stepping back a bit, A Place Beyond Courage is the story of William’s parents, John and Sybilla Marshal. The period is a harsh one, with the battle for the throne of England that lasted for many years, costing many lives and giving families little security. The one hope was for the future: young Henry FitzEmpress could take it over from King Stephen if England could just hold on for that long. This was an era that was aptly named in Sharon Kay Penman’s novel When Christ and His Saints Slept.

Elizabeth Chadwick is a master at this period and meticulously researches her material, and presents the story eloquently and passionately. The characters this time around however took awhile to ingratiate themselves, as John Fitzgilbert (Marshal) seemed all too eager to throw his word away, yet so was every one else when it came to the oath to the FitzEmpress. John’s first wife Aline is also a major figure for the first half of the book, and she was not someone to be admired. She was the opposite in character traits that a hardened man like John needed, and she could never evoke any sympathy from me. Several times over the narration explained that the marriage between Aline and John was one of little rapport and that they only coupled to beget that heir etc. Once Aline was out of the picture I was able to enjoy the story more, as Sybilla became John’s new wife and thus the story held a lot more hope. Sybilla was a strong young woman and perfect helpmate to John. Babies were born, and along came William whom we know from the other works of Chadwick’s. When we get to the part about William becoming a hostage under King Stephen, I cried. And when William came back alive (as we knew he would), I cried then too.

The rest of the story filled in the political pieces of the horrible era before young Henry Fitzempress became King and was full of battles, trebuchets, uneasy nobles and alliances that were made and broken over and over again. Fair warning, there was a bit more sexual content than I remembered from the previous books. If you are a newbie to the era, the many names and castles could be a little confusing yet a perfect beginner’s start to the period, but for the seasoned reader of the era it is a rehashing of the events with the main story coming from the outlook of John Marshal. Little William definitely stole the show here too, though. He is still my favorite knight!

Courtesy of the publisher Sourcebooks, they are giving away A Place Beyond Courage AND The Greatest Knight!!

Please comment here with your email address, and let me know what 12th Century reads you have enjoyed! US & Canada only please. Giveaway ends September 3rd 2012.

Review: The King’s Witch by Cecelia Holland

The King’s Witch by Cecelia Holland
Berkley Trade June 7, 2011
Paperback 320 pages
978-0425241301
Review copy from publisher, thank you!
Burton Book Review Rating:

Of the women in King Richard’s life, she is the least known—and the most powerful.

During the Third Crusade, deaths from fever and starvation are common, but King Richard the Lion-Hearted has a secret ally against these impassable enemies—a mysterious healer by the name of Edythe. She was sent to him by his mother Eleanor, and Richard first assumes that Edythe is a spy. But when her medical knowledge saves his life, she becomes an indispensable member of his camp—even as his loyal soldiers, suspicious of her talent for warding off death, call her a witch.

I read this novel on the Third Crusade in a weekend. It is a perfect summer read, sitting by the pool and losing yourself in a tumultuous era without getting bogged down with the details and facts of the times. The author uses the storyline of Richard of Lionhearted’s quest for Jerusalem and brings us the story of the fictional doctor, Edythe, who travels along with Richard’s Crusader Army and his sister Johanna as they progress through Acre and Jaffa in efforts to defeat Saladin.

The Third Crusade features notables such as King Conrad of Montferrat and King Philip of France who add to the religious and political strife, but the story focuses on Edythe and her relationships. Edythe serves Johanna, who also has a significant storyline as she is caught up in personal tangles, and Edythe becomes well-known as a doctor of sorts which tags her with the witch insult among the other Crusaders. Edythe helps King Richard during his illnesses and fevers throughout the Crusade, and along the way meets Rouquin who acts as a military commander for Richard. Edythe is attempting to discover the meaning of her own life, as she was rescued by Queen Eleanor many years ago during the persecution of the Jews. That was a different life for Edythe, though, and she had felt like she had acclimated herself to the Christian ways. When she goes along on the Crusade, she begins to doubt herself and her faith, becoming very afraid of the secret she harbors. The secret threatens to harm the only true thing she has come across, which is the love she bears for Rouquin.

Author Cecelia Holland has become quite prolific, as her back list includes over thirty historical novels. I reviewed her last release The Second Eleanor last year and found that I was intrigued by Holland’s easy writing style. The King’s Witch is no different: the writing was fluent and fast paced and I was entertained by this story set during an important time for King Richard. I was particularly engaged within the story during the battle scenes, and I felt like I raced through those pages. As a fan of historical fiction, I have recently read stories that solely focused on real characters, but this novel reminds me of what is so wonderful about the genre. The setting of the time and place was an educational backdrop to the two fictional characters at the heart of the story, and their story helped me appreciate and understand the turmoil that the Crusaders experienced. This was not just a love story, but The King’s Witch incorporated the pressures of the Crusaders versus Saladin with intriguing side stories such as the succession of the crown of Jerusalem. I think it’s time I peruse Holland’s back list for more of her entertaining reads.

