Tanzanite's Castle Full of Books

Weekly Wishlist - February 1, 2012

2012-02-01T15:48:00.000-07:00

Every week Tanzanite features upcoming historical fiction and history related non-fiction books that have come to her attention and may be of interest to others. Since she has an out of control TBR pile, so should everyone else!

The Imperial Banner (Agent of Rome) by Nick Brown. UK release June 7, 2012; US release August 1, 2012.

It's 272 AD and the Roman Emperor Aurelian has defeated Queen Zenobia and crushed the Palmyran revolt, but now dark forces threaten a fragile peace. Faridun's Banner, hallowed battle standard of the Persian Empire, has fallen into Roman hands and is to be returned to the Persians as part of a historic peace treaty. But on the eve of the signing the banner goes missing. Recalled to Syria, imperial agent Cassius Corbulo is charged with recovering the flag. Accompanied by his faithful servant Simo and ex-gladiator bodyguard Indavara, Cassius must journey across the dangerous wastes of Syria to the equally perilous streets of Antioch. He and his companions face ruthless brigands, mysterious cults, merciless assassins, and intrigue at every turn.

Lionheart by Throvald Steen. US and UK release June 15, 2012.

Richard I (1157-99) was king of England from 1189 until his death, but he is best known as a soldier, not a monarch. He earned his moniker Richard the Lionheart as a knight and military leader, and his revolt against his father Henry II and his conquest of Cyprus as part of the Crusades helped to solidify his historical legend. In "Lionheart", Norwegian author Thorvald Steen, celebrated for his historical novels, brings his characteristic accuracy and artistic vision to the life of Richard I.

"Lionheart" is the story of a man living in the shadow of his own myth, also a fanatic general who wants to conquer the world's greatest sanctum and a king who is suddenly vulnerable. At the age of fifteen he leads an army against his father. Fourteen years later he is the Pope's obvious choice to lead the third Crusade. But the Richard of Steen's novel is less sure of himself and his role - is it true that he is God's chosen one, like his mother says? Drawing on extensive research, Steen paints a dark and conflicted, yet credible and convincing, portrait of a man who has engrossed historians, poets, novelists, and readers for centuries.

Victoria Rebels by Carolyn Meyer. Young Adult. US and UK release June 26, 2012.

Queen Victoria’s personal journals inform this captivating first-person account of one of history’s most prominent female leaders. Queen Victoria most certainly left a legacy—under her rule as the longest reigning female monarch in history, the British Empire was greatly expanded and significant industrial, cultural, political, scientific, and military changes occurred within the United Kingdom. To be a young woman in a time when few other females held positions of power was to lead in a remarkable age—and because Queen Victoria kept personal journals, this historical novel from award-winning author Carolyn Meyer shares authentic emotional insight along with accurate information, weaving a true story of intrigue and romance.

The Blooding by James McGee. UK release July 5, 2012.

In 1812 Britain is at war with the United States. Matthew Hawkwood, former soldier and spy, has arrived in America. He plans to head for Canada and the British lines but when he gets to Albany, headquarters of the American Northern Army, he spots a familiar face within a consignment of British prisoners – Major William Lawrence.

As Hawkwood and Lawrence make their bid for freedom, they uncover a plan by the Americans to launch an invasion against Canada. If Montreal and Quebec fall into American hands, they will gain the entire continent. Hawkwood and Lawrence must pass the information to the British before it’s too late but first they must cross the Adirondack mountains, known as the Mohawk’s ‘Hunting Grounds’. Luckily, deep in Hawkwood’s past is an old alliance, one which could save both their lives and Canada from American rule.

The Crimson Thread by Suzanne Weyn. UK reissue July 5, 2012.

A retelling of RUMPELSTILTSKIN in a brilliant new setting. It is 1880. Bertie has recently emigrated to New York from Ireland. Struggling to make ends meet and care for her younger siblings, Bertie finds work as a seamstress for textile tycoon, J.P. Wellington. When the Wellington family fortune is threatened, Bertie's father boasts that she can save the business. She can "practically spi straw into gold" Amazingly, overnight Bertie creates exquisite evening gowns - but only with the help of a mysterious man who uses an old spinnin wheel. With dazzling crimson thread, he makes the dresses look like they are laced with real gold. Bertie would do anything to pay this man back for his help. When he asks for her firstborn child, Bertie agrees, never dreaming that he is serious...

This Scarlet Cord by Joan Wolf. US and UK release July 10, 2012.

A chasm lies between Rahab and her beloved Sala that can never be crossed.

Though Sala rescues young Rahab from slave bandits, he knows he can never fall in love with a Canaanite. His belief in the One True God prevents them from a future together. Rahab's beauty gains royal notice, and she is selected to entice the King during the annual sacred marriage reenactment praising their pagan god, Baal.

But when the King suffers a heart attack and dies, Rahab is saved from the humiliating act. Her despair drives her curiosity about Sala's One True God. Could He accept her . . . even love her?

Deceit and pride stand in the way of Rahab's happy ending. Only God can use these events to tell the larger story of forgiveness and redemption.

Saxon: The Book of Dreams by Tim Severin. UK release August 2, 2012.

Frankia 780AD: Sigwulf, a minor Saxon prince, is saved from execution after his family is slaughtered by the ruthless King Offa of Mercia. Thanks to his Devil's Mark – his eyes of different colours – Sigwulf is exiled to the Frankish court of King Carolus, the future Charlemagne. There Sigwulf survives on his wits while at the same time trying to come to terms with disturbingly prophetic dreams. He gains the friendship of some – Count Hroudland, Carolus's powerful and ambitious nephew but – mysteriously – several attempts are made on Sigwulf’s life. When he obtains a Book of Dreams by chance, a rare text giving understanding to their meaning, he attracts the attention of Carolus himself. But the Book proves to be a slippery guide in a world of treachery and double dealing. Carolus sends Sigwulf and his slave Osric into Spain to spy on the Saracens ahead of a planned Frankish invasion. There, Sigwulf becomes caught between loyalties; either he honours his debt to new friends among the Saracens, or he serves his patron Count Hroudland in his quest for glory, gold and even the Grail itself. One after another Sigwulf's predictions come true, but often not as expected, and he finds himself swept forward into a final great battle that reveals who his enemies are . .

Princess Elizabeth’s Spy: A Maggie Hope Novel by Susan Elia MacNeal. US and UK release August 28, 2012. (Second in series)

Susan Elia MacNeal introduced the remarkable Maggie Hope in her acclaimed debut, Mr. Churchill’s Secretary. Now Maggie returns to protect Britain’s beloved royals against an international plot—one that could change the course of history.

As World War II sweeps the continent and England steels itself against German attack, Maggie Hope, former secretary to Prime Minister Winston Churchill, completes her training to become a spy for MI-5. Spirited, strong-willed, and possessing one of the sharpest minds in government for mathematics and code-breaking, she fully expects to be sent abroad to gather intelligence for the British front. Instead, to her great disappointment, she is dispatched to go undercover at Windsor Castle, where she will tutor the young Princess Elizabeth in math. Yet castle life quickly proves more dangerous—and deadly—than Maggie ever expected. The upstairs-downstairs world at Windsor is thrown into disarray by a shocking murder, which draws Maggie into a vast conspiracy that places the entire royal family in peril. And as she races to save England from a most disturbing fate, Maggie realizes that a quick wit is her best defense, and that the smallest clues can unravel the biggest secrets, even within her own family.

The Romanovs: The Final Chapter by Robert Massie. Non-fiction. US reissue September 18, 2012.

In July 1991, nine skeletons were exhumed from a shallow mass grave near Ekaterinburg, Siberia, a few miles from the infamous cellar room where the last tsar and his family had been murdered seventy-three years before. But were these the bones of the Romanovs? And if these were their remains, where were the bones of the two younger Romanovs supposedly murdered with the rest of the family? Was Anna Anderson, celebrated for more than sixty years in newspapers, books, and film, really Grand Duchess Anastasia? The Romanovs provides the answers, describing in suspenseful detail the dramatic efforts to discover the truth. Pulitzer Prize winner Robert K. Massie presents a colorful panorama of contemporary characters, illuminating the major scientific dispute between Russian experts and a team of Americans, whose findings, along with those of DNA scientists from Russia, America, and Great Britain, all contributed to solving one of the great mysteries of the twentieth century.

Illuminations: A Novel of Hildegard von Bingen by Mary Sharratt. US and UK release October 9, 2012.

Illuminations chronicles the life of Hildegard von Bingen (1098–1179), who was tithed to the church at the age of eight and expected to live out her days in silent submission as the handmaiden of a renowned but disturbed young nun, Jutta von Sponheim. Instead, Hildegard rejected Jutta’s masochistic piety and found comfort and grace in studying books, growing herbs, and rejoicing in her own secret visions of the divine. When Jutta died some three decades later, Hildegard broke out of her prison with the heavenly calling to speak and write about her visions and to liberate her sisters and herself from the soul-destroying anchorage.

Like Anita Diamant’s portrayal of Dinah in The Red Tent, Mary Sharratt interweaves historical research with psychological insight and vivid imagination to write an engaging and triumphant portrait of a courageous and remarkably resilient woman and the life she might have lived. Deeply affecting, Illuminations is a testament to the power of faith, love, and self-creation.

New This Week - January 29, 2012

2012-01-29T15:03:00.000-07:00

Every Sunday Tanzanite highlights books that will be released during the upcoming week. She hopes you will find something you will enjoy!

By the King's Design by Christine Trent. US and UK release January 31, 2012.

Annabelle "Belle" Stirling inherited the family draper shop from her late father, only to have it sabotaged by her ne'er-do-well brother, Wesley. Belle travels to London to seek redress, and while there, the Prince Regent, future King George IV, commissions her to provide fabrics for his Royal Pavilion. As Belle's renown spreads, she meets handsome cabinetmaker Putnam Boyce, but worries that marriage will mean sacrificing her now flourishing shop. When Wesley plots to kidnap the newly crowned King, Belle finds herself entangled in a duplicitous world of shifting allegiances, where every choice could have unexpected consequences for her future, her safety, and her kingdom...

A Parliament of Spies by Cassandra Clark. US release January 31, 2012 (will be released in the UK February 27, 2012).

Autumn 1386. Hildegard of Meaux - a Cistercian Abbess with a keen instinct for crime solving - is accompanying the Archbishop of York, Alexander Neville, to London for the opening of Parliament amid much civic unrest. While packing to leave, the Archbishop's saucier is found brutally murdered in the ale vat, and it emerges that the culprit must be one of the Archbishop's party. The journey from York to London is fraught with more deadly surprises, and it becomes clear to Hildegard that this sinister plot may also involve King Richard, and those looking to depose him at all costs. Traitors, murderers, noblemen and madmen come together to create a puzzling scheme that only Hildegard can solve, digging up past grudges, new weapons and a mysterious friar. The most recent instalment in the highly acclaimed Hildegard of Meaux series, A Parliament of Spies paints a vivid picture of medieval London, where loyalty and treason are very difficult to identify.

Sister Queens: The Noble, Tragic Lives of Katherine of Aragon and Juana, Queen of Castile by Julia Fox. Non-fiction. US release January 31, 2012 (released in the UK in 2011).

The history books have cast Katherine of Aragon, the first queen of King Henry VIII of England, as the ultimate symbol of the Betrayed Woman, cruelly tossed aside in favor of her husband’s seductive mistress, Anne Boleyn. Katherine’s sister, Juana of Castile, wife of Philip of Burgundy and mother of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, is portrayed as “Juana the Mad,” whose erratic behavior included keeping her beloved late husband’s coffin beside her for years. But historian Julia Fox, whose previous work painted an unprecedented portrait of Jane Boleyn, Anne’s sister, offers deeper insight in this first dual biography of Katherine and Juana, the daughters of Spain’s Ferdinand and Isabella, whose family ties remained strong despite their separation. Looking through the lens of their Spanish origins, Fox reveals these queens as flesh-and-blood women—equipped with character, intelligence, and conviction—who are worthy historical figures in their own right.

When they were young, Juana’s and Katherine’s futures appeared promising. They had secured politically advantageous marriages, but their dreams of love and power quickly dissolved, and the unions for which they’d spent their whole lives preparing were fraught with duplicity and betrayal. Juana, the elder sister, unexpectedly became Spain’s sovereign, but her authority was continually usurped, first by her husband and later by her son. Katherine, a young widow after the death of Prince Arthur of Wales, soon remarried his doting brother Henry and later became a key figure in a drama that altered England’s religious landscape.

Ousted from the positions of power and influence they had been groomed for and separated from their children, Katherine and Juana each turned to their rich and abiding faith and deep personal belief in their family’s dynastic legacy to cope with their enduring hardships. Sister Queens is a gripping tale of love, duty, and sacrifice—a remarkable reflection on the conflict between ambition and loyalty during an age when the greatest sin, it seems, was to have been born a woman.

Pendragon Legacy: Sword of Light by Katherine Roberts. UK release February 1, 2012.

It is the darkest hour of the darkest Age. King Arthur is dead, killed by his wicked nephew, Mordred. Saxon invaders rampage across the land and forces of evil are gathering. The path to the throne lies open to Arthur's only remaining flesh and blood - Mordred. But there is one with a better claim than Mordred - Arthur's secret child. Brought by Merlin to enchanted Avalon as a baby and raised there for protection, the king's heir must take up a vital quest: to search for the four magical Lights with the power to restore Arthur's soul to his body. Introducing Rhianna Pendragon: unlikely princess and Camelot's last hope.

Richard III by David Baldwin. Non-fiction. UK release February 1, 2012.

The first biography to show what Richard III was really like. Not many people would claim to be saints, or alternatively, consider themselves entirely without redeeming qualities. Some are unquestionably worse than others, but few have been held in greater infamy than Richard Plantagenet, afterwards Duke of Gloucester and, later still, King Richard III. Richard's character has been besmirched as often as it has been defended, and the arguments between his detractors and supporters still rage after several centuries. Was he a ruthless hunchback who butchered his way to the throne, a paragon of virtue who became a victim of Tudor propaganda, or (as seems more likely) something in between? Some would argue that a true biography is impossible because the letters and other personal documents required for this purpose are simply not available; but David Baldwin has overcome this by an in-depth study of his dealings with his contemporaries. The fundamental question he has answered is 'what was Richard III really like'.

Our Man in Rome: Henry VIII and his Italian Ambassador. Non-fiction. UK release February 2, 2012 (will be released in the US in June as The Divorce of Henry VIII).

The inside story of Henry VIII's divorce from Catherine of Aragon.

1527. Gregorio 'The Cavalier' Casali is Henry VIII's man in Rome. An Italian freelance diplomat, he charmed his way into the English service before he was twenty. But now he faces an almighty challenge. Henry wants a divorce from Catherine of Aragon, and Casali must persuade Pope Clement VII of his master's case.

Set against the backdrop of war-torn Renaissance Italy, Our Man in Rome weaves together tales from the grubby underbelly of Tudor politics with a gripping family saga to reveal the extraordinary true story behind history's most infamous divorce.

Through six years of cajoling, threats and bribery, Casali lives by his wits. He manoeuvres his brothers into lucrative diplomatic postings, plays off one master against another, dodges spies, bandits and noblemen alike. But as the years pass and Henry's case drags on, his loyalties are increasingly suspected. What will be Casali's fate?

Drawing on hundreds of unknown archive documents, Our Man in Rome reconstructs his tumultuous life among the great and powerful at this turning point for European history. From the besieged Castel Sant'Angelo in Rome to the splendours of Greenwich Palace, we follow his trail in the service of Henry VIII. Lavish ceremony and glamorous parties stand in contrast to the daily strains of embassy life, as Casali pawns family silver to pay the bills, fights off rapacious in-laws and defends himself in the face of Anne Boleyn's wrath.

The First Crusade: The Call From the East by Peter Frankopan. Non-fiction. UK release February 2, 2012 (will be released in the US in April 2012).

The first book on the Crusades to pay focus on the real backdrop and catalyst of the First Crusade from a talented and gifted debut historian.

In 1096, an expedition of extraordinary scale and ambition set off from Western Europe on a mass pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Three years later, after a journey which saw acute hardship, the most severe dangers and thousands of casualties, the knights of the First Crusade found themselves storming the fortifications and capturing the Holy City from its Muslim overlords. Against all the odds, the expedition had returned Jerusalem to Christian hands.

With its themes of the rise of the papacy, the confrontation between Christianity and Islam, the evolution of the concept of holy war, of knightly piety and religious devotion, the First Crusade is one of the best-known and most written-about events in history.

Yet this fascinating and innovative study, Peter Frankopan shifts the paradigm and asks vital questions that have never been posed before. Why was there an overwhelming desire to liberate Jerusalem in the mid-1090s, given that the city had been taken by the Muslims nearly 500 years earlier? What were the causes of the Crusade in the east which provoked such an overwhelming response in the west? What role was played by the Byzantine emperor in Constantinople in the genesis and execution of the expedition? In short, why was there a First Crusade?

Rather than concentrating on the pope and the knights of western Europe who have dominated the history of the First Crusade for centuries, Frankopan focuses on Constantinople and the Byzantine Empire. He brilliantly restores the Emperor Alexios I Komnenos to the heart of the story, with a series of catastrophic events in the mid-1090s serving to paint a compelling and strikingly original picture of the expedition to Jerusalem that will change our understanding of the Crusades as a whole.

Photo Friday - #32

2012-01-27T17:40:00.000-07:00

Random pictures from the UK

We stayed in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne one night during out trip in 2010 and walked across the River Tyne to find something to eat. We really liked the bridge with the lights that changed colors but this was the only shot that turned out.

I wish our mail boxes looked like this!

Coastline in Northumbria

At the Mercy of the Queen by Anne Barnhill

2012-01-27T12:15:00.000-07:00

Since the story of Anne Boleyn seems to remain a popular one in historical fiction, the challenge for historical fiction writers is to find a new or fresh angle to present to readers. In her debut historical novel, Anne Barnhill chooses a figure from her own family tree as the main character – Margaret Shelton. Margaret – or Madge as she is commonly referred to – was one of Anne’s cousins on her father’s side and when the family finds one of their own Queen of England, Madge is called to court to be a lady in waiting.

Barnhill is fairly sympathetic to Anne but she is not perfect – kind and good-hearted most of the time, she can be selfish and inconsiderate when the mood strikes her. As she becomes more desperate over securing her own future and her insecurities rise, it is her trusted cousin she turns to in the hopes of controlling her husband’s increasingly wandering eye. It is a big sacrifice and one that may potentially jeopardize her own happiness, but Madge is devoted to Anne and so she agrees to become the king’s mistress. Nothing like keeping it in the family!

As Madge becomes one of the queen’s main confidantes, a more intimate portrayal of Anne develops as she confesses her hopes and fears to her cousin and the two women navigate through quickly changing situations and shifting loyalties. Madge also tries to avoid the attentions of her betrothed, Henry Norris, in favor of an illegitimate son of Charles Brandon – Arthur, who Madge initially calls “Sir Churlish”. That nickname doesn’t bode well for their relationship which develops slowly over the course of the book.

There is one thing in particular that annoyed me – the use of some antiquated language (anon, prithee etc as well as some old fashioned sentence structure). Although it may have been an attempt to make the characters sound more authentic, to me it came off as gimmicky. Had the entire book been written that way it actually might have worked better since I probably would have gotten used to the language; instead, it was very random and distracting.

Overall, a good book – quick and easy to read and nice to see the focus on a figure who is usually only mentioned in passing and relegated to the shadows of the Tudor court.

In case the FTC asks: I received a copy from the publisher as part of the author's blog tour.

New This Week - January 22, 2012

2012-01-22T13:30:00.001-07:00

Every Sunday Tanzanite highlights books that will be released during the upcoming week. She hopes you will find something you will enjoy!

The Rise of Female Kings in Europe, 1300-1800 by William Monter. Non-fiction. US release January 24, 2012 (released in the UK earlier this month).

In this lively and pathbreaking book, William Monter sketches Europe's increasing acceptance of autonomous female rulers between the late Middle Ages and the French Revolution. Monter surveys the governmental records of Europe's thirty women monarchs—the famous (Mary Stuart, Elizabeth I, Catherine the Great) as well as the obscure (Charlotte of Cyprus, Isabel Clara Eugenia of the Netherlands)—describing how each of them achieved sovereign authority, wielded it, and (more often than men) abandoned it. Monter argues that Europe's female kings, who ruled by divine right, experienced no significant political opposition despite their gender.

Edward III by W. Mark Ormrod. Non-fiction. US and UK reissue January 24, 2012.

Edward III (1312–1377) was the most successful European ruler of his age. Reigning for over fifty years, he achieved spectacular military triumphs and overcame grave threats to his authority, from parliamentary revolt to the Black Death. Revered by his subjects as a chivalric dynamo, he initiated the Hundred Years' War and gloriously led his men into battle against the Scots and the French.

In this illuminating biography, W. Mark Ormrod takes a deeper look at Edward to reveal the man beneath the military muscle. What emerges is Edward's clear sense of his duty to rebuild the prestige of the Crown, and through military gains and shifting diplomacy, to secure a legacy for posterity. New details of the splendor of Edward's court, lavish national celebrations, and innovative use of imagery establish the king's instinctive understanding of the bond between ruler and people. With fresh emphasis on how Edward's rule was affected by his family relationships—including his roles as traumatized son, loving husband, and dutiful father—Ormrod gives a valuable new dimension to our understanding of this remarkable warrior king.

Anne of Hollywood by Carol Wolper. US release January 24, 2012.

“I wasn’t prepared for the enemies. Had I been as gorgeous as a supermodel, or as rich as an heiress, or an actress with an Oscar to my credit, people would still not be happy that I had Henry’s attention, but they’d understand. What they resented was the king coupling with a ‘nobody.’”

Skirts may be shorter now, and messages sent by iPhone, but passion, intrigue, and a lust for power don’t change. National bestselling author Carol Wolper spins a mesmerizing tale of a twenty-first-century Anne Boleyn.

Wily, intelligent, and seductive, with a dark beauty that stands out among the curvy California beach blondes, Anne attracts the attention of Henry Tudor, the handsome corporate mogul who reigns in Hollywood. Every starlet, socialite, and shark wants a piece of Henry, but he only wants Anne. The question is: can she keep him?

Welcome to a privileged world where hidden motives abound, everyone has something to sell, and safe havens don’t exist. With her older sister Mary, a pathetic example of a royal has-been, Anne schemes to win her beloved Henry in the only way that gives a promise of forever—marriage. Success will mean contending with backstabbing “friends,” Henry’s furious ex-wife, and the machinations of her own ambitious family, and staying married to a man who has more options than most and less guilt than is good for either of them will take all her skill. Anne will do anything to hold on to the man—and the lifestyle—she adores, however, even if sticking your neck out in Hollywood means risking far worse than a broken heart. With Henry’s closest confidante scheming against her, and another beautiful contender waiting in the wings, Anne is fighting for her life. Can she muster the charm and wit to pull off her very own Hollywood ending?

