Happy New Year!

2011 has really flown by, with its many changes ranging from economic hardships to the world collapsing around us and everything else in between.. it is a great solace to be able to escape with a good book. I am hoping that 2012 is a bit less stressful and a bit more hopeful than 2011, and my resolution is to keep off the 24+ pounds that I lost in 2011. (see, it all wasn't a total waste!).. and maybe in 2012 the Texas Rangers will actually win a World Series...

Out with the old, in with the new... but what about all those books read last year? 2011 marked a change in my reading habits, with less time to read I became very particular in selecting what books I would spend my time with. This picky reader thus finds herself with quite a few fabulous reads of 2011, and I am pretty sure that each and every book I read in 2011 was published in 2011 also (in the USA). There were some different genres that I tried as well, though most of my reads leaned toward historical fiction. I have read only 51.5 books in 2011, where in 2010 I was pushing 65. I put in the .5 there because I am still working on a short story anthology that I haven't had the urge to pick back up in awhile.

Most recently, a second job for me takes away much of my reading time, unfortunately. When a book would usually take three or four days to finish, it now takes more than a week to finish, and sometimes even more. If this trend keeps up, 2012 will probably only boast 40-45 titles read. I have reviewed 43 titles of the 51 total books this year, and the rest of the reviews are ready to post in the coming months, as these are for the February issue of Historical Novels Review magazine. Those represent some of the different genres from Christian fiction to a bit of romance, as my tastes evolve and I become interested in other than just Tudor-esque, medieval and purely historical reads.

What were your favorites of 2011? Was there anything that really blew your socks off? As I peruse my list of books read in 2011, a few stood out. And if you missed these, then these are the ones I would recommend you picking up next time you are spending your gift cards from the holidays or making a trip to the library. My picks may be a no-brainer, as some listed are A-List Authors, but there may be a few thrown in here that you have missed. The linked titles will bring you to my review of that book. Here's my Top Ten of 2011 (and published in 2011!).. in no particular order:




Heiress by Susan May Warren stands out as it was one of my first Christian historical reads in many years, as well as being my first review for Historical Novels Review. The author has quite a following and if you are interested in testing out the genre, Heiress would be a great start as it has a pleasant mix of history, romance and mystery that had me hooked on the genre and the author.



A surprising favorite for me was Finding Emilie by Laurel Corona. There was something about the story and the characters that really spoke to me and touched my heart. A completely fictional look at what the author imagines for Lili, a would-be daughter of scientist Emilie du Châtelet and Voltaire, which blends fact and fiction and science into a coming of age story for Lili. This was one of those reads that I could not put down for very long at all as it beckoned me from afar.

A not so surprising favorite comes with Elizabeth I: A Novel by Margaret George, which was a fantastic look at the inner person of Elizabeth I during the last ten years of her reign. In earlier novels, we seem to fast forward through these years of the aged Elizabeth, and with this novel there were a few twists and supporting characters such as Lettice Knollys that kept me intrigued throughout. Margaret George is an author with a fabulous knack for creating a historical story that vividly comes to life through her writing. And of course it doesn't hurt that I got to meet Margaret just after reading this novel!






C.W. Gortner (and Elizabeth I!) makes my favorites list again with a new genre, with his The Tudor Secret: The Elizabeth I Spymaster Chronicles  which features Brandon, a fictional character during the treacherous times between the reigns of Edward VI, Bloody Mary and finally Elizabeth I. Cecil, the well-known Spymaster, is so rarely looked at as a benevolent character such as he is here, and there are devious tones to other characters which made this fun and entertaining. I just wish we didn't have to wait so long for the rest of the series!

The Map of Time: A Novel by Felix J. Palma
Hardcover: 611 pages
Publisher: Atria Books; Reprint edition (June 28, 2011)
ISBN-13: 978-1439167397
Review copy provided by Atria, with many, many thanks!
Burton Book Review Rating:Fabulous.

Before Versailles: A Novel of Louis XIV by Karleen Koen
Hardcover: 480 pages
Publisher: Crown (June 28, 2011)
ISBN-13: 978-0307716576
Review copy provided by the publisher, thank you!
Burton Book Review Rating: five stars!

