I have been waiting impatiently for this book to be in print and I was not disappointed. Anne Easter Smith is a tremendous writer and a fine researcher. She said this in her author's notes " That Jane Shore, known by her fellow citizens as the Rose of London, became the concubine of Edward IV, William Hastings, and Thomas Grey is fact".
Jane Lambert was essentially sold in marriage by her father to a cold and impotent silk merchant many years older than her. A lovely woman, she is pursued by many handsome men and won by King Edward as his favorite mistress for years.
Surprising to me, the author, a staunch Richard III supporter, was somewhat disapproving of Richard's treatment of Jane Shore after his brother, Edward IV's death. Smith hopes "I have created an enigmatic personality with flaws" in regards to Richard's character and deeds.
I think she succeeds quite well and the book has twists and turns which take the reader on a journey.
The journey ends in an afterword where she shares with readers a meeting that Jane,now Mistress Thomas Lyneham,has with Sir Thomas Moore as an old impoverished woman,who,"delighted not so much in her beauty as in her pleasant behavior"
A solid ending to a fine book about an extremely fascinating person.
Elizabeth Fremantle begins her first novel as Katherine Parr is about to be widowed for the second time. Lord Latymer is dying and already King Henry VIII has cast his eye on Katherine Parr..
As a courtier she delays returning to court, which is her occupation until she is summoned to Mary Tudor's entourage. Reluctantly she packs up herself and her young stepdaughter Meg and Meg's maid,Dot.
Dorothy(Dot)Fowntain could have a whole story written about her and the book divides her life's narrative with Katherine Parr. Her marriage to William Savage a court musician helped brighten the otherwise sad ending.
Katherine Parr like many females attached to the court was sacrificed to her family's ambitions through all three of her first marriages. The fourth marriage her "love match" with Thomas Seymour was not happy even before it ended with her death.
This was an impressive first novel,the characters came alive and drew me in early on. Elizabeth Fremantle's research is impeccable and her storytelling enthralling.
I hope to see another one very soon.
The Anglo Saxon Chronicle relates ""And in the same spring the Lady, Richard's daughter, came here to the land". Emma of Normandy was raised to be a Peaceweaver although that probably was not shared with her. She arrived in Canterbury in 1002 at a very young age to wed an older monarch. Æthelred the Unready had decided to replace his recently deceased with Emma as the lesser of two evils.
Emma knew she was intended to be England's Queen. She did not know she was not really welcome in that land either by her husband, his children or the people. Her resilience and intellect prompted her mother Gunnora to choose her to fulfill England's request instead of her older sister who was expected.
Æthelred and Emma were not a match made in heaven or anything close to it. Anglo-Saxon Britain was far more violent and savage than continental Normandy; the King was the epitome of a brutal warlord who had no love for anyone around him. Emma the Queen and Peaceweaver did not act as the teenager she was and rose to fulfill the role she was delegated.
I loved this book, adored Emma and really, truly, was sorry the book ended. I am thrilled that it will have a sequel or two. Patricia Bracewell is a splendid writer and the characters sprang to life again after 1000 years . I am counting down until the next book.
The White Heart was the prequel to a book I already read and immensely enjoyed, Four Sisters All Queens by Sherry Jones. This wonderful interpretation of four sisters of 13th century Provence was entrancing and superbly researched. The author loved each of these sisters and brought them to life in these pages in an admirable and scholarly fashion.
Marguerite, Queen of France, Eleonore, Queen of England, Sanchia, Queen of Germany and Beatrice, Queen of Sicily are sisters of the royal family of Provence where, lacking male heirs, her parents raise their daughters to be substitutes for sons.
Ramon Berenguer, Count of Provence and Beatrice of Savoy essentially raise their daughters in an atmosphere of continual warfare to be like female warlords. In actuality they served as peace weavers did in Anglo Saxon times but just as successfully. They were strong and resourceful and true to their family of origin, as best they could be, given the circumstances each found in their own situation.
Blanche de Castile, mother in law to Marguerite of France sprang to life in the novella White Heart. Blanche was the granddaughter of Eleanor of Aquitaine who was chosen by her grandmother to marry Louis VIII of France. Blanche loved her husband and was a constant support and source of strength to him in his life. When her husband died she became regent for her son Louis IX and guardian of her other children,despite her great grief.
