Tanzanite's Castle Full of Books

The Death of Elizabeth I: Remembering and Reconstructing the Virgin Queen.  US and UK release August 31, 2010.  The death of Queen Elizabeth I in 1603 was greeted by an outpouring of official proclamations, gossip-filled letters, tense diary entries, diplomatic dispatches, and somber sermons. English poets wrote hundreds of elegies to Elizabeth, and playwrights began bringing her onto the stage. This book uses these historical and literary sources, including a maid of honor’s eyewitness account of the explosion of the Queen’s corpse, to provide a detailed history of Elizabeth’s final illness and death, and to show Elizabeth’s subjects—peers and poets, bishops and beggars, women and men—responding to their loss by remembering and reconstructing their Queen.


Medieval Intrigue: Royal Murder and Regnal Legitimacy by Ian Mortimer.  UK release September 5, 2010; US release November 5, 2010.    Ian Mortimer considers some of the key questions in Medieval history and rethinks the nature of historical evidence. In this important new work Ian Mortimer examines some of the most controversial questions in medieval history, including whether Edward II was murdered, his possible later life in Italy, the weakness of the Lancastrian claim to the throne in 1399, and the origins of the idea of the royal pretender. Central to this book is his groundbreaking approach to medieval evidence. He explains how an information-based method allows a more certain reading of a series of texts. He criticises existing modes of arriving at consensus and outlines a process of historical analysis that ultimately leads to questioning historical doubts as well as historical facts, with profound implications for what we can say about the past with certainty. This is an important work from one of the most original and popular medieval historians writing today.



Lucrezia:  The Triumph of Love by John Graham.  UK release September 6, 2010.  Much has been written about the Borgias, and interest in their exploits hasn’t waned in more than 500 years. Here, Lucrezia Borgia gives her own account of the events that shaped her life through scandal, tragedy and triumph.
Lucrezia Borgia starts life as the illegitimate daughter of Cardinal Rodrigo Borgia, who bribes his way to the papal throne in 1492 as Pope Alexander VI. To help swing the election in his favour, he agrees to wed 12-year-old Lucrezia into the ruling house Milan, but this alliance soon becomes superfluous to the Borgias, and Lucrezia’s sinister brother Cesare drives away her husband by threatening him with death.   Plans by her father and brother to marry her again, this time into the ruling house of the Kingdom of Naples, are put at risk by a liaison between Lucrezia and a chamberlain in her father’s household. Cesare has her lover murdered, but her new marriage makes Lucrezia blissfully happy, and produces a legitimate son.  Cesare, however, is still not content to let his sister be, and his alliance with France against Naples results in the murder of her second husband. Lucrezia leaves Rome heartbroken and mired in scandal, but eventually accepts a third marriage to the heir apparent to the Duchy of Ferrara. Away from the pressures of her father and brother, she begins to chart a new life in which she learns much about herself and the many forms that love may take: sensual, sacred, platonic, and familial. From this she matures as a person and eventually delivers heirs to the house of d’Este to emerge triumphant.

“France will be lost by a woman and restored by a virgin.” French prophecy.


France is being overrun by the “goddamns” (the English) and the Dauphin Charles doesn’t seem to have much real interest in regaining his kingdom. In the small town of Domremy in the Lorraine region of France, a young peasant girl lives like most other girls her age – helping her family with chores around their small farm and spending time with a few friends as time allows. But when the girl begins to hear the voices of angels, her life – and the history of France - will forever be altered. Some call her a saint; others a whore. History calls her Joan of Arc.

Written in the late 1960’s, Joan of the Lilies is short (just under 200 pages), covering the main events of Joan’s life and explaining the political situation of the time through the stories of some minor characters who (as explained by the author), “really existed although their names are not recorded”. Peters gives the young English squire, the camp follower and a young boy in Joan's service names and storylines that intersect with Joan and the other major players. We also see glimpses of Joan as a child – outspoken, stubborn and charming, attributes which would serve her later in one way or another as she sees herself as the fulfillment of the prophecy.

There is not a lot of historical or scenic detail, but the story moves along at a good pace driven by lots of dialogue that is often quite funny . Joan is not very likeable – she is impatient with those around her and takes her own feelings out on others. At times she seems rather full of herself, but yet she takes the voices warnings of injuries and her eventual capture with acceptance. Men blindly believe in and follow her, but it’s never really clear why – charm can only get you so far.

Charles (first as Dauphin and later as King) is a wishy-washy weakling who really just wants to enjoy himself and not work for anything. One alteration to history that Peters makes is the inclusion of Agnes Sorrel as Charles’ mistress during this time period (in reality she would have only been a child, and did not become his mistress until about ten years later). Agnes exercises a great deal of influence over Charles and pushes him along into meeting with the “maid of Lorraine” and later tries to get him to do the right thing when Joan is captured. But someone with even greater influence over the King convinces him that Joan wants the crown for herself, and so, she is left to her fate.