Louis XIV is one of the best-known monarchs ever to grace the French throne. But what was he like as a young man—the man before Versailles?
After the death of his prime minister, Cardinal Mazarin, twenty-two-year-old Louis steps into governing France. He’s still a young man, but one who, as king, willfully takes everything he can get—including his brother’s wife. As the love affair between Louis and Princess Henriette burns, it sets the kingdom on the road toward unmistakable scandal and conflict with the Vatican. Every woman wants him. He must face what he is willing to sacrifice for love.
But there are other problems lurking outside the chateau of Fontainebleau: a boy in an iron mask has been seen in the woods, and the king’s finance minister, Nicolas Fouquet, has proven to be more powerful than Louis ever thought—a man who could make a great ally or become a dangerous foe . . .
Meticulously researched and vividly brought to life by the gorgeous prose of Karleen Koen, Before Versailles dares to explore the forces that shaped an iconic king and determined the fate of an empire.

Karleen Koen's newest novel represents several firsts for me. Before Versailles is the first novel on Louis XIV that I've read, therefore it offers my first characterization of Louis and his contemporaries. Secondly, this is my first Karleen Koen novel, even though I've ogled her previous books and been told many times that I absolutely must read them. I do own them and have already let my mother read them (who devoured them all in a short amount of time) and now I am certainly looking forward to all those novels after enjoying Before Versailles so much!

Since this is my first novel that deals with Louis XIV, please realize that I really have no way of differentiating from the gossip, rumors, scandals or facts that Koen utilizes in her magnificent storytelling. Before Versailles focuses on a specific four months of the reign of Louis soon after the powerful Cardinal Mazarin passes away in 1661. The Cardinal and the Queen mother, Anne, were known to have a close relationship, but how close was any one's guess. Louis realizes it is now time to take over the reigns of the government after the passing of the Cardinal, and he begins to learn of the treachery amongst his family and courtiers. And while he is focusing on the politics of his court with a lookout for more revolts, he is also eyeing Henriette, his brother's wife whom everyone adores. Henriette is portrayed as a bored woman stuck in a loveless relationship, and happily wreaks romantic havoc throughout Louis' court, as she tells the King to court other girls as well as her to divert some of the rumors surrounding her own conduct with the King.

Louise de La Baume Le Blanc

The story features these women who Louis courts, as well as his own boring wife and his meddling mother. His brother Phillippe is a scandalous creature causing embarrassment everywhere, yet I couldn't help but feel sorry for him as his wife was making him a fool until I later realized Phillippe didn't really deserve my sympathy at all. One of the main characters is maid of honor Louise de La Baume Le Blanc, a young spirited girl who adores animals over people any day. (She is featured in Sandra Gulland's novel Mistress of the Sun). King Louis takes notice of her and a courtship eventually develops, helped along by Henriette's maneuvering. Louise seemed like a hunted deer, as she was caught in the royal traps and manipulations of the court although she was the one of the few true innocents of the court. It was very hard to not feel sympathetic towards her, especially how the author favorably portrays both Louis and Louise.

Besides the relationships of Louis and his dalliances with women, the novel touches upon Viscount Nicolas as we watch Louis and his main man Colbert slowly gather damning evidence against the Viscount who was becoming a threat to Louis due to his own wealth and powerful connections. The Viscount is not aware of the concerns of the King, and blindly hopes for a high position under Louis's wing. It was all very entertaining and suspenseful to read and witness the Viscount's downfall, learning the ways of the early reign of Louis before he was known as the Sun King. Louis was portrayed in a most positive light as a strong and powerful young man with a growing leadership ability, yet with the faults of having a soft heart as well. The women at court were catty and snobby and the men encouraged it as they took advantage of whatever they could get. I really enjoyed how the intricacies (and scandals!) of the storyline played out because there were quite a few of them running concurrently. Behind the scenes of Louis' courtships and political machinations, there was always the running current of Louise's girlish curiosity of a mysterious boy in an iron mask which slams her into reality when she finally tells the King of this strange boy she saw at a monastery.