Great writing, superb research and colorful characters are the hallmarks of this author. Recommended to medieval and royalty novel aficionados as well as history enthusiasts
An impressive history of an incredible lineage all wrapped up in one volume. It starts with the tragic wreck of the White Ship which took the life of Henry I's heir. This in turn set the stage for a seemingly endless civil war between Stephen of Blois and Matilda, "When Christ and his Saints Slept", or “The Nineteen Year Winter” .
Henry and Eleanor and their lineage are important and meaningful to me;I learned a great deal about others who came after him. The others also impacted the history of the British Isles, allowing the resilience of that time and place to evolve.
Richard II's ouster ended this book, although another will hopefully follow. The next will detail, in this fine fashion the Wars of The Roses and the beginning of the next dynasty.
A critical thought is left behind that only Henry II and Edward II were really great kings and they left inadequate sons behind them.
Why? The author definitely has the knowledge and the craft to let us understand why. He has made these men and women come to life for his readers, at least one last time.
Recommended for historical buffs and thoughtful readers of the periods detailed. If you want to understand this era and these shapers of destiny, then read this book. When you are finished, put it away carefully for the next time.
I appreciated so much the opportunity to read this galley and learn so much.
Clearly this week was a fine time to be reading and finishing a book about Popes and the underpinnings of Papal Renaissance history. As the events progressed to the election on the second ballot of Francis I on my television, I held in my hand a superb historical version of many of the same events and was able to learn much more about the history of the Papacy, other popes and the murky underside of at least that political scene vis-a vis politics of Rome.
Rodrigo Borgia, who became Pope Alexander VI,had been a Cardinal for more than 40 years and he was not seeking, nor expecting this to happen. Cardinals elect Popes, as we have seen this week and a handful of Cardinals instead of over one hundred, would have had a much harder time doing their job. Rodrigo's had helped him on his rise through the military ranks and did not fail to support his rise to becoming Pope Alexander VI.
GJ Meyer's contention, which he clearly proved, was that the Borgias were no worse and for the most part were much better than other Renaissance Italian families. A partial explanation is that the Borgias were actually Spaniards in a time and place that that was looked down upon. They were a clan of ambitious power brokers but such was the power structure of the time in Italy, Spain and France, and they rose to the top.
A fitting companion to Meyer's treatises on the Tudors as the Popes were shaped political history in this period of time. The Borgias with their military and religious political supremacy operated like Warlords and took care of their own.
The author is a splendid writer and a superb researcher, the documents he utilized to prepare and defend his treatise were awe inspiring. I am grateful to him and to NetGalley for the opportunity to accompany the Borgia family on their hidden journey through history.
A wonderful book which I will read again and again.I knew little about
Hildegarde von Bingen although I had read a few writings. How modern she was and
wise and most of all resilient.
Hildegarde was just a fun loving little
girl when she was given to the church, not only as an ordinary nun but as a
companion to a self professed anchorite. She was bricked into a very small 2
rooms for 38 years with no options or recourse.Her strong personality kept her
sane, as did her through-the-screen relationship with Volmar a young boy
monk.
Her life began when Jutta von Sponheim, the Anchorite dies from her
ascetic lifestyle and self imposed hardships. Hildegarde's biographer Guibert of
Gembloux tells it that she was 8 years old when she and 14 year old Jutta are
bricked into the annex to the Disibodenberg Abbey; Jutta's biographer,
Hildegarde's life ling friend Volmar says they were 14 and 20 and had spent some
years together at the Sponheim Castle.
The fact remains that her mother
gave her to the church because her visions were disturbing and her health was
not robust.In Scivias, her first book she strongly denounced offering child
oblates to monastic life;her mother never contacted her but reportedly regretted
her action for the remainder of her life, sent her her only valuable possession
upon her death and spoke her last words about Hildgarde.
Extremely
thought provoking and extraordinarily well written. I will begin to read Mary
Sharratt's other books.I am so grateful that I purchased this as a daily special
