Mailbox Monday is hosted by Marcia at The Printed Page. We share what books that we found in our mailboxes last week. And I am adding what I purchased, swapped, etc.Ok so I don't know why I titled this post 'the bus is coming' but it's a Monday and with school already here and 90+ degrees outside I'm still not with the program, so I'm sure I am going to be yelling at the girl to go run and catch the bus. Like just last week, when my husband had to tell her to run, and she started to run, and then she stopped and said WHERE?! That folly will be happily etched in our minds till we get to tell her boyfriends.
Since I'm being
I took Misfit's advice, and ordered from Paperbackswap:
Penmarric by Susan Howatch. This is an interesting 1971 Book Club hardcover, and Misfit says it mirrors the Plantagenet family. Should be a fun read!"Set against the starkly beautiful landscape of Cornwall, PENMARRIC is the totally enthralling saga of a family divided against itself. At the center of the novel is the great mansion called Penmarric. It is to Penmarric that Mark Castallack, a proud, strange, and sensitive man, brings his bride Janna--the first act in a tempestuous drama that was to span three generations.."
And for a mini-review at Wonders & Marvels in a few weeks (& of course a full Burton Review here for my faithful readers plus a giveaway), I received from the publisher via Wonders & Marvels:
Cleopatra's Daughter by Michelle Moran (available 9/15/09)
"The marriage of Marc Antony and Cleopatra is one of the greatest love stories of all time, a tale of unbridled passion with earth-shaking political consequences. Feared and hunted by the powers in Rome, the lovers choose to die by their own hands as the triumphant armies of Antony’s vengeful rival, Octavian, sweep into Egypt. Their three orphaned children are taken in chains to Rome, but only two—the ten-year-old twins Selene and Alexander—survive the journey. Delivered to the household of Octavian’s sister, the siblings cling to each other and to the hope that they will return one day to their rightful place on the throne of Egypt. As they come of age, they are buffeted by the personal ambitions of Octavian’s family and court, by the ever-present threat of slave rebellion, and by the longings and desires deep within their own hearts."
Another from Paperbackswap:
Heloise and Abelard by James Burge (2006)
"New Revelations about One of the Greatest Romances in History: Peter Abelard was arguably the greatest poet, philosopher, and religious teacher in all of twelfth-century Europe. In an age when women were rarely educated, Heloise was his most gifted young student. Their private tutoring sessions inevitably turned to passion, and their moments apart were spent writing love letters. Astoundingly, a few years ago a young scholar identified 113 new love letters between the pair which, combined with the latest scholarship, present us with the richest telling yet of the couple's clandestine passion -- a story that is erotic, poignant, and at times even funny."
And from Arleigh at Historical-Fiction.com, my first Chadwick!!
The Greatest Knight by Elizabeth Chadwick (available 9/1/09)
"Based on fact, this is the story of William Marshal, the greatest knight of the Middle Ages, unsurpassed in the tourneys, adeptly manoeuvring through the colourful, dangerous world of Angevin politics to become one of the most powerful magnates of the realm and eventually regent of England. From minor beginnings and a narrow escape from death in childhood, William Marshal steadily rises through the ranks to become tutor in arms to the son of King Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine. A champion on the tourney field, William must face the danger and petty jealousy targeting a royal favourite. Dogged by scandal, banished from court, his services are nevertheless sought throughout Europe and when William's honour is vindicated, he returns to court and wins greater acclaim and power than before. A crusader and the only knight ever to unhorse the legendary Richard Coeur de Lion, William's courage and steadfastness are rewarded by the hand in marriage of Anglo-Irish heiress Isobel de Clare, 19 years old, the grandaughter of kings and his equal in every way."
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