Photo Friday - #31

2012-01-20T07:54:00.000-07:00

The Arc de Triomphe from my summer 2011 trip.

Commissioned in 1806, the Arc honors those who fought and died in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic wars.

The La Resistance de 1814 sculpture

There are twelve streets that radiate outward from the arc making this the craziest roundabout I have ever seen. We stood and watched the traffice for awhile, amazed that there weren't any accidents! There didn't appear to be any rules and no one slowed down to yield to oncoming traffic - it was a free-for-all. It's not real obvious from this picture but the motorcycle and car on the left side of the arc had to quickly stop when the little silver car dashed right in front of them.

Author Guest Post: Anne Barnhill, Author of At the Mercy of the Queen

2012-01-18T06:40:00.001-07:00

Today I'm pleased to welcome Anne Barnhill to the castle as part of the blog tour for her recently released book, At the Mercy of the Queen.

I am waiting for my black velvet flats to arrive so I can sew or glue pearl (or possibly gems--fake, of course) onto them, adding one more layer to my Tudor ensemble. While it isn't true I wrote AT THE MERCY OF THE QUEEN just so I could don a Tudor dress, I will admit hiring a seamstress and getting a pattern were among the first things I did once I'd signed the contract. Yes, I love to play dress up and this gives me a tax-deductable reason to do it.

Thus far, I have the smock or shift, which in Tudor times was made of anything from coarse linen to lawn, which is a finely-woven linen, to silk. The higher a women stood on the socio-economic ladder, the finer the materials for her clothes. Thus, queens and duchesses wore silk while workwomen wore lindsey-woolsey or lockram, a coarsely woven linen. At the beginning of the 16th century, elaborate embroidery was used to edge the neckline and cuffs of the smock, often in black and referred to as blackwork. Henry VIII loved this look and in Jane Seymour's portrait, the blackwork is evident on her cuffs. As the century progressed, this fell slightly out of fashion as lace and ruffs grew in popularity.

On top of the smock is the petticoat, which is red, as was the case in Tudor England. Red was also the color of martyrs and Mary, Queen of Scots was executed wearing a red petticoat to proclaim herself a martyr for her Catholic faith. The petticoat can be full, including the top piece which holds the body up, or it can have a deep U in the front. Bess Chilvers, who is truly an expert in this area, has tried to explain this part to me, but I'm not sure I have it right yet. I think the stomacher is the top part. But there are so many possible layers it becomes confusing. Plus, sometimes the women wore different layers depending on the occasion and weather. If you are interested in further details, check out THE TUDOR TAILOR by Ninya Mikhaila and Jane Malcolm-Davies.

So, I have smock, red petticoat and red and black stomacher, the shoes and, last but not least, I have a French hood. I want to start a movement to bring the French hood back into fashion. It's the perfect accessory for a bad-hair day! Plus, you can hide everything you might need to hide right under that hood---grays, thinning spots, cowlicks--the perfect way to keep looking your best under all circumstances!

Now, all I need are the outer clothes. I'm going shopping soon to select just the proper fabrics. By the time the next book comes out, I'll be ready to go, fully-clothed!

Thank you Anne! Since I am past due for a hair appointment I think you may be onto something about bringing French hoods back in style!

Tour Schedule: http://hfvirtualbooktours.blogspot.com/2011/12/anne-clinard-barnhill-on-tour-for-at.html

Anne's website: http://www.anneclinardbarnhill.com/

End of 2011 Review Catch Up

2012-01-17T18:02:00.000-07:00

Due to a number of things going on in life and with the holidays, I managed to get severely behind in my reviews the last couple of months of 2011. Eleven of them to be exact – yikes! In order to try and get back on track, this is my "quick and dirty" solution. I resolve to do better in 2012. Really. I do.

The Amber Treasure* by Richard Denning

A nice coming of age story set in 6^th century Britain that focuses on a group of young men who yearn for war only to find that it’s not as glorious as they thought it would be. Touching on love, friendship, betrayal and courage, it could easily be for a young adult. I enjoyed the story and cared about what was going to happen next but it was rather lacking in historical details. 3 stars

Sunrise of Avalon* by Anna Elliott

The final book in Elliott’s Trystan and Isolde trilogy. Beautifully written and often haunting and sad as the pair try to save Britain from her enemies and find a way to be together despite the many obstacles in their way. The pair’s continued romantic tension and failure to communicate effectively gets a little tiring and the plot again drags a bit in the middle, but there is a nice twist to the well know tale. 4 stars

The Confession of Katherine Howard* by Suzannah Dunn

This version of Katherine Howard’s story is told by one of her close friends, Catherine Tilney. The first person narration makes the title of the book rather misleading since that actually makes it not the confession of Katherine Howard and Henry’s fifth wife actually ends up more of a background character. The result is a somewhat chatty, middle-school narration which somehow seems a little too modern and “gossip girl-ish”. 3 stars

The Women of the Cousins War* by Philippa Gregory, David Baldwin and Michael Jones. Non-fiction.

I thoroughly enjoyed the pieces on Elizabeth Woodville and Margaret Beaufort, each written by the subject’s major biographer. Philippa Gregory’s contribution is on Jacquetta Woodville (Elizabeth’s mother and the subject of her book, The Lady of the Rivers) as well as a lengthy introduction on women in history and history in historical fiction. Since there is very little that’s really known about her subject, Gregory is forced into lots of “maybes”, “perhaps” and “could haves”. I liked her introduction much more and even though I don’t agree with a lot of her theories, it was interesting to hear her point of view on the topic and how she approaches writing her novels. 4 stars (based on the contributions of Baldwin and Jones)

Theodora* by Stella Duffy

Sixth century Byzantium is not a time period I normally read about and I had never heard of Theodora before, but her story sounded interesting so I decided to give it a try. I’m glad I did! I enjoyed Theodora’s story – a performer-turned-whore-turned-high-class-courtesan-becomes- empress rags to riches story. The middle of the story plods along though as Theodora’s journey involves a sort of religious exile of sorts in northern Africa and some of the religious discussions and debates didn’t hold my interest. 4 stars

The Second Duchess* by Elizabeth Loupas

One of the best books I read in 2011! The story of Alfonso d’Este’s second wife Barbara (his first being the young Lucrezia de Medici, the subject of Robert Browning’s poem “My Last Duchess”) is well written and full of Renaissance Italy detail. Loupas presents Barbara as a smart, likeable heroine who is determined to find out exactly what happened to her predecessor but she never come across as too modern in her behavior or her beliefs. As the story and the intrigue develop, so does Barbara’s relationship with her husband and they becomes unlikely allies in their quest for the truth. A nice touch is the enigmatic Lucrezia telling her side and giving clues to the reader. 5 stars

Brief Gaudy Hour by Margaret Campbell Barnes

This take on Anne Boleyn’s story was written in the 1940’s and reissued a few years ago. Although somewhat dated in research and writing style, I did like the focus on Anne’s early life with her family, which is about a third or so of the book. But honestly I can't really remember much about it. 3.5 stars

Curse Not the King by Evelyn Anthony

The second book in Anthony’s Romanov Trilogy (also published as Royal Intrigue) covering the reign of Catherine the Great and her son Paul. Published in the 1950’s and out of print, I really liked this one and thought it was well written even if somewhat melodramatic at times. 4 stars

Catherine the Great* by Robert Massie. Non-fiction.

I really enjoyed a couple of Massie’s other books and this one was no different. At 700 pages, it is for the most part, easy to read but it gets a little bogged down in the details at times, especially the last third or so. Fascinating reading and excerpts from Catherine’s memoirs and letters are a nice addition. 4 stars

Dawn of the White Rose by Mary Pershall.

At a very low point in my life a few months ago I decided I needed to read some totally mindless fluff that would allow me to forget my problems while at the same time giving me some hope for a happily ever after in the midst of a relationship full of seemingly insurmountable problems. Having read one of Pershall’s previous books, I decided this one might fit the bill. It did. The subject of the book is my historical hunk, William Marshall. But Elizabeth Chadwick’s The Greatest Knight this is not - as it falls more into the bad-bodice-ripper variety – but that’s OK. With a brooding, moody William, an irritating Isabel and a series of misunderstandings that made more sense to the characters then they did to me, this was a mess. But admittedly, a mess I couldn’t stop reading! Maybe it was my mood. But it did what it was supposed to do at the time and so that counts for something. 2.5 stars

Fortune Made His Sword by Martha Rofheart

Written in the early 1970’s, Rofheart makes use of multiple first person narrations to relate the events of Henry V’s life (a technique she also uses in her book about Richard I, Lionheart). A couple of her choices for narrators and the accompanying story they tell seemed to have little relevance to Henry, although the narration of one of the knights from Agincourt was rather interesting. 2.5 stars

There. I feel better now.

In case the FTC asks: Some of these I received from the author/publisher for review. Those are marked with an "*".

New This Week - January 16, 2012

2012-01-16T14:23:00.000-07:00

Every Sunday Tanzanite highlights books that will be released during the upcoming week. She hopes you will find something you will enjoy!

Once again, I am a day late - blame my long weekend in Charlotte with hubby for the delay...

Alix and Nicky by Virginia Rounding. Non-fiction. US release January 17, 2012 (will be released in the UK in February 2012).

The dramatic story of Emperor Nicholas II and his wife Alexandra Fyodorovna, the last Tsar and Tsarina of Russia—A penetrating and deeply personal study that gives profound psychological insight into their marriage and how it shaped the events that engulfed them.

There are few characters in history about whom opinion has been more divided than the last Tsar of Russia, Nicholas II, and his wife the Empress Alexandra Fyodorovna. On one hand, they are venerated as saints, innocent victims of Bolshevik assassins, and on the other they are impugned as the unwitting harbingers of revolution and imperial collapse, blamed for all the ills that befell the Russian people in the 20th century. Theirs was also a tragic love story; for whatever else can be said of them, there can be no doubt that Alix and Nicky adored one another. Soon after their engagement, Alix wrote in her fiancé’s diary: “Ever true and ever loving, faithful, pure and strong as death”—words which met their fulfillment twenty-four years later in a blood-spattered cellar in Ekaterinburg.

Through the letters and diaries written by the couple and by those around them, Virginia Rounding presents an intimate, penetrating, and fresh portrayal of these two complex figures and of their passion—their love and their suffering. She explores the nature and possible causes of the Empress’s ill health, and examines in depth the enigmatic triangular relationship between Nicky, Alix and their ‘favourite,’ Ania Vyrubova, protégée of the infamous Rasputin, extracting the meaning from words left unsaid, from hints and innuendoes..

The story of Alix and Nicky, of their four daughters known collectively as ‘OTMA’ and of their hemophiliac little boy Alexei, is endlessly fascinating, and Rounding makes these characters come alive, presenting them in all their human dimensions and expertly leading the reader into their vanished world.

Roger II and the Creation of the Kingdom of Sicily by Graham Loud. Non-fiction. US and UK release January 17, 2012.

This student-friendly volume brings together English translations of the main narrative sources, and a small number of other relevant documents, for the reign of Roger II, the founder of the kingdom of Sicily. The kingdom created by King Roger was the most centralized and administratively advanced of the time, but its genesis was fraught with difficulty as the king sought to extend his power from the island of Sicily and Calabria into other parts of the south Italian mainland. This struggle, that lasted from 1127 until 1140, is graphically revealed by the two main texts in this book. A number of other texts illuminate key aspects of the reign: the relationship with the papacy, the German invasion of 1137 that came close to toppling the king's rule, the expansion of Sicilian power into the Abruzzi in 1140, and the law and administration of the kingdom, often seen as a model for the growth of effective government in the twelfth century. Despite the great intrinsic interest of the reign of King Roger, these texts have never appeared in English translation before. This will be an invaluable resource for students and scholars of medieval Europe.

Mr. and Mrs. Madison's War: America's First Couple and the Second War of Independence by Hugh Howard. Non-fiction. US release Janaury 17, 2012 (will be released in the UK in April 2012).

August 28, 1814. Dressed in black, James Madison mourns the nation's loss. Smoke rises from the ruin of the Capitol before him; a mile away stands the blackened shell of the White House. The British have laid waste to Washington City, and as Mr. Madison gazes at the terrible vista, he ponders the future-his country's defeat or victory-in a war he began over the unanimous objections of his political adversaries. As we approach its bicentennial, the War of 1812 remains the least understood of America's wars. To some it was a conflict that resolved nothing, but to others, it was our second war of independence, settling once and for all that America would never again submit to Britain. At its center was James Madison-our most meditative of presidents, yet the first one to declare war. And at his side was the extraordinary Dolley, who defined the role of first lady for all to follow, and who would prove perhaps her husband's most indispensable ally.

In this powerful new work, drawing on countless primary sources, acclaimed historian Hugh Howard presents a gripping account of the conflict as James and Dolley Madison experienced it. Mr. and Mrs. Madison's War rediscovers a conflict fought on land and sea-from the shores of the Potomac to the Great Lakes-that proved to be a critical turning point in American history.

God's Jury: The Inquisiton and the Making of the Modern World by Cullen Murphy. Non-fiction. US release January 17, 2012 (will be released in the UK in February 2012).

The acclaimed author of Are We Rome? brings his highly praised blend of deep research, colorful travelogue, and insightful political analysis to a new history of the Inquisition.

We think of the Inquisition as a holy war fought in the Middle Ages. But, as Cullen Murphy shows in this provocative new book, not only did its offices survive into the twentieth century, in the modern world its spirit is more influential than ever. Traveling from freshly opened Vatican archives to the detention camps of Guantánamo to the filing cabinets of the Third Reich, he traces the Inquisition and its legacy.

God’s Jury encompasses the diverse stories of the Knights Templar, Torquemada, Galileo, and Graham Greene. Established by the Catholic Church in 1231, the Inquisition continued in one form or another for almost seven hundred years. Though associated with the persecution of heretics and Jews—and with burning at the stake—its targets were more numerous and its techniques more ambitious. The Inquisition pioneered surveillance and censorship and “scientific” interrogation. As time went on, its methods and mindset spread far beyond the Church to become tools of secular persecution.

With vivid immediacy and authority, Murphy puts a human face on a familiar but little-known piece of our past, and argues that only by understanding the Inquisition can we hope to explain the making of the present.

A Man in Uniform by Kate Taylor. US and UK release January 18, 2012.

At the height of the Belle Epoque, François Dubon leads a well-ordered life in the bourgeois quarters of Paris’ eighth arrondissement. When not busy with his prosperous legal practice, he enjoys both a contented marriage to his aristocratic wife, Geneviève, and satisfying afternoon encounters with his mistress, Madeleine. He is never late for those five o’clock appointments nor for family dinner at seven—until a mysterious widow comes to his office with an unusual request.

The lady insists that only Dubon can save her innocent friend, an Army captain named Dreyfus who was convicted of spying and exiled to Devil’s Island two years earlier. Not wishing to disappoint the alluring widow, the gallant Dubon makes some perfunctory inquiries. But when he discovers the existence of a secret military file withheld from the defense during the trial, he embarks on an obsessive pursuit of justice that upends his complacent life.

Donning a borrowed military uniform, Dubon goes undercover into the murky world of counterespionage, where his erratic hours alarm his forbidding wife and make his mistress increasingly aloof. As the layers of deceit and double crosses mount, Dubon’s quixotic quest leads him into the heart of a dark conspiracy—one that endangers his own life and threatens to throw France herself into turmoil.

Based on the infamous Dreyfus Affair and enriched with a generous dose of classic noir, A Man in Uniform is a gripping and seductive mystery set against the gilded years of late nineteenth-century Paris.

Spartacus: The Gladiator by Ben Kane. UK release January 19, 2012 (will be released in the US in June 2012).

The first of two epic novels which tell the story of one of the most charismatic heroes history has ever known - Spartacus, the gladiator slave who took on and nearly defeated the might of Rome, during the years 73-71 BC.

In historical terms we know very little about Spartacus the man - partly because most contemporary Roman historians were keen to obliterate his memory and prevent him from attaining mythic status. This of course is grist to the novelist's mill. Ben Kane's brilliant novel begins in the Thracian village to which Spartacus has returned, after escaping from life as an auxiliary in the Roman army. But here he quickly falls foul of his overlord, the Thracian king, who has set his heart on Dionysian priestess, Ariadne - later to become wife of Spartacus. Betrayed again to the Romans by his jealous king, Spartacus - and with him Ariadne - are taken in captivity to the school of gladiators at Capua. it is here - against the unbelievable brutality of gladiatorial life - that Spartacus and Crixus the Gaul plan the audacious overthrow of their Roman masters, escaping to Vesuvius, where they recruit and train a huge slave army - an army which will keep the might of Rome at bay for two years and create one of the most extraordinary legends in history. SPARTACUS; THE GLADIATOR takes the story up to the moment when the slave army has inflicted its first great defeat on Rome.

Hawk Quest by Robert Lyndon. I had this with an original UK release date of January 19, 2012 but looks like it was released a little early.

1072 AD The Normans have captured England. The Turks have captured a Norman knight. And in order to free him, a Frank warrior named Vallon must capture four rare hawks. In the company of a Sicilian scholar and an English falconer, Vallon sets off a heart-stopping odyssey to the far ends of the earth - from Greenland to Russia to Constantinople, across raging Arctic seas and blood-drenched battlefields. Braving Viking warlords, vengeful Normans, and the unforgiving elements, Vallon and his comrades must track down their quarry one by one in a relentless race against time. Ten years in the making, Hawk Quest is high adventure in the grand tradition of Bernard Cornwell and Robyn Young, an epic story packed with visceral combat, marvellous period detail, and gripping suspense. The scale is huge. The journey is incredible. The history is real. This is Hawk Quest.

Ceawlin: The Man Who Created England by Rupert Matthews. UK release January 19, 2012 (will be released in the US in March 2012).

In this book Rupert Matthews puts forward his ground breaking new theories on the collapse of the post-Roman order in Britain and the formation of England. Drawing on newly analysed written sources and the growing mass of archaeological finds he presents a very different picture of post-Roman Britain than that usually put forward. In place of the anarchy and mayhem, Rupert suggests that Romanised governmental structures managed to survive the economic collapse of the 5th century and the population collapse of the early sixth century to emerge in new and barbarianised form in the later sixth century. The key figure in this story was Ceawlin, King of Wessex in the 570s. It was he who finally smashed the old order with his ambitious grab for power and who thus opened the way to the creation of the England that we know today with its English culture, English language and English character.

Photo Friday - #30

2012-01-13T09:40:00.000-07:00

This week's pictures are from Leeds Castle

Ruins of the barbican built by Edward I

The grounds of the castle are so pretty and peaceful.

The banqueting hall contains a huge 16th century fireplace, a beautifully ornate ceiling and a number of paintings of British monarchs.

Tanzanite's Bookmark Giveaway - January 2012

2012-01-10T17:11:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the delay in getting this month's giveaway posted - not sure where this month has gone already! With the holidays and the move, I didn't get a chance to make a bookmark in December, but I still have three to choose from this month.

Top left: Blackwork of a Knight effigy

Top right: Richard III

Bottom: Celtic knotwork in shades of blue

To enter, please complete the below form by midnight, January 31, 2012. Contest is open worldwide.

New This Week - January 8, 2012

2012-01-08T13:56:00.000-07:00

Every Sunday Tanzanite highlights books that will be released during the upcoming week. She hopes you will find something you will enjoy!

The Crown by Nancy Bilyeau. US release January 10, 2012 (will be released in the UK February 2, 2012).

An aristocratic young nun must find a legendary crown in order to save her father—and preserve the Catholic faith from Cromwell’s ruthless terror. The year is 1537. . .

Joanna Stafford, a Dominican nun, learns that her favorite cousin has been condemned by Henry VIII to be burned at the stake. Defying the sacred rule of enclosure, Joanna leaves the priory to stand at her cousin’s side. Arrested for interfering with the king’s justice, Joanna, along with her father, is sent to the Tower of London.

The ruthless Stephen Gardiner, Bishop of Winchester, takes terrifying steps to force Joanna to agree to spy for him: to save her father’s life she must find an ancient relic—a crown so powerful, it may hold the ability to end the Reformation. Accompanied by two monks, Joanna returns home to Dartford Priory and searches in secret for this long-lost piece of history worn by the Saxon King Athelstan in 937 during the historic battle that first united Britain.

But Dartford Priory has become a dangerous place, and when more than one dead body is uncovered, Joanna departs with a sensitive young monk, Brother Edmund, to search elsewhere for the legendary crown. From royal castles with tapestry-filled rooms to Stonehenge to Malmesbury Abbey, the final resting place of King Athelstan, Joanna and Brother Edmund must hurry to find the crown if they want to keep Joanna’s father alive. At Malmesbury, secrets of the crown are revealed that bring to light the fates of the Black Prince, Richard the Lionhearted, and Katherine of Aragon’s first husband, Arthur. The crown’s intensity and strength are beyond the earthly realm and it must not fall into the wrong hands.

With Cromwell’s troops threatening to shutter her priory, bright and bold Joanna must now decide who she can trust with the secret of the crown so that she may save herself, her family, and her sacred way of life. This provocative story melds heart-stopping suspense with historical detail and brings to life the poignant dramas of women and men at a fascinating and critical moment in England’s past.

The Winter Palace by Eva Stachniak. US release Janaury 10, 2012 (will be released in the UK January 19, 2012).

When Vavara, a young orphaned Polish girl, is brought to serve at Empress Elizabeth's glittering, dangerous court in St Petersburg, she is schooled by the Chancellor himself in skills from lock-picking to love-making, learning above all else to stay silent - and listen. Soon, she is Elizabeth's 'tongue' - her secret eyes and ears.

Then Sophie, a vulnerable young princess, arrives from Prussia as a prospective bride for Elizabeth's heir. Set to spy on her by the Empress, Vavara soon becomes her friend and confidante, and helps her navigate the illicit seductions and the treacherous shifting allegiances of the court.But Sophie's destiny is to become the notorious Catherine the Great. Are her ambitions more lofty and far-reaching than anyone suspected, and will she stop at nothing to achieve absolute power?

Photo Friday - #29

2012-01-06T17:02:00.000-07:00

During my short trip to London last summer I visited the Tower of London for the second time. This time I was by myself so I was able to take my time. It wasn't nearly as busy this time either - maybe it's because I went late in the day or maybe it was the clouds moving in over the Thames. Both factors allowed me to get some great shots!

