Fair, Bright, and Terrible (Welsh Blades Book 2)

Tags

Historical Romance, Indie Author, Romance, Self Published Book

Title & Author: Fair, Bright, and Terrible (Welsh Blades, Book 2), Elizabeth Kingston

Genre & Publication Date: Historical Romance, January 25th, 2017

Book Description: Minor Spoilers in this description. Read at own risk: “Wales is conquered, and Eluned has lost everything: her country, her husband, her hope. All that remains is vengeance, and she will stop at nothing to have it. Certain there is no trace within her of the idealistic girl who loved Robert de Lascaux a lifetime ago, she agrees to marry him to advance the fortunes of her son, to avoid the nunnery, and most importantly – as an easy way to gain access to the man upon whom she will avenge Wales.

When Robert is asked to marry the woman he has loved for eighteen years, he never hesitates. But the lady who greets him at the altar has so little in common with the girl he adored that he begins to doubt that there is anything left of her bold and passionate younger self. Marriage to her might gain him the fortune and status his family has always wanted, but no wealth has ever mattered to him as much as Eluned has. And she, it seems, does not want him at all.

Trapped in a web of intrigue, revenge, and desire, they cannot forget their past – but can they share a future? The fascinating world of medieval Wales is continued in this riveting companion novel to The King’s Man.”

First Line: It all ended in cold flesh.

My Take: This book was provided to me by the author for review.

This novel is the sequel to “The King’s Man” which I’ve reviewed and loved (Read it!!). Book Two follows Eluned, the mother of book one’s heroine. When we met her in “The King’s Man” she was frighteningly ambitious, wickedly clever, and painfully jaded. “Fair, Bright, and Terrible” picks up this thread without missing a beat. I don’t want to give too much away as far as plot because this is a sequel, but I really enjoyed it. Twists and turns in the political landscape with a relationship at its center, it had everything you’re looking for in a historical romance.

Robert is a new character whom we didn’t meet in book one, but I liked him a lot. Open-hearted and hopeful, he was Eluned’s opposite. When they were young they’d had a passionate affair, one that ended because of circumstance rather than sentiment. Robert went on to idolize their time together, never realizing how much the years would change Eluned from the loving and quick witted girl she’d once been. When they’re reunited, he’s happy to find her intelligence as keen as ever (something he’d always admired, bless him) but she’d lost all of her former softness. Poor guy gets hit with disappointment over and over on this score as Eluned tries to hang on to her hard outer shell. Sometimes she made me crazy with this, even though I understood it.

Here’s the thing I found incredibly beautiful in this novel–it’s about how love with the right person can change us for the better. There are so many stories of how a relationship can ruin a life or shatter someone’s ability to trust. These happen, in real life and in fiction, but love isn’t all sorrow. It also isn’t a panacea, I know. It takes effort, a willingness to see yourself and your own faults, and the courage to change. Because vulnerability is courage, not weakness. It’s the path back to joy and to each other.

The Magical: Something awesome about this author: She doesn’t just coast to the end when we get to the 85/90% mark. More happens, one last exciting crescendo. Man, I love that and it’s something that makes this author’s work an auto-buy for me.

The Mundane: I think I mentioned this but Eluned’s constantly closing herself off no matter what got to me at times. I understood she did it instinctively since she’d had to do it all her life just to survive, but since this is what kept her and Robert apart I wanted to yell at her sometimes.

Summary of Thoughts: An absolute gem of a book for the genre, I highly recommend this one! Currently it’s $4.99 on Amazon. I do advise reading “The King’s Man” first for context as there are cameos from book one which you’ll love all the more if you’ve met them before. Political machinations, a heart melting romance, and plenty of action and intrigue all the way through. I can’t wait for the next installment in this series!

Many thanks to author Elizabeth Kingston for providing a copy of the book to review.

Curious what others thought? Check out Amazon’s reviews here

Want to know more about the author and her work? Explore her website here

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The King’s Man (Welsh Blades Book 1)

Tags

Book Review, Historical Romance, Indie Author, Self Published Book

Title & Author: The King’s Man (Welsh Blades Book One), Elizabeth Kingston

Genre & Publication Date: Historical Romance, June 20, 2015

Book Description: “Ranulf Ombrier’s fame throughout 13th century England for his skill at swordplay is rivaled only by his notoriety as King Edward I’s favorite killer. Ranulf’s actions have gained him lands, title, and a lasting reputation as a hired butcher. But after years of doing his king’s bidding, he begins to fear for his mortal soul and follows his conscience away from Edward, all the way to the wilds of Wales.

