Mystery In Provence by Vivian Conroy (Miss Ashford Investigates Book One)

 

Publication Date:

October 7, 2022

Length:

314 pages 

Summary:

This series takes place in different countries and locations. That is a draw for me in cozy mysteries. I wasn't exactly sure where Provence was but researched a bit and found it to be an interesting location in the heart of France. When the story begins, it is June of 1930 and Miss Atalanta Ashford has just finished a job teaching at a boarding school in Switzerland. She is shocked when she receives news that she has become independently wealthy due to the death of her grandfather and the inheritance she has been given. 

Never having known him, she is even more surprised and overwhelmed. There's one catch though....she may have a beautiful new home in Paris and lots of money but she also is asked to clandestinely continue the secret life of sleuthing that her grandfather conducted without most people's knowledge. He trusts Atalanta to be worthy of this because he has been checking up on her life and her character and feels she shares a lot of his qualities in this area. Atalanta is willing to try although she isn't sure how to begin. A case has fallen to her already when she is asked to investigate the behavior of a young woman's fiance, the Comte de Surmonne. The lady, Eugenie Frontenac is desperate to make sure the man she is marrying isn't a murderer of his first wife. She wants Atalanta to come to their estate in Provence, posing as a lady's maid of sorts during the week of the planned wedding, and find out the truth. 

The French For Murder by Verity Bright (A Lady Eleanor Swift Mystery Book 10)

 

Publication Date: 

May 30, 2022

Length:

302 pages

Summary:

Lady Eleanor, her butler Clifford, and her beloved bulldog Gladstone are all set to enjoy their villa in the south of France. As usual, Clifford sets out to make it as comfortable as their English estate, Henley Hall. As he is working in the wine cellar, he discovers the body of Rex Armstrong, an American movie star shooting a film in the nearby area. He has been stabbed and inexplicably left in the villa. The police are sure Clifford is guilty. After all, he "found" the body and he isn't French, so they are naturally suspicious of him as an outsider. When he is arrested, Eleanor is frantic to clear his name. But since Clifford is always the one helping her out of sticky situations, she is hard pressed to know just wnat to do this time. 

When Christ and His Saints Slept by Sharon Kay Penman (The Plantagenets Book One)

 

Publication Date:

February 6, 1996

Length:

750 pages

This is my second read for this wonderful book. I felt like the first time I read it so quickly and was much less informed about the period so when I recently finished the fourth book in the series, Lionheart, about Richard I, I decided to go back and read this one again. I hadn't reviewed it either and wanted to do that before tackling the last book, A King's Ransom. I'm so glad I did because it really helped me solidify the timeline of the Anarchy period in my mind. Also, these books are so dense you can't possibly remember everything so it always feels new.

Summary:

The story begins with the sinking of the White Ship and culminates in the ascension of King Henry II of England. Covering a span of roughly thirty years of turmoil and chaos Penman manages to make it look easy to get all the important facts in along with the emotions and feelings of the time. When Henry I loses his only son and heir in the shipwreck he is distraught and calls daughter Matilda home from the only home she has really known, Germany, as the former wife of the Holy Roman Emperor, who has died. Although Henry hopes that Matilda will take his place someday, the barons are not convinced and many side with Stephen of Blois, Matilda's cousin and the only other in line that can take on the role of King.

As far as the history is concerned, the book follows a solid timeline: Stephen becomes king, Matilda fights to regain her stolen crown, towns caught in the middle are destroyed, lives uprooted, and anarchy reigns. All the major battles, Lincoln, the Rout of Winchester, Oxford Castle, culminating in the Siege and Treaty of Wallingford solidifying Henry's triumph are amazingly told.  While Penman is exceptionally detailed and skillful in recounting all of this, it isn't the heart of the novel. I will leave the summary with this: the Anarchy was a time of horrible unrest where innocent lives were sacrificed again and again as two heirs are caught in their struggle to prove they are the rightful heirs to the throne. 

