In the Shadow of the Storm
Published on 1. November 2015
Book
Paperback/Softback
396 pages
978-1-78132-433-2 (ISBN)
Description
Adam de Guirande owes his lord, Roger Mortimer, much more than loyalty. He owes Lord Roger for his life and all his worldly goods, he owes him for his beautiful wife - even if Kit is not quite the woman Lord Roger thinks she is. So when Lord Roger rises in rebellion against the king, Adam has no choice but to ride with him - no matter what the ultimate cost may be.England in 1321 is a confusing place. Edward II has been forced by his barons to exile his favourite, Hugh Despenser. The barons, led by the powerful Thomas of Lancaster, Roger Mortimer and Humphrey de Bohun, have reasons to believe they have finally tamed the king. But Edward is not about to take things lying down, and fate is a fickle mistress, favouring first one, then the other.Adam fears his lord has over-reached, but at present Adam has other matters to concern him, first and foremost his new wife, Katherine de Monmouth. His bride comes surrounded by rumours concerning her and Lord Roger, and he hates it when his brother snickers and whispers of used goods.Kit de Courcy has the misfortune of being a perfect double of Katherine de Monmouth - which is why she finds herself coerced into wedding a man under a false name.
What will Adam do when he finds out he has been duped? Domestic matters become irrelevant when the king sets out to punish his rebellious barons. The Welsh Marches explode into war, and soon Lord Roger and his men are fighting for their very lives. When hope splutters and dies, when death seems inevitable, it falls to Kit to save her man - if she can. 'In the Shadow of the Storm' is the first in Anna Belfrage's new series, The King's Greatest Enemy, the story of a man torn apart by his loyalties to his lord, his king, and his wife.
What will Adam do when he finds out he has been duped? Domestic matters become irrelevant when the king sets out to punish his rebellious barons. The Welsh Marches explode into war, and soon Lord Roger and his men are fighting for their very lives. When hope splutters and dies, when death seems inevitable, it falls to Kit to save her man - if she can. 'In the Shadow of the Storm' is the first in Anna Belfrage's new series, The King's Greatest Enemy, the story of a man torn apart by his loyalties to his lord, his king, and his wife.
Reviews / Votes
"In my travels through the magical medium of historical fiction, and most especially in the last year or so, I have encountered some wonderfully crafted female characters. To name a few, but certainly not all; Eleanor in the Feud series by Derek Birks, Selene in the Daughter Of Cleopatra books by Stephanie Dray, Giulia Farnese as portrayed in Kate Quinn's Borgia series, Alice Petherton in Martin Lake's tales of Henry VIIIth, Patsy Jefferson by the duo of Laura Kamoie and Stephanie Dray and now added to the list, Anna Belfrage's Kit. The story takes place during a revolt led by Sir Roger Mortimer against King Edward and his principal advisor the twisted, reprehensible Hugh Despencer - he ranks as one of the more disgusting creatures I've encountered in literature - though he is but an example of the author's gift for characterization and development. It is a story of how a man sees his honor and his loyalty to his liege lord as more important than what he knows will be the result of that honor and loyalty. Weaving through that tapestry of lost hope, physical pain and fearful dread, Kit finds the formidable woman inside and withstands the many misfortunes that fate has strewn in her path. From a girl, kidnapped and forced to assume the identity of someone else, to a woman filled with a love strong enough to endure. The author breathes life into the time, the place and the conflict...the reader feels that they are a part of the weaving, that they are walking the fields and courtyards, are experiencing the wretched prison cells, are transported by moonlit nights of romance. Hoover Book Reviews awaits the sequel. 5 stars. Paul Bennett at hooverbookreviews.wordpress.comMore details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Bristol
United Kingdom
Illustrations
black & white illustrations
Dimensions
Height: 203 mm
Width: 127 mm
Thickness: 23 mm
Weight
426 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-78132-433-2 (9781781324332)
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Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
New editions
Book
07/2016
2nd Edition
Matador
€34.87
Article is exhausted; no reprint
Person
I was raised abroad, on a pungent mix of Latin American culture, English history and Swedish traditions. As a result I'm multilingual and most of my reading is historical- both non-fiction and fiction. Possessed of a lively imagination, I have drawers full of potential stories, all of them set in the past.For years I combined a challenging career with four children and the odd snatched moment of writing. Luckily, children grow up, and now I spend most of my free time at my writing desk attempting to decipher the squiggled ideas I've jotted down over the years. Every now and then I succeed. I was always going to be a writer. Now I am - I have achieved my dream.