The Heart of the Conqueror (The Chronicles of Matilda, Lady of Flanders #1) by G. Lawrence: A Book Review
Author: G. Lawrence
Genre: Historical Fiction
Publisher: G. Lawrence
Book Release Date: 2017
Pages: 475
Source: Borrowed
Synopsis: 14th October 1066. Two armies converge to decide the fate of England...The most famous date in English history, when the might of the English Saxons faced the wrath of the Norman invasion. The man who stormed the sands of Sussex was William, bastard Duke of Normandy, the man they eventually came to call the Conqueror...But the Heart of the Conqueror was Matilda, Lady of Flanders and Duchess of Normandy. At the side of the most famous war-lord of history, Matilda worked, not as quiet, modest wife, but as a leader... as a ruler just as ruthless as her husband. Under her soft mask of beauty and modesty there lay the heart of a woman powered by ambition. A woman who was strong, courageous and devious... Through the eyes of one of the most extraordinary women of history unfold the events leading to the invasion of England and the battle that would decide its fate... This is the story of Matilda, Lady of Flanders, Duchess of Normandy and Queen of England. In its first draft form, this novel won a HQ Love Award in the Wattpad awards, The Wattys, 2014. This book is part one of a two volume series by G. Lawrence on the life of Matilda: The Chronicles of Matilda, Lady of Flanders.
My Review: Queen Matilda of Flanders was the wife of King William the Conqueror. This historical novel focuses on Queen Matilda’s life before she became queen of England. Matilda rejects the hand of William, Duke of Normandy because he was illegitimate. One day, William beats her in public for refusing to marry him. Matilda finds his ruthlessness to be fascinating to her and decides to marry him. They work together to take the kingdom of England and to have a happy marriage.
I was fascinated to learn about Queen Matilda of Flanders because there are not a lot of books written on her. However, I did find this Matilda of Flanders to be a very interesting character. She is very self-centered and vain. She is very ambitious and her main goal is to be a queen. She also is very unforgiving. She is also very ruthless, manipulative, and deceitful. Therefore, she was a hard character to get invested in. I also did not buy her love for William the Conqueror. Their romance was not developed enough. The only reason she was interested in him is because he seemed powerful enough to beat her. Thus, I did not find her a compelling character, and I came away from this novel greatly disliking her.
Overall, this book is about love, power, and ambition. I thought most of the characters were flat and needed more character development. The book was also very repetitive and drawn out. It could easily have been much shorter. I did like the historical details of the Norman Conquest. I thought that Mrs. Lawrence did an excellent job in portraying the turbulent politics of the time. I am still interested in reading the sequel, The Forest and the Flames. Hopefully, there will be much improvement! I recommend this novel for fans of Melanie Karsak, Carol McGrath, and Sean J. Fitzgerald!
Rating: 2 ½ out of 5 stars
Comments
Post a Comment