This has to be my favorite picture that I've ever taken. When my husband first saw it he didn't believe it was actually a picture - but I swear it is! I didn't even realize the way the tree was framing the Tower - I just did a "point and shoot". I just wish that white scaffolding on the left wasn't there.

Close up of the pillow on the memorial to those executed at the Tower. On my last visit, there was so many people around the memorial that it was hard to get some good close up shots. That yellow spot on the pillow is a small leaf.

This cracked me up and was something I don't think was there on my first visit. In the Bowyer Tower was an exhibit regarding the imprisonment and death of Edward IV's brother, George Duke of Clarence. Included in the exhibit are a small cell and the legendary barrell of malmsey wine in which he drowned.

Giveaway Winners

2012-01-05T15:59:00.000-07:00

With everything going on the month of December, I forgot to pick the winners of a couple of giveaways. So...

The winner of Chivalry by Mark Lord is:

Margaret

This month's bookmark winner is:

Jennifer K from Canada

Emails will be sent to the winners this evening. Thanks to everyone who entered and to Mark for providing a copy of his book.

Weekly Wishlist - January 3, 2012

2012-01-03T16:02:00.000-07:00

I took a little break over the holidays so things have gotten a little backed up - this week's list is a long one!

Between Love and Honor by Alexandra Lapierre. US and UK release April 2012.

Between Love and Honor is a historical love story based on the facts of Czar Nicholas I of Russia’s 25-year struggle to contain the Muslims of the Caucasus Mountains. The book follows Jamal Eddin, son of the Jihadist warrior Imam Shamil, as he’s taken hostage by the Czar. The boy so impressed the Czar that he was raised alongside the Czar’s sons. He was encouraged to practice his religion – part of a plot by the Czar to place the boy as ruler in his father’s stead, bringing the interests of Russia to power – and he managed to incorporate Islam into courtly life among the glamorous Imperial set.

All this changed, however, when he fell in love; the girl was from one of the most celebrated intellectual families in the Empire, and Jamal Eddin could have her hand only if he agreed to convert to Christianity. Deeply in love, he would willingly commit this act of apostasy. Despite the plans the Czar had for his protégé, Nicholas also agreed to the match; indeed, he promised to stand as godfather at Jamal Eddin’s baptism and best man at his wedding. Upon this news, 17 years after his kidnapping, Jamal’s father makes his move, but leaves the choice to his son: will he return to his village or remain with his love?

Bring Up the Bodies by Hilary Mantel. UK release May 10, 2012.

The sequel to the Man Booker-winning Wolf Hall.

‘My boy Thomas, give him a dirty look and he’ll gouge your eye out. Trip him, and he’ll cut off your leg,’ says Walter Cromwell in the year 1500. ‘But if you don’t cut across him he’s a very gentleman. And he’ll stand anyone a drink.’

By 1535 Thomas Cromwell, the blacksmith’s son, is far from his humble origins. Chief Minister to Henry VIII, his fortunes have risen with those of Anne Boleyn, Henry’s second wife, for whose sake Henry has broken with Rome and created his own church. But Henry’s actions have forced England into dangerous isolation, and Anne has failed to do what she promised: bear a son to secure the Tudor line. When Henry visits Wolf Hall, Cromwell watches as Henry falls in love with the silent, plain Jane Seymour. The minister sees what is at stake: not just the king’s pleasure, but the safety of the nation. As he eases a way through the sexual politics of the court, its miasma of gossip, he must negotiate a ‘truth’ that will satisfy Henry and secure his own career. But neither minister nor king will emerge undamaged from the bloody theatre of Anne’s final days.

In ‘Bring up the Bodies’, sequel to the Man Booker Prize-winning ‘Wolf Hall’, Hilary Mantel explores one of the most mystifying and frightening episodes in English history: the destruction of Anne Boleyn. From history’s darkroom, this novel offers a speaking picture to the modern world, a vision of Tudor England so recognizable it defies archaism. It is the work of one of our great writers at the height of her powers.

Machiavelli by Miles Unger. Non-fiction. US paperback release June 19, 2012 (cover may not be final)

Few philosophers are more often referred to and more often misunderstood. Truly a product of the Renaissance period, Machiavelli was as much a revolutionary in the field of political philosophy as Leonardo or Michelangelo were in painting and sculpture. Machiavelli spent years studying events and people before writing his famous books, which were based on observations of human nature that were as perceptive as Shakespeare’s.

Descended from minor nobility, he grew up in a household that was run by a vacillating and incompetent father. He eventually became an important figure in the Florentine state but was defeated by the deposed Medici and Pope Julius II. He was tortured, but eventually freed by the restored Medici.

Machiavelli had seen the best and the worst of human nature, and he understood how the world operated—not how it should operate, but how it actually did. He was appropriately cynical in his writing, given what he had personally experienced. He was an outstanding writer, and his work remains fascinating nearly 500 years later.

The Island House by Posie Gramie-Evans. US and UK release June 26, 2012 (cover may not be final)

In 2011 Freya Dane, a Ph.D. candidate in archaeology, arrives on the ancient Scottish island of Findnar. After years of estrangement from her father, himself an archaeologist who recently died, Freya has come to find out what she can about his work. As she reads through his research notes, she sees he learned a great deal about the Viking and Christian history of the island. But what he found only scratches the surface of the discoveries Freya is about to make.

In 800 A.D. a Pictish girl named Signy loses her entire family during a Viking raid. She is taken in by the surviving members of the Christian community on Findnar, but when she falls deeply in love with a Viking boy, she is cast out. She eventually becomes a nun and finds herself at the center of the clash between the island’s three religious cultures. The tragedy of her story is that, in the end, she must choose among her adopted faith, her native religion, and the man she loves.

Centuries apart, Freya and Signy are each on the verge of life-changing events that will bring present-day and Viking-era Scotland together. The Island House plunges the reader into a past that never dies and a love that reaches out across a thousand years.

Madame Serpent by Jean Plaidy. US reissue July 3, 2012 (cover may not be final).

Sullen-eyed and broken-hearted, fourteen-year-old Catherine de Medici arrives in Marseilles to marry Henry of Orleans, second son of the King of France. On the promise of a dowry fit for a king, Catherine has left her true love in Italy, forced into trading her future for a stake in the French crown.

Amid the glittering fetes and banquets of the most immoral court in sixteenth-century Europe, the reluctant bride becomes a passionate but unwanted wife. Catherine is humiliated when she spies Henry with his lover, the infamous Diane de Poitiers. Tortured by what she sees, Catherine becomes occupied by a ruthless ambition destined to make her the most despised woman in France: the dream that one day the French crown will be worn by a Medici heir...

River of Destiny by Barbara Erskine. UK release July 5, 2012.

From the bestselling author of Time’s Legacy and Lady of Hay comes a thrilling new novel, River of Destiny, whose epic story spans Anglo Saxon Britain, Victorian Suffolk and the present day.

On the banks of the River Deben in Suffolk lies a set of barns dating back to the Anglo Saxons, within their walls secrets have laid buried for centuries.

Zoe and Ken have just moved into one of the barns, ready to start a new life away from the hustle and bustle of the city. To the outside world they seem like an ordinary couple, but underneath they are growing more distant by the day. And when Zoe becomes close to local recluse, Leo, she finds her attraction to him undeniable.

Whilst farmers are ploughing the land surrounding the barns, sets of human bones are found and when the police arrive it becomes clear that the bones are much older than first suspected…

From an ancient burial ground to a Victorian murder, Erskine will have you gripped as the mystery unfolds across the ages…

The Men Who Would be King by Josephine Ross. Non-fiction. US paperback reissue July 10, 2012.

The pursuit of the Virgin Queen was the greatest hunt in history. For more than half a century Elizabeth I was pursued by kings, princes, and nobles from around the world. Yet not one of these illustrious suitors managed to secure their quarry.

Why? Was she haunted by the six marriages of her father, Henry VIII? Was her traumatic early love affair with Thomas Seymour, effectively her stepfather, to blame? Or was Elizabeth simply in love with the chase?

During the marriage negotiations, which spanned half a century, romance blended with diplomacy as suitor after suitor endeavored to ally himself to her in the most intimate of treaties.

Throughout it all Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, was the most persistent of the suitors to the Queen, and although he never won her, he was dearly loved by Elizabeth all her life.

Machiavelli: The Novel by Joseph Markulin. US and UK release August 1, 2012.

As the author of The Prince, Machiavelli’s name has become synonymous with the work of the devil, with the brutal exercise of power, and with immorality. Nothing could be further from the truth. In this richly told historical novel, the life of the much vilified philosopher comes to vivid life The historical Machiavelli is a diabolically clever but mild mannered, conscientious civil servant who struts upon the same stage as heavyweights like Florence’s Medici family, the nefarious and perhaps incestuous Borgias, the artists Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo and the doomed prophet Savonarola. His is an adventure story replete with violence, treachery, heroism, betrayal, sex, corrupt popes, noble outlaws, deformed kings, menacing Turks, even more menacing Lutherans, unscrupulous astrologers, untrustworthy dentists—and, of course, true love.

Imprisoned, tortured and ultimately abandoned, Machiavelli nevertheless remains the sworn enemy of tyranny and a lifelong champion of freedom and the republican form of government. Idealistic to the point of impracticality, he pays a dear price for his convictions. Out of the cesspool that was Italian Renaissance politics, only one name is still uttered today—that of Niccolo Machiavelli.

Hunter’s Rage by Michael Arnold. UK release August 2, 2012.

Posted to the hostile territory of Dartmoor, Captain Innocent Stryker and his men are attacked by an elite cavalry unit commanded by the formidable Colonel Gabriel Wild and suffer heavy losses. Stryker has already clashed once with Wild, and the Roundhead has sworn to seek his revenge. After the attack, Stryker is faced with the annihilation of his company as he is hounded across the moor, eventually seeking shelter on an isolated tor populared by an enigmatic former priest who harbours no love for the King's cause. Colonel Wild is assisted in his revenge by Osmyn Hogg, Parliamentarian Witchfinder, who shares his own deadly history with Stryker. To save his honour and his life, Stryker must lead his men to glory from the protection of the lonely granite-topped hill. Into this atmosphere of intrigue and danger comes the beautiful but mysterious Cecily Cade. Stryker comes to her aid, unaware that she carries with her special knowledge that may prove the key to Royalist victory.

The battle between Stryker and his old foes takes him from the bleak isolation of Dartmoor, through the war-ravaged lands of southern England and finally to Stratton, where the bloody battle between Cornwall and Devon will decide the fate of the south-west.

The Kingmaker’s Daughter by Philippa Gregory. US release August 7, 2012; UK release August 16, 2012.

The Kingmaker’s Daughter is the gripping and ultimately tragic story of the daughters of the man known as the “Kingmaker,” the most powerful magnate in England through the Cousins’ Wars. In the absence of a son and heir, he uses the two girls as pawns in his political games, but they grow up to be influential players in their own right. In this novel, her first sister story since The Other Boleyn Girl, Gregory explores the lives of two fascinating young women.

At the court of Edward IV and his beautiful queen, Elizabeth Woodville, Anne grows from a delightful child brought up in intimacy and friendship with the family of Richard, Duke of Gloucester, to become ever more fearful and desperate when her father makes war on his former friends. Her will is tested when she is left widowed and fatherless, with her mother in sanctuary and her sister married to the enemy. Fortune’s wheel turns again when Richard rescues Anne from her sister’s house, with danger still following Anne, even as she eventually ascends to the throne as queen. Having lost those closest to her, she must protect herself and her precious only child, Prince Edward, from a court full of royal rivals.

The King’s Damsel by Kate Emerson. US and UK release August 7, 2012.

In 1533 and again in 1534, Henry the Eighth reportedly kept a mistress while he was married to Anne Boleyn. Now, that mistress comes to vivid life in Kate Emerson’s The King’s Damsel.

A real-life letter from Spanish Ambassador Eustace Chapuys, written on September 27, 1534, reported that the king had “renewed and increased the love he formerly bore to another very handsome young lady of the Court” and that the queen had tried “to dismiss the damsel from her service.” Other letters reveal that the mystery woman was a “true friend” of the Princess (later Queen) Mary, Henry’s daughter by Catherine of Aragon.

Though no one knows who “the king’s damsel” really was, here Kate Emerson presents her as young gentlewoman Thomasine Lodge, a lady-in-waiting to King Henry’s daughter, Princess Mary. Thomasine becomes the Princess’s confidante, especially as Henry’s marriage to Catherine dissolves and tensions run high. When the king procures a divorce in order to marry Anne Boleyn, who is suspicious and distrustful of Mary, Mary has Thomasine placed in Anne’s service to be her eyes and ears. And that’s when she gets the attention of the king...

Rich in historical detail and featuring a wealth of bonus material, The King’s Damsel is sure to keep readers coming back for more.

The Romanov Conspiracy by Glenn Meade. US and UK release August 7, 2012 (cover may not be final).

From the internationally bestselling author of The Second Messiah – an intriguing thriller about an archeologist who discovers new clues to the mysterious disappearance of Princess Anastasia.

Dr. Laura Pavlov is a member of an international team digging on the outskirts of the present day Russian city of Ekaterinburg, where the Romanov royal family was executed by its captors in July 1918.

When Dr. Pavlov discovers two bodies perfectly preserved in permafrost in a mineshaft, she discovers dramatic new clues to the disappearance of the Romanovs, and in particular their famous daughter Princess Anastasia, whose murder has always been in doubt. What Pavlov learns will change the accepted course of world history and hurl her back into the past - and into a maelstrom of secrets and lies.

The Romanov Conspiracy is a high-tension story of trust and betrayal, of a fight between good and evil, and of love and friendship, set in one o the most bloody and brutal revolutions in world history.

Send Me Safely Back Again by Adrian Goldsworthy. UK release August 9, 2012.

The third novel in the series sees new challenges for the men of the 106th Foot, as the British army attempts to recover from the disaster of Corunna and establish a foothold in the Peninsula. Featuring the battles of Medellin and Talavera, the 106th will have their mettle severely tested on the battlefield. But if Napoleon is to be ejected from Spain, war must also be waged in more covert ways. For Hanley, the former artist who is a more natural observer than fighter, the opportunity to become an 'exploring officer' leads him into even more dangerous territory, the murky world of politics and partisans. And while Ensign Williams seeks to uncover the identity of the mysterious 'Heroine of Saragossa', a conspiracy of revenge within the regiment itself threatens to destroy him before he's even faced a shot from the French.

Spartacus: Rebellion by Ben Kane. UK release August 16, 2012.

The mighty slave army led by Spartacus has carried all before it, shredding the armies of three praetors, two consuls and one proconsul. Outside Mutina (Modena) on the plain of the River Po, he has defeated Gaius Cassius Longinus, proconsul of Cisalpine Gaul and general of an army of two legions. Now the road home lies before them - to Thrace for Spartacus and to Gaul for his seconds-in-command, Castus and Gannicus. But storm clouds are massing on the horizon. Crixus the Gaul, once Spartacus's most powerful general, has defected, taking his men with him. In Rome, the hugely rich Marcus Licinius Crassus will be given ten legions and told to put an end to the slave rebellion - whatever it takes. Meanwhile a potentially fatal difference of opinion is opening up between Spartacus on the one hand and Castus and Gannicus on the other. He wants to lead his men over the Alps and away home. They want to turn back south and march on Rome itself, believing that the Republic can be brought to its knees. This division between the warrior commanders will lead to a critical turning point in the course of history and bring Spartacus himself to his day of reckoning. Rebellion has become war. War to the death.

The Twelve Rooms of the Nile by Enid Shomer. US and UK release August 21, 2012.

Before she became the nineteenth-century’s heroine, before he had written a word of Madame Bovary, Florence Nightingale and Gustave Flaubert traveled up the Nile at the same time. In reality, they never met. But in award-winning author Enid Shomer’s The Twelve Rooms of the Nile, they ignite a friendship marked by intelligence, humor, and a ravishing tenderness that will alter both their destinies.

On the surface, Nightingale and Flaubert have little in common. She is a woman with radical ideas about society and God, naive in the ways of men. He is a notorious womanizer, involved with innumerable prostitutes. But both are at painful crossroads in their lives and burn with unfulfilled ambition. In Enid Shomer’s deft hands, the two unlikely soulmates come together to share their darkest torments and fervent hopes. Brimming with adventure and the sparkling sensibilities of the two travelers, this mesmerizing debut novel offers a luminous combination of gorgeous prose and wild imagination, all of it colored by the opulent tapestry of mid-nineteenth century Egypt.

A Most Beautiful Deception/The Malice of Fortune by Michael Ennis. US and UK release September 11, 2012.

A sweeping, intense historical thriller starring two of the great minds of Renaissance Italy: Niccolò Machiavelli and Leonardo da Vinci. Based on a real historical mystery, and involving serial murder and a gruesome cat and mouse game at the highest levels of the Church -- it was the era of the infamous Borgias -- A Most Beautiful Deception is a delicious treat for fans of Umberto Eco, Sarah Dunant, and Elizabeth Kostova.

This brilliant novel is an epic tale exploring the backdrop of the most controversial work of the Italian Renaissance, The Prince. Here, Niccolò Machiavelli, the great "scientist" of human behaviour becomes, in effect, the first criminal profiler, while his contemporary and sometime colleague, the erratic genius Leonardo da Vinci, brings his observational powers to the increasingly desperate hunt for a brilliant, terrifying serial murderer. Their foil and partner is the exquisite Damiata, scholar and courtesan. All three know their quarry is someone who holds enormous power, both to tear Italy apart, and destroy each of their most beloved dreams. And every thrilling step is based on historical fact.

Betrayal by Julian Stockwin. UK release October 11, 2012.

Cape Colony is proving a tiresome assignment for Captain Kydd's daring commander-in-chief Commodore Popham. Rumours that South America's Spanish colonies are in a ferment of popular unrest and of a treasure hoard of silver spur him to assemble a makeshift invasion fleet and launch a bold attack on the capital of the Viceroyalty of the River Plate, Buenos Aires.

Navigating the treacherous bars and mud flats of the river, the British invasion force lands and wins a battle against improbable odds, taking the capital and the silver. But nothing is as simple as it seems in this region of the world: the uprising that will see the end of Spanish rule never arrives and the locals begin to see dark conspiracies behind the invader's actions. Soon the tiny British force finds itself surrounded by an ever more hostile population. The city begins to revolt against its liberators.

Now Kydd's men must face fierce resistance and the betrayal of their closest allies. Can they save themselves, and their prize?

The Wolf’s Gold (Empire V) by Anthony Riches. UK release October 25, 2012.

In the wake of their victory in Germania, Marcus and the Tungrians have been sent east to Dacia, the land of the wolf, with the mission to safeguard a major source of imperial power. Containing enough gold to pave the road to Rome, the mines of Alburnus Major would make a mighty prize for the marauding tribesmen who threaten the province, and the outnumbered auxiliaries are entrusted with their safety in the face of a barbarian invasion.

Beset by both the Sarmatian horde and the more subtle threats offered by men who should be their comrades, the Tungrians must also come to terms with the danger posed by a new and unexpected enemy.

The wolf is stirring...

Bosworth: The Rise of the Tudors by Christopher Hibbert. Non-fiction. UK release May 13, 2013.

The Battle of Bosworth has a legendary significance in British history. The last battle fought on English soil until the seventeenth century, and the last occasion that an English king would die on the battlefield, it was also the battle that brought an end to the dynasty of Plantagenet kings who had ruled since 1154, and heralded the birth of the Tudor dynasty. Yet the story of Bosworth is more than just the result of a few hours bloodshed on the battlefield. It is the culmination of the rise of the House of Tudor, a remarkable story which began fifty years earlier, when a page of Henry V's ran off with his widow.

It is the tale of the turbulent life of Henry Tudor, who, against the odds, rose from relatively humble origins and exile in France to overthrow the deeply unpopular Richard III. When this inexperienced young soldier landed in England in 1485 with 2,000 French mercenaries and a handful Lancastrian lords and knights, few could have predicted his campaign would end in with him seizing the throne of England. Drawing on a wide range of unpublished sources as well as new research that has only recently come to light, Chris Skidmore will disentangle fact from legend and relate the compelling story of the battle in full. BOSWORTH will also set the battle against the background of the storms of the Wars of the Roses, and paint a vivid portrait of this time of immense political ferment and social change.

New This Week - January 2, 2012

2012-01-02T11:15:00.002-07:00

Every Sunday Tanzanite highlights books that will be released during the upcoming week. She hopes you will find something you will enjoy!

Hope everyone had a nice time ringing in the New Year!! I know we did - which is why this is posted a day late...

The Queen and the Courtesan by Freda Lightfoot. US release January 1, 2012 (released in the UK in September 2011).

Henriette d'Entragues isn't satisfied with simply being the mistress of Henry IV of France, she wants a crown too. Despite his promises to marry her, the King is obliged by political necessity to ally himself with Marie de Medici, an Italian princess who will bring riches to the treasury. But Henriette isn't for giving up easily. She has a written promise of marriage which she intends to use to declare the royal marriage illegal. All she has to do to achieve her ambition is to give Henry a son, then whatever it takes through intrigue and conspiracy to set him on the throne.

At the Mercy of the Queen by Anne Barnhill. US and UK release January 3, 2012.

A sweeping tale of sexual seduction and intrigue at the court of Henry VIII, At the Mercy of the Queen is a rich and dramatic debut historical about Madge Shelton, cousin and lady-in-waiting to Anne Boleyn.

At the innocent age of fifteen, Lady Margaret Shelton arrives at the court of Henry VIII and quickly becomes the confidante of her cousin, Queen Anne Boleyn. But she soon finds herself drawn into the perilous web of Anne’s ambition.

Desperate to hold onto the king’s waning affection, Anne schemes to have him take her guileless young cousin as mistress, ensuring her husband’s new paramour will owe her loyalty to the queen. But Margaret has fallen deeply in love with a handsome young courtier. She is faced with a terrible dilemma: give herself to the king and betray the love of her life or refuse to become his mistress and jeopardize the life of the her cousin, Queen Anne.

Armada by John Stack. UK release January 5, 2012.

The author of the MASTERS OF THE SEA series, is back with a standalone battle book that will blow all others out of the water.

1587. Two nations are locked in bitter conflict. One strives for dominance, the other for survival.

After decades of religious strife, Elizabeth sits on the throne of England. The reformation continues. Catholic revolts have been ruthlessly quashed, and Elizabeth has ordered the execution of her cousin, Mary Queen of Scots. On the continent bloody religious wars rage, but England stands apart, her surrounding seas keeping her safe from the land armies of her would-be enemies. Only at sea do the English show their teeth. Sea captains and adventurers, hungry for the spoils of trade from the Spanish Main, regularly attack the gold-laden galleons of Catholic Spain. They are terriers nipping at the feet of war-horses but their victories disrupt the treasury of Spain, England's greatest threat, and Elizabeth's refusal to rein in her sea-captains further antagonises Philip II.