"L'Homme au Masque de Fer" ("The Man in the Iron Mask") 1789

Fontainebleau was the setting for the story, and I was immediately intrigued by the author's description of it and its immeasurable beauty. It was always there as a symbol for Louis, as a place that was built by ancestors, where Louis seemed to walk along its shadows and those of his predecessors. It slowly began to make sense to this reader why Louis moved court to Versailles and why the author chose the title Before Versailles. The writing of Karleen Koen was a bit different, as she has her own uniquely mesmerizing style which was conversational yet verges occasionally towards stream of consciousness. The myriads of court players in the beginning of the story were a bit much to get my head wrapped around, but I quickly caught up and found myself intrigued and enthralled with Louis and his many courtiers and musketeers, as Karleen Koen offers us a sensational glimpse of Louis as he was just beginning to become the man known later as the Sun King. I absolutely adored the ending, and there were several times in the book I could have cried. This is a must read for French history fans as well as those who enjoy historical romance, because there was plenty of that in this story, with a healthy dose of suspense as well. A wonderful combination of enjoyable factors and I am so glad that this one was my first read on Louis XIV. In fact, this is going on my shortlist for favorites of 2011. Where to go from here? And where does Karleen Koen go from here? A novel on Athenais, and Louis' later reign? I would love to see another trilogy that starts with Before Versailles.

544 pages Hardcover, Little Brown/Sphere UK 6/2/2011
Sourcebooks US Release 9/1/2011
ISBN 13: 9781847442376
Review copy provided by the UK publisher, thank you!
Burton Book Review Rating: Five Glittery Stars

Two very different women are linked by destiny and the struggle for the English crown. Matilda, daughter of Henry I, is determined to win back her crown from Stephen, the usurper king. Adeliza, Henry's widowed queen and Matilda's stepmother, is now married to William D'Albini, a warrior of the opposition. Both women are strong and prepared to stand firm for what they know is right. But in a world where a man's word is law, how can Adeliza obey her husband while supporting Matilda, the rightful queen? And for Matilda pride comes before a fall ...What price for a crown? What does it cost to be 'Lady of the English'?

As mentioned before as a preface to Elizabeth Chadwick's article she provided us with here, I had first tapped into my historical fiction passion with the novel When Christ and His Saints Slept by Sharon Kay Penman. Henry I's son and heir to England, William, dies in the White Ship disaster, leaving his daughter Matilda as sole heir to the throne after her father's death. The path to that throne is littered with obstacles for the woman, as the new King Stephen usurps the throne of England from the Empress. Elizabeth Chadwick focuses her newest novel on two women: Matilda, Henry I's daughter, and Adeliza, Henry's beautiful wife, as turmoil ignites throughout the lands of Normandy and England.

     

Lili du Chatelet yearns to know more about her mother, the brilliant French mathematician Emilie. But the shrouded details of Emilie's unconventional life—and her sudden death—are elusive. Caught between the confines of a convent upbringing and the intrigues of the Versailles court, Lili blossoms under the care of a Parisian salonniere as she absorbs the excitement of the Enlightenment, even as the scandalous shadow of her mother's past haunts her and puts her on her own path of self-discovery.

Laurel Corona's breathtaking new novel, set on the eve of the French Revolution, vividly illuminates the tensions of the times, and the dangerous dance between the need to conform and the desire to chart one's own destiny and journey of the heart.

Finding Emilie is about a young lady, Lili, looking to replace the void that was created within her as her mother, Emilie, passes away soon after Lili's birth and her father wants nothing to do with her. It starts off with a group of letters which sets the scene for how Lili came to be and for a bit of characterization of the supporting figures that are in her life.

Elizabeth I: A Novel by Margaret George
Hardcover: 688 pages
Publisher: Viking Adult (April 5, 2011)
ISBN-13: 978-0670022533
Review copy provided by the publisher, with many thanks!!
The Burton Review Rating: five big stars





Margaret George is one of those iconic historical fiction authors that even if you have not read her books, you have heard of her. I have been collecting her books but have not been able to read them as they look so daunting in size. This year, fans are treated to another tome by Margaret George as she brings us a novel on Elizabeth I. This is not your ordinary Elizabeth I novel for two reasons: 1. It is written by Margaret George. 2. It begins in 1588, when Elizabeth is fifty-five and about to face the Spanish Armada.