My Thoughts:

When historical fiction is done well you finish the book feeling as if you have lived through the time. You feel as if you know the characters inside and out as real people. This is how I always feel reading Penman's books. Having read others set in this time period I say there is no contest as to which author gets it right. Matilda's personality has suffered throughout history as being one of stubborn, haughty, and arrogant, only thinking of the title denied her. In this book she is still those things but with a much more human air. Her relationship with her brother Robert, Earl of Gloucester shows how much she relied on him and his judgement, both as a battlefield commander and as a trusted advisor. Her loyalty to her fellow nobleman, Brien fitz Count is touchingly portrayed and although a romantic involvement is hinted at, Penman never fully accepts the premise that it went any further than deep conversations and intense trust. 

One of my favorite parts of the novel is Matilda's escape from Oxford Castle in winter. I could feel the cold, the exhaustion, and desperation of the group as they attempt to evade Stephen's men who are completely unaware that such a feat is even in the realm of possibility. Penman recounts the harrowing night minute by minute and you feel as if you are with them.

Stephen is portrayed as the man caught between being too nice and too harsh. His inconsistency is shown throughout the story in a way that made me feel sorry for him while also being incredibly exasperated too. His interaction with his wife, also Matilda, and their son Eustace is realistic and heartbreaking as they come to the realization that Eustace is not the man they hoped he'd be. He is cruel and narcissistic and disappoints them. While Henry, Matilda's son is the perfect choice to succeed Stephen, this puts Stephen in yet another dilemma from which he is hard pressed to make difficult choices. Time and again his weakness for pleasing others comes to the surface but then he overreacts when he senses people are doubting him. I found myself identifying with this very human side in a way I didn't in other books about the period. It gave me great insight into how hard it must have been to rule effectively in a time when weakness is not tolerated and Kings must stay true to their threats or risk being undermined at every turn. 

Penman included a few fictional characters who show up in subsequent books. Ranulf, his wife Rhiannon and her family are distant relatives in Wales and Ranulf is Matilda's brother, one of Henry I's many illegitimate sons. While I enjoyed their story as a way to learn more about the Welsh, they were not a huge excitement factor for me. Ranulf's story seemed to serve as the romantic part that I guess she felt needed addding. He appears in many of the following books though so his storyline is not one to skip. 

I am currently finishing the last book in the Plantagenet story written by Penman. These are books that are sure to be classics. I do not doubt that I will read them again one day. If you start with this one you will not want to wait to buy the next in the series. I found myself peeking back into book two, Time and Chance, and having to force myself not to go down that rabbit hole! You will be hooked and find you are spoiled for her writing as you tackle other stories. 

Conquest by David Field (The Medieval Saga Series Book One)

 

Publication Date: 

March 4, 2022

Length:

288 pages

Summary:

The first book in a great series, Conquest sat in my Kindle awhile as I read books six and seven first. This one just didn't interest me as much but now that I have finally finished it I'm so glad I did. I really had no working knowledge of the Norman Conquest before the date 1066 and how it was the beginning of the England we know today. But William the Conqueror and his defeat of the Saxon way of life wasn't something I cared much about. With his usual, practical yet entertaining way, Field has managed to make me not only care but now want to seek out more about this turbulent time period.

Will Riveracre, son of the local miller in the village of Sandlake, wants only to marry a nice girl and live his life quietly and peacefully. Although his family is not the most well off in the area, they are content with their lot in life, beholden to the local nobility, or Thegn, who rely on the villagers to supply their way of life at the local Manor.  Accustomed to years of tradition and societal hierarchy, everyone generally accepts their place and with little working knowledge of political machinations outside of their immediate surroundings, cannot imagine things any other way.