Review: Queen Defiant: A Novel of Eleanor of Aquitaine by Anne O’Brien

Queen Defiant: A Novel of Eleanor of Aquitaine by Anne O’Brien
(Devil’s Consort is the UK title)
448 pages, paperback
Penguin NAL Trade: April 14, 2011
Personal copy won through Maria Grazia’s giveaway at her Fly High blog, thank you!!
Burton Book Review Rating:

Orphaned at a young age, Eleanor, Duchess of Aquitaine, seeks a strong husband to keep her hold on the vast lands that have made her the most powerful heiress in Europe. But her arranged marriage to Louis VII, King of France, is made disastrous by Louis’s weakness of will and fanatical devotion to the Church. Eleanor defies her husband by risking her life on an adventurous Crusade, and even challenges the Pope himself. And in young, brilliant, mercurial Henry d’Anjou, she finds her soul mate-the one man who is audacious enough to claim her for his own and make her Queen of England.

Eleanor of Aquitaine has been written about many times, and even more so in the past few years as her popularity grows as a strong and willful woman. Anne O’Brien gives us an intriguing look at the upheaval that Eleanor caused her French husband with a few fictional spins based on the rumors of Eleanor’s time. For those that do know the history of Eleanor, she was wed to the prince of France at a young age, and soon after became Queen of France. For years Eleanor chafed against the pious confines of her husband and his advisers, and was given little acknowledgement for her intelligence. Eleanor was bred to rule over Aquitaine, and with this hasty marriage with the French she consequently missed her home tremendously. Fast forward through a disastrous crusade and embarrassing attempts to give France a male heir, Eleanor finds a way out of France but needs young Henry Plantagenet’s help.

The French king Louis is still portrayed as the overly pious, devoted to God and less of his country and his wife. Abbot Suger, and Bernard of Clairvaux come into play as they continually thwart Eleanor’s schemes for her independence. And the reason Eleanor is so widely popular is apparent with her strong characterization here; she is not weak, whimpering and simpering, she is always aware that to persevere she must plod on. And for years she did. She outlived most of her closest family members and pretty much went through everything under the sun by the time of her death. The arrival of the young and virile Henry Plantagenet on the scene gave the book a welcomed flair, as Eleanor had finally met her match with Henry.

Anne O’Brien sticks to the main plot of Eleanor’s life in France, but also blends in her fictional dramatic license to skew certain dates and events, but I was still not put off. There was something to be said about the voice which the author gave Eleanor that made me want to keep reading this story, even though I knew what happened to Eleanor and her hopes in the end. The fact that the author did not unequivocally stick to the facts or time lines made it that much more fun, and since I noticed the “factual errors” I think this is actually what held some of the story’s appeal for me as well. Which is quite an odd revelation for me, really. I normally would rail against the extreme dramatic license, but this time I really enjoyed it, and I was entertained (and a touch scandalized!). Exactly what I am sure the author set out to do. And those folks who have not read an Eleanor every other month probably wouldn’t notice most of the differences in the events. I was also intrigued by the genealogy charts in the beginning referencing the lines of consanguinity, as well as the map showing the scope of the lands between Eleanor, Louis and Henry. And that cover was fabulous as well, the texture of the book was just right.. and the pages inside kept me rooting for Eleanor to the very end. The very end actually ended with the coronation of Henry II and Eleanor, so I’ve got to wonder what’s next on Anne O’Brien’s plate? Another novel focused on Henry’s and Eleanor’s devilish brood? Where do I sign up?

Queen Defiant is roughly my seventh Eleanor themed read in the past 15 months. I have read others before those as well. Since they were all novels, I think it’s time I read the biographical Eleanor of Aquitaine: A Life, by Alison Weir just so I can brush up on the facts and timeline for Eleanor and call myself well-versed. But, for a woman who lived eight hundred years ago as a lady of two kingdoms and mother to three kings, you’ve got to applaud the everlasting appeal that she maintains with the historically inclined reading audience.