I was ecstatic when I realized this was not another rehash of Elizabeth's life from Thomas Seymour's pats on her butt to her struggles during her sister's Mary's reign, though it does cover the rise and fall of the Earl of Essex in detail. I was then overly ecstatic when I realized that this novel also features Lettice Knollys, whom Elizabeth liked to call the she-wolf. My Enemy The Queen by Victoria Holt was one of my favorite Tudor reads and I loved Lettice as she tried to out-maneuver Elizabeth every chance she got. The rivalry was heightened when Lettice married Elizabeth's favorite, Robert Dudley the Earl of Leicester.

Elizabeth I: A Novel read very much like the Dickens' favorite A Christmas Carol. We see through the aged Elizabeth's eyes the ghosts of the past from her parents to her favorites who flit in and out of her consciousness; the present with the younger courtiers who no longer have anything of value to Elizabeth except their looks; the future of England because of course this Virgin Queen left no heir for England. The decisions of the past and the present and how they affect the future of England are also an underlying theme for Elizabeth as she struggles to maintain her hold on the country that she married for richer or for poorer. The Spanish Armada was always a threat, and even though she was able to defeat it in 1589, by the time Spain had rebuilt its forces to strike again, Elizabeth's most trusted advisors and the strongest fighters and nobles had withered away.

Elizabeth hated most of all Lettice Knollys, who had secretly married Elizabeth's perhaps one true love Robert Dudley. Lettice was like Elizabeth in many ways as far as stubbornness and force of will, but promiscuous Lettice lacked the self-control of the Virgin Queen. Lettice was also the mother of Elizabeth's next favorite after Robert Dudley, the Earl of Essex Robert Devereux. In and out of this story of Elizabeth we are treated to chapters devoted to Lettice, as she struggles in vain to regain all that she has lost since Robert Dudley's death. Her one shining hope remains with her son the Earl of Essex, as he hopes for favors from Elizabeth I to help sustain his family. Robert Devereux is headstrong and unruly, and both Lettice and Elizabeth had difficulty with restraining Robert's self-destruction, and this spiral of love and hate between the Queen and Essex became interwoven into the novel as a major theme.

There were many names and titles, and a few Roberts as Robert Cecil is also featured here. There were even surprising occurrences behind closed doors, including the famous Will Shakespeare. The cousins descended from the Boleyn family are a strong part as the old loyal favorites of Elizabeth who always stayed loyal. And yet there were always some who were tired of Elizabeth's Protestant ways as more religious strife occurred with both Catholics and Puritans. The crisis in Ireland and the years of crop failure are another focus as Elizabethans struggled to maintain the Golden Age. The wax and wane of Elizabeth's reign is well known to Tudor fans, but I have not read any novels that actually spotlight their entire work on the wane of Elizabeth's life such as Margaret George's does here. Names of courtiers are weaved in and out of the story like our own old friends, so that those readers familiar with the Tudor era will feel right at home without getting another monologue of the backstory of each person. It is only for that reason that newbies to the Elizabethan era may find themselves lost in the vague comings and goings of the important people of Elizabeth's time, but as a lover of Tudor fiction I appreciated it as the minute details are lightly touched upon as a refresher.

The first person point of view of Elizabeth (and intermittently Lettice) seemed spot on.. the face on the outside to her subjects being different than the thoughts swirling in her head; slightly sarcastic and witty in her aging years even though she seemed a bit shocked that she was as old as she was. The magnificence of this tome is the way that George encompasses the era, without leaving out the other minor and major players of the court. This novel is by far the most human look at Elizabeth that I've ever read as the author brings Elizabeth to grips with her legacy that includes her executed mother and her tyrant father. I especially loved the secret garden scene at Hever Castle.

 This is a very detailed book and even though it is fiction I felt like I was being educated during the read. I loved this look at the last decade of Elizabeth's reign, and admired the amount of facts and the imagery that were blended throughout the story. This is the epitome of a well-researched book, and since it was enjoyed on so many levels it would be remiss if you did not include this latest Elizabeth I novel on your Tudor bookshelf. Elizabeth I: A Novel is an absolute must read for Elizabeth I fans, as this novel is a fitting tribute to the woman and Virgin Queen that seemed to outwit many of her enemies and always made sure she was above reproach. This one is certainly going on my Favorites of 2011 post.

