For centuries, the brave knights of Camelot and the Crusaders have searched for the Holy Grail. The cup that Jesus of Nazareth used during his Last Supper is rumored to be a vessel that can grant eternal life or miraculous healing powers. It can be a cup, plate, or stone, but in all stories, the Grail guardians and those searching for it are predominately male. But what if the guardians were male and female and the ones searching for it were predominately female? Alais from 11th-century France and Alice Tanner visiting France in 2007 share a connection that is centuries deep and it all started with a ring, a book, and an image of a labyrinth. How are these two connected to the labyrinth and the Grail and can they protect it from those who want to use it for their dark purposes? Kate Mosse weaves the tale of the Grail and the two women connected by fate in her novel, “Labyrinth.”
This is another one of my bookshop finds. The cover initially caught my eye, followed by the author and the description. Dual-timeline stories have become one of my favorite sub-genres recently, so when I saw this was a feminine take on the Grail quest with a dual-timeline twist, I jumped at the chance to read it.
We begin with Alice and an archeological dig that she decided to volunteer at as a guest of her colleague Shelagh. As an amateur, she knows that she should not go into a cave alone, but she decides to throw caution to the wind and finds the bodies of two people, a leather bag, a stone ring, peculiar writing on the wall, and the image of a labyrinth. This is quite a discovery, except it puts the entire dig in danger as the police want to investigate the scene. Not only that but Shelagh goes missing and someone wants to either harm or kidnap Alice. The discovery of the cave will change Alice’s life, and reconnect her with a man from her past, a man who knows the truth, and a woman from the past who connects all the dots.
In the year 1209, Alais and her family are sitting on pins and needles as the pope has declared a crusade against the people of her faith, the Cathars, who have been deemed as heretics. As the armies of the Catholic church are on the doorsteps of Carcassonne, Alais’s father Bertrand gives her a gift of a book and a stone ring. What Alais will learn is that there are three books in total and a special ring inscribed with the labyrinth to mark the guardians of the Grail. Alais must make the difficult choice to leave her home and travel to the head of the guardians to protect the knowledge of the Grail. Alais is willing to risk everything as both a Cathar and a guardian of the Grail.
This was an absolutely thrilling read, it is also the first time I have read a novel with the Cathars and the Crusade against them featured prominently. There were so many twists, turns, and secrets abound that just when you think you have the novel figured out, something new drops. The balance between the present day and the past was perfect and the characters were so realistic that it felt like I could have a conversation with them. I need to see how this trilogy ends, which does include new characters and timelines. If you want a thrilling historical fiction novel full of twists, turns, history, and myths, “Labyrinth” by Kate Mosse must be on your list.
Christmas is a time of merriment and joy unless you are in the court of Henry VIII in 1536. Then it is a time of stress and murder. Henry’s second wife Anne Boleyn has only been dead for a few months while his third wife Jane Seymour is slowly adjusting to her new role as queen. A rebellion known as the Pilgrimage of Grace is taking over northern England and the leader Robert Aske wants to visit the court to discuss matters with King Henry VIII. To top it all off, a servant of Queen Jane has been murdered and the only one who can solve the crime is a fool, Will Somers. Can Will Somers connect the dots and save those closest to him, or will the treasonous act be another downfall in such a tumultuous year? This is the premise for the third book in the A King’s Fool Mystery series, “Rebellious Grace” by Jeri Westerson.
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Scotland is a land of beauty and a culture all its own, but when it comes to the history of the Scottish monarchy only one word will suffice, messy. The tales of the Scottish monarchy are full of tragedies, violence, and bloody ends. As so often with many other monarchies we tend to focus on the men who wore the crown and those around them, but what about the tales of the queens who stood beside their husbands? The stories of the medieval queens of Scotland have often been overlooked for their more famous husbands, until now. Sharon Bennett Connolly has compiled the stories of these queens in her latest book, “Scotland’s Medieval Queens: From Saint Margaret to Margaret of Denmark.”
The life of an empire is very cyclical: the birth of a people group united under one ruler, the empire’s expansion through conquest, and ultimately its demise. When we think of empires, we often think about the Roman and British empires, but another significant one in medieval Europe is the Carolingian Empire. It was an empire that hit its zenith with the reign of Charlemagne in the 9th century, but within two generations, it fell due to forces inside its court. What happened to this once glorious empire that fell after the Carolingian Civil War? Matthew Gabrielle and David M. Perry tell how a once glorious empire fell quickly after its height in their latest book, “Oathbreakers: The Wars of Brothers that Shattered an Empire and Made Medieval Europe.”
When we think of the term “Viking”, we often get images of battle-harden warriors, covered in guts and dirt, with horned helmets. We also believe that Vikings are warriors primarily from the Scandinavian world and that the Viking age ended in 1066 with the Norman Invasion of England. Our assumptions, thanks to television and a certain operatic cycle, are wrong. The Viking Age is a complex period of the past that spans centuries over half the known world. Using archeological evidence and written records, Eleanor Barraclough tells the tale of the Viking Age in her book, “Embers of the Hands: Hidden Histories of the Viking Age.”
I am pleased to welcome JR Tomlin to my blog today to share a guest post for her latest novel, “On a Sword’s Edge.” I want to thank JR Tomlin and the Coffee Pot Book Club for allowing me to be part of this blog tour.
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The stories of queens have been told in numerous ways for centuries, but one of the most famous queens in human history is the Virgin Queen, Elizabeth I. The daughter of Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII who famously decided not to marry any man and instead devout her entire life to serve England’s people. That does not mean she was subservient to others she demanded respect and adoration from her subjects. Most stories of Elizabeth I begin in her golden years, but what could a novel about the queen’s silver years tell us about her personality, her reign, and the people who choose to follow or rebel against the famous queen? Margaret George gives her readers an innovative look at the titular queen in her novel, “Elizabeth I.”
When we think about the period known as the Renaissance, we often think about Italy and the artists like painters and sculptors. However, other craftsmen made Italy their home. Take, for example, tailors and seamstresses. These skilled craftsmen and women can create art you can walk in with their hands. However, there are gender barriers between tailors and seamstresses in that only men can be tailors and only women can be seamstresses. One orphan girl from Bologna not only challenges what it means to be a woman tailor but also challenges one of the wealthiest merchants in the entire city who has a dark connection to her past. This is the premise for Glennis Virgo’s debut novel, “City of Silk.”
When we consider the issue of succession, we often imagine the crown being passed to the next legitimate heir, regardless of gender, but that was not always the case. We think about the struggles that women like Mary I and Elizabeth I endured to secure and stay on the throne, but one woman came before them so close to becoming England’s first ruling queen. She was the daughter of King Henry I and the next in line to the throne after her brother tragically died, but after her father passed away, it was her cousin Stephen who usurped the throne. The war for the crown which would last decades would be known as The Anarchy is the primary focus for Sharon Kay Penman’s novel, “When Christ and His Saints Slept.”
Adventures of a Tudor Nerd 