Book Review: THE REBEL PRINCESS by Judith Koll Healey

Two power punched reads from Healey in one month, and to think initially both reads flew under my radar. Good thing I was given a heads up on them because both books were a real treat to read and review.

In the first book “The Canterbury Papers” readers follow French princess Alais on a covert mission to retrieve Eleanor of Aquitaine’s secretly stashed papers that were hidden in the Becket's alter in Canterbury cathedral. Of course it was not that easy and after a wildly covert mission Alais found the true love she did not even know she was looking for. After reading both books I realize my favorite aspect of the first book was that it was Alais rediscovering herself and finding what her true purpose in life was to be.

The sequel “The Rebel Princess” kept to the same beat as the first book, which I was hoping it would. I had a prior feeling that if the same elements I so much enjoyed were not there then it could be devastating to me. As far as books go Judith states it best “Romance has to have a hero, a quest, death, and love interest”, which is more than true for me. In my reads I must have those components to hold my interest or I can not finish it. I can say it was everything I ever hoped it could be.

That princess Alais is a favorite of mine. She was such a rebel in every sense of way possible. Book two picks up immediately after the first book left off. Alais is back at her brother the king of France’s court when the light of her life the hunky Templar knight William of Caen. Upon hot William's arrival back at court a fire storm of intrigue blew up in Alais’ face. The issue was to the south of France; the pope wanted the so called “heretics” rising in the south to be handled and if that was going to happen it meant that France would have to step in. Alais’ brother king Philippe would have to take arms up against his own blood cousin the count of Toulouse but wait a second it all did not make since Philippe was the counts overlord. The pope sent his religious henchmen to convince the king of the necessity of going south. Little did they know that Alais had received a heads up about the men of the church from her cousin the counts wife (Eleanor of Aquitaine's daughter) and Alais was more than willing to step in and swing with the big boys in the unscrupulously game of waging a holy war. With a bloody religious war on the event horizon a mystical chalice is stolen and many people go missing. The one person Alais never harm to come to gets snatched up in the night and swept into a sea of intrigue that is filled with dirty politics. Alais is left with no choice but to rebel and get down to the matter of finding her loved ones before harm can come to them.

5/5 loved it; this is the book I am so pissed about. My mom’s dog chewed up the spine of my copy. I loved them both so much that I MUST buy a new one for my collection. This was one of the fastest paced duo’s I have ever read, it is more than enjoyable that both books go deep into detail in the what if factors of Alais’ life. Since we know next to nothing about her I think this fills the nothing void in a bit. I would recommend this highly for medieval fans.

PG-13 Rating- Violence

FTC- Sent to me from publisher

Amazon

The Rebel Princess 

The Canterbury Papers: A Novel

Book Review: THE CANTERBURY PAPERS by Judith Koll Healey

Wow I am stunned, this read packs a hidden punch. I really did not know what to expect but whatever I was expecting this read went way beyond that. I can not wait to read the sequel “The Rebel Princess”.

The princess Alais of France has in the past year drawn me into a few reads like “The Queens Pawn” by Christy English. I have not until now had an opportunity to read a novel about Alais’ later years. I had been searching for some read that focuses on her time after Henry II died and after she moved back home. Most importantly to me was the years when her brother Philippe was ruling king of France.

“The Canterbury Papers” was a riveting read to the point where you could read 100 pages easily in one sitting and not have your brain hurt. In reality there is little known documentation of princess Alais' time after she went back home to France. I love Alais’ story even if she grew up in one the most confusing circumstances. Her father was married to Eleanor of Aquitaine. It was not one of the best matches and Eleanor divorced him for the king of England. It was later that he remarried and later had Alais. Her and her sister were sent to the English king and queen, why he sent his little girls to his ex-wife I will never understand. I bet he regretted it until the end of his days. As we all know Eleanor and king Henry II’s love match reached a sour point and Henry locked Eleanor up and separated her from all the children including Alais. In this read Alais was promised to Eleanor’s son Richard who would become Richard the Lion heart the future King of England, she loved Richard but that did not stop his father from plucking one of the untouchable court flowers. In the end the king always got what he wanted and certainly there are consequences for getting down with the king. The question this read covers is did Alias have a child by the king or more logically did the child survive?