Unaware of the brewing threats around them to the North, South, and across the English Channel, the Riveracres and the other villagers are naively of the opinion that as long as they have their men on the ready to defend the current Saxon King Harold Godwineson against any overt threat that could materialize, life will go on as it always has. Suddenly overnight though it seems that they are under attack from Viking Harald Hardrada of Norway and William of Normandy, both who claim to have a right to rule England themselves. Will and Selwyn Astenmede, the Thegn's son, are eventually embroiled in the fighting, both unsure of who to back as the outcome of which warrior will come out on top is so uncertain. Choosing the wrong side will have deadly consequences for the defeated. 

Throughout the next year the young men will manage to carve out personal lives with wives and children, while fighting for their way of life. As the battles tear apart the villages and towns caught in the middle, Will and Selwyn try to defend their families, maintain loyalty to their people, but also placate the wrath of William the Conqueror as he tears through the land, showing no mercy to anyone who doesn't bow to his authority. It will be up to Will to eventually convince the people that they must accept their conquest or die fighting it. This doesn't make him popular, but keeps him alive at great cost to himself and his old way of life. 

My Thoughts: 

Normally I prefer not to have fictional characters in these types of stories but Will and Selwyn were interesting and colorful enough that they fit in seamlessly into the storyline. It made me much more sympathetic to the local, terrorized people and how jarring it must have been when all the fighting and plundering of their way of life began. I had no idea how ruthless William of Normandy was either. I grew to really dislike him a lot and although he probably was doing what many other warriors have done who came before him, I found Field's portrayal of him to be one of a fearsome fighter alternating with an almost petulant, child like man who pouts when he doesn't get the immediate respect he feels he deserves. He is completely unforgiving to the Saxon people who don't want him there and scorns anything to do with their way of life.

Field is good at giving battle descriptions without veering off too much into super detailed facts which moves the story along. These books are great at giving one a snapshot of the facts, timeline, and personalities involved but leave enough so that you can pick and choose which subject or person you want to know more about and then go get more on that one area from another source. He also includes such interesting side stories I'd never heard about. There is a mysterious priest, hiding a great secret, a mistress, Edith Swan Neck, who was a real person with a famous shrine to the Virgin Mary, and people at court with William who factor into the fictional cast of characters. Another great read and I'm looking forward to the next book, Traitor's Arrow, which will tell the story of Henry I, son of William the Conqueror and his own rise the the throne.

Can't Wait Wednesday: Wolves of Winter by Dan Jones (Book Two Essex Dogs Trilogy)

 

For this week's Can't Wait Wednesday, hosted by Tressa at Wishful Endings, I'm featuring Wolves of Winter by Dan Jones. This is book two in his Essex Dogs Trilogy. I am looking for good historical fiction about the Hundred Years War between England and France and finding it difficult to come across. I am not a huge fan of books that are based solely on the battles of a certain time period but with this subject that is to be expected. Dan Jones is the author of many great books and his research is always solid and reliable. This might be one to try. I hope you have found a book you can't wait to read this week!

January 30, 2024

Medieval Historical Fiction/War Fiction

Description courtesy of Amazon books

The epic sequel to Essex Dogs, continuing the New York Times bestselling historian's trilogy of novels following the fortunes of ten ordinary soldiers during the Hundred Years' War.

1347. Bruised and bloodied by an epic battle at Crécy, six soldiers known as the Essex Dogs pick through the wreckage of the fighting—and their own lives.
 
Now a new siege is beginning, and the Dogs are sent to attack the soaring walls of Calais. King Edward has vowed no Englishman will leave France ‘til this city falls. To get home, they must survive a merciless winter in a lawless camp deadlier than any battlefield.
 
Obsessed with tracking down the vanished Captain, Loveday struggles to control his own men. Romford is haunted by the reappearance of a horrific figure from his past. And Scotsman is spiraling into a pit of drink, violence, and self-pity.
 
The Dogs are being torn apart—but this war is far from over. It won't be long before they lose more of their own.
 
From a vast siege camp built outside Calais' walls, to the pirate ships patrolling the harbor, and into the dark corners of oligarchs' houses, where the deals that shape—and end—lives are made, this captivating and darkly comic story brings the fourteenth century vividly to life.