Thomas Varian is a captain in Drake's formidable navy, rising quickly through the ranks. But he guards a secret – one for which he would pay with his life if discovered: he is a Catholic. He is about to find his conflicting loyalty to his religion, to his Queen, and to his country tested under the most formidable of circumstances: facing the mighty Armada. Unknown to Varian, he will also be facing his long-estranged father, who is fighting on the side of the Spanish enemy…

Perdition by James Jackson. UK release January 5, 2012.

Almost two hundred years have elapsed since the Crusader armies took Jerusalem. Now it is the turn of the Saracen to seek revenge and send an overwhelming force against the last Christian enclave in the Holy Land. In Acre, the defenders await their fate. Knight and bishop, mercenary and merchant, all will be tested and all may perish. For this is the endgame. No quarter will be given and no mercy shown.

William of Beaujeu, Grand Master of the Templars, will stop at little to secure the city and preserve his legendary military order. He knows that final judgement is approaching and that time is running out. But among the garrison are allies - the adventurer de Flor, Theobald, the young Hospitaller, the court dwarf Amethyst, the camel master Selim and the orphan boy and spy Benedict - who must stay alive in the chaos to be unleashed. In their midst prowl the feared Assassins and sinister enemies from among a rabble army of Italians. Deserted by the pope and the princes of Europe, it seems as if Acre faces annihilation - but perhaps something can still be salvaged from perdition . . .

Death of an Empire by M.K. Hume. UK release January 5, 2012.

Merlin's epic quest continues as he journeys to Constantinople in search of his father.

Myrddion Emrys of Segontium is the product of a brutal rape, but when King Vortigern hints at his father's identity, Myrddion embarks on a journey across France and Italy to Constantinople. It is a voyage that is to turn the young healer into a man of great renown. Serving under General Flavius Aetius at the Battle of the Catalaunian Plains, Myrddion saves the lives of thousands of warriors and, on his arrival in Rome, he heals many more, including Cleoxenes, Envoy to Emperor Theodosius of the East, on his way to a delegation with Attila the Hun. But a deadlier conflict between Emperor Valentinian of the West and Senator Petronius Maximus is still to come and Myrddion must use all his strength to carry out his work in a world that is evil.

Jezebel by Eleanor de Jong. US and UK release Janaury 5, 2012.

Set against the sweeping backdrop of the ancient Holy Land, Jezebel is a tale of love, loss and deceit - and one woman’s struggle to survive in a land filled with rivals plotting her downfall…

Her name is iconic. Her courage extraordinary. Her story remarkable.

Jezebel, a young princess of Tyre is destined to be married to King Ahab of Israel. Yet she is determined to rule her own life and begins an illicit affair with Jehu, a visiting prince at court.

Years pass and Jehu, unable to relinquish his love for Jezebel grows bitter and twisted. But he is unaware of Jezebel's greatest secret – that he is father to her eldest son Ahaziah, the heir to Israel's throne.

With the King's health deteriorating, Jezebel gradually assumes control of Israel but hatred of her is spreading across the land, fanned by the prophet Elijah and his aide, the terrifying Elisha. As they plot her downfall, Jezebel must find her inner strength and fight for her beliefs against all odds.

Set against the sweeping backdrop of the Holy Land comes an epic tale of one of the most courageous and controversial women of all time. Jezebel will enthral fans of The Red Tent and The Borgia Bride.

The Shadow Prince by Terence Morgan. UK release January 5, 2012.

Perkin Warbeck is an ordinary young man in fifteenth-century Tournai. The son of a port official, he loves nothing more than swimming, singing and fishing with his father. But Perkin has a secret. His real name is Richard, and he is the rightful Prince of England. Thought to have been murdered with his brother, Edward, in the Tower of London, he was covertly taken to the continent and placed with an adoptive family under an assumed identity. But when his enemies seek him out he must flee, and embarks on a new life of derring-do, sailing the high seas with the era’s greatest adventurers.

But Richard cannot avoid his fate forever. He knows he must return to England, to assume the throne that is his birthright. But what for Richard is a homecoming, for the new king, Henry Tudor, is nothing less than an invasion, and ‘Perkin’ slowly comes to learn that the price of his goal is the blood of innocent men. Based on painstaking research, and peopled by some of the most extraordinary characters of an extraordinary period, Perkin’s tale is a vivid, authentic, and hugely entertaining historical adventure.

New This Week - December 26, 2011

2011-12-26T14:40:00.000-07:00

Every Sunday Tanzanite highlights books that will be released during the upcoming week. She hopes you will find something you will enjoy!

In addition to being a day late this week, I also missed last week due to moving, so those are included in this week's post as well.

Albert: A Life by Jules Stewart. Non-fiction. US release December 20, 2011 (released in the UK in October 2011).

Albert: Prince Consort to Queen Victoria, social and cultural visionary in his own right, was born in the Saxon duchy of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld but defined the culture and direction of 19th century Britain - a superpower at the zenith of its influence - more than any other British royal or politician. Although he pleaded with his wife that no monument to his memory should be left (a plea that was to go unheeded by his grieving widow) the role he played in shaping Victorian culture stands today as indisputable proof of the enduring legacy of a man who spent just two decades of his short life in England.

Though overshadowed in history by his adoring wife, and at times even mocked by her subjects, it was arguably Albert that gave form and substance to the Victorian Age. From the outset, he strove to win 'the respect, the love and the confidence of the Queen and of the nation', pursuing an extraordinary social and cultural crusade that has become his greatest legacy. From the Great Exhibition and the construction of many of London's great museums to his social campaigns against slavery and the Corn Laws, Albert's achievements were truly remarkable - in fact, very few have made such a permanent mark on British society. This is the life story of Albert of Saxe-Coburg: Prince Consort and beloved husband of Queen Victoria - and one of the most influential figures of modern Europe.

Conqueror: A Novel Of Kublai Khan by Conn Iggulden. US release December 27, 2011 (was released in the UK in October 2011).

The novels of Conn Iggulden bring the past to thrilling life, from ancient Rome to thirteenth-century Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. Now he delivers the spectacular story of the rise of Genghis Khan’s grandson, a man destined to become one of the most remarkable rulers who ever lived—the legendary Kublai Khan.

A succession of ruthless leaders has seized power in the wake of the great Khan’s death—all descendants of Genghis, but none with the indomitable character that led a people to triumph. One grandson, Guyuk, decadent and vicious, seeks to consolidate his position through bribery and murder, pitting powerful factions against one another and straining the loyalties of the tribes to the breaking point.

Next comes his cousin, Mongke, who eliminates all possible opposition with breathtaking brutality and dispatches his younger brothers Kublai and Hulegu to far-flung territories, to test their mettle and their allegiance.

Hulegu displays his barbarity with the savage destruction of Baghdad and his clash with the Khan’s age-old enemies, the cult of assassins, who will strike deep into the heart of the nation. But it is Kublai—refined and scholarly, always considered too thoughtful to take power—who will devise new ways of warfare and conquest as he builds the dream city of Xanadu and pursues the ultimate prize: the ancient empire of Sung China. His gifts will serve him well when an epic civil war breaks out among brothers, the outcome of which will literally change the world.

Brilliantly researched and imagined, unforgettably told, Conqueror is a magnificent achievement from an enthralling writer at the peak of his powers, a must read for all lovers of history and storytelling on the grand scale.

The Maid and the Queen: The Secret History of Joan of Arc and Yolande of Aragon. UK release December 29, 2011 (will be released in the US in March 2012).

How did an illiterate 17-year-old peasant girl manage to become one of histories most salient females? It is almost 600 years since Joan of Arc heard the voices of angels that would change her life forever: in a breathtaking story her quest saved France from English domination and restored France's hereditary monarchy. Just thirteen when her life changed forever, Joan's holy guidance led her on an arduous eleven-day journey into the unknown, restoring the Dauphin back to his original birthright in an official coronation where he was able to resume his rule as France's legitimate king. Joan summoned and led an impressive army of French loyalists against the English, marking the siege at Orleans as an exhilarating English defeat that would liberate the city. The following year witnessed Joan's capture by the enemy.

After a series of heroic endeavours to escape cruel adversaries, she was subjected to trial by inquisition and then in Rouen, the heart of France, Joan's courageous journey came to a heartbreaking conclusion. This is the story at the core of centuries of myth-making. But what if we no longer accept this tale? What if we question whether the Heavens and their angels were truly Joan's only source of strength and power? What if we demand a different narrative? This revisionist biography unearths the secular and verifiable basis for Joan's heroic exploits: Yolande of Aragon, a forgotten mentor. This is a story of not one life, but two; two lives that together were intertwined in the restoration of France's greatness.

Photo Friday - #28

2011-12-23T09:45:00.000-07:00

The adorable village of Corfe Castle, slong the southern coast of England in Dorset

and the castle of the same name that overlooks it...

Due to its highly defensive position (and perhaps its remote location), Corfe Castle was often used as a state prison. Henry I's older brother Robert was imprisoned here as was King John's niece Eleanor. Edward II was kept here in 1326 before he was moved to Berkeley Castle. This was the last place on our itinerary and it was one of our favorites!

Cover Slut: 2012 Releases

2011-12-20T06:29:00.001-07:00

I apologize for the lack of posts lately - I have been dealing with some family issues and as if that wasn't enough, my daughter who just graduated from college has taken a non-paying internship/job here in DC and so will be moving in with me next week. That meant I had to move - again - into a larger apartment so life has been a little nutso the last few weeks. I hope to get back to regular reading and blogging after the holidays. In the meantime, here are the covers for a couple of upcoming releases previously mentioned as part of a "Weekly Wishlist" post. Enjoy!

Alison Weir's upcoming novel about Katherine Grey. UK release May 24, 2012.

A debet novel by Victoria Lamb set in the court of Elizabeth I. UK release February 16, 2012.

The second in Robert Low's series on William Wallace and Robert the Bruce. UK release February 16, 2012.

Guest Post and Giveaway: Mark Lord, Author of Chivalry

2011-12-08T18:30:00.000-07:00

Today's guest is Mark Lord who is going to talk a little about his short story set during the Hundred Years War.

“Chivalry” is the first in a series of short stories featuring a character called Jake Savage. He's an archer serving in the English army during the Hundred Years War. Jake signed up looking for adventure and also to forget a woman he loved back in England. There's a lot more to know about Jake's past but I'm not going to tell you any more here as it’s not covered in this short story. My plan is to reveal more about Jake's past in future short stories, and ultimately in a novel that I'm working which is provisionally titled Hell has its Demons, where Jake teams up with a young scholar, Roger Sotil, in a mission to stop Jake's hometown being overrun by demons.

But back to “Chivalry”. The story came from two ideas: firstly a sort of classic tale from medieval romance literature where a mysterious knight prevents others from passing until they have fought him in chivalrous one on one combat. Usually this mysterious knight turns out to be a great hero in disguise. The other idea was about the massive contrast between ideal and reality in medieval warfare. The code of chivalry was intended as a set of rules to protect the weak and to ensure good behaviour of combatants: i.e. knights. In reality however these rules only applied to the knightly and noble classes. The Hundred Years War (which actually lasted 116 years) brought misery and devastation to France and did little to help England either. The favoured strategy of English armies was to ship over from England and then stomp through France living off the land, pillaging and devastating as they went, hoping to tempt a French army into open battle. This was called the chevauchée or armed raid. Famously practiced with success by the Black Prince in 1356 leading to his great victory of Poitiers, in 1373 John of Gaunt, the Black Prince’s younger brother, lead a similar chevauchée from Calais through the heart of France with the intention of relieving the beleaguered province of Aquitaine (in south west France). He was forced to take this route because the English simply didn’t have enough ships to carry a large enough army all the way. Gaunt’s chevauchée was regarded as daring by contemporaries but was a complete failure. No victories were won and the army suffered high levels of attrition as it was chased through France trying to avoid larger French armies, eventually reaching the safe haven of English territory in Bordeaux. The hoped-for reinforcements to defend Aquitaine had been whittled away by Gaunt’s foolish escapade.

In “Chivalry” Jake Savage is part of a knight’s retinue that has broken away from the main part of Gaunt’s army as it travels through the wooded hills of the Auvergne region of central France. Rather than benefitting from opportunities to loot and pillage they are struggling to find food just to survive.

These men are desperate and are prepared to do anything to get what they need. Only Jake seems to show any discomfort with the harshness of their treatment of local peasants. In their desperation the band of men decide to investigate a small castle on a hill above a village which they have already ransacked. They travel along a path through the hills hopeful to find food and maybe even loot, but when they come to a narrow bridge over a deep ravine their way is blocked by a black armoured knight. On the other side of the bridge, behind the knight sits a lady outside a silk pavilion. The knight remains silent, but the lady speaks on his behalf and challenges the English to single combat with her lord.

As you might guess the English soldiers have no wish to engage the knight in a chivalrous fight.

Of all the English soldiers only Jake behaves differently. He is a commoner by birth, but as a child was inspired by tales of Arthur and his heroic knights. He knows that the English are acting against the code of chivalry. But what will he do about it? Help his comrades, or do what is right?

I hope that you find Chivalry an entertaining read. To find out more about it go to http://marklord.info/writing/published-fiction/chivalry-a-jake-savage-adventure/

Thanks Mark. Chivalry is available as an ebook and Mark has graciously offered one up for grabs. To enter, please complete the form below by midnight, December 19, 2011. Contest is open internationally!

Weekly Wishlist - December 8, 2011

2011-12-08T09:16:00.001-07:00

Queen of the Conqueror by Tracey Borman. Non-fiction. US release April 3, 2012 (released in the UK earlier this year)

For fans of Alison Weir, by a rising star in the field, a groundbreaking first biography of one of England’s most consequential queens, Matilda of Flanders, wife of William the Conqueror.

The remarkable story of Matilda’s marriage to one of the most famous men in history reveals not just her extraordinary character but also the lasting influence that she would have on the English monarchy. All British monarchs from 1087 to the present day can trace their lineage to this first royal consort to be crowned with full pomp and formally recognized as queen. Passionate, steadfast, and wise, she was also ruthless, tenacious, and authoritative, the only person capable of taming her formidable husband. She confounded the traditional views of women in medieval society by seizing the reins of power whenever she had the chance, directing William’s policy and at times flagrantly disobeying his orders.

The Courtesan’s Lover by Gabrielle Kimm. US release May 1, 2012 (released in the UK earlier this year)

A compelling and vibrant tale from an up-and-coming fresh voice with glowing reviews and strong sales in the UK. The Courtesan's Lover is a return to the fascinating, decadent world that Kimm fans will want to savor. Francesca Felizzi, former mistress of the Duke of Ferrara, longs to be one of the most prestigious of the courtesans. But a chance encounter reveals to Francesca that her sumptuous life is a gaudy facade, and soon an unexpected event plunges her and her two young daughters into a danger she has long dreaded.

Her Highness the Traitor by Susan Higginbotham. US release June 1, 2012.

When Henry VIII dies, leaving behind his nine-year-old son as his heir, a deadly series of power struggles begins, transforming the lives of two women. Joan Dudley’s husband, the Duke of Northumberland, becomes the most powerful man in England, while Frances Grey perches with her daughter Jane dangerously close to the throne. But when Mary Tudor asserts her own right to the crown, Frances and Joan find that the lives of their husbands and children are in mortal danger. The story of the women behind the crowning of Jane Grey, this novel is an illuminating tale of ambition gone awry.

The Queen’s Vow by C.W. Gortner. US Release June 12, 2012.

For fans of Philippa Gregory’s and Alison Weir’s historical fiction, a gripping new novel that follows young Isabella of Castile in her dramatic and turbulent ascent to power, transforming herself from the defiant daughter of an exiled widow to the famed warrior-queen who irrevocably changed the future of Spain.

Isabella of Castile is one of history’s most famous and fascinating figures. She was the warrior-monarch who united a fractured kingdom; she was the passionate woman willing to risk her life to marry her true love; she was a Renaissance leader, patron of the arts, and scholar, responsible for sending Columbus to America. Revered by some as a devout leader who transformed Spain into a world power, she is reviled by others as a fanatic who ushered in an era of persecution. In The Queen’s Vow, C. W. Gortner brings Isabella’s world of faith, bloodshed, romance, and betrayal to powerful life.

Days of Splendour, Days of Sorrow by Juliet Grey. US release May 15, 2012.

The enthralling trilogy that began with Becoming Marie Antoinette follows one of history’s most beloved and notorious figures as Marie Antoinette ascends to the throne, building the vast splendor that made her famous in the face of the dark sorrow that would eventually bring her down.

Paris, 1774. Eighteen-year-old Marie Antoinette has just ascended to the throne of France, along with her husband, Louis XVI. But life is not easy for the young royals. Despite increased pressure to produce a male heir, Louis is still unable to consummate the marriage, and countless scandals erupt as Marie Antoinette tries to forge her own identity in a court and a kingdom that will always see her as a foreigner. As she forever influences fashion with her lavish gowns and sparkling jewels, Marie Antoinette faces romantic scandal, and ripples of revolution begin spreading across the country, though no one can predict what lies ahead…

Tanzanite's Bookmark Giveaway - December 2011

2011-12-04T16:07:00.001-07:00

To enter this month's giveaway, please complete the below form by midnight, December 31, 2011. Contest is open internationally. Here are this month's choices:

Far left: "Blackwork" design in shades of red
Middle: "Blackwork" medieval knight
Far right: Richard III
Bottom: Celtic knotwork design in shades of blue/teal

New This Week - December 4, 2011

2011-12-04T10:34:00.001-07:00

Every Sunday Tanzanite highlights books that will be released during the upcoming week. She hopes you will find something you will enjoy!

Egypt by Nick Drake. US and UK release December 6, 2011.

The future of Egypt lies in the hands of chief detective Rahotep in this final installment of Nick Drake’s acclaimed ancient Egyptian trilogy.

King Tutankhamun has died without an heir, and his young widow, Queen Ankhesenamun, last of her dynasty, struggles to maintain power and order. To defeat her enemies, she has but one hope: to forge an alliance with the Hittites, a powerful, militant new empire that threatens Egypt’s supremacy.

The loyal Rahotep, chief detective of the Thebes Medjay—the ancient capital’s elite police force—and his friend, the royal envoy Nakht, are sent on a clandestine mission to the Hittite homeland, to persuade the king to agree to a marriage between one of his sons and Ankhesenamun—a union that would bring peace to the region and consolidate the queen’s power.

Back in Egypt, the nefarious General Horemheb is poised to use his army to impose martial law and destroy the dynasty. But he is not the only enemy vying for control. A mysterious and brutal new opium cartel has emerged within the criminal underworld of Thebes, ready to take over the lucrative black market—and, ultimately, the very heart of the government.

In this epic quest to the dark heart of the ancient world, Rahotep must also confront his own demons if he is to prevent the gathering forces of chaos from destroying Egypt’s greatest dynasty, and to return home in time to save his own family from the terror that threatens them all.

Based on a true story and meticulously researched, Egypt: The Book of Chaos brings to life the ancient world and the cradle of civilization in a riveting, suspenseful finale to Nick Drake’s acclaimed trilogy.

Vladimir the Russian Viking by Vladimir Volkoff. Non-fiction. US and UK release December 6, 2011.

Endowed with exceptional talents as a warrior, diplomat, and ruler—not to mention a temperament that earned him the epithet fornicator immensus in the chronicles of his contemporaries—Vladimir of Russia (960?–1015) began his career at the age of twelve as Prince of novgorod, rising to be known as “the Red sun.” Volkoff tells Vladimir’s story with gusto and humor, describing the years of conquest, violence, polygamy, and pagan ritual as the remarkable prince seized his brother’s throne, expanding his rule over the whole of Russia. a shrewd, hospitable, and progressive ruler, he adopted the christian faith from the Greeks, bringing Christianity to Russia. a “second Constantine,” he was later canonized as a saint. This is the first complete biography, based on Russian, Greek, German, Arabic, and Icelandic sources.

Photo Friday - #27

2011-12-02T07:36:00.001-07:00

During my trip to Paris this summer with my daughter, our hotel was a few blocks from the Cluny Museum so we spent one morning checking it out. The building consists of the remains of late first century baths and a 15th century townhouse and houses a varied collection of artifacts, art, statutes and tapestries, including the famed Lady and the Unicorn series.

Heads from the "Gallery of Kings" that once adorned Notre Dame Cathedral. They date from the early 13th century.

A collection of swords

Even though most people are familiar with the Lady and Unicorn tapestries, I had no idea how large they really are - more than 12 feet tall and this one takes up an entire wall! The room is rather dark so getting decent pictures was a little tricky and there are ropes in front of them so you can't get too close. But the detail is exquisite!

Tanzanite's Bookmark Giveaway - Winner

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The winner of this month's bookmark giveaway is:

Cyn209

Thanks to everyone who entered. December's giveaway will be posted shortly!

Cover Slut - Upcoming Releases

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Here are some new, updated, or different covers for some upcoming releases previously included in a Weekly Wishlist post.

The Second Empress by Michelle Moran. UK release March 2012 (I've also seen this with the title Empress Josephine's Crown so I'm not sure which title they are going with)

The Borgia Mistress by Sara Poole. Release date May 22, 2012

UK cover of Kate Quinn's next book Empress of Rome (in the US, Empress of the Seven Hills)

UK cover for Sharon Penman's Lionheart

Traitor by Rory Clements. UK release April 2012

UK cover for Anne O'Brien's The King's Concubine. Release date June 2012

UK cover for Eva Stachniak's The Winter Palace. Release date January 2012

Elizabeth Norton's biography on Bessie Blount. Recently released in the UK; will be released in the US in March 2012.

Weekly Wishlist - November 30, 2011

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The Last Romanov by Dora Levy Mossanen. US and UK release April 12, 2012.

The love affair between Nicholas II and Alexandra, the sickly heir to the throne, the influence of the enigmatic Rasputin on Russia and its Court, the Bolshevik Uprising that changed the face of history, the ruthless execution of the royal family, and the disputed survival of the heir: it's a cinematic chaos that the masterful Dora Levy Mossanen unravels for the reader. Seen through the eyes of Darya, Imperial Russia bursts into life. When the murderous events of 1917-18 unfold, Darya is haunted by the prophecy made by the Empress's advisor, Rasputin, and the hints to her true identity. She must find the missing Tsarevich Alexis Romanov and restore the monarchy, if she is to save herself. As in her previous novels, Mossanen draws on dramatic political history, romance, folklore to create a seductive tale of intrigue, love, sex, murder, violence and retribution.

