Skip to main content

Posts

Showing posts from May, 2024

Mistress Anne by Carolly Erickson: A Book Review

Mistress Anne Author: Carolly Erickson Genre: Nonfiction, History, Biography Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin Release Date: 1998 Pages: 304 Source: My personal collection Synopsis: As Maureen Quilligan wrote in the New York Times Book Review of The First Elizabeth , Anne Boleyn "was a real victim of the sexual scandals her brilliant daughter escaped, and a subject Ms. Erickson's sensitivity to sexual and political nuance should well serve." Indeed, Carolly Erickson could have chosen no more fascinating and appropriate a subject. Alluring and profoundly enigmatic, Anne Boleyn has eluded the grasp of historians for centuries.      Through her extraordinarily vivid re-creation of this most tragic chapter in all Tudor History, Carrolly Erickson gives us unprecedented insight into the singuarlity of Anne Boleyn's life, the dark and overwhelming forces that shaped her errant destiny, and the rare, tumultuous times in which she lived.       My Review: Anne Boleyn is the most

The Lisbon Affair (Flying with the Swallows #1) by Cat Gardiner: A Book Review

The Lisbon Affair (Flying With the Swallows #1) Author: Cat Gardiner Genre: Historical Fiction, Romance Publisher: Unionport Hills Books Release Date: April 2, 2024 Pages: 339 Source: This book was given to me by the author in exchange for an honest review. Synopsis: An unforgettable reading experience about one woman's brave determination to prove she is more than a do-nothing aristocrat and, in her journey of self-discovery and sacrifice, finds a second chance at true, unconditional love. * Epic adventure and romance. Strong female heroine.      New York City, 1943: War widow and Best Society’s darling Mrs. Evelyn (Evie) Rousseau Somerset is five months into mourning her husband’s death when her family insists on an untenable plan for her future. Desolate and disenchanted with life, she’s determined to remake herself and prove she’s something more than a useless socialite—regardless of what her senator brother and domineering mother demand of her.      A previous clandestine job

The Hidden Diary of Marie Antoinette by Carolly Erickson: A Book Review

The Hidden Diary of Marie Antoinette Author: Carolly Erickson Genre: Historical Fiction Publisher: Griffin Release Date: 2006 Pages: 368 Source: My personal collection Synopsis: Imagine that, on the night before she is to die under the blade of the guillotine, Marie Antoinette leaves behind in her prison cell a diary telling the story of her life―from her privileged childhood as Austrian Archduchess to her years as glamorous mistress of Versailles to the heartbreak of imprisonment and humiliation during the French Revolution.      Carolly Erickson takes the reader deep into the psyche of France's doomed queen: her love affair with handsome Swedish diplomat Count Axel Fersen, who risked his life to save her; her fears on the terrifying night the Parisian mob broke into her palace bedroom intent on murdering her and her family; her harrowing attempted flight from France in disguise; her recapture and the grim months of harsh captivity; her agony when her beloved husband was guillotin

The War Queens by Rebecca Hazell: A Book Review

The War Queens Author: Rebecca Hazell Genre: Historical Fiction Publisher: Tellwell Talent Release Date: 2023 Pages: 496 Source: This book was given to me by the publicist in exchange for an honest review. Synopsis: By the sixth century, the Roman Empire is already lost to tribal invasions, brutal Merovingian Franks have seized Gaul from the civilized Romanized Visigoths, and a dark age has descended across Europe. Now a deadly rivalry arises between two Merovingian queens. Brunhilda and Fredegunda are equals in beauty and intelligence, but opposite in vision and temperament. When the Franks demand a royal bride, Visigoth Brunhilda marries into a world that despises women. Suddenly thrust into power and repeatedly facing loss and grief, she seeks to revive a new Rome based on justice and prosperity. Her implacable foe, Fredegunda, is a former slave concubine who lives only for personal power. Insanely jealous of high-born Brunhilda, she uses seduction, assassination, war, and even witc