The Conscience of a King by David Field (The Medieval Saga Series Book 6)

 

Publication Date: March 31, 2023

Length: 276 pages

I have purchased books one, six, and seven in this series as they have gone on sale. They sat in my Kindle for awhile and I decided to read the last book in the series first. This was because it is about Simon de Montfort and there are so few historical fiction books about him. 

Simon de Montfort begins his young life watching his parents' quest to conquer the religious Cathars in the Albigensian Crusades in southern France. His father is killed in 1218 while fighting and Simon and his brother Amaury are left as heirs to a family title that must be fought for after it is stolen and given to a distant cousin by a vengeful King John. Amaury agrees to relinquish all rights to the earldom, being the older brother and first in line to inherit any lands, if Simon gives up all rights to the family lands in France. When Simon travels to England to regain his title, Earl of Leicester, he becomes a close ally for a time of King Henry III. He spends countless time and energy proving himself as a military leader and strategist, convincing Henry of his loyalty and rightful place as part of the English nobility.

As a frequent member of the court, Simon witnesses Henry's ability to be swayed by whomever is in his current circle. Henry's wife, Eleanor of Provence and her foreign relatives, often influence him in negative ways, wanting lands, money and titles of their own. Henry's mother, Isabella, who has married into another influential family, the de Lusignans of France, also vie for special privileges and the result is a bitter revolt of the barons and native English nobility who see their rightful inheritances being squandered by those without the authority to do so. 

When Simon marries and begins a family with Henry's sister Eleanor, the stakes increase and the couple work to navigate the tricky political world they are thrust into. When the King and Simon have a serious disagreement and falling out over money owed, the de Montforts flee to France, living as exiles. As things become more tense in England between the barons and Henry, Simon is eventually to return, fighting against Henry and his son Edward, with a showdown of epic proportions.  

This book stuck to the facts of Simon's life as a history book would, only adding a few fictional characters. It is not a long book but packs a lot into the pages. We witness Simon growing both physically and emotionally as well as spiritually and as he moves from young, idealistic boy to military leader, husband, and father, he gains respect from those around him and devotion from those he has saved from a life of poverty and misery. 

Field does a great job of simplifying what is a complicated period, with the Barons' Wars, the foreign influences at court, and the reasons behind the discontent in the nations of England and France. Using a fictional girl, Merle, who is given to Simon as a concubine, whom he never treats as one, the author allows us to glimpse the compassionate part of de Montfort, when he treats her well and cares for her when he doesn't have to.

I have always found this period and subject to be a bit on the dry side, as it is hard to keep up with the political machinations going on but I understood things so much better after reading this book. The significance of de Montfort's attempts at reforms with the provisions of Oxford is not easy for the casual reader and I wish I'd read this one first before Falls the Shadow, by Sharon Penman because I think I might have kept things straight a bit more in her much longer, involved novel. 

I intend to read the other books in this series as well as his Tudor and Maritime ones focusing on Sir Francis Drake. If you are looking to better understand the period of the Norman Conquest through the reign of Henry III, I highly recommend these books in the Medieval Saga Series. 

Dragonfly in Amber (Outlander Book 2) by Diana Gabaldon

Publication Date: July 1, 1992

Length: 752 pages

My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

One of my goals for my blog is to eventually review all of Gabaldon's books. I know it's been done by so many blogs but they are my favorite series of books and having read them all years ago before I started my book blog, I am behind on the review part. I always have a re-read going of one of them and am currently on my third re-read of book 3, Voyager. I finished my third re-read of Dragonfly in Amber last year so I thought it was time to get going on the review. Since I'm only halfway through the book I originally planned to review this week, it's a perfect time to turn to this goal. And FYI.....it's hard to review this book without a few spoilers if you haven't read book one...you've been warned!