The Seven Wonders by Steven Saylor. US and UK release May 22, 2012.

An enthralling prequel to Steven Saylor’s bestselling Roma Sub Rosa series of mysteries set in the Ancient World.

The year is 92 B.C. Gordianus has just turned eighteen and is about to embark on the adventure of a lifetime: a far-flung journey to see the Seven Wonders of the World. Gordianus is not yet called “the Finder”—but at each of the Seven Wonders, the wide-eyed young Roman encounters a mystery to challenge the powers of deduction.

Accompanying Gordianus on his travels is his tutor, Antipater of Sidon, the world’s most celebrated poet. But there is more to the apparently harmless old poet than meets the eye. Before they leave Rome, Antipater fakes his own death and travels under an assumed identity. Looming in the background are the first rumblings of a political upheaval that will shake the entire Roman world.

Teacher and pupil journey to the fabled cities of Greece and Asia Minor, and then to Babylon and Egypt. They attend the Olympic Games, take part in exotic festivals, and marvel at the most spectacular constructions ever devised by mankind. Along the way they encounter murder, witchcraft and ghostly hauntings. Traveling the world for the first time, Gordianus discovers that amorous exploration goes hand-in-hand with crime-solving.

The mysteries of love are the true wonders of the world, and at the end of the journey, an Eighth Wonder awaits him in Alexandria.

Her name is Bethesda.

A Blaze of Glory: A Novel of the Battle of Shiloh by Jeff Shaara. US and UK release May 29, 2012.

In the first novel of a spellbinding new trilogy, New York Times bestselling author Jeff Shaara returns to the Civil War terrain he knows best. A Blaze of Glory takes us to the action-packed Western Theater for a vivid re-creation of one of the war’s bloodiest and most iconic engagements—the Battle of Shiloh.

It’s the spring of 1862. The Confederate Army in the West teeters on the brink of collapse following the catastrophic loss of Fort Donelson. Commanding general Albert Sidney Johnston is forced to pull up stakes, abandon the critical city of Nashville, and rally his troops in defense of the Memphis and Charleston Railroad. Hot on Johnston’s trail are two of the Union’s best generals: the relentless Ulysses Grant, fresh off his career-making victory at Fort Donelson, and Don Carlos Buell. If their combined forces can crush Johnston’s army and capture the railroad, the war in the West likely will be over. There’s just one problem: Johnston knows of the Union plans, and is poised to launch an audacious surprise attack on Grant’s encampment—a small settlement in southwestern Tennessee anchored by a humble church named Shiloh.

With stunning you-are-there immediacy, Shaara takes us inside the maelstrom of Shiloh as no novelist has before. Drawing on meticulous research, he dramatizes the key actions and decisions of the commanders on both sides: Johnston, Grant, Sherman, Beauregard, and the illustrious Colonel Nathan Bedford Forrest. Here too are the thoughts and voices of the junior officers, conscripts, and enlisted men who gave their all for the cause: Confederate cavalry lieutenant James Seeley, Private Fritz “Dutchie” Bauer of the 16th Wisconsin Regiment—brave participants in a pitched back-and-forth battle whose casualty count would far surpass anything the American public had yet seen in this war. By the end of the second day of fighting, as Grant’s bedraggled forces regroup for what looks like a last stand, two major events—one of them totally unexpected—would turn the tide of the battle and perhaps the war itself.

A Blaze of Glory brings the exhilaration of battle to life and illuminates a pivotal clash-at-arms that changed the course of American history.

The Divorce of Henry VIII by Catherine Fletcher. Non-fiction. US release June 19, 2012 (will be released in the UK as Our Man in Rome in February 2012)

A real life Wolf Hall: the gripping story of the Italian diplomat who negotiated Henry VIII’s divorce from Catherine of Aragon and sparked the creation of the Church of England

In 1533 the English monarch Henry VIII decided to divorce his wife of twenty years Catherine of Aragon in pursuit of a male heir to ensure the Tudor line. He was also head over heels in love with his wife’s lady in waiting Anne Boleyn, the future mother of Elizabeth I. But getting his freedom involved a terrific web of intrigue through the enshrined halls of the Vatican that resulted in a religious schism and the formation of the Church of England.

Henry’s man in Rome was a wily Italian diplomat named Gregorio Casali who drew no limits on skullduggery including kidnapping, bribery and theft to make his king a free man. In this absorbing narrative, winner of the Rome Fellowship prize and University of Durham historian Catherine Fletcher draws on hundreds of previously-unknown Italian archive documents to tell the colorful tale from the inside story inside the Vatican.

Elizabeth and Essex by Lytton Strachey. Non-fiction. US and UK reissue June 19, 2012.

One of the most famous and tortured romances in history—between Elizabeth I, Queen of England, and Robert Devereux, Earl of Essex— began in 1587, when she was 53 and he was 19. Their passionate affair continued for five years, until Essex was beheaded for treason in 1601.

In a fast-paced succession of brilliantly-rendered scenes, Lytton Strachey portrays Elizabeth and Essex's compelling attraction for each other, their impassioned disagreements, and their mutual struggle for power, which culminated so tragically—for both of them. Alongside the doomed love affair, Strachey pins colorful portraits of the leading characters and influential figures of the time: Francis Bacon, Walter Raleigh, Robert Cecil, and other members of her glittering court who fought to assert themselves in a kingdom and a country defined by Elizabeth's incomparable reign.

Strachey here illuminates, in spellbinding prose, one of the most poignant affairs in history alongside the glamour and intrigue of the Elizabethan era.

Queen Victoria by Lytton Strachey. Non-fiction. US and UK reissue June 19, 2012.

Awarded the James Tait Black Memorial Prize, Strachey's classic biography remains one of the best and most readable accounts of the Queen who defined an era

Lytton Strachey's acclaimed portrayal of Queen Victoria revolutionized the art of biography by using elements of romantic fiction and melodrama to create a warm, humorous, and very human portrait of this iconic figure.

We see Victoria as a strong-willed child with a famous temper, as the 18-year-old girl queen, as a monarch, wife, mother, and widow. Equally fascinating are the depictions of her relationships: with her governess“precious Lehzen,” with Peel, Gladstone, and Disraeli, with her beloved Albert, and, in later life, her legendary devotion to her Highland servant John Brown, all of which show a different side of the staid, pious image that is so often attached to her.

Legions of Rome by Stephen Dando-Collins. Non-fiction. US release July 3, 2012 (released in the UK in 2010.

The complete history of every Imperial Roman legion and what it achieved as a fighting force, by an award-winning historian

In this landmark publication, Stephen Dando-Collins does what no other author has ever attempted to do: provide a complete history of every Imperial Roman legion. Based on thirty years of meticulous research, he covers every legion of Rome in rich detail. In the first part of the book, the author provides a detailed account of what the legionaries wore and ate, what camp life was like, what they were paid, and how they were motivated and punished. Part two examines the histories of all the legions that served Rome for three hundred years starting in 30 BC . The book’s final section is a sweeping chronological survey of the campaigns in which the armies were involved, told from the point of view of the legions. Featuring more than 150 maps, photographs, diagrams and battle plans, Legions of Rome is an essential read for ancient history enthusiasts, military history experts and general readers alike.

The Final Sacrament by James Forrester. UK release July 5, 2012.

September 1566. William Harley, Clarenceux King of Arms, lives quietly with his family in London, with a document in his possession that could destroy the state. The aged Lady Percy, Countess of Northumberland, has not given up trying to find it. Nor has she forgotten how he betrayed her and the Catholic cause - she has spent the last two years planning her revenge. But then eloquent and adventurous courtier, John Greystoke suddenly seems most concerned for Clarenceux's safety. And why, on behalf of the government, does Francis Walsingham have spies watching Clarenceux's house day and night? When his wife and his daughter go missing, Clarenceux finds himself on the run with his other young daughter, hunted by Lady Percy's agents. He knows he must finally destroy the document, even if it should cost him his life - but how can he, until he has reunited his family?

Heretic Queen: Elizabeth I and the Wars of Religion by Susan Ronald. Non-fiction. US and UK release August 7, 2012.

From the acclaimed biographer, an account of Elizabeth I focusing on her role in the Wars on Religion that tore apart Europe in the sixteenth century

Elizabeth’s 1558 coronation procession was met with an extravagant outpouring of love. Only twenty-five years old, the young queen saw herself as their Protestant savior; aiming to provide the nation with new hope, prosperity, and independence from the foreign influence that had plagued her sister Mary’s reign. Given the scars of the Reformation, Elizabeth would need all of the powers of diplomacy and tact she could summon. Extravagant, witty, and hot-tempered, Elizabeth was the ultimate tyrant. Yet at the outset, in religious matters, she was unfathomably tolerant for her day. “There is only one Christ, Jesus, one faith,” Elizabeth once proclaimed. “All else is a dispute over trifles.” Heretic Queen is the highly personal, untold story of how Queen Elizabeth I secured the future of England as a world power. Susan Ronald paints the queen as a complex character whose apparent indecision was really a political tool that she wielded with great aplomb.

New This Week - November 27, 2011

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Every Sunday Tanzanite highlights books that will be released during the upcoming week. She hopes you will find something you will enjoy!

Due to being out of town last week for the Thanksgiving holiday, I didn't get a chance to do a "New This Week" post last Sunday, so I decided to include those with this week's releases.

The Courtesan's Lover by Gabrielle Kimm. UK release November 24, 2011.

Francesca Felizzi, former mistress of the Duke of Ferrara, is now an aspiring courtesan. Astonishingly beautiful and ambitious, she revels in the power she wields over men. But when she is visited by an inexperienced young man, it becomes horribly clear to Francesca that despite her many admiring patrons, she has never truly been loved. Suddenly, her glittering and sumptuous life becomes a gaudy facade. And then another unexpected encounter brings with it devastating implications that plunge Francesca and her two young daughters into the sort of danger she has dreaded ever since she began to work the streets all those years ago.

The Noble Assassin by Christie Dickason. US and UK release November 24, 2011.

A thrilling account of one of English history’s most daring women, who risked everything in the dark days leading up to the Civil War. The perfect novel for fans of Suzannah Dunn and Phillipa Gregory.

Court beauty, Lucy Russell, Countess of Bedford, feels frustrated by life with her weak husband. Poverty stricken, they are confined to their country estate and excluded from court life in London after he disastrously allies himself against Elizabeth I.

Now, some years later, James I is seated on the English throne. His daughter, Elizabeth Stuart, former confidant of Lucy, has married the King of Bohemia. The precarious political situation in Europe is fraught, setting father against daughter. When Elizabeth and her husband are deposed, exiled and forced on the run, James is in no mood to come to Elizabeth’s aid.

Hearing of Elizabeth’s predicament, Lucy sees an opportunity to re-establish the Bedford name and offers herself as a peace envoy between the two parties. Setting out on a daring mission across the channel, Lucy discovers she is being manipulated by unscrupulous men, not least the calculating and darkly handsome Duke of Buckingham.

Can Lucy tread this most dangerous path, or by risking everything, will she pay the ultimate price?

Lord John and the Scottish Prisoner by Diana Gabaldon. US release November 29, 2011; UK release December 1, 2011.

Includes a preview of the new novel in the Outlander series.

London, 1760. For Jamie Fraser, paroled prisoner-of-war in the remote Lake District, life could be worse: He’s not cutting sugar cane in the West Indies, and he’s close enough to the son he cannot claim as his own. But Jamie Fraser’s quiet existence is coming apart at the seams, interrupted first by dreams of his lost wife, then by the appearance of Tobias Quinn, an erstwhile comrade from the Rising.

Like many of the Jacobites who aren’t dead or in prison, Quinn still lives and breathes for the Cause. His latest plan involves an ancient relic that will rally the Irish. Jamie is having none of it—he’s sworn off politics, fighting, and war. Until Lord John Grey shows up with a summons that will take him away from everything he loves—again.

Lord John Grey—aristocrat, soldier, and occasional spy—finds himself in possession of a packet of explosive documents that exposes a damning case of corruption against a British officer. But they also hint at a more insidious danger. Time is of the essence as the investigation leads to Ireland, with a baffling message left in “Erse,” the tongue favored by Scottish Highlanders. Lord John, who oversaw Jacobite prisoners when he was governor of Ardsmiur prison, thinks Jamie may be able to translate—but will he agree to do it?

Soon Lord John and Jamie are unwilling companions on the road to Ireland, a country whose dark castles hold dreadful secrets, and whose bogs hide the bones of the dead. A captivating return to the world Diana Gabaldon created in her Outlander and Lord John series, The Scottish Prisoner is another masterpiece of epic history, wicked deceit, and scores that can only be settled in blood.

Philip of Spain, King of England: The Forgotten Sovereign by Harry Kelsey. Non-fiction. UK release November 30, 2011 (will be released in the US in January 2012).

The Spanish Armada conjures up images of age-old rivalries, bravery and treachery. However the same Spanish monarch who sent the Armada to invade England in 1588 was, just a few years previously, the King of England and husband of Mary Tudor. This important new book sheds new light on Philip II of Spain, England's forgotten sovereign.

Previous accounts of Mary's brief reign have focused on the martyrdom of Protestant dissenters, the loss of English territory, as well as Mary's infamous personality, meaning that her husband Philip has remained in the shadows. In this book, Harry Kelsey uncovers Philip's life - from his childhood and education in Spain, to his marriage to Mary and the political manoeuvrings involved in the marriage contract, to the tumultuous aftermath of Mary's death which ultimately led to hostile relations between Queen Elizabeth and Philip, culminating in the Armada. Focusing especially on the period of Philip's marriage to Mary, Kelsey shows that Philip was, in fact, an active King of England and took a keen interest in the rule of his wife's kingdom. Casting fresh light on both Mary and Philip, as well as European history more generally, this book will be essential reading for anyone interested in the Tudor era.

The Age of Chivalry: The Story of Medieval Europe 950 to 1450 by Hywel Williams. Non-fiction. US and UK release November 24, 2011.

The five hundred years that separate the mid-tenth century from the mid-15th century constitute a critical and formative period in the history of Europe. This was the age of the system of legal and military obligation known as 'feudalism', and of the birth and consolidation of powerful kingdoms in England, France and Spain; it was an era of urbanization and the expansion of trade, of the building of the great Romanesque and Gothic cathedrals, of courtly romance and the art of the troubadour, and of the founding of celebrated seats of learning in Paris, Oxford and Bologna.

But it was also an epoch characterised by brutal military adventure in the launching of armed pilgrimages to liberate Jerusalem from Muslim control, of the brutal dynastic conflict of the Hundred Years' War and of the devastating pandemic of the Black Death. In a sequence of scholarly but accessible articles - accompanied by an array of beautiful and authentic images of the era, plus timelines, maps, boxed features and display quotes - distinguished historian Hywel Williams sheds revelatory light on every aspect of a rich and complex period of European history. Ottonians and Salians; Rise of the Capetians; Normans in England; Birth of the city-states; The Normans in Sicily; The First Crusade; The Investiture contest; The Hohenstaufen; The Angevin Empire; 12th-century Renaissance; Triumph of the Capetians; The Third Crusade; The Albigensian Crusade; The glory of Islamic Spain; The Kingdom of Naples; The Hundred Years War I; The Hundred Years War II; Avignon and the Schism; The Golden Age of Florence; The Reconquista; Popes, Saints and Heretics; Medieval society; Medieval culture; Medieval warfare.

Weekly Wishlist - November 15, 2011

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The Glovemaker by Stacia Brown. UK release February 16, 2012.

London, 1649. Oliver Cromwell is running the country, and a law

targeting unmarried mothers threatens the life of glovemaker Rachel

Lockyer. This is her story.

It is 1649. Charles I has been beheaded, Cromwell is running the country, and a new law targeting unwed mothers and lewd women has been passed. A law that presumes that anyone who conceals the death of her illegitimate child is guilty of murder.

When a dead infant is found buried behind the Smithfield slaughterhouse, all fingers point to thirty-nine-year-old glover’s assistant Rachel Lockyer. A fiercely independent woman, Rachel has been carrying on an affair with a married man, a one-time political agitator with a radical group known as The Levelers. Though no one knows for certain that Rachel was even pregnant, she is arrested.

So comes an investigation, public trial, and unforgettable characters: gouty investigator Thomas Bartwain, fiery Elizabeth Lillburne and her revolution-chasing husband, Huguenot glover Mary Du Gard, and others.

Spinning within are Rachel and William, their remarkable love story, and the miracles that come to even the commonest lives.

Tomb of Alexander by Sean Hemingway. UK release March 1, 2012.

An epic new archaeological thriller from the grandson of Ernest Hemingway.

It was the most renowned and respected shrine in the Roman Empire, sought after for generations, the object of veneration by Julius Caesar, Cleopatra, Caligula, Hadrian and the world over. It stood for centuries within a sacred precinct the size of a large town at the heart of the greatest Greek city in the world. Yet at the end of the fourth century AD it disappeared without trace, creating the greatest archaeological enigma of the ancient world. What became of the tomb of Alexander the Great?

In his compelling debut thriller, Sean Hemingway seamlessly weaves together the ancient and the modern as our hero Tom Carr is drawn further and further into one of the greatest mysteries of our time, risking everything to get at the truth...

The Bleeding Land by Giles Kristian. UK release April 26, 2012.

The bestselling historical novelist Giles Kristian begins an epic new trilogy, set against the tumultuous backdrop of the bloody war that divided a nation and tore families apart...

England. 1642. War is coming. The rift between King and Parliament has widened and armies muster, ready to fight for their religious and political ideals. Nothing is so destructive as civil war, and for the Rivers family, the raising of the King’s standard heralds a conflict that threatens to tear them apart.

As a knight and friend of King Charles, Sir Francis Rivers’ loyalty is beyond question, and so should be that of his family. However another Royalist, Lord Henry Denton, imprisons a suspected Catholic priest and in so doing makes an enemy of Sir Francis’s youngest son, Tom. For Tom is betrothed to Martha Green, the imprisoned man’s daughter. In desperation, Martha pleads with Denton to free her father. He agrees, but on one condition: she must give herselft to him. In the event, Denton reneges and Martha watches her father hang. Heartbroken, unable to live with her shame, Martha takes her own life and Tom, burning with hatred for Denton - and his father for not interceding - turns his back on his home and family. In London he falls in with a crowd of men eager to fight for Parliament for, in the prospect of war, Tom sees his chance for vengeance.

But Sir Francis Rivers’ eldest son, Mun, is for the king, and joins a troop of horse commanded by the dashing Prince Rupert. Sir Francis rides in the King’s Lifeguards as the first battle of the war looms. But whilst men fight and die at Edgehill, the Rivers women, Lady Mary and her daughter, Bess, must also fight to survive as the family home, Shear House, is besieged.

A novel of honour, vengeance, courage and love, The Bleeding Land brings England’s civil war to life in all its terrible glory.

The Norman Conquest by Marc Morris. Non-fiction. UK release May 3, 2012.

An epic tale, with violence at its heart, and a triumph of narrative History.

The Norman Conquest starts with the most decisive battle in English history and continues with dramatic rebellions and their ruthless suppression, eventually resulting in the creation of the English nation. The

repercussions of the Conquest are with us still.

The book begins with the Saxon kings, specifically Edward the Confessor, and shows how England was in constant conflict as the English fell prey to both Vikings and Normans. In the north, King Harold destroys his Viking namesake at the battle of Stamford Bridge but immediately has to hurry south to confront William of Normandy at Hastings. His defeat, and the destruction of the Anglo-Saxon warrior caste, leads inexorably to William’s forceful occupation of an unwilling country, and this is the ruthless story Marc Morris tells.

It is a drama crammed with intrigue, bloodshed and betrayal, featuring vivid, almost deranged characters: Edward the Confessor, who spurns his queen in their marriage bed to spite her family, even though it spells the end of his own dynasty; the heroic King Harold, the hero of Stamford Bridge and the last Saxon king, who perjures himself, betrays his brother and puts aside his wife in his bid for the throne; William the Bastard, later known as the Conqueror, who assembles the mightiest invasion fleet in the Middle Ages and after unexpected success almost destroys the country he has won.

Castle by Marc Morris. Non-fiction. UK reissue May 3, 2012.

From the acclaimed author of A Great and Terrible King and The Norman Conquest, a seminal book on the history of Britain’s castles. Castle is a wide-ranging history of some of the most magnificent buildings in Britain. It explores many of the country’s most famous and best-loved castles, as well as some little-known national treasures. The story begins in the 11th century, when castles were introduced to Britain, and ends in the 17th century, when they were largely abandoned. It is, in some respects, an epic tale, driven by characters like William the Conqueror, ‘Bad’ King John and Edward I, who, by building and besieging castles, shaped the fate of the nation. At the same time, however, it is a more homely story, about the

adventures, struggles and ambitions of lesser-known individuals, and how every aspect of their lives was wrapped up in the castles they built. As Marc Morris shows, there is more to castles than drawbridges and

battlements, portcullises and arrow-loops.

Be it ever so grand or ever so humble, a castle is first and foremost a home. It may look tough and defensible on the outside, but on the inside, a castle is all about luxury and creature comforts. Inside real castles, we do not necessarily find cannons and suits of armour, but we do discover great halls, huge kitchens, private chambers and chapels - all rooms which were once luxurious and lavish, and which made these buildings perfect residences for their owners.

To understand castles - who built them, who lived in them, and why - is to understand the forces that shaped medieval Britain.

The Last Caesar by Henry Venmore-Rowland. UK release May 10, 2012.

A remarkable historical fiction debut, telling the story of the brutal and bloody power struggle that followed the suicide of Nero - a period in Roman history that came to be called ‘The Year of the Four Emperors’...

AD 68. The tyrant emperor Nero has no son and no heir. Suddenly there’s the very real possibility that Rome might become a Republic once more. But the ambitions of a few are about to bring corruption, chaos and untold bloodshed to the many.

Among them is a hero of the campaign against Boudicca, Aulus Caecina Severus. Caught up in a conspiracy to overthrow Caesar’s dynasty, he commits treason, raises a rebellion, faces torture and intrigue - all supposedly for the good of Rome. The boundary between the good of Rome and self preservation is far from clear, and keeping to the dangerous path he’s chosen requires all Severus’ skills as a cunning soldier and increasingly deft politician.

And so Severus looks back on the dark and dangerous time history knows as the Year of the Four Emperors, and the part he played - for good or ill - in plunging the mighty Roman empire into anarchy and civil war...

Fourteenth Century England by Mark Ormrod. Non-fiction. UK release May 17, 2012.