The details of Joan’s trial are left out – only the inevitable guilty verdict and the resulting punishment are alluded to – which I thought was a good thing since it seemed to really drag down the only other book about Joan that I’ve read (An Army of Angels by Paula Mercantel). This would be a good book to begin with for someone interested in Joan of Arc; it is unfortunately out of print and only a few used copies seem to be available online.

It's not easy being a virgin:  "Has Lorraine only one virgin then?  I hadn't dreamed its women were so accomodating!".  The governor of Vaucouleurs when Joan tells him that she is the virgin from Lorraine who will save France

Ain't that the truth:  "In times of emergency, there's more liquor drunk and more babies fathered than you'd credit."  The wife of an inn owner to Joan. 

Rating: Good (3 stars)

 
 
 





























 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 

Richard's love for his wife, Anne of Bohemia, gave him the strength to outwit the schemes of his enemies and govern as he saw fit, providing England with years of properity under his reign. But when tragedy strikes, Richard begins to loose the common touch by which he had ruled so brilliantly, and begins a downward spiral from which his detractors would derive strength...
















Deftly mixing fact and fiction, Kelly O'Connor McNees imagines a love affair that would threaten Louisa's writing career-and inspire the story of Jo and Laurie in Little Women. Stuck in small-town New Hampshire in 1855, Louisa finds herself torn between a love that takes her by surprise and her dream of independence as a writer in Boston. The choice she must make comes with a steep price that she will pay for the rest of her life.

About a month ago I included a couple of upcoming books about Dracula in Weekly Wishlist.  This morning I found a cover for Dracula in Love by Karen Essex.  Here is a summary:  From the shadowy banks of the River Thames to the wild and windswept coast of Yorkshire, the quintessential Victorian virgin Mina Murray vividly recounts in the pages of her private diary the intimate details of what transpired between her and Count Dracula— the joys and terrors of a passionate affair and her rebellion against a force of evil that has pursued her through time. Mina’s version of this timeless gothic vampire tale is a visceral journey into the dimly lit bedrooms, mist- filled cemeteries, and locked asylum chambers where she led a secret life, far from the chaste and polite lifestyle the defenders of her purity, and even her fiancé, Jonathan Harker, expected of her. Bram Stoker’s classic novel was only one side of the story. Now, for the first time, Dracula’s eternal muse reveals all. What she has to say is more sensual, more devious, and more enthralling than ever imagined. The result is a scintillating gothic novel that reinvents the tragic heroine Mina as a modern woman tortured by desire.  Dracula in Love will be released in the US and UK on August 10, 2010.     I definately think we are beginning to see the demise of the headless woman!

When I started this back in September, it was weekly.  Now that the number of blogs I have left is getting smaller and I'm not adding lots of new ones, Following on Friday will now be monthly.  Here are 5 more great blogs for you to check out!

A Reader's Respite - Michelle has a great sense of humor and I especially love reading her snarky comments aimed at the FTC!  Michelle reads a lot of historical fiction along with some other genres and has lots of giveaways.

Scandalous Women - "Well behaved women don't make history".  Isn't that the truth?!  Here you will find detailed and interesting posts about women who have created scandals of one form or another throughout history as well as giveaways and guests posts by authors.

Turning the Pages - Julie reads a variety of books and often has interesting topics to talk about.

The Lady Gwyn's Kingdom - Robin is a fellow historical fiction lover and I really enjoy her reviews as well as her "This Day in History" posts.

Lights, Camera, History - Devoted to period dramas, this blog is a great place to find out about historical movies you might not have ever heard about as well as information ones in the works.  Grab your popcorn!

In a historical fiction world saturated with books about the Tudors it’s nice to see someone take a slightly different angle in relating the history of those turbulent times. Kate Emerson’s “Secrets of the Tudor Court” series focuses on main characters who were real people but somewhat obscure. I thought the first book in the series (The Pleasure Palace) was a nice light read (although nothing special) but I looked forward to reading Emerson’s next book hoping for an improvement.  Unfortunately, I was disappointed.


The main problem is the main character - she's not very likeable. Anne Bassett (Nan) is the step-daughter of Lord Lisle and she is selected to become a maid of honor to Queen Jane Seymour.  Her constant focus is on finding a wealthy, titled man for a husband, making her seem shallow and I didn’t find her or her life interesting. I can deal with a main character who is not very likeable if they are more than a cardboard cutout and/or have a fascinating story to tell. After some initial intriguing plot developments, the majority of the book is rather flat and uninspiring with Nan either trying to find an unmarried noble she can marry, waiting around for the king to take another wife so she can go back to court (and resume her search) or getting the king to notice her with the thought of becoming Queen herself. Ho-hum. Even references to an apparent plot regarding Calais (where Nan's stepfather is Lord Deputy) doesn't add any interest or excitement.