The best part of this read is that none of it is set in the above mentioned time frames. I found it pleasurable that the story did intermingle Alais' past with the present. The whole kick off point of the read is when Alais receives a letter from Eleanor; she needs Alais to go on a covert mission to Canterbury cathedral. Her mission objective is to retrieve Eleanor’s letters hidden in the church behind the martyr Becket’s alter. I know you are wondering why Alais would even consider undertaking a dangerous mission for Eleanor’s good given what had passed between them. Eleanor pulls at Alais’ one soft spot she makes a mention of rewarding her for her service with privy information about Alais’ mysterious child that for all she knew was dead and had been dead for sometime. Of course she had to go to Canterbury and she would come to find out like many other nobles of this time period that where ever King John roved no one was safe.

5/5 Word can not even express how intriguing this read was it was mysterious in all aspects. It was like a puzzle that once you completed part of it you make the realization that by solving that one part of it you revealed three more unseen puzzles. Healey amazed me with her fluent gift of story telling, she is reminiscent of the great Elizabeth Chadwick and at one point used my favorite Chadwick’s favorite medieval slang for William Marshall “slugabed”. The other part that makes me think of Chadwick is another welcomed appearance from William Marshall. In case you are wondering in this one he is so hot even in this read. This book was such a joy to read it had the Templar Knights, sneaky queens, and all in the middle of it Alais on a quest for the truth which might not be so forthcoming. I would highly recommend this read to HF medieval enthusiasts.

PG-13 mild violence and mild sexuality
FTC This book was sent to me by the publisher.

Mailbox Mondays, Oldies but Goodies and Hot New Upcoming Releases

The Sultan's Harem by Colin Falconer
"From the author of the critically acclaimed When We Were Gods comes a dramatic, unforgettable novel of cruelty and passion, set in the great Harem of the Ottoman Empire.

In Constantinople there is only one ruler: Sultan Süleyman the Magnificent, Lord of Lords of this World, Possessor of Men’s Necks, Allah’s Deputy, absolute ruler of the mighty Ottoman Empire. And at the heart of his palace is the Sultan’s vast Harem, the domain of hundreds of scented, pampered women—some wives, some concubines, some merely slaves. Among them is Gülbehar, the Sultan’s submissive favorite and mother of his heir; Julia, the daughter of an Italian lord, kidnapped when she attempted to flee Venice with her lover; and Hürrem, a Tartar girl from the Russian steppes, sold into slavery.

All three women are beautiful, but Hürrem is the most dangerous—ruthless in her desire to rule the Harem and, ultimately, Süleyman himself. Endlessly manipulative and clever, she carefully arranges the downfall of her rivals and endears herself to the Sultan, who places her at the center of the Empire’s power. It is his obsession with Hürrem—not his enemies—that in the end costs Süleyman his allies, his sons, and finally his dynasty.

Bestselling author Colin Falconer offers an irresistible glimpse into a world of intrigue, sensuality, and violence, where an empire can be controlled not by the might of its king but by the women hidden behind the Harem walls".


The Wild Irish by  Robin Maxwell, Hardcover for my collection

The glorious, turbulent sixteenth century is drawing to a close. Elizabeth, Queen of England, has taken on the mighty Spanish Armada and, in a stunning sea battle, vanquished it. But her troubles are far from over. At home she is challenged at every turn by the brilliant but reckless Robert Devereux, Earl of Essex, whose dangerous mix of passion and political ambition drives the aging queen to distraction. Just across the western channel, her colony Ireland is embroiled in seething rebellion, the island's fierce untamed clan chieftains and their "wild Irish" followers refusing to bow to their English oppressors.
In the midst of the conflict is Grace O'Malley, notorious pirate, gunrunner, and "Mother of the Irish Rebellion." For years, the audacious Grace has plotted and fought against the English stranglehold on her beloved country. At the height of the uprising Grace takes an outrageous risk, sailing up the River Thames to London for a face-to-face showdown with her nemesis, the Queen of England.
The historic meeting of these two female titans --perfectly matched in guts, guile, and political genius -- sets the stage for the telling of the little-known but crucial saga of Elizabeth's Irish war, a conflict at the very root of every subsequent Irish uprising. No one breathes life into these strong and pugnacious women as does Robin Maxwell in this captivating novel, a rousing tale that makes history gloriously real.