Gwenllian of Ruardean, Welsh daughter of a powerful Marcher lord, has every reason to leave Ranulf for dead when one of her men nearly kills him. As a girl she was married by proxy to a man Ranulf murdered, only to become a widow before she ever met her groom. In the years since, she has shunned the life of a lady, instead studying warfare and combat at her mother’s behest. But she has also studied healing and this, with her sense of duty to knightly virtues, leads her to tend to Ranulf’s wounds.

Saving her enemy’s life comes with consequences, and Gwenllian and Ranulf are soon caught up in dangerous intrigue. Forced together by political machinations, they discover a kinship of spirit and a surprising, intense desire. But even hard-won love cannot thrive when loyalties are divided and the winds of rebellion sweep the land.”

First Line: Wales 1280: When he first woke, he thought he must be roasting in the fires of Hell.

My Take: Every once in a while I pick up a book in historical fiction rather than speculative. I’ve only ever done one review of this genre on the blog. It’s a little odd since I’m a big Masterpiece Theater fan and just loved Downton Abbey (For anyone in withdrawal since the show ended, there’s another awesome series called Larkrise To Candleford that was made some time back. Equally amazing). My point is, it takes an especially good book to push me off my usual reading habit of imaginary worlds and space exploration. The King’s Man is one of those.

Initially I just grabbed the sample chapter, intrigued by the blurb. Pretty much after the first paragraph I knew my life was about to come to a standstill:

When he first woke, he thought he must be roasting in the fires of Hell. Later he would know if was a raging fever that burned him, and she would tell him it was delirium that caused insensate visions. These were practical and unromantic explanations that were true enough. But earthly truths would never be as real as hellfire, and angels, and the moment he put the tattered remains of his soul into her hands.

I mean, yeah. I didn’t stand a chance. The writing throughout the whole thing is just exquisite. I kept running into whole sections where I’d be like, “Oh wow. Hang on, I’ve got to reread that a few more times just for the love of words.” Yet, it never became heavy handed, the writing deliberately holding off on those more epic phrases until just the right moment. Then, while you’re curled around your Kindle, when you’re utterly rapt with the scene at hand, it releases that poetic style. Let me tell you, it hangs on to your thoughts well after you’re done reading it, like sillage from an open perfume bottle.

The plot itself is also solid. This is set during the reign of the ruthless King Edward I, otherwise known as Longshanks (some of you might remember his portrayal best from Braveheart). On the one side you have Ranulf, the King’s assassin, on the other you have Gwenllian, a Welsh noblewoman of a people long at odds with the King Edward’s rule. With murmurs of rebellion in the air, it sets a series of events in motion that neither one of them ever anticipated. Awesome historical and monarchical intrigue set against a very personal story of two people who find they are both enemies and allies at the same time.

The Magical: Loved Gwenllian! Such a great character with confidence and leadership ability, strong and steadfast, but also grappling with self-doubt and a wish for belonging. I also really loved Ranulf though. He’s as strong as Gwenllian, a strategic mind and cunning, but dealing with terrible self-loathing—adrift, never feeling at home in his home. Their trust grew slowly and in such a beautiful and believable way.

The Mundane: …I can’t think of anything, people! *sits down and checks pulse*

Summary of Thoughts: An amazing tale set in medieval Wales with three-dimensional characters, including the supporting cast. I enjoyed this one so much! Gwenllian and Ranulf felt like real people. They loved but they also argued, they made mistakes, they said stupid things and regretted them–just like a non-fictional relationship! I think that’s what I liked most. Currently it’s $4.99 for the Kindle on Amazon. I definitely recommend it (in case the gushing didn’t tip you off). Cool historical stuff, sword fights, a haunted past, and two people trying to learn what it means to love someone.

Curious what others thought? Check out Amazon’s reviews here

Want to know more about this author’s work? Explore her website here