I can overlook a thin plot if the writing is engaging with a main character I can relate to or empathize with. Nan is neither. She does manage to do one nice thing for someone else but mostly she thinks only of herself. At one point even as King Henry lies very ill her only thought is that without a king there is no queen and with no queen there’s no place for her at court. I understand that making a good marriage was one of the primary reasons for families sending their daughters to court, but Nan’s one track mind was annoying and I became tired of hearing about it. When she complains over the quality and quantity of some pearls her mother sent, I wanted to slap her.

Emerson indicates that much of the basis for the book comes from the letters of Lord Lisle and excerpts from the letters begin each chapter. Also included are short biographies of the historical figures in the book (of which there are many) and a Reader’s Guide.

Rating:  Disappointing (2 stars)

In case the FTC asks:  I swapped a book I already owned for this one; I promptly swapped it again.

 *Review originally posted on Royal Reviews

I'm in the process of finishing up Maureen Peters book on Joan of Arc (I didn't get much reading done this past week since my daughter was here for a visit!).  I haven't read much about this era but one character I've not encountered before (other than perhaps just a casual mention of her name) is Charles VII's mistress, Agnes Sorel.  In Joan of the Lilies she exerts quite a bit of influence on Charles, so she is today's mosaic.

Born in the early 1420's, Agnes met Charles when she was about twenty.  Thought to be very beautiful and rather intelligent, Charles fell for her and she became his mistress.  She gave Charles three daughters and one of her grandsons would go on to marry Diane de Poitiers).  Agnes died in 1450.




There is a rather - um - interesting(?!) sounding book about Agnes.  Based on the title and the cover, I know I won't be reading it.  But if anyone has, please let me know if I'm right in judging the book by its cover!

Last month I spotted Susan Higginbotham's next book (set for release in January 2011) on Amazon UK with a very pretty cover (pictured on right).  In case you don't follow Susan's wonderful blog - and if you don't, why not??! - this morning she posted a new cover for the book (see below right).  It is also very pretty but quite a different look from her other books - I especially love the red rose.  I'm not sure though that it really says "historical".  What do you think?

No English king has been the subject of more heated debate than Richard III. In this 1898 revised edition of his classic biography, Gairdner attempts to produce a more balanced analysis of the sources than most earlier writers. While largely accepting the anti-Yorkist position shown by Thomas More and Shakespeare, he does reject some of the crimes attributed to Richard, such as the murder of his brother George, Duke of Clarence. He states at the outset that Richard was not a monster but the product of his times, when violence and ruthlessness were common political weapons. He also offers a more rounded picture of the king, showing good points as well as bad, rather than a caricature of evil. The most significant addition to this edition is the substantial appendix on the imposture of Perkin Warbeck, making use of continental sources hitherto unknown to English historians

This is the second in a trilogy covering the conquest of 1066 and the events surrounding it – so if you’ve not read the first book (Gildenford) you may not want to read any further although I’ll try and keep any spoilers to a minimum.


The Norman Pretender picks up the threads of several minor characters and weaves them into those of the more well-known personalities of Harold Godwinson and William of Normandy. The result is a fascinating and entertaining story of power, love, betrayal, intrigue and loyalty which ends with the Battle of Hastings, forever altering the course of history.

Although important characters to the story, Anand devotes substantial page time to the fate of Alfgar of Mercia, Edward the Exile/Atheling, The Lady Aldith of Mercia and her first husband Gruffyd AP Llewellyn, and the primary fictional character from the first book, Brand the Woodcutter. Through the events of their lives we learn the more well known story and how William came to have a claim to the English throne, why Harold was forced to take an oath supporting it and how it all fell apart as each thought they were in the right.

Not quite objective in its account, Harold comes out as the better man with William and his wife Matilda portrayed as greedy and manipulative and not above out right murder to get what they want. As in Helen Hollick’s Harold the King, you desperately want the outcome of the story to be different and for Harold’s battle weary men to get the upper hand or for that arrow to just slightly veer off course.

I really enjoyed reading this and learning more about some of the other individuals who all had a part to play in how Harold and William’s story unfolded. Unfortunately, Anand’s trilogy is out of print and has gotten quite pricey – check your local library.

Rating: Very Good (4.5 stars)

In case the FTC asks: I bought this book used a couple of years ago (and before the price would otherwise break my “not more expensive than a hardback” rule).

I had heard about this book some time ago but hadn't seen it anywhere - until today.  Unfortunately I haven't been able to find a summary for it.  Even though I wasn't crazy about the author's first book (Lady Macbeth), I"ll probably give this one a shot since there are so few books written about Margaret of Scotland.  It will be released in the US on December 7, 2010.