The Boleyn Inheritance by Philippa Gregory
The Constant Princess by Philippa Gregory

Just like "The Wild Irish" I scored these ones in hardback. I am currently working on upgrading my library to hardbacks starting with my first loves, Robin Maxwell and Philippa Gregory. I figure I will just keep adding them as I find them.
 
The Portable Book of Birthdays by Dennis Fairchild and Peter Weber

No one can resist reading their own birthday profile, and then looking up the birth dates of family members, friends, and partners. Drawing on astrology and numerology to provide 366 on-target personality profiles-one for each day of the year-this entertaining new addition to our Cyclopedia series zeros in on everyone's birthday. In the attractively priced, portable format that has made Cyclopedias such a success, this new book offers profiles that detail specific character traits, potentials to develop, foibles to guard against, tendencies with regard to love and finance. Each entry also lists prominent men and women who share that birth date.


From Publisher's


The Canterbury Papers by Judith Koll Healey
"Set in lavishly described medieval England and France, The Canterbury Papers is an enthralling and suspenseful debut novel combining dark family secrets, duplicity, and a missing heir to the throne.
The wily Eleanor of Aquitaine, queen of France and then of England, sends her former ward, Alaïs, the sister of the king of France, to retrieve a cache of letters hidden in Canterbury Cathedral. Letters that, in the wrong hands, could bring down the English king. In return, Eleanor promises to reveal a long-held and dangerous secret involving Alaïs -- a bargain the French princess is powerless to resist.
Before Alaïs can complete her mission, she is abducted, an event that sets in motion a dangerous plot. It will require all of Alaïs's considerable strengths, along with help from the very intriguing leader of the Knights Templar, to unravel dark secrets, unmask evil villains, and escape with her life.
A vividly rendered, spine-tingling historical novel filled with intrigue and peopled with compelling legendary figures, The Canterbury Papers is an extraordinary tale from a brilliant new writer".


The Rebel Princess by Judith Koll Healey June 22nd Re-Print

"Comes the compelling 2nd installment of the popular 13th century mystery following the exploits of the French princess Alais Capet...

Princess Alais Capet, sister to King Philippe Auguste of France, battles corrupt court officials, religious fanatics and her beloved Lord William as she engages a band of underground Cathar noblewomen to assist her in the rescue of her illegitimate son Francis, a young knight whose very existence could unsettle the thrones of England and France".





Dracula In Love by Karen Essex In stores August 10th

"In this wonderfully transporting novel, award-winning author Karen Essex turns a timeless classic inside out, spinning a haunting, erotic, and suspenseful story of eternal love and possession.

From the shadowy banks of the river Thames to the wild and windswept Yorkshire coast, Dracula’s eternal muse, Mina Murray, vividly recounts the intimate details of what really transpired between her and the Count—the joys and terrors of a passionate affair that has linked them through the centuries, and her rebellion against her own frightening preternatural powers.

Mina’s version of this gothic vampire tale is a visceral journey into Victorian England’s dimly lit bedrooms, mist-filled cemeteries, and asylum chambers, revealing the dark secrets and mysteries locked within. Time falls away as she is swept into a mythical journey far beyond mortal comprehension, where she must finally make the decision she has been avoiding for almost a millennium. 

Bram Stoker’s classic novel offered one side of the story, in which Mina had no past and bore no responsibility for the unfolding events. Now, for the first time, the truth of Mina’s personal voyage, and of vampirism itself, is revealed. What this flesh and blood woman has to say is more sensual, more devious, and more enthralling than the Victorians could have expressed or perhaps even have imagined".