This collection represents the fruits of new research, by both established and young scholars, on the politics, society and culture of England and its dependencies in the fourteenth century. Drawing on a diverse range of documentary, literary and material evidence, the studies offer a range of methods, from micro-history and prosopography to the study of institutions, texts and events. The early fourteenth century provides a particular focus of interest, with studies contributing new reflections on the personnel of parliament, the household of Edward II, the politics of Edward III's minority, and reactions to the great famine of 1315-22 and the Black Death of 1348-9. The wars with Scotland and France give the opportunity for significant new assessments of international diplomacy, the role of the mariner in the logistics of war, English loyalties in Gascony and the pious practices of medieval knights. Richly textured with personal and local detail, these new studies provide numerous insights into the lives of great and small in this tumultuous period of medieval history. W. Mark Ormrod is Professor of Medieval History at the University of York. Contributors: Benoît Grévin, Alison K. McHardy, J.S. Hamilton, Guilhem Pépin, Eliza Hartrich, Phil Bradford, J.S. Bothwell, Craig Lambert, Andrew Ayton, Graham St John, Christopher Phillpotts.

The Borgia Mistress by Sara Poole. US release May 22, 2012.

From the author of Poison and The Borgia Betrayal, comes a new historical thriller, featuring the same intriguing and beautiful heroine: Borgia court poisoner, Francesca Giordano. Mistress of death Francesca Giordano—court poisoner to the House of Borgia—returns to confront an ancient atrocity that threatens to extinguish the light of the Renaissance and plunge the world into eternal darkness. As the enemies of Pope Alexander VI close in and the papal court is forced to flee from Rome, Francesca joins forces with her lover, the brilliant and ruthless Cesare Borgia to unravel a conspiracy that strikes at the heart of Christendom. But when a shattering secret from her past imperils her precarious hold on sanity, only Francesca’s own courage and resolve can draw her back from the brink of madness to save all she values most.

The Devil’s Army by James Wilde. UK release May 24, 2012.

1067 - The Battle of Hastings has been lost and the iron gauntlet of William the Bastard slowly throttles the life out of England. The length and breadth of the country, villages are burned and men, women and children put to the sword as the brutal new King attempts to impose his cruel will upon the unruly nation.

One man stands in the way of the Norman duke’s savage campaign: Hereward, warrior, master tactician, and the last hope of the English. As adept at slaughter as the imposter who sits on the throne, he has vowed to meet blood with blood and fire with fire.

In a Fenlands fortress of water and wild wood, his resistance is simmering. His army of outcasts grows by the day - a devil’s army that comes with the mists and the night and leaves only bones in its wake.

But William is not one to be cowed. Under the command of his ruthless deputy, Ivo Taillebois - known and feared as ‘the Butcher’ - the invaders will do whatever it takes to crush these rebels, even if it means burning all England to the ground.

Here then is the tale of the bloodiest rebellion England has ever known...the beginning of an epic battle that will echo down the years...

The Eagle in the Sand: Siege of Malta by Simon Scarrow. UK release May 24, 2012.

1565; In its hour of greatest need, Malta must rely upon the ancient Knights of the Order of St John for survival. Bound by the strongest ties: of valour, of courage and of passion, the Knights must defend their island against ferocious and deadly Ottoman attack.

For Sir Thomas Barrett, summoned by the Order and compelled by loyalty - to the Knights, to his honour and to his Queen - returning to the besieged island means revisiting a past he had long since lain to rest. As the beleaguered Knights grapple to retain control, decade-old feuds will be reawakened, intense passions rekindled and deadly secrets revealed.

A Dangerous Inheritance by Alison Weir. UK release May 24, 2012 (reposted with publisher summary).

The year is 1562. Lady Catherine Grey, cousin of Elizabeth I, has just been arrested along with her husband Edward. Their crime is to have secretly married and produced a child who might threaten the Queen’s title. Alone in her chamber at the Tower of London, Catherine hears ghostly voices, echoes, she thinks, of a crime committed in the same room where she is imprisoned.

The story flashes back to 1483 and another Catherine - Kate Plantaganet - bastard daughter of Richard III. She has heard terrible rumours of the death of the young deposed Edward V and his brother (the Princes in the Tower) but loyalty to her father prevents her believing them. After his death at Bosworth, she is viewed with suspicion by Henry VII’s court, even more so when she becomes pregnant.

Catherine, too, is pregnant, a friendly warder having sneaked Edward into her room. She finds documents relating to Kate’s life and gets swept up both in Kate’s story and the mystery of the Princes, which she realises Kate never solved. Kate dies in childbirth and it is left to Catherine to discover the truth about the Princes.

The Venetian Contract by Marina Fiorato. UK release June 7, 2012 (reposted with cover)

In 1576, five years after the defeat of the Ottoman Empire at the Battle of Lepanto, a ship slips unnoticed into Venice bearing a deadly cargo. A man, more dead than alive, disembarks and staggers twoards the Piazza San Marco. He brings a gift to Venice from the Turkish Sultan. Within days the city will be infected with bubonic plague - and the Turks will have their revenge.

For months the plague wreaks havoc on Venice. In despair, the Doge summons the architect Andrea Palladio and offers him a commission: the greatest church of his career, an offering to God so magnificent that Venice will be saved. Palladio's own life is in danger too, and it will require all the skills of Dr Annibale Cason, the city's finest plague doctor, to keep him alive. But what Dr Cason has not counted on is the other passenger who disembarked from the Turkish ship - a young and beautiful harem doctor whose skills will more than match his own.

Mistress of Empires by Kate Williams. Non-fiction. UK release June 7, 2012.

An account of the extraordinary life of Josephine Bonaparte, the charming and promiscuous socialite who stole Napoleon’s heart. Josephine de Beauharnais began as a kept woman of Paris and became the most powerful woman in France. She was no beauty, her teeth were rotten, and she was six years older than her husband, but one twitch of her skirt could bring running the man who terrorized Europe.

She was born in Martinique in June 1763, and came to France as a young wife. Pretty and flirtatious, she reveled in the Ancient Regime. Then, as France burned, and the Revolution was followed by the Terror, she survived terrible imprisonment. Her husband died and her health was wrecked forever. Afterwards, she and other survivors tried to forget the pain in wild debauchery, clutching at the sensual pleasures that they had come so close to losing forever. Glamorous, stylish and a mistress of erotic arts, she understood that her only asset was her body and she became a mistress and courtesan to rich men.

As she passed thirty, Josephine realized that her star was beginning to wane. She had to secure her future - and the men who kept her were too jaded for love. And so she turned her eye to a small, stocky, Corsican soldier, six years her junior and bursting with rude spirit. Society tolerated him for his bravery but laughed at him behind his back. No one could believe it when the stylish, feted Josephine began encouraging his advances. They were bound together by a scorching erotic fascination. He would gallop home to be with her, burst into her room, toss her into bed, and write long paeans of praise while he was away to her ‘little black forest’. With her, he became the greatest man in Europe, the Supreme Emperor. But her inability to give him a son finally tore them apart.

This is a searing story of sexual obsession, war, heartbreak, affairs, devastating love, plots and murder and politics - in a world that was being altered forever…

The Empress by Meg Clothier. UK release July 19, 2012.

Love and treachery during the Crusaders’ siege of Constantinople in

1204

Spoilt, imperious and proud, Princess Agnes of France is only eight when she is sent to marry the emperor of Constantinople’s son. And by the time she is twelve Agnes is a widow, her husband killed by his cousin, the power hungry Andronikos. Captivated by Agnes’s beauty, Adronikos marries her. He is sixty-five.

For two years, Agnes is at the mercy of a depraved and power-crazed man. But by the time she is fourteen Andronikos too is dead, torn limb from limb by an angry mob. During her years with Andronikos, only one man, Theodore Branas, tried to help save her from the worst of his excesses.

Agnes and Theodore first met on her voyage when she was a young, spoilt princess. Now, as the politics of Constantinople ebb and flow around them, Agnes and Theodore start to make a life together. But once again, she nearly loses everything during one of the most shocking and bloody events of the thirteenth century as the Crusaders lay siege to Constantinople. Separated from Theodore, only Agnes’s French blood saves her from an horrific death. And as the city erupts in flames around her, she goes in search of Theodore, because she will not leave the city without him.

The Wild Princess by Mary Hart Perry. US release July 31, 2012.

The marriage of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert produced nine children—five of them princesses, all trained for the role of marriage to future monarchs. However, the fourth princess, Louise—later the duchess of Argyll—became known by the court as “the wild one.” She fought the constraints placed on her brothers and sisters. She broke with tradition by marrying outside of the elite circle of European royals at a time when no child of the English throne had wed a commoner in 300 years. Some said she married for love. Others whispered of scandal covered up by the Crown.

In fact, many years after Louise’s death, a civil lawsuit claimed that the teenage princess secretly gave birth to a baby boy out of wedlock. One Henry Locock sought to prove through DNA evidence that his grandfather was Louise’s child, delivered by Queen Victoria’s gynecologist then secretly adopted by the doctor’s young son and his wife, thereby avoiding scandal and preserving the line of succession to the throne. But the mysteries and drama involving Louise’s life don’t stop there...This is her story.

Tanzanite's Bookmark Giveaway - November 2011

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To enter this month's giveaway, complete the below form by midnight, November 30, 2011. Open internationally!

Here are this month's choices:

bottom: blue/teal celtic knot pattern
Top right: Gothic stained glass window
Top left: blackwork knight pattern based on a brass rubbing
Top middle: Richard III from a kit I ordered that includes all of the kings and queens of England (picture below). Look for more of these in the future - they are a lot of fun!

Weekly Wishlist - November 7, 2011

2011-11-07T10:21:00.002-07:00

The Sumerton Women by D.L. Bogdan. US and UK release April 24, 2012.

Orphaned at age eight, Lady Cecily Burkhart becomes the ward of Harold Pierce, Earl of Sumerton. Lord Hal and his wife, Lady Grace, welcome sweet-natured Cecily as one of their own. With Brey, their young son, Cecily develops an easy friendship. But their daughter, Mirabella, is consumed by her religious vocation—and by her devotion to Father Alec Cahill, the family priest and tutor.

As Henry VIII’s obsession with Anne Boleyn leads to violent religious upheaval, Mirabella is robbed of her calling and the future Cecily dreamed of is ripped away in turn. Cecily struggles to hold together the fractured household while she and Father Alec grapple with a dangerous mutual attraction. Plagued with jealousy, Mirabella unleashes a tumultuous chain of events that threatens to destroy everyone around her, even as the kingdom is torn apart…

The Queen's Lover by Francine du Plessix Gray. US release June 12, 2012.

The Queen’s Lover begins at a masquerade ball in Paris in 1774, when the dashing Swedish nobleman Count Axel von Fersen first meets the mesmerizing nineteen-year-old Dauphine, Marie Antoinette, wife of the shy, reclusive prince who will soon become Louis XVI. This electric encounter launches a lifelong romance that will span the course of the French Revolution.

The affair begins in friendship, however, and Fersen quickly becomes a devoted companion to the entire royal family. As he roams the halls of Versailles and visits the private haven of Le Petit Trianon, Fersen discovers the deepest secrets of the court, even learning the startling, erotic details of Marie Antoinette’s marriage to Louis XVI. But the events of the American Revolution tear Fersen away. Moved by the cause, he joins French troops in the fight for American independence. When he returns, he finds France on the brink of disintegration. After the Revolution of 1789 the royal family is moved from Versailles to the Tuileries. Fersen devises an escape for the family and their young children (Marie-Thérèse and the Dauphin—whom many suspect is in fact Fersen’s son). The failed attempt leads to a more grueling imprisonment, and the family spends its excruciating final days captive before the King and Queen meet the guillotine.

Grieving his lost love in his native Sweden, Fersen begins to sense the effects of the French Revolution in his homeland. Royalists are now targets, and the sensuous world of his youth is fast vanishing. Fersen is incapable of realizing that centuries of tradition have disappeared, and he pays dearly for his naïveté, losing his life at the hands of a savage mob that views him as a pivotal member of the aristocracy. Scion of Sweden’s most esteemed nobility, Fersen came to be seen as an enemy of the country he loved. His fate is symbolic of the violent speed with which the events of the eighteenth century transformed European culture. Expertly researched and deeply imagined, The Queen’s Lover is a fresh vision of the French Revolution and the French royal family as told through the love story that was at its center.

Warlord by Angus Donald. UK release July 2012.

May 1194. Finally released from captivity, Richard the Lionheart is in Normandy engaged in a bloody war to drive the French out of his continental patrimony. Using the brutual tactics of medieval warfare – sige, savagery and scorched earth – the Lionheart is gradually pushing back the forces of King Philip of France. By his side in this epic struggle are Robert, Earl of Locksley, better known as the erstwhile outlaw Robin Hood, and Sir Alan Dale, his loyal friend, and a musician and warrior of great renown. But while the battles rage and the bodies pile up, Robin seems only to be interested in making a profit from the devastation of war, while Alan is preoccupied with discovering the identity of the man who ordered his father’s death ten years earlier – and the mystery is leading him towards Paris, deep in the heart of the enemy’s territory…

The Queen's Pleasure by Brandy Purdy. US release June 26, 2012 (will be released in the UK as A Court Affair by Emily Purdy).

When young Robert Dudley, an earl’s son, meets squire’s daughter Amy Robsart, it is love at first sight. They marry despite parental misgivings, but their passion quickly fades, and the ambitious Dudley returns to court. Swept up in the turmoil of Tudor politics, Dudley is imprisoned in the Tower. Also a prisoner is Dudley’s childhood playmate, the princess Elizabeth.

In the shadow of the axe, their passion ignites. When Elizabeth becomes queen, rumors rage that Dudley means to free himself of Amy in order to wed her. And when Amy is found dead in unlikely circumstances, suspicion falls on Dudley—and the Queen…

Still hotly debated amongst scholars—was Amy’s death an accident, suicide, or murder?— the fascinating subject matter makes for an enthralling read for fans of historical fiction.

Mistress of Mourning by Karen Harper. US release July 3, 2012 (will be released as The Queen's Confidante in the UK)

London, 1501. In a time of political unrest, Varina Westcott, a young widow and candle maker for court and church, agrees to perform a clandestine service for Queen Elizabeth of York, wife of Henry VII. The queen’s eldest child and heir to the throne, newly married Prince Arthur, has died suddenly under mysterious circumstances. Elizabeth wants Varina and royal aid Nicholas Sutton to travel into the Welsh wilderness to investigate the death. But as the couple unearths one unsettling clue after another, they begin to fear that the conspiracy they’re confronting is far more ambitious and treacherous than even the queen imagined.

The Spymaster's Daughter by Jeane Westin. US and UK release August 7, 2012.

Danger and intrigue in the Tudor court of Elizabeth I, from the author of His Last Letter.

In Tudor England, traitors are everywhere and the queen’s spymaster, Sir Francis Walsingham, is assembling the greatest intelligence-gathering network in the world. Walsingham’s daughter, Lady Frances Sidney, smart, courageous, and unhappy in love, longs for the excitement of decoding encrypted messages and setting traps for those working for rival Mary, Queen of Scots. When Elizabeth makes her a lady-in-waiting, Frances seizes the chance to prove herself. She will risk her father’s condemnation, her heart’s longing, and her very life to safeguard her queen.

The Secret Keeper by Sandra Byrd. US release June 5, 2012.

Juliana St. John is the daughter of a prosperous knight in Marlborough, who has since passed away. Though her future seems charted for her to marry the son of her father's business partner, a set of circumstances interrupt that certainty and set her on a God-directed course toward the court of Henry the Eighth and his last wife, Kateryn Parr.

Sir Thomas Seymour, the brother of Jane Seymour, late mother to the current heir, Prince Edward, returns to Wiltshire to tie up his business with Juliana's father's estate, and as he does, chances upon her reading as Lector in the local church. He sees instantly that she would fit into the household of the woman he loves, Kateryn Parr. Her mother agrees to have her placed in Parr's household for "finishing" and Juliana goes, though perhaps reluctantly. For she knows a secret. She has been given the gift of prophecy and in one of her visions she has seen Sir Thomas shredding the dress of the king's daughter, the lady Elizabeth, to perilous consequence.

As Juliana accompanies Parr to court, Henry's devout sixth queen raises the stakes for all reformers. Their support of Anne Askew puts them in life-threatening jeopardy, as does the queen's desire to direct her husband's, and the realm's, direction and belief. In the end, Juliana must choose between love and honor, personal fulfillment and sacrifice; she ultimately learns the secret that will undo everything she thought she knew about her own life.

New This Week - November 7, 2011

2011-11-07T07:14:00.002-07:00

Every Sunday Tanzanite highlights books that will be released during the upcoming week. She hopes you will find something you will enjoy!

Praetorian by Simon Scarrow. UK release November 10, 2011.

The brand new thrilling Roman adventure from the bestselling author of THE LEGION and THE GLADIATOR.

The city of Rome in AD 50 is a dangerous place. Treachery lurks on every corner, and a shadowy Republican movement, 'the Liberators', has spread its tentacles wide. It is feared that the heart of the latest plot lies in the ranks of the Praetorian Guard. Uncertain of whom he can trust, the Imperial Secretary Narcissus summons to Rome two courageous men guaranteed to be loyal to the grave: army veterans Prefect Cato and Centurion Macro.

Tasked with infiltrating the Guard, Cato and Macro face a daunting test to win the trust of their fellow soldiers. No sooner have they begun to unearth the details of the Liberators' devious plan than disaster strikes: an old enemy who could identify them, with deadly consequences, makes an unexpected appearance. Now they face a race against time to save their own lives before they can unmask the mastermind behind the Liberators...

Season of Light by Katharine McMahon. UK release November 10, 2011.

Season of Light begins in 1788, in the heady days just before the French revolution, when Paris is fizzing with new ideas about liberty and equality. Asa Ardleigh, the impressionable 19-year-old daughter of a country squire, has traveled to the city with her older sister, Philippa, and Philippa's new husband. In Paris, they are introduced to the literary salon of Madame de Genlis. It is in this salon that Asa meets, and falls in love with, a dashing intellectual and idealist, Didier Paulin. Their affair is curtailed when Asa is forced to return to England, but they continue to write as the storm clouds gather over France and war with England seems imminent.

Meanwhile back at home, no one knows of Asa's liaison. Asa's middle sister, Georgina, has met Harry Shackleford, the most eligible man in London that season, and to whom the Ardleigh estate is entailed. After the death of their mother, the Ardleigh girls' father began to drink heavily and now the estate is nearly bankrupt. In Shackleford, Georgina sees not only a fortuitous marriage for her sister, but also the solution to their financial woes. However Asa's accomplishments need some polishing. Georgina therefore employs Madame de Rusigneux, a French Marquise. Asa soon discovers there is more to this woman than meets the eye...

Catherine the Great by Robert Massie. Non-fiction. US and UK release November 8, 2011.

The Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Peter the Great, Nicholas and Alexandra, and The Romanovs returns with another masterpiece of narrative biography, the extraordinary story of an obscure young German princess who traveled to Russia at fourteen and rose to become one of the most remarkable, powerful, and captivating women in history.

Born into a minor noble family, Catherine transformed herself into Empress of Russia by sheer determination. Possessing a brilliant mind and an insatiable curiosity as a young woman, she devoured the works of Enlightenment philosophers and, when she reached the throne, attempted to use their principles to guide her rule of the vast and backward Russian empire. She knew or corresponded with the preeminent historical figures of her time: Voltaire, Diderot, Frederick the Great, Empress Maria Theresa of Austria, Marie Antoinette, and, surprisingly, the American naval hero, John Paul Jones.

Reaching the throne fired by Enlightenment philosophy and determined to become the embodiment of the “benevolent despot” idealized by Montesquieu, she found herself always contending with the deeply ingrained realities of Russian life, including serfdom. She persevered, and for thirty-four years the government, foreign policy, cultural development, and welfare of the Russian people were in her hands. She dealt with domestic rebellion, foreign wars, and the tidal wave of political change and violence churned up by the French Revolution that swept across Europe. Her reputation depended entirely on the perspective of the speaker. She was praised by Voltaire as the equal of the greatest of classical philosophers; she was condemned by her enemies, mostly foreign, as “the Messalina of the north.”

Catherine’s family, friends, ministers, generals, lovers, and enemies—all are here, vividly described. These included her ambitious, perpetually scheming mother; her weak, bullying husband, Peter (who left her lying untouched beside him for nine years after their marriage); her unhappy son and heir, Paul; her beloved grandchildren; and her “favorites”—the parade of young men from whom she sought companionship and the recapture of youth as well as sex. Here, too, is the giant figure of Gregory Potemkin, her most significant lover and possible husband, with whom she shared a passionate correspondence of love and separation, followed by seventeen years of unparalleled mutual achievement.

The story is superbly told. All the special qualities that Robert K. Massie brought to Nicholas and Alexandra and Peter the Great are present here: historical accuracy, depth of understanding, felicity of style, mastery of detail, ability to shatter myth, and a rare genius for finding and expressing the human drama in extraordinary lives.

History offers few stories richer in drama than that of Catherine the Great. In this book, this eternally fascinating woman is returned to life.

Photo Friday - #26

2011-11-04T06:29:00.001-06:00

Shots from my trip this summer to the Louvre.

My camera has a cool panoramic feature that I used for this shot

Detail above a door with one of the many entwined "H" and "D" motifs scattered around (for Henri II and his mistress Diane de Poitiers)

Hallway into the Napoleon III apartments

Tanzanite's Bookmark Giveaway - October Winner

2011-11-03T17:21:00.000-06:00

The winner of this month's Bookmark Giveaway is:

Tracey

Congratulations Tracey - I will be sending you an email shortly. Thank you to everyone who entered and I'll have this month's giveaway up hopefully tomorrow.

New This Week - October 30, 2011

2011-10-30T07:26:00.000-06:00

Every Sunday Tanzanite highlights books that will be released during the upcoming week. She hopes you will find something you will enjoy!

Edward III by W. Mark Ormrod. Non-fiction. This originally had a UK release date of October 31, 2011, but looks like it was moved up ten days or so. It will be available in the US in January 2012.

Edward III (1312-1377) was the most successful European ruler of his age. Reigning for over fifty years, he achieved spectacular military triumphs and overcame grave threats to his authority, from parliamentary revolt to the Black Death. Revered by his subjects as a chivalric dynamo, he initiated the Hundred Years War and gloriously led his men into battle against the Scots and the French. In this illuminating biography, W. Mark Ormrod takes a deeper look at Edward to reveal the man beneath the military muscle. What emerges is Edward's clear sense of his duty to rebuild the prestige of the Crown, and through military gains and shifting diplomacy, to secure a legacy for posterity. New details of the splendour of Edward's court, lavish national celebrations, and innovative use of imagery establish the king's instinctive understanding of the bond between ruler and people. With fresh emphasis on how Edward's rule was affected by his family relationships - including his roles as traumatized son, loving husband, and dutiful father - Ormrod gives a valuable new dimension to our understanding of this remarkable warrior king.