Always reviewing with the assumption that one hasn't read the previous book, it's a good idea to explain where we are when this one begins. Time traveler Claire Beauchamp Randall Fraser at the end of book one has committed herself to her new husband Jamie and their life together in 18th century Scotland. She is pregnant with their first child and looking forward to staying in the past with the man she loves. Having left behind her first husband Frank, through no fault of her own, she realizes she is making a difficult choice, but since she and Frank had barely gotten to know each other in the present day and due to wild circumstances beyond her control, she feels there is no contest when it comes to following her heart with Jamie. 

When book two begins it is a bit confusing because we expect to continue the saga we left behind. But it begins in the year 1968 in Inverness with a completely new character, Roger Wakefield, who is going through his late father's belongings and attempting to make sense of the many books and scraps of information he left behind. He is visited by Claire and her daughter Brianna who have come to pay their respects to his late father and while they are visiting, details come to light which begin to see Roger caught up in the past and Claire's personal, fantastic story. As we settle in to hear her tale, we are taken back to 1744, to Le Havre, France, where the first Outlander book left off. From there we do not return to 1968 until the very end of the book. But there is an amazing story in between those years.

Claire and Jamie have gone to France to try to stop the Jacobite rebellion and therefore change the outcome of the Battle of Culloden. They plan to infiltrate Bonnie Prince Charlie's circle of conspirators, acting as if they are on board for the battle to see his father, James Stuart, restored to the throne of England. Jamie and Claire want Charles to fail in gaining financial and military support because they know the current outcome is devastating and tragic for Scotland and all those dear to them. Staying at Jamie's Uncle Jared's opulent Parisian home, the Frasers attend high society gatherings and in Jamie's case, brothels, to seek out any information they can gather and gain the trust of Prince Charlie and his compatriots. Their optimism in their endeavor begins to fade slowly as each experience brings them closer to the seemingly inevitable outcome. They find themselves caught up in the historical inevitability of the facts they know are true while hoping that any small thing they do will change the course they are on.

The first time I read this book I sped through it. I wanted to make sense of what on earth was going on. Why did the story start in 1968? Who is Roger and why do I care? Why is Claire in the modern time and not with Jamie in the 1700's? It was a bewildering beginning and Gabaldon even wrote a preface to reassure the reader to keep going....it will all make sense! Even when I had finished the book I was still confused with dates, timelines, back stories.....it is an intricate, detailed story and if you are a true Outlander fan, a re-read is a must. By the third go around I'd finally understood everything and all the parts fit together. But even now there are things I have forgotten. At almost 800 pages it is impossible to memorize it all.

In order of enjoyment I rank this book second. Voyager, the third book is my absolute favorite, the first Outlander my third favorite. Dragonfly covers the slow build to Culloden in a thorough way, weaving in fictional characters we've grown to hate, like Black Jack Randall and adding historical ones like Simon Fraser, Lord Lovat, the sneaky head of Clan Fraser and a relative of Jamie's. We meet Master Raymond, Claire's friend from the apothecary shop and Mother Hildegarde, her mentor at the Paris hospital where Claire spends her days helping the sick and injured. The major battles of the Jacobites, Prestonpans and Falkirk, are covered in realistic detail, as well as the march toward the biggest battle, Culloden. And we are joined by the Highlanders, who become near and dear to us as their story progresses. Every time I have read it, I notice little details I'd missed before and marvel at how attached I become to the place and time. 

Many people I've talked to or read reviews from about these books complain that they are too long. I get it. The first time I plowed through her books, especially this one, I thought, "this could be shortened by a lot and still tell the same story." I have totally changed my opinion. Later Outlander books I feel this is somewhat true, but after reading Dragonfly three times I've decided that every page has great significance if you are going to understand the rest of the series. So take your time, take notes, and don't rush it. You will be rewarded in the end and even more so if you continue with book three.

 

Josephine: A Life of the Empress by Carolly Erickson

Publication Date: April 1, 1999

Length: 400 pages

My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆

This is the third biography by Carolly Erickson that I've read. She is one of my favorite authors for narrative non-fiction, meaning books that are true but feel much like a novel. Her research is always solid and includes a multitude of primary sources, diary entries, and little tidbits of information that really make one feel like she is in the mind and personal life of her subject. 