Review: Lady of the English by Elizabeth Chadwick

Lady of the English by Elizabeth Chadwick

544 pages Hardcover, Little Brown/Sphere UK 6/2/2011
Sourcebooks US Release 9/1/2011
ISBN 13: 9781847442376
Review copy provided by the UK publisher, thank you!
Burton Book Review Rating:

Two very different women are linked by destiny and the struggle for the English crown. Matilda, daughter of Henry I, is determined to win back her crown from Stephen, the usurper king. Adeliza, Henry’s widowed queen and Matilda’s stepmother, is now married to William D’Albini, a warrior of the opposition. Both women are strong and prepared to stand firm for what they know is right. But in a world where a man’s word is law, how can Adeliza obey her husband while supporting Matilda, the rightful queen? And for Matilda pride comes before a fall …What price for a crown? What does it cost to be ‘Lady of the English’?

As mentioned before as a preface to Elizabeth Chadwick’s article she provided us with here, I had first tapped into my historical fiction passion with the novel When Christ and His Saints Slept by Sharon Kay Penman. Henry I’s son and heir to England, William, dies in the White Ship disaster, leaving his daughter Matilda as sole heir to the throne after her father’s death. The path to that throne is littered with obstacles for the woman, as the new King Stephen usurps the throne of England from the Empress. Elizabeth Chadwick focuses her newest novel on two women: Matilda, Henry I’s daughter, and Adeliza, Henry’s beautiful wife, as turmoil ignites throughout the lands of Normandy and England.

The novel opens up to when Matilda’s first husband Emperor Heinrich has died and left her as a young widower. Matilda returns to her father’s keeping after living in Germany and enjoying her status as Empress. Matilda and Adeliza form a bond out of loyalty to King Henry, which proves useful to Matilda when she most needs it. Although King Henry has many illegitimate children, he cannot get a male heir from Adeliza, much to their chagrin. Thus, Matilda becomes a pawn in her father’s realm, as nobles are forced to pay homage to the Empress, although they renege on this fealty once her father dies after eating lampreys. Was he intentionally poisoned? Did the Blois faction have something to do with Henry’s convenient death? Despite the three separate times those nobles swore fealty to Matilda as heir to the throne, her cousin Stephen of Blois immediately takes England for his own while Matilda is faraway in Anjou with her children. Her new young husband, Geoffrey of Anjou, fights for their children’s right to the throne of England, as loyalty is put to the test between family members and old alliances.

True to her form, Elizabeth Chadwick recreates the era with ease as we watch through the eyes of Matilda and Adeliza the struggle for the right to the throne. Given the coincidental timing that was always in favor for King Stephen, Matilda was always just a stone’s throw from the throne’s grasp, as she slowly began to groom her son and her own growing faction to prepare for the day her son would rightfully gain the throne. Adeliza’s story of being a Queen and then almost a nun was also compelling, as she performed her role as peacemaker admirably and gracefully alongside Matilda’s own efforts to safeguard her son’s rights. Adeliza’s story is not one that I’ve read before, and I found her part of the book a sweet counterpart to the story of the struggling Matilda. The few characters that Chadwick expands upon are Brian Fitzcount and William D’Albini, while others like Geoffrey of Anjou, King Stephen, and Robert of Gloucester only support the greater stories of Matilda and Adeliza.

Elizabeth Chadwick creates a fervor each time a new book of hers is even rumored to be released. This is due to her years of research, intelligent writing style and descriptive prose, along with her excellent ability to engage her readers within the first page of her novels. Chadwick knows how to spin the weaves of history’s cloth, embroidered with captivating details, that seem to mirror the very image of the era. The historical fiction genre has quite a few of Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry II novels, but Chadwick does her readers a service by giving us the before picture. She weaves us through the reign of Stephen, otherwise known as the Anarchy, using several key characters and mentioning some lesser known ones, as the age old debate of Church vs. State come into play. The era was rife with dissemblers and floundering loyalties, as greedy nobles reached for titles beyond their grasp.

Empress Matilda always held to her son’s goal as the King of England first and foremost, and learning the story of how she helped achieve that is a refreshing change of pace for historical fiction fans. Chadwick marvelously pinpointed the character of the young Henry II as an eager and ambitious boy who held fast to his destiny in England. Always a magnificent storyteller, Lady of the English does not disappoint. Up next for the author is indeed a trilogy on Eleanor of Aquitaine, and I am eagerly awaiting how Chadwick tells Eleanor’s story.

Related links from Elizabeth Chadwick’s website:
The Enigmatic Brian FitzCount
Adeliza of Louvain. Lady of The English. The Forgotten Queen
An extract from the novel can be found here.
See my other Elizabeth Chadwick posts here.
 
Check out Book Depository.uk to order your copy of Lady of the English, and as of the date of this review you’ll find some of Chadwick’s previous titles on sale. I am slowly acquiring her back list, and I just ordered The Falcons of Montabard and The Winter Mantle.