Mozart's Last Aria by Matt Rees. US release November 1, 2011 (was released in the UK in May 2011).

The news arrives in a letter to his sister, Nannerl, in December 1791. But the message carries more than word of Nannerl’s brother’s demise. Two months earlier, Mozart confided to his wife that his life was rapidly drawing to a close . . . and that he knew he had been poisoned.

In Vienna to pay her final respects, Nannerl soon finds herself ensnared in a web of suspicion and intrigue—as the actions of jealous lovers, sinister creditors, rival composers, and Mozart’s Masonic brothers suggest that dark secrets hastened the genius to his grave. As Nannerl digs deeper into the mystery surrounding her brother’s passing, Mozart’s black fate threatens to overtake her as well.

Transporting readers to the salons and concert halls of eighteenth-century Austria, Mozart’s Last Aria is a magnificent historical mystery that pulls back the curtain on a world of soaring music, burning passion, and powerful secrets.

The September Queen by Gillian Bagwell. US and UK release November 1, 2011.

Charles II is running for his life-and into the arms of a woman who will risk all for king and country.

Jane Lane is of marrying age, but she longs for adventure. She has pushed every potential suitor away-even those who could provide everything for her. Then one day, adventure makes its way to her doorstep, and with it comes mortal danger...

Royalists fighting to restore the crown to King Charles II implore Jane to help. Jane must transport him to safety, disguised as a manservant. As she places herself in harm's way, she finds herself falling in love with the gallant young Charles. And despite his reputation as a breaker of hearts, Jane finds herself surrendering to a passion that will change her life forever.

Fires of Winter by Roberta Gellis. US and UK reissue November 1, 2011.

A sparkling prize, the beautiful Mellusine of Ulle is awarded to the bastard-born Bruno of Jernaeve as a spoil of war. Bruno vows to tame the rebellious spirit of the captive beauty&nash; but ultimately surrenders to her charms. Born of different worlds, joined in the flames of passion and intrigue, they find new strength in each other's arms...and a burning love that defies all eternity

Fortune's Son by Emery Lee. US and UK release November 1, 2011.

Love is the ultimate gamble...

Seasoned gambler Philip Drake knows every trick and uses most of them. After years of infamy, he's ready to accept the mantle of respectability with his earldom-- until a devastating racing loss and the threat of debtors' prison force Philip right back into his gaming ways...

Susannah, Lady Messingham, is a woman with a past who refuses to belong to any man again. But Philip's skill catches her eye and she persuades him to teach her how to win at the tables. Their new partnership turns into an exhilarating high-stakes game that entangles them in terrifying risk and unimaginable rewards...

Immerse yourself in the risky side of Georgian England with a pair of lovers who aren't afraid to risk it all on a toss of the dice...

My Glorious Brothers by Howard Fast. US reissue November 1, 2011.

For years, the people of Judea suffered under the oppressive rule of King Antiochus and the Syrian-Greeks. Under his reign, Jews were massacred and Judaism was effectively outlawed. Fed up with the injustices, peasant farmer Judas Maccabee and his brothers lead a revolt against the king and mold the people of Judea into an army.

Judas' older brother Simon stands beside him as his faithful lieutenant and second in command. But while these brothers are united in ideals on the field of battle, their love of the same woman threatens to tear them apart.

Magnificent Obsession: Victoria, Albert and the Death that changed the Monarchy by Helen Rappaport. Non-fiction. UK release November 3, 2011 (will be released in the US in March 2012).

When Queen Victoria's husband, Prince Albert, died in December 1861 the nation was paralysed with grief. He was only forty-two and official bulletins had, until the day before he died, given no cause for alarm.

But in fact Albert had been in a progressive physical decline for years - worn out by overwork, stress and the exacting standards he set himself. His death was a catastrophe for the queen, who not only adored her husband but had, through twenty-one years of marriage, utterly relied on him: as companion, father of their children, friend, confidant, wise counsellor and unofficial private secretary. There was not a single aspect of public business on which she had not deferred to his advice and greater wisdom. She would even consult him on what bonnet to wear.

Britain had lost its king. For that is the role that Albert had performed in all but name. Politicians and the press agreed that his death was a national calamity. The public, totally unprepared, responded with a massive outpouring of grief.

This royal death had a profound impact on Britain. Cast adrift and alone, the Queen donned the widow's weeds that she would wear for 40 years, till her own death in 1901. Her grieving was relentless. Without Albert to guide and support her, with a feckless heir who had caused her nothing but anxiety, and a family of nine children to parent alone, she retreated into a state of pathological grief which nobody could penetrate and few understood. Her stubborn refusal to return to public life rapidly began to alienate even her closest family and friends and to bring a resurgence of republicanism. There was even talk of abdication.

For the 150th anniversary of Albert's death, this book examines the circumstances leading up to it, the ritual of his funeral and obsequies, and offers new theories on what killed him. It will describe the overwhelming despondency of a country plunged into mourning: bells tolling, shops shuttered up, everyone - no matter how poor - clad in black. Albert's death and the Queen's demand for the most rigorous observance of mourning, while precipitating months of anxiety about its effect on business, also fostered an explosion in the funeral trade and mourning ephemera. The Whitby jet trade went into overdrive to cope with the demand for black jewellery. Over the next ten years, the Queen's single-handed mission to memorialise and commemorate her husband in perpetuity set in train plans for a range of artistic and cultural monuments that would transform the British landscape and set their visual stamp on the second half of her reign.

Vanished Kingdoms by Norman Davies. Non-fiction. This originally had a UK release date of November 3, 2011 but looks like it was changed to last week. It will be released in the US in January 2012.
'The past is a foreign country' has become a truism, yet we often forget that the past is different from the present in many unfamiliar ways, and historical memory is extraordinarily imperfect. We habitually think of the European past as the history of countries which exist today - France, Germany, Britain, Russia and so on - but often this actually obstructs our view of the past, and blunts our sensitivity to the ever-changing political landscape.

Europe's history is littered with kingdoms, duchies, empires and republics which have now disappeared but which were once fixtures on the map of their age - 'the Empire of Aragon' which once dominated the western Mediterranean; the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, for a time the largest country in Europe; the successive kingdoms (and one duchy) of Burgundy, much of whose history is now half-remembered - or half-forgotten - at best. This book shows the reader how to peer through the cracks of mainstream history writing and listen to the echoes of lost realms across the centuries.

How many British people know that Glasgow was founded by the Welsh in a period when neither England nor Scotland existed? How many of us will remember the former Soviet Union in a few generations' time? Will our own United Kingdom become a distant memory too? As in his earlier celebrated books Europe: a history and The Isles, Norman Davies aims to subvert our established view of what seems familiar, and urges us to look and think again. This stimulating surprising book, full of unexpected stories, observations and connections, gives us a fresh and original perspective on the history of Europe.

The Winding Road by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles. UK release November 3, 2011 (will be released in the US in January 2012).

1925. England is prosperous; the nation has put the war behind it, and hope is in the air. The Jazz Age is in full swing in New York, where Polly Morland is the most feted beauty of the day. But a proposal of marriage from the powerful, enigmatic Ren Alexander takes her by surprise. Her cousin Lennie, expanding his interests from radio to television and talkies, worries that no one knows much about Ren; but his attempts to find out more threaten disaster. In London, the General Strike gives the country another chance to show its stiff upper lip, as everyone turns to and helps out. Emma drives an ambulance again, while Molly runs a canteen, and each unexpectedly finds love, and a new career. But the whirligig is slowing, shadows are gathering over Europe, and the good times are almost over. Morland Place is threatened by the worst disaster of its history, and the Old World reaches out a hand to pluck Polly from the New. The Wall Street Crash brings the fabulous decade to a shattering close, and nothing will ever be quite the same again; but new shoots emerge from the ruins, hope is reborn, and the Morlands prove again that family is everything, and will endure.

Author Guest Post: Cynthia Haggard author of Thwarted Queen

2011-10-27T16:34:00.001-06:00

Today I'd like to welcome Cynthia Haggard to talk a little bit about her recently released book about Cecylee Neville.

I’ve always found it interesting that Edward IV’s favorite mistress should have had two names. Was she Jane Shore? Or Elizabeth Shore?

Turns out that her name was really Elizabeth, but she allowed herself to be called Jane.

Now why would that be? Would it be because Jane Shore - who comes across as a generous, kind-hearted individual - allowed her first name to change so that she would not compete with the other important woman in Edward’s life, his wife Queen Élisabeth Woodville? Perhaps she thought that one Elizabeth was enough for King Edward IV. What does seem to be true is that Edward was fond of Jane Shore, who was witty and intelligent, and seems to have been the recipient of many confidences. She provides an important link to evidence that gives us some indication of how Cecylee Neville - Edward’s formidable mother and the protagonist of THWARTED QUEEN - felt when she learned that he had secretly married Elisabeth Woodville.

As an old woman, Jane Shore was befriended by Sir Thomas More - the famous catholic martyr who was beheaded in 1535 - early in the reign of Henry VIII. The event she remembered occurred many years before, in September 1464, when Edward confounded everyone by announcing his secret marriage. His mother was dismayed and hurt. Dismayed, because Edward’s new Queen would take precedence over her. Hurt, because he had not confided in her. It was all the more distressing because his cousin, Warwick the Kingmaker, had been on the point of concluding negotiations for the hand of the French King’s sister.

Sir Thomas More recounts the row that erupted, as it came from the lips of Jane Shore. Cecylee told her son that it was his duty as King of England to marry into a noble or royal house from the continent. She said that it was wholly inappropriate for a monarch to marry his own subject, where no honor or lands could be secured by it.

“A rich man,” she declared,” would marry his maid only for a little wanton dotage on her person. In which marriage, many more commend the maiden’s fortune than the master’s wisdom. And yet...there is between no merchant and his own maid so great a difference as between the King and this widow. And marrying a widow,” she added as a parting shot, “only made matters worse.”

Jane Shore apparently told Sir Thomas More that when King Edward rebuffed Cecylee’s complaint, she “devised to disturb this marriage.”

But she didn’t succeed. Despite his uncontrollable womanizing, Elizabeth Woodville managed to hold her husband’s attention long enough to give him ten children over a period of fourteen years.

But Cecylee loathed her daughter-in-law and never forgave her son, and her dismay and hurt feelings helped to fuel the second phase of the Wars of the Roses, in which Edward nearly lost his throne.

About the book:

THWARTED QUEEN is a portrait of a woman trapped by power, a marriage undone by betrayal, and a King brought down by fear.

Cecylee is the apple of her mother’s eye. The seventh daughter, she is the only one left unmarried by 1424, the year she turns nine. In her father’s eyes, however, she is merely a valuable pawn in the game of marriage. The Earl of Westmorland plans to marry his youngest daughter to 13-year-old Richard, Duke of York, who is close to the throne. He wants this splendid match to take place so badly, he locks his daughter up.

The event that fuels the narrative is Cecylee’s encounter with Blaybourne, a handsome archer, when she is twenty-six years old. This love affair produces a child (the “One Seed” of Book II), who becomes King Edward IV. But how does a public figure like Cecylee, whose position depends upon the goodwill of her husband, carry off such an affair? The duke could have locked her up, or disposed of this illegitimate son.

But Richard does neither, keeping her firmly by his side as he tries to make his voice heard in the tumultuous years that encompass the end of the Hundred Years War - during which England loses all of her possessions in France - and the opening phase of the Wars of the Roses. He inherits the political mantle of his mentor Duke Humphrey of Gloucester, and become’s the people’s champion. The rambunctious Londoners are unhappy that their country has become mired in misrule due to the ineptitude of a King prone to fits of madness. Nor are they better pleased by the attempts of the King’s French wife to maneuver herself into power, especially as she was responsible for England’s losses in France. But can Richard and Cecylee prevail? Everywhere, their enemies lurk in the shadows.

Born and raised in Surrey, England, CYNTHIA SALLY HAGGARD has lived in the United States for twenty-nine years. She has had four careers: violinist, cognitive scientist, medical writer and novelist. Yes, she is related to H. Rider Haggard, the author of SHE and KING SOLOMONS’S MINES. (H. Rider Haggard was a younger brother of the author’s great-grandfather.) Cynthia Sally Haggard is a member of the Historical Novel Society. You can visit her website at: http://spunstories.com/

Weekly Wishlist - October 26, 2011

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The King’s Concubine by Anne O’Brien. US and UK release June 5, 2012.

A child born in the plague year of 1348, abandoned and raised within the oppressive walls of a convent, Alice Perrers refused to take the veil, convinced that a greater destiny awaited her. Ambitious and quick witted, she rose above her obscure beginnings to become the infamous mistress of Edward III. But always, essentially, she was alone…

Early in Alice’s life, a chance meeting with royalty changes everything: kindly Queen Philippa, deeply in love with her husband but gravely ill, chooses Alice as a lady-in-waiting. Under the queen’s watchful eyes, Alice dares to speak her mind. She demands to be taken seriously. She even flirts with the dynamic, much older king. But she is torn when her vibrant spirit captures is interest and leaders her to a betrayal she never intended.

In Edward’s private chambers, Alice discovers the pleasures and paradoxes of her position. She is the queen’s confidante, the king’s lover, yet she can rely only on herself. It is a divided role she was destined to play and she vows to play it until the bitter end. Even as she is swept up in Edward’s lavish and magnificent court, amassing wealth and influence for herself, becoming an enemy of his power-hungry son John of Gaunt, and a sparring partner to the resourceful diplomat William de Windsor, she anticipates the day when the political winds will turn against her. For when her detractors voice their hatred, and accusations of treason swirl around her, threatening to destroy everything she has achieved, who will stand by Alice then?

Gilt by Katherine Longshore. Young Adult. US and UK release May 15, 2012.

In the Tudor age, ambition, power and charismatic allure are essential and Catherine Howard has plenty of all three. Not to mention her loyal best friend, Kitty Tylney, to help cover her tracks. Kitty, the abandoned youngest daughter of minor aristocracy, owes everything to Cat – where she is, what she is, even who she is. Friend, flirt, and self-proclaimed Queen of Misrule, Cat reigns supreme in a loyal court of girls under the none-too-watchful eye of the Dowager Duchess of Norfolk.

But when Cat worms her way into the heart of Henry VIII and becomes Queen of England, Kitty is thrown into the intoxicating Tudor Court. It’s a world of glittering jewels and elegant costumes, of gossip and deception. As the Queen’s right-hand-woman, Kitty goes from the girl nobody noticed to being caught between two men – the object of her affection and the object of her desire.

Over the course of one gaudy, chaotic year, Kitty is forced to learn the difference between trust and loyalty, love and lust, secrets and treason. And when the tide begins to turn against the young Queen, Kitty discovers all too late the true weight of the diamond collar around Cat’s neck.

Perdition by James Jackson. UK release January 5, 2012 (reposted with cover)

Almost two hundred years have elapsed since the Crusader armies took Jerusalem. Now it is the turn of the Saracen to seek revenge and send an overwhelming force against the last Christian enclave in the Holy Land. In Acre, the defenders await their fate. Knight and bishop, mercenary and merchant, all will be tested and all may perish. For this is the endgame. No quarter will be given and no mercy shown.

William of Beaujeu, Grand Master of the Templars, will stop at little to secure the city and preserve his legendary military order. He knows that final judgement is approaching and that time is running out. But among the garrison are allies - the adventurer de Flor, Theobald, the young Hospitaller, the court dwarf Amethyst, the camel master Selim and the orphan boy and spy Benedict - who must stay alive in the chaos to be unleashed. In their midst prowl the feared Assassins and sinister enemies from among a rabble army of Italians. Deserted by the pope and the princes of Europe, it seems as if Acre faces annihilation - but perhaps something can still be salvaged from perdition . . .

Master and God by Lindsey Davis. UK release March 15, 2012.

AD81. The Roman Emperor Domitian seizes power. Afflicted by classic paranoia, the self-styled Master and God sees enemies everywhere - and he is right. The Senate loathes him, his advisers are terrified, he cannot trust his wife and barbarians menace the frontiers. As he vents his suspicions, no one is safe...

Gaius Vinius Clodianus survives physical and mental scars to reach high rank in the Praetorian Guard. Flavia Lucilla tends the privileged women at court; when Domitian's inherited talent unravels into madness, she loses her patron cruelly. In the haven of their shared apartment, Gaius and Lucilla find solace together, yearning for normality while living in a Reign of Terror.

Moves against Domitian are begun by his own household. Lucilla has to watch Gaius choose between love for her and risking death; between his sworn duty to protect the Emperor and killing Domitian for the good of Rome.

The plot careers close to exposure. Rome teeters on the brink of its Golden Age. A group of unlikely conspirators must now act with decency and courage, whatever the personal cost.

Master and God is the epic story of a despot whose contemporaries wrote him out of history. Told in Lindsey Davis' sardonic style, it is an intimate portrait of resilience, friendship and love.

The Road to Monticello: The Life and Mind of Thomas Jefferson by Kevin Hayes. Non-fiction. UK release June 2012.

Thomas Jefferson was an avid book-collector, a voracious reader, and a gifted writer, a man who prided himself on his knowledge of classical and modern languages and whose marginal annotations include quotations from Euripides, Herodotus, and Milton. And yet there has never been a literary life of our most literary president. In The Road to Monticello, Kevin J. Hayes fills this important gap by offering a lively account of Jefferson's intellectual development, focusing on the books that exerted the most profound influence on his writing and thinking.

Moving chronologically through Jefferson's life, Hayes reveals the full range and depth of Jefferson's literary passions, from the popular "small books" sold by traveling chapmen, such as The History of Fortunatas and The History of Tom Thumb that enthralled him as a child, to his lifelong love of Aesop's Fables and Robinson Crusoe, his engagement with Horace, Ovid, Virgil and other writers of classical antiquity, and his deep affinity with the melancholy verse of Ossian, the legendary third-century Gaelic warrior-poet. Drawing on Jefferson's letters, journals, and commonplace books, Hayes offers a wealth of new scholarship on the literary culture of colonial America, identifies previously unknown books held in Jefferson's libraries, reconstructs Jefferson's investigations of such different fields of knowledge as law, history, philosophy, and natural science and, most importantly, lays bare the ideas which informed the thinking of America's first great intellectual.

The Countess - Giveaway Winner

2011-10-25T17:11:00.000-06:00

The winner of The Countess by Rebecca Johns is:

Angela from Ohio

Congratulations Angela! I've sent you an email as well to get your address information.

Thanks to everyone who entered and to Crown Publishing for sponsoring the giveaway!

New This Week - October 23, 2011

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Every Sunday Tanzanite highlights books that will be released during the upcoming week. She hopes you will find something you will enjoy!

A Crimson Warning by Tasha Alexander. US release October 25, 2011 (will be released in the UK in December 2011).

Secrets prove deadly in this new novel from Tasha Alexander featuring Lady Emily Hargreaves. Some very prominent people in London are waking up to find their doorsteps smeared with red paint, the precursor to the revelation of a dark secret – and worse – by someone who enjoys destroying lives

Newly returned to her home in Mayfair, Lady Emily Hargreaves is looking forward to enjoying the delights of the season. The delights, that is, as defined by her own eccentricities—reading The Aeneid, waltzing with her dashing husband, and joining the Women’s Liberal Federation in the early stages of its campaign to win the vote for women. But an audacious vandal disturbs the peace in the capital city, splashing red paint on the neat edifices of the homes of London’s elite. This mark, impossible to hide, presages the revelation of scandalous secrets, driving the hapless victims into disgrace, despair and even death. Soon, all of London high society is living in fear of learning who will be the next target, and Lady Emily and her husband, Colin, favorite agent of the crown, must uncover the identity and reveal the motives of the twisted mind behind it all before another innocent life is lost.

Tides of War by Stella Tillyard. US release October 25, 2011 (released in the UK in May 2011).

An epic novel about love and war, set in Regency England and Spain during the Peninsular War (1812-15), by the acclaimed historian and bestselling author of Aristocrats

Tides of War opens in England with the recently married, charmingly unconventional Harriet preparing to say goodbye to her husband, James, as he leaves to join the Duke of Wellington's troops in Spain.

Harriet and James's interwoven stories of love and betrayal propel this sweeping and dramatic novel as it moves between Regency London on the cusp of modernity—a city in love with science, the machine, money—and the shocking violence of war in Spain. With dazzling skill Stella Tillyard explores not only the effects of war on the men at the front but also the freedoms it offers the women left behind. As Harriet befriends the older and protective Kitty, Lady Wellington, her life begins to change in unexpected ways. Meanwhile, James is seduced by the violence of battle, and then by love in Seville.

As the novel moves between war and peace, Spain and London, its large cast of characters includes the serial adulterer and war hero the Duke of Wellington, and the émigrés Nathan Rothschild and Frederic Winsor who will usher in the future, creating a world brightly lit by gaslight where credit and financial speculation rule. Whether describing the daily lives and desires of strong female characters or the horror of battle, Tides of War is set to be the fiction debut of the year.

Conqueror by Conn Iggulden. UK release October 27, 2011 (will be released in the US in December 2011).

The one and only Conn Iggulden takes on the story of the mighty Kublai Khan. An epic tale of a great and heroic mind; his action-packed rule; and how in conquering one-fifth of the world’s inhabited land, he changed the course of history forever.

A scholar who conquered an empire larger than those of Alexander or Caesar.

A warrior who would rule a fifth of the world with strength and wisdom.

A man who betrayed a brother to protect a nation.

From a young scholar to one of history’s most powerful warriors, Conqueror tells the story of Kublai Khan – an extraordinary man who should be remembered alongside Julius Caesar, Alexander the Great and Napoleon Bonaparte as one of the greatest conquerors the world has ever known.

It should have been a golden age, with an empire to dwarf the lands won by the mighty Genghis Khan. Instead, the vast Mongol nation is slowly losing ground, swallowed whole by their most ancient enemy. A new generation has arisen, yet the long shadow of the Great Khan still hangs over them all …

Kublai dreams of an empire stretching from sea to sea. But to see it built, this scholar must first learn the art of war. He must take his nation’s warriors to the ends of the known world. And when he is weary, when he is wounded, he must face his own brothers in bloody civil war.

Bessie Blount: The Story of Henry VIII's Longtime Mistress by Elizabeth Norton. Non-fiction. UK release October 28, 2011 (no cover image available.).

