Historical Fiction Virtual Blog Tours

Road from the West by Rosanne E. Lortz is the first in a trilogy about The Crusade which was various factions of soldiers trying to reclaim Jerusalem for the Christians with full support from the Pope.  Now I’ve never read anything about The Crusades or at least not enough to remember so this book really left me with quite a bit of knowledge I didn’t have before I started.  For me, that’s one of the attractions of historical fiction.  I get to learn about history and be entertained and not bored.

Tancred, one of our main characters had begun to feel guilty over killing people and went to seek the Pope’s absolution for his sins.  However, the Pope told him that the only way to wash himself clean of his sins was to join The Crusade.  Tancred takes this to heart and vows to be the first soldier and Christian to enter Jerusalem.  Upon returning home before he leaves he finds that both his brother and uncle Bohemond had already left to join The Crusade.  Now his brother may be pure of heart but his uncle definitely isn’t and doesn’t usually do anything unless it will somehow benefit him.

The rest of the story follows Tancred through the many battles he faces on his way to Jerusalem. It also details all the battles he faces with his uncle Bohemond and others.  The author’s writing is very descriptive and really brought to life this time period for me.   What I enjoyed most about this novel is that it wasn’t only about battles and blood and guts. It was actually about the people – the soldiers and what they were thinking and planning.  Yes there were battles but I came away from this novel caring about some of the characters like Tancred and Alexandra.  From the beginning of the story I felt drawn to Tancred and his family and it made me want to read more.

I did feel some parts of the story were a bit slow but  all in all I’m really looking forward to the next two books in the trilogy – Flower of the Desert and Prince of the East – to see just how both the story develops.  As well, I really hope to see Tancred and Alexandra developed as characters a bit more.  Road from the West is a novel rich in historical detail that will leave you wanting to know more about this time in our history.

I read Road from the West by Rosanne E. Lortz for her book tour with Historical Fiction Virtual  Book Tours.  Be sure to check out what others on the tour think about the novel.   You can visit Rosanne’s website, blog, find her on Facebook or follow her on Twitter as well.  Your own copy of Road from the West can be purchased here in the US and here in Canada.

GIVEAWAY DETAILS

I have one copy of Road from the West by Rosanne E. Lortz to share with my readers and it’s open internationally!  To enter…

• For 1 entry leave me a comment entering the giveaway.
• For 2 entries, follow my blog.  If you already do, thanks, and please let me know so I can pass the extra entry on to you as well.
• For 3 entries, blog or tweet this giveaway to spread the word!

This giveaway is open internationally!  I will draw for the winner on Saturday, October 22/11.  Good luck!

My copy of Road from the West by Rosanne E. Lortz was received for review from the author.

Share this post!

I love when historical fiction can transport me to another time and place and completely captivate me. Queen By Right by Anne Easter Smith did exactly that! This is no short novel at over 500 pages but right off the beginning I found myself totally immersed in the story and could not put it down. To me, that is exceptional historical fiction. Queen By Right is a fictional tale weaved together with lots of historical details that tells us the life story of Cecily of York, mother of two kings. It felt like the telling of a family saga to me and I absolutely loved it!

Queen By Right takes us to the mid 1400’s to a time when women really had no say in things. As a woman you were expected to obey your husband in all things and to be seen but not heard. Yet even as a young girl, Cecily, who had been indulged in greatly by her father, was known to be very outspoken and head strong. Cecily meets Richard, duke of York, when she is nine and he is thirteen. Her family takes him in as a ward and later he and Cecily are promised to each other. The unusual thing is that they were able to really grow together from young; they weren’t just thrown into a marriage. They enjoyed hunting, riding, and just talking. They truly fell in love and stayed in love their whole lives together which is something that is known in history. It’s so refreshing to read of a historical couple who had such a true and pure love that was known to be lasting.

I was so drawn to the character of Cecily. She was such a strong woman and people loved her. She was known as the Rose of Raby and Proud Cis because of her beauty and her pride – she inspired people with her kindness and regal bearing. The way the author portrays her in this novel really invites the reader into Cecily’s life and makes you care about her. Cecily’s life in no way was easy even though she and Richard loved each other so much. She lost children which were very trying times for both her and Richard. Yet she always moved forward for the good of her family and her love for her husband. While many men felt women should not offer their opinions, Richard always engaged his wife in ‘pillow talk’. He discussed with her what was going on and valued her opinions. This is probably another reason they had such a good marriage – there was a mutual respect between the two.

Then there was also all the political strife in terms of the court of Henry VI and Richard’s position there and ultimately the position that he wanted to hold there. Over the years Richard and others become less than impressed with the way that Henry VI rules his empire. He seems to be a weak king given to bouts of craziness and it appears his Queen and Council make more decisions than he does. Eventually this leads to Richard forming an army to overturn Henry VI and what follows is much tumult over the years for both Richard and Cecily. Towards the end Richard begins to make many decisions that Cecily doesn’t believe in but nevertheless she supports her husband as she has always promised to do. Her main purpose through it all was to protect and love her children.

I don’t think I can put in words just how much I enjoyed this novel and it was all in the telling of this amazing woman that I’ve learned that Cecily was. I’d never read anything about her before but I’ve come away from reading this novel with a deep respect for the woman she was. For the times that she lived in, she still comes across as a true inspiration for women of today for holding herself and her family together with pride. For me this is one of my favorite historical reads of the year. I like nothing better than to be able to learn about a time in history while also being drawn into and caring about the people being portrayed and that is exactly what Anne Easter Smith has succeeded in doing. Queen By Right would come highly recommended by me! I simply can’t wait to read more of Anne Easter Smith’s work and lucky for me I have three more of her novels waiting for me on my bookshelf!