The book is divided into Josephine's early life, her marriage to her first husband, Alexandre de Beauharnais, son of the French Governor of Martinique and a member of the French nobility, her marriage to Napoleon, and later, her life as the divorcee former Empress of France. She was born in the year 1763 on the island of Martinique to impoverished sugar planter parents, Joseph and Rose Tascher who struggled to make ends meet. Living in near poverty and existing alongside the African slaves on the plantation, Trois-Ilets, Josephine and her siblings grow up with the slow, languid style of island life which stays with them throughout their lives. As children, they are free spirited and often unsupervised, learning the customs and ways of those around them.  With their father unable to send them off to more polished, sophisticated schools where they could hone their common edges, the Tascher siblings find themselves caught between two worlds: that of the island and that of the future expectations awaiting them in France. 

Her first marriage to her aunt's godson and the son of Alexandre de Beauharnais is lonely and troubling for Rose (her name until her marriage to Napoleon). Unused to sophisticated Parisian ways, she is often insecure in the forced social settings and must cope with her husband's lack of interest in her and his overwhelming loyalty and obsession with his mistress. They manage to produce two children during their tumultuous marriage, although Rose finds she is helpless when Alexandre decides to assert his rights as guardian and at one point even removes her son from her care. 

As the French Revolution heats up and the Reign of Terror begins, Rose is forced to confront the fact that she is powerless as a member of the nobility and throughout imprisonment and some of the most trying circumstances of her life, her fragile yet kind nature is revealed. Although she is often unscrupulous in her willingness to seek refuge from her despair, Rose manages to maintain her sanity and emerges with a determination to start a new life. 

Meeting Napoleon Bonaparte charts a course for her that will take her from poor impoverished daughter of the West Indies, to Empress of the French and throughout she uses her charm and survival instincts to thrive in a world that is constantly changing and challenging her ability to live the carefree life she craves.

Without giving away the entire story, it is fair to say that Erickson does her best work during the chapters on the French Revolution. She evokes the misery and degradation suffered by the imprisoned, helpless citizens caught up in the frenzy of madness and I found myself seeing, hearing, even smelling the sights and sounds of what it must have been like. Each day crowded into cells with strangers, not knowing if you will be taken out to lose your head clearly left indelible scars on Josephine. 

Napoleon enters the book about halfway through and I found his family dynamics absolutely fascinating, including their total disdain for his wife and Napoleon's inability to defend her against his unforgiving Corsican relatives. He comes across as an incredibly odd and socially awkward man who alternates between total obsession for his wife romantically with disregard for her feelings. Although Erickson explains the history behind the wars and battles he led, her focus is more on her subject and the nature of her relationship to Napoleon himself. 

Throughout the book, Josephine is often presented as sexually promiscuous to a fault, although one almost forgives her as it is framed within the loose social mores of the times, especially her life in Paris during the marriage to her first husband and during the Revolution, when all decency ceased in the chaos of the time. She still manages to come across as a sympathetic figure, and in light of her two disappointing marriages and inability to be with her true romantic lovers, one understands that she was using whatever she had in her arsenal to make ends meet and provide for herself and her family. She makes no pretense about wanting to live the comfortable life and uses her charm and grace to her advantage.

I enjoyed this book and although I'd have preferred a bit more history behind Napoleon and the political dynamics of the day, Erickson does a good job of including just enough to keep one informed. But it is clearly focused on relationships and romantic intrigue so if you are looking for a biography with more historical depth, this probably isn't the place to start. There is a lot of emphasis on fashions of the day and the lifestyles of the rich and famous French aristocracy which might turn off serious history buffs. I found that part interesting but sometimes tedious and could have done without so much of it. But overall, a solid four star work on the life of a fascinating, flawed lady.