Other pieces that I recommend that deal with the fall of Essex and his relationship with Elizabeth are Elizabeth & Essex: A Tragic History by Lytton Strachey and  The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex, a 1939 movie featuring Bette Davis. Also, I have yet to read The Walsingham Woman, by Jan Westcott, about Frances Walsingham married to Phillip Sidney first then the Earl of Essex. Frances is mentioned a lot in George's novel which is why I include Westcott's here. And as mentioned before, there is Victoria Holt's My Enemy the Queen which I loved. 

I was also beyond excited to be able to see Margaret George speak for the Arts & Letters Lectures held at the Dallas Museum as part of her book tour for Elizabeth I. Yoy can visit this link to see if she will be coming to a town near you!

Read all about my fabulous experience of meeting Margaret George in Dallas here.

The Queen of Last Hopes: The Story of Margaret of Anjou by Susan Higginbotham
Paperback: 368 pages
Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark (January 1, 2011)
ISBN-13: 978-1402242816
Review copy provided by the publisher, thank you!
The Burton Review Rating: 5 stars

It would be called the Wars of the Roses, but it all began with one woman's fury...

Margaret of Anjou, Queen of England, cannot give up on her husband-even when he goes insane. And as mother to the House of Lancaster's last hope, she cannot give up on her son-even when all England turns against him. This gripping tale of a queen is at its heart a tender tale of love: passionate, for her husband, and motherly, for her only son.

The Wars of the Roses has been my favorite period to read about during the last two years. Following that would be the Tudor era, but the battles between the Lancastrians and the Yorkists are always full of passion and from so many points of view that I have not been bored yet after reading many books on the era. I will not recount the events of the novel as there are many characters and titles to decipher that is hard to keep up with. Using a few key players, such as the fatherly Suffolk, the must've-been-handsome Henry Beaufort or the seemingly murderous Yorkist factions, Higginbotham retraces Margaret's story with a passion and talent as Higginbotham gives Margaret's name a new found respect. Wars of the Roses fans know what is to happen by the end of Margaret's story, but will they be sympathetic of Margaret of Anjou or to the Yorkists that stole the crown from her husband?

I will say that I haven't had a desire to read for a day straight in months, yet I am honored that Higginbotham broke me from that sad fact with her story of Margaret of Anjou and the fruitless fight to put her son Edward on the throne of England. Once I had a chance to get 70 pages into the story, I could not put it down; I was so entertained by Higginbotham's telling of Margaret's story which is why I endowed the five star rating. Even knowing what historical tragedies would play out in the story, I was hooked and enamored with Margaret. In previous reads, Margaret is normally referred to as merely the Frenchwoman, the whore, the witch.. and finally we have a much more pleasant view of this consort of the saintly Henry VI. Their son Edward of Lancaster had always been in the background of my previous reads, as he had never gotten the chance to make his mark on England. Yet, the way Higginbotham tells it, readers of her newest Wars of the Roses novel will never forget Edward of Lancaster and the throne that should not have been stolen from him; and one cannot but wonder if only he had been successful in the Lancastrian cause...

If you had not chosen a side before, either Lancaster or York, be prepared to become Lancastrian. I had never felt Yorkist in nature, and this novel solidifies my Lancastrian leanings for me once again. Margaret of Anjou will undoubtedly gain much earned respect through this telling, as she was loyal to the country that she married and the man who was England's rightful king. She held fast in her resolve even when others would have given up, and I am not ashamed to admit that Higginbotham's novel of Margaret and her fight for the Lancastrian cause brought me to tears. Perhaps the story sheds too much of a positive light on Margaret, but to give the novel further credit, it is told with multiple points of view which helps round out and personify the events for the reader and for once, a multiple narration did not grate at my nerves as it is known to do.

Susan Higginbotham's writing has an easy conversational feel to it, while deftly imparting detailed historically significant events throughout which makes Higginbotham a favorite historical fiction author of mine. The three novels of hers that I have read have all been read quickly by me, just short of devouring them. I appreciate the fact that although she takes some liberties with the historical accounts, she stays well within the realms of accuracy, and when she strays she explains both herself and history in the author's note. I have nothing to say to criticize this novel, and am pleased to recommend this novel to any history fan interested in some of the struggles during the Wars of the Roses and how the Tudors came to their eventual throne. Readers will become immersed in the quest for the rightful owner of the crown of England, as history's mysteries also seep through to help add to the titillation of the reader.

See my previous reviews and guest post from the author here at this link.