I read Queen By Right by Anne Easter Smith for her book tour with Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours. You can check out what everyone else on the tour thinks of the novel here. Be sure to check out Anne Easter Smith’s website and find her on Facebook as well! You can pick up your very own copy of Queen By Right here in the US and here in Canada. Please stop by tomorrow as Anne Easter Smith will be joining us with a guest post here at Peeking Between the Pages!

© 2010, Darlene of Peeking Between the Pages. All Rights Reserved. If you’re reading this on a site other than Peeking Between the Pages or Darlene’s Feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

My copy of Queen By Right by Anne Easter Smith was received for review from Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours and the Publisher.

Share this post!

There are some authors who just have a way of drawing you into the worlds they write about and keep you captivated throughout and C.W. Gortner is one of those authors! C.W. Gortner weaves fiction and history together so brilliantly in The Confessions of Catherine de Medici that you feel you have been thrown back in history to live the lives of the royals, spend time at court, and just try to make sure you survive the back stabbing and treachery that is always going on. In short, it is a fantastic novel and C.W. Gortner has quickly become one of my favorite authors!

I found Catherine de Medici to be a fascinating woman and I was held enthralled by this novel. The novel is portrayed through Catherine and we journey with her from a young girl to a mother and finally to an old woman and what a trip it is! Catherine de Medici has had a bad reputation throughout history for meddling in the occult, poisoning those she sought to be rid off, and basically doing anything to maintain power. C.W. Gortner has woven a story around this legend that shows us who Catherine may have been and why she may have done certain things throughout history – he gives her a voice.

At a young age Catherine is taken to a convent in her homeland of Italy where she is treated despicably and she is quite certain she will be left there to die. Her uncle, the Pope, has different plans for her though. His plan is to use her politically to his advantage as the last of the Medici line and marry her off to Henri II, who becomes King of France after his father’s death. Catherine, having been brought up to believe that she was the last saving grace of the Medici line takes her responsibilities seriously and is determined to make the best of what fate has handed her.

All is not a bed of roses though when she arrives in France to find that her future husband, Henri II, is very much in love with another woman, his mistress Diane de Poitiers. Worse yet is she controls most everything in Henri’s life including how much time he spends with his wife. At first this is a problem as no heirs are being conceived but one thing Diane de Poitiers was not – was stupid. She knew that an heir was important to her survival as mistress and she made sure Henri took his duty more seriously and got to work on producing an heir. Once Catherine began to have children, Diane even took over the care and control of them as well.

After Henri II’s death, Catherine took over the care of her own children even though the older ones barely knew who she was. She sought to protect them with a vengeance and would do anything to see them survive and prosper. France, over the years she was Queen and then Queen Mother, was in a religious turmoil that threw the country into war – many people were starving and many were killed. All through these years Catherine fought, even through many tragedies, to keep her sons on the throne and ruling France. Her determination and reputation for doing anything in her power to ensure this made her a formidable figure to contend with and over the years she rose to a very powerful woman.

What I loved about this novel was how real Catherine de Medici is portrayed. We can see her as a woman – a woman who loved, who bore children and loved them with everything she had, to a woman who would do anything for France and keeping her sons on the throne. I also really enjoyed how C.W. Gortner wove Catherine’s interest in the dark arts into the story. It is common knowledge that Catherine had the ‘sight’. She would be overcome with these dreams in which she would see things that were going to happen or were happening and they always came to pass. She believed strongly in the reading of charts, people’s signs and what it meant to their lives, and she always sought the predictions of people who could see into the future. As I said previously I found Catherine de Medici to be a fascinating woman and although I have heard of her before I certainly haven’t read anything that delved into her life and made her so real to me. I found her to be a woman who would fight fearlessly for her family and what she believed in and in the 1500’s that was pretty incredible for a woman!

I enjoy C.W. Gortner’s novels because he brings historical fiction to life in a way that is interesting and makes you want to keep reading. There is never a dull moment and his descriptions of life, the court, the clothes, the jewelry, the backstabbing, treachery and war – all of it – make you feel as though you are right there in the moment and to me that is the mark of a truly amazing author. I would recommend The Confessions of Catherine de Medici or really any of C.W. Gortner’s novels to those who love historical fiction!

I read The Confessions of Catherine de Medici by C.W. Gortner for his book tour with Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours. You can see what others on the tour think of the book as well here. Be sure to pop in and visit C.W. Gortner’s website and blog! Your own copy of The Confessions of Catherine de Medici by C.W. Gortner can be purchased here in the US and here in Canada.

GIVEAWAY DETAILS

I have one copy of The Confessions of Catherine de Medici by C.W. Gortner up for grabs to US residents only but wait…I also have my copy up for grabs to anyone in the world! So that’s two copies up for giveaway – please be sure to state if you’re an international entry for me as one of these is US only! To enter…

• For 1 entry leave me a comment with an email address (no email address given, no entry).
• For 2 entries, follow my blog. If you already do, thanks, and please let me know in your comment so I can be sure to pass on the extra entry to you.
• For 3 entries, blog or tweet this giveaway to spread the word!

One copy is open to US residents only and one copy is open worldwide! I will draw for the winners on Saturday, June 18/11. Good luck to everyone!

© 2010, Darlene of Peeking Between the Pages. All Rights Reserved. If you’re reading this on a site other than Peeking Between the Pages or Darlene’s Feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

My copy of The Confessions of Catherine de Medici by C.W. Gortner was received for review from Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours and the Publisher.

Share this post!