Category: books

King Henry II, exhausted from everlasting conflict with France and the habit of his sons rebelling against him finds love, solace, and passion after falling for the youthful beauty of Alys and makes her his mistress.

Henry II, now in his late 50’s, exhausted from a lifetime of war remains one of the greatest Kings who ruled England. The founder of the ‘Devil’s Brood’, he and his advisors modernized England’s government and society and much more. But it was his jealous family life which caused his life to fall apart.

Alys was the timid 8-year-old daughter of the King of France when sent to England and ultimately forced into marriage with Henry’s violent son Prince Richard, but he ridiculed and rejected her. Within six years, Alys had developed into a ravishing beauty, who was suddenly appealing to the old King himself.

As they grew closer, Alys realised she could only save herself by becoming more powerful. She didn’t want to be a royal mistress like Rosamund, or a princess married to a violent and absent prince like Richard. No, her ambition was to become queen, to replace the formidable, feisty monarch, Eleanor of Aquitaine, one of the most beautiful powerful and wealthy women in the world. When a son, William, is born to old Henry and Alys, the young princess now has her life complete, but she needs desperately to succeed and protect him. England has become a maelstrom of baronial factions with Eleanor marshalling her sons, young Henry, Richard, Geoffrey, plus John who try overthrow their father and take possession of his empire. All want the right to rule their own lands, even before old Henry is dead.

Alan Gold is an internationally published and translated novelist, whose books of historical fiction bring back to vivid life some of the most fabulous women who have been written out of history. Alan’s first novel was a story which he uncovered working for Reuters International News Agency in Israel; because of its controversial themes, he didn’t write it until coming to Australia. The Jericho Files, which was published by HarperCollins was an international success. Since then, he’s written over thirty novels, with subjects ranging from the Bible to ancient and modern history. His two latest novels are The Devil’s Apprentice, a fictionalised autobiography of the real Faust and his problems with the invention of the printing press, and His Head on a Platter, about the life of the Renaissance artist Artemisia Gentileschi due to be published by Romaunce late 2023.

My thoughts: drawing on the limited historical facts about Princess Alys of France and her life at the English Court, this is a complex and rather tragic story. Henry II is at war with his family, they’re tired of his bad temper and stubborn refusal to pass any responsibility onto his sons, Henry, Geoffrey, Richard and John.

Eleanor of Aquitaine is remembered as powerful and important in her own right, but her marriage was rocky and Henry frequently took mistresses. Alys is keen on becoming queen. But she hasn’t counted on Henry’s love for his wife and sons, even as they rebel against him.

An intriguing look at life in the early Plantagenet court, at a time when the English throne ruled more than half of France too and struggled with their neighbours and the Pope.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.

Twin sisters Keziah and Tilly Lovell are identical in every way, except that Tilly hasn’t grown a single inch since she was five. Coerced into promoting their father’s quack elixir as they tour the country fairgrounds, at the age of fifteen the girls are sold to a mysterious Italian known as ‘Captain’.

Theo is an orphan, raised by his grandfather, Lord Seabrook, a man who has a dark interest in anatomical freaks and other curiosities … particularly the human kind. Resenting his grandson for his mother’s death in childbirth, when Seabrook remarries and a new heir is produced, Theo is forced to leave home without a penny to his name.

Theo finds employment in Dr Summerwell’s Museum of Anatomy in London, and here he meets Captain and his theatrical ‘family’ of performers, freaks and outcasts.

But it is Theo’s fascination with Tilly and Keziah that will lead all of them into a dark web of deceits, exposing unthinkable secrets and threatening everything they know…

Essie Fox was born and raised in rural Herefordshire, which inspires much of her writing. After studying English Literature at Sheffield University, she moved to London where she worked for the Telegraph Sunday Magazine, and then book publishers George Allen & Unwin, before becoming self-employed in the world of art and design. Essie now spends her time writing historical gothic novels. Her debut, The Somnambulist, was shortlisted for the National Book Awards, and featured on Channel 4’s TV Book Club. The Last Days of Leda Grey, set in the early years of silent film, was selected as The Times Historical Book of the Month. Essie is also the creator of the popular blog: The Virtual Victorian. She has lectured on this era at the V&A, and the National Gallery in London.

My thoughts: this is a dark and beautiful book about three young people facing adversity and danger, finding their family and happiness despite the odds. Keziah and Tilly are twins, but Tilly stopped growing as a child and their father sells them to a stranger – known as Captain.

Their paths cross with Theo, mistreated and abandoned by his miserable and cruel grandfather, dreaming of becoming a doctor.

It is only a few years later when the three meet again that their lives become entangled as Tilly is kidnapped. Together with the twins’ friends they set out to rescue her and discover the truth about Theo’s family and find a home, and a family of their own.

It’s beautiful as well as sinister, amongst the collections of Theo’s grandfather and then that of the doctor. There’s a lovely little twist right at the very end too. And romance blooms for some of the characters, the wicked are punished, people are reunited and wrongs are undone. It’s a bit Shakespearean as it ends with a wedding, as many of his comedies do, which is fitting for Tilly, playing a fairy queen on stage.

The author’s day job as a historian of the Victorian era means this is a well researched and intelligent story, beautifully brought to life, the characters mix with real life figures, and could themselves almost be real, they certainly feel it. Keziah steps out of the page in her chapters, with all the hopes and dreams of a young woman, even amid her reality. Theo too feels very alive, his struggles and desires to make a difference at odds with the rotten world of his grandfather. Magical and moving.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.