Beautiful, young, exuberant, the amazing life of Elizabeth Blount, Henry VIII's mistress and mother to his first son who came tantalizingly close to succeeding him as King Henry IX. The earliest known, and longest lasting mistress of Henry VIII, Bessie Blount was the king's first love. More beautiful than Anne Boleyn or any of Henry's other wives or concubines, Bessie's beauty and other charms ensured that she turned heads, winning a place at court as one of Catherine of Aragon's ladies. Within months she was partnering the king in dancing and she rose to be the woman with the most influence over Henry, much to Catherine of Aragon's despair. The affair lasted five years (longer than most of Henry's marriages) and in 1519 she bore Henry VIII a son, Henry Fitzroy. As a mark of his importance Cardinal Wolsey was appointed his guardian and godfather. Supplanted soon after by Mary Boleyn, Bessie's importance rests on the vital proof it gave Henry VIII that he could father a healthy son and through Henry Fitzroy, Bessie remained a prominent figure at court. In the country at large, for proving that the king was capable of fathering a son Bessie prompted the saying 'Bless'ee, Bessie Blount' and her position of mother of such an important child made her an object of interest to many of her contemporaries. Sidelined by historians until now, Bessie and the son she had by the king are one of the great 'what ifs' of English history. If Jane Seymour had not produced a male heir and Bessie's son had not died young aged 17, in all likelihood Henry Fitzroy could have followed his father as King Henry IX and Bessie propelled to the status of mother of the king.

Catherine of Aragon: A Life by Patrick Williams. Non-fiction. UK release October 28, 2011 (no cover image available).

The tragic story of Henry VIII's first unfortunate wife. Catherine of Aragon was a central figure in one of the most dramatic and formative events of Tudor history - England's breach with Rome after a thousand years of fidelity. She lived through traumatic and revolutionary times and her personal drama was played out against dramas of global significance. The heroic and dignified first wife of Henry VIII who was cast aside for reasons of dynastic ambition, but who resolutely and unbendingly stuck to her principles and her dignity at enormous cost to herself. Catherine's story tells so much about the exercise of power, and about being married to a lover who became - slowly but perceptibly - a tyrant in public life and a monster in his private affairs. Professor Patrick Williams has been immersed in Spanish history for over thirty years and his monumental new biography - the first to make full use of the Spanish Royal Archives - is the result, and presents a very different portrait of Catherine.

Cover Slut - Cheesy Romance

2011-10-22T07:18:00.000-06:00

I"ve had another blog for a while where I posted historical fiction book covers (largely from the past). I haven't posted there for a while and have decided to start posting those here. I'll be leaving Tanzanite's Book Covers up though to keep all of the stuff already posted there and in case I change my mind (again...).

When I was in high school and college, I was a huge fan of historical romances. Apparently, under some of these wonderfully cheesy covers were stories about real historical people (who knew!!). I don't recall reading any of those then, but since my love affair with historical fiction began, I've been finding them now. This is a recent addition to my personal book collection:

Published in 1988, Queen's Ransom is set during the Wars of the Roses and focuses on four women: Margaret of Anjou, Elizabeth Woodville, Anne Neville and Elizabeth of York. It was also published under the more respectable name, The Royal Consorts and with a more medieval-ish looking cover (below).

Photo Friday - #25

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Another one of our favorites from the 2010 trip - Windsor Castle

I love this kind of detail work - it was everywhere (and of course hubby had to take pictures of all of it!)

We were at Windsor on a Friday afternoon. After coming out of St. George's Chapel, I noticed something had changed on the round tower - the flag. I have pictures that show the tower before we went into the chapel and it was flying the Union Jack. So some time while we were in the chapel, the Queen had arrived at Windsor. We looked for her, but no, sadly, we didn't see her...

"Like" Us

2011-10-20T17:24:00.000-06:00

I decided to create a Facebook page for the castle - I'm not entirely sure I know what I'm doing, but we'll give it a shot. If you're so inclined, please hop over there and "Like" us. Tanzy will be so happy if you do. You can also click on the little "Like" button below (I think...)

Weekly Wishlist - October 19, 2011

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The Stuart Age: England 1603-1774 by Barry Coward. Non-fiction. US reissue December 19, 2011.

The Stuart Age is widely recognised as the best general book on the period. Now in its fourth edition, it provides a definitive and up-to-date history of England's century of civil war and revolution.

Barry Coward addresses the major themes of the time, from the causes of the English Civil War and the nature of the English Revolution, to the aims and achievements of Oliver Cromwell, the continuation of religious passion in the politics of Restoration England, and the impact on Britain of the Glorious Revolution. The book also covers the relevant history of Scotland and Ireland, and gives comprehensive treatment of economic, social, intellectual, and political and religious history.

This fully revised edition includes the following features:

- carefully selected illustrations integrated into the text
- a new larger format
- text boxes covering key ideas, events and figures
- up-to-date introductions to the most important historiographical issues

The late Barry Coward was Emeritus Professor of the School of History, Classics and Archaeology at Birkbeck College, University of London. His many publications include Oliver Cromwell (2000) and A Companion to Stuart Britain (2008).

Spartacus: The Gladiator by Ben Kane. UK release January 19, 2012 (reposted with cover and updated summary)

In historical terms we know very little about Spartacus the man - partly because most contemporary Roman historians were keen to obliterate his memory and prevent him from attaining mythic status. This of course is grist to the novelist's mill. Ben Kane's brilliant novel begins in the Thracian village to which Spartacus has returned, after escaping from life as an auxiliary in the Roman army. But here he quickly falls foul of his overlord, the Thracian king, who has set his heart on Dionysian priestess, Ariadne - later to become wife of Spartacus. Betrayed again to the Romans by his jealous king, Spartacus - and with him Ariadne - are taken in captivity to the school of gladiators at Capua. it is here - against the unbelievable brutality of gladiatorial life - that Spartacus and Crixus the Gaul plan the audacious overthrow of their Roman masters, escaping to Vesuvius, where they recruit and train a huge slave army - an army which will keep the might of Rome at bay for two years and create one of the most extraordinary legends in history. SPARTACUS; THE GLADIATOR takes the story up to the moment when the slave army has inflicted its first great defeat on Rome.

Empress Josephine’s Crown by Michelle Moran. UK release March 1, 2012.

Empress Josephine's family has been called to Napoleon's court for the terrible news that he intends to divorce his barren wife of thirteen years and take a younger bride, the Austrian Princess Marie-Louise. For Josephine's daughter, Hortense, this means she is free to leave her husband, Napoleon's brother, having given the Bonapartes three heirs. As she looks for love, she must support her mother through the terrible grief of Napoleon's betrayal. For his new wife, it is a terrible duty she must take on in her father's name. She has nothing in common with the strange, older man she has married and can find little in her life to enjoy. But an unlikely friendship with Hortense will bring her much comfort, especially as she must fight for her own happiness. For Napoleon's sister, Pauline Bonaparte, it is yet another woman stealing her brother's attention and affection. Having spent years attempting to control his power and his influence, she must fight harder and dirtier if she is to win...

Spy for the Queen of Scots by Theresa Breslin. Young Adult. UK release May 3, 2012.

As lady-in-waiting to Mary, Queen of Scots, the beautiful Ginette - known as Jenny - is the young queen's closest childhood friend. Growing up in the elegant but ruthless French court, surrounded by enemies and traitors - not least the jealous, manipulative Catherine de Medici, and Mary's own scheming half-brother, James - Jenny has always been fiercely loyal to her mistress. But when she overhears a mysterious whispered plot, closely followed by several unexplained deaths at court, she puts her own life in danger and turns spy for Mary.

Jenny quickly realises not a soul at court can be trusted, and when she and Mary return to their Scottish homeland for Mary to claim her throne, they face even greater peril. Desperate to protect her friend from those who would slit her throat to steal her crown, while battling her feelings for the charismatic nobleman Duncan Alexander, Jenny becomes embroiled in a dangerous web of secrets, betrayals and lies.

Wallis by Rebecca Dean. UK release June 10, 2012. (previously titled The Shadow Queen)

Two lovers. Two very different lives.

One future together that will change history.

When debutante Wallis Simpson is growing up, she devotes her teenage daydreams to one man, the future King of England, Prince Edward. But it's Pamela Holtby, Wallis's aristocratic best friend, who mixes within the palace circle.

Wallis's first marriage to a dashing young naval pilot is not what she dreamt of; he turns out to be a dominating bully of a man, who punishes her relentlessly. But her fated marriage does open a suprising door, to the world of Navy couriers – where navy wives are being used to transport messages around the world. This interesting turn of fate takes Wallis from the exuberant social scene in Washington to a China that is just emerging from civil war.

Edward in the meantime is busy fulfilling his royal duties – and some extra-curricular ones involving married women. Until the day, just before he ascends the throne as Edward VIII, he is introduced to a very special married woman, Wallis Simpson.

Was Wallis Simpson really the monster the royal family perported her to be? Or was she an extraordinary woman who led an unimaginable life?

A dramatic novel, that crosses continents and provides a unique insight into one of history’s most charismatic and multi-faceted women.

Lady Jane Grey by Sue Reid. Young Adult. UK release June 7, 2012.

Not much of a product description for this one:
The tragic story of Lady Jane Grey who was Queen of England for nine days in July 1553

Of Fathers and Sons: Geoffrey Hotspur and the Este Inheritance by Evan Ostryzniuk. UK release September 6, 2012.

Geoffrey Hotspur, orphan-squire and ward of the powerful John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, longs to return home to France.

Having fought in the ranks of the now disbanded papal armies in Italy, he finds himself penniless and stuck in a foreign land far from his native Avignon, with only a resentful and unscrupulous debt collector as companion. He misses the warm bosom of the Great Hall, the company of his fellow squires and the kind words of the chatelaine, Anne de Roet. Above all, though, Geoffrey fears losing his place at court, and so he must by all means and with speed make his way back to the halls of Gaunt or risk being forsaken by the only family he has known.

But when Geoffrey and his English Free Company take a job protecting pilgrims headed north, he meets a beguiling young woman, heiress of an old and distinguished crusader family of Cyprus, who fuels his fantasies about courtly love and confuses his priorities. Meanwhile, to reach the safety of Avignon, Geoffrey must traverse northern Italy, where the clouds of war are gathering...

Twelve year old Niccolo, the new Marquis of Ferrara and heir to the strategic lands of the Este family, is under siege. His right to the throne is being contested by his uncle, the old Visconti captain-general Azzo d'Este, who has been cultivating allies and gathering men-at-arms since the death of the old marquis in 1393 - and he is almost ready to strike. Outnumbered and insecure because of his questionable legitimacy, Niccolo must gather an army of his own if he is to defend his birthright. However, with limited resources and vassals deserting him left and right, the young marquis must keep his wits about him if he is to negotiate the perilous waters of family politics.

When the paths of the errant squire and troubled marquis cross, their fates intertwine as each endeavors to take from the other what he needs.

The Lady of the Rivers by Philippa Gregory

2011-10-18T18:38:00.001-06:00

Continuing her series about the women of the “Cousins War” (a/k/a The Wars of the Roses), Philippa Gregory’s latest subject is the often neglected Jacquetta of Luxembourg, mother of Edward IV’s queen, Elizabeth Woodville. But although the point of view is that of Jacquetta (in first person, present tense of all things), for most of the time period covered by the book Jacquetta’s life is one of being an observer to the battle for England’s crown.

As a young girl, Jacquetta is married to England’s regent in France, John, Duke of Bedford. But her new husband has little interest in Jacquetta as a wife; it is her alleged descent from the goddess Melusina and the gift of sight as well as finding a way to turn metal into gold that he’s after. Following her husband’s death, Jacquetta (a widowed duchess with connections to the French royal family) is not content to let her life be determined by others and takes her future into her own hands by marrying her husband’s squire, Richard Woodville. As part of the retinue that escorts the king’s bride, Margaret of Anjou, from France, Jacquetta and the young queen form a close friendship until fate steps in forcing Margaret into exile and making Jacquetta’s daughter the new Queen of England.

I enjoyed the first part of The Lady of the Rivers. Jacquetta meets Joan of Arc who is under the care of her aunt and by her fate, Jacquetta learns what happends to women who defy the rules of men. The witchcraft accusations against Eleanor Cobham brings the lesson a little closer to home and Jacquetta and Richard hope that her past doesn't come back to haunt them. Jacquetta and Richard fall in love and plan a life together despite the risk. But once Jacquetta is at court as one of the queen’s ladies, the focus shifts from being about Jacquetta to really being just another account of the political turmoil and conflict going on around her. Not that I would have wanted to read an endless recollection about Jacquetta retiring to her estates to have another baby every year either (which is mostly what Jacquetta was doing when she wasn’t at court). But because it would have to be either one or the other, I think it highlights the fact that Jacquetta was probably a poor choice of narrator.

I liked Jacquetta though and her family. The Woodvilles are too often portrayed as one dimensional villains or as the devil on earth, so it was nice to see them as real people – people who love, laugh, fear, grieve and through it all, manage to land on their feet. I also liked Gregory’s treatment of Margaret of Anjou. Instead of the usual she-wolf-bitch who caused the whole country to go to war, this Margaret is softer, and more sympathetic. Still, she is no man’s doormat and she fiercely protects what is hers and isn’t going to give it up without one heck of a fight. Can't really blame her though.

But despite liking the two main characters, the actual story-telling was just average and there's nothing really new here. The first person narration again causes problems with awkward dialogue at times for purposes of telling the reader what has happened elsewhere or helping keep all of the Richard, Henry and Edwards straight (by reminding the reader at every opportunity of who a person is by title and or relation) . Although this problem comes with the territory a little bit (and even the best writers are forced to do it from time to time), a skilled writer finds ways to minimize its use. Although I didn’t think The Lady of the Rivers was as bad as The Other Queen, it lacked the intensity and drama of The Other Boleyn Girl and the insight and characterizations of The Boleyn Inheritance (the two books of Gregory’s that I really liked).

In case the FTC asks: I was sent a copy by the publisher.

New This Week - October 16, 2011

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Every Sunday Tanzanite highlights books that will be released during the upcoming week. She hopes you will find something you will enjoy!

The Lady of the Rivers by Philippa Gregory. US release October 18, 2011 (released in the UK in September 2011).
Passion. Danger. Witchcraft . . .

The Lady of the Rivers is #1 New York Times bestselling author Philippa Gregory’s remarkable story of Jacquetta, Duchess of Bedford, a woman who navigated a treacherous path through the battle lines in the Wars of the Roses.

Descended from Melusina, the river goddess, Jacquetta always has had the gift of second sight. As a child visiting her uncle, she met his prisoner, Joan of Arc, and saw her own power reflected in the young woman accused of witchcraft. They share the mystery of the tarot card of the wheel of fortune before Joan is taken to a horrific death at the hands of the English rulers of France. Jacquetta understands the danger for a woman who dares to dream.

Jacquetta is married to the Duke of Bedford, English regent of France, and he introduces her to a mysterious world of learning and alchemy. Her only friend in the great household is the duke’s squire Richard Woodville, who is at her side when the duke’s death leaves her a wealthy young widow. The two become lovers and marry in secret, returning to England to serve at the court of the young King Henry VI, where Jacquetta becomes a close and loyal friend to his new queen.

The Woodvilles soon achieve a place at the very heart of the Lancaster court, though Jacquetta can sense the growing threat from the people of England and the danger of royal rivals. Not even their courage and loyalty can keep the House of Lancaster on the throne. Henry the king slides into a mysterious sleep; Margaret the queen turns to untrustworthy favorites for help; and Richard, Duke of York, threatens to overturn the whole kingdom for his rival dynasty.

Jacquetta fights for her king, her queen, and for her daughter Elizabeth for whom Jacquetta can sense an extraordinary and unexpected future: a change of fortune, the throne of England, and the white rose of York.
A sweeping, powerful story rich in passion and legend and drawing on years of research, The Lady of the Rivers tells the story of the real-life mother of the white queen.

The Tigress of Forli: Renaissance Italy's Most Courageous and Notorious Countess, Caterina Riario Sforza de' Medici by Elizabeth Lev. Non-fiction. US release October 18, 2011 (will be released in the UK in December 2011).

The astonishing life of a long-misunderstood Renaissance virago

Wife, mother, leader, warrior. Caterina Riario Sforza was one of the most prominent women in Renaissance Italy—and one of the most vilified. In this glittering biography, Elizabeth Lev reexamines her extraordinary life and accomplishments.

Raised in the court of Milan and wed at age ten to the pope’s corrupt nephew, Caterina was ensnared in Italy’s political intrigues early in life. After turbulent years in Rome’s papal court, she moved to the Romagnol province of Forlì. Following her husband’s assassination, she ruled Italy’s crossroads with iron will, martial strength, political savvy—and an icon’s fashion sense. In finally losing her lands to the Borgia family, she put up a resistance that inspired all of Europe and set the stage for her progeny—including Cosimo de' Medici—to follow her example to greatness.

A rich evocation the Renaissance, The Tigress of Forlì reveals Caterina Riario Sforza as a brilliant and fearless ruler, and a tragic but unbowed figure.

The Maid by Kimberly Cutter. US release October 18, 2011 (released in the UK in May 2011).

The girl who led an army, the peasant who crowned a king, the maid who became a legend

It is the fifteenth century, and the tumultuous Hundred Years’ War rages on. France is under siege, English soldiers tear through the countryside destroying all who cross their path, and Charles VII, the uncrowned king, has neither the strength nor the will to rally his army. And in the quiet of her parents’ garden in Domrémy, a peasant girl sees a spangle of light and hears a powerful voice speak her name. Jehanne .

The story of Jehanne d’Arc, the visionary and saint who believed she had been chosen by God, who led an army and saved her country, has captivated our imagination for centuries. But the story of Jehanne—the girl—whose sister was murdered by the English, who sought an escape from a violent father and a forced marriage, who taught herself to ride and fight, and who somehow found the courage and tenacity to persuade first one, then two, then thousands to follow her, is at once thrilling, unexpected, and heartbreaking. Rich with unspoken love and battlefield valor, The Maid is a novel about the power and uncertainty of faith, and the exhilarating and devastating consequences of fame.

A Brief History of Roman Britain by JP Alcock. Non-fiction. US and UK release October 20, 2011.

In BC 55 Julius Caesar came, saw, conquered and then left. It was not until AD 43 that the Emperor Claudius crossed the channel and made Britain the western outpost of the Roman Empire that would span from the Scottish border to Persia. For the next 400 years the island would be transformed. Within that period would see the rise of Londinium, almost immediately burnt to the ground in 60 AD by Boudicca; Hadrian's Wall which was constructed in 112 AD to keep the northern tribes at bay as well as the birth of the Emperor Constantine in third century York. Interwoven with the historical narrative is a social history of the period showing how roman society grew in Britain.

The Pale Horseman by Bernard Cornwell

2011-10-15T14:00:00.003-06:00

The Pale Horseman is the second in Bernard Cornwell’s Saxon series (the 6th book – Death of Kings will be released in the US in January) and continues the story of Uhtred – the Saxon-turned-Dane-turned-Saxon who is well on his way to becoming a great warrior. But becoming a hero is not easy.

I enjoyed this one a little more than the first in the series, The Last Kingdom, as Uhtred begins to come into his own as a man and moves away from the somewhat bratty and arrogant teenager. He takes his responsibilities seriously and realizes that the fate of a country and an entire people rests on men like him. But when he gets himself into a jam (which he does often), his quick thinking and wit save him (from himself and from the Danes). And that’s what I love about Uhtred – as a hero, he is seriously flawed. And he knows it. But as easily as he sees himself, he also sees Alfred as a man whose piety covers an ambition to be king of all the Saxons.

Uhtred struggles with where his loyalties lie. Born a Saxon but raised by the Danish, he often thinks about rejoining the Danes – after all, they appear to be winning. But somehow he gets the sense that it’s all about more than just him. So a Saxon he remains. He’s reckless, fearless (most of the time) and utterly without any regard for the proper order of things. He's the kind of guy that belongs in the men-want-to-be-him-women-want-to-sleep-with-him category.

When Alfred is forced into hiding out in a swamp, it is up to Uhtred to come up with a plan for the Saxons to fight back. But not everyone trusts Uhtred – he’s a pagan and his feelings toward the Danes are well known. Alfred is more trusting though and gives Uhtred the task of driving the two main Danish leaders together: badly outnumbered, he can only fight one battle in order to save his kingdom and his dream of a united Saxon country. They will either destroy all of the Danes at once – or be destroyed.

A good offense: “When you are up to your arse in shit there is only one thing to do. Attack.” Uhtred as he tries to decide the best way to respond to charges made against him.

What matters: “We make children and wealth and amass land and build halls and assemble armies and give great feasts, but only one thing survives us. Reputation.” Uhtred on why he can’t walk away from a just fight.

Show them the money: “You have to fight with mere men, and there’s nothing quite like greed, revenge and selfishness to inspire mortals.” One of Alfred’s priests on explaining why he can rouse his men with promises of killing Danes and getting rich and not with speeches about God.

In case the FTC asks: Paperback Swap

Photo Friday - #24

2011-10-14T08:04:00.000-06:00

In honor of the 945th anniversary of the Battle of Hastings, here are a few pictures of the re-enactment that we attended last year.

Following his victory, William the Conqueror built a large abbey on the north end of the battlefield.

The church was situated so that the high alter placed on the spot where Harold was killed. A plaque marks the spot now.

North Carolina Renaissance Festival

2011-10-12T17:13:00.000-06:00

My new job has been keeping me pretty busy and so I have managed to fall really behind in my reviews - I have six I need to write and two to finish! I'm hoping to make some real progress on it this weekend. In the meantime, I thought I would share some pictures from the North Carolina Renaissance Festival that hubby and I attended last weekend. We had never been to one before and it was a lot of fun. And the turkey leg was pretty darn good!

I really enjoyed seeing all of the different costumes. Hubby said I could get one of my own but despite all of the "shops", I didn't see anything that I really liked - most of it was very pirate-wench looking (not that there's anything wrong with that, but not what I had in mind). I've been looking online. If anyone has any suggestions of online places, please let me know. I talked to the lady here in the red gown about her dress - she made it herself and it's gorgeous! So jealous.

The King and Queen of the festival. We got to the festival shortly after they opened and in the first tent the king and queen were explaining some of the rules of the place and talking about the different events that would be going on. There was probably 10 or so stages set up around the grounds with comedy acts, music, theatre, demonstrations, etc.

This was also an early stop...

The joust

The winner. He reminds me of the guy who played King Arthur in the recently cancelled Starz series, Camelot.

One of the demonstrations we watched involved falcons and other birds. If you look in the middle of the picture you can see the falcon coming in to get the prey the trainer is throwing out for him to catch. It was pretty cool.

This made me laugh.

We were really surprised at how big this place was - filled with all sorts of quaint medieval looking buildings.

I'm hoping we can go back again!