SHADOWS AND STRONGHOLDS
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Hey
there Earthlings, Alternatives and Trollers. Put down that mouse and
lend an ear. Welcome to The Bandersnatch blog where we talk weird,
wacky and wondrous. I'm Mama Ogre and I have no idea what I'm doing.
As
you should know Tuesdays is book blog day were we talk about one
particular book and pretty much run with it. Today's blog is on the
book Shadows and Strongholds by Elizabeth Chadwick.
A
medieval tale of pride and strife, of coming-of-age in a world where
chivalry is a luxury seldom afforded, especially by men of power.
England,
1148—Ten year old Brunin Fitzwarren is an awkward misfit in his own
family. A quiet child, he is tormented by his brothers and loathed by
his powerful and autrocratic grandmother. In an attempt to encourage
Brunin's development, his father sends him to be fostered in the
household of Joscelin De Dinan, Lord of Ludlow. Here Brunin will
learn knightly arts, but before he can succeed, he must overcome the
deep-seated doubts that hold him back.
Hawise,
the youngest daughter of Lord Joscelin, soon forms a strong
friendship with Brunin. Family loyalties mean that her father, with
the young Brunin as his squire must aid prince henry of Anjou in his
battle with King Stephan for the English crown. Meanwhile, Ludlow
itself comes under threat from Joscelin's rival, Gilbert De Lacy. As
the war for the crown rages, and De Lacy becomes more assertive in
his claims for Ludlow, Brunin and Hawise are drawn into each other's
arms.
Now
Brunin must defeat the shadows of his childhood and put to use all
that he has learned. As the Pressure on Ludlow intensifies and a new
welsh threat emerges against his own families lands, Brunin must
confront the future head on, or fail on all counts...
-
Shadows and Strongholds Goodreads page.
Shadows
and Strongholds was published in July 2004 with a republish by St.
Martins Press on November 29th 2005 and is part of the
Fitzwarren Novels of which Lords of the White castle is second
(despite being written in 2000). If you know me at all the you'll
know that Historical fiction is one of my favourite genres to read
and truth be told, I bought shadows and strongholds on a whim whilst
I was prowling through WHSmiths, I had been looking for something
else completely different at the time. I love the book and part from
a few little niggly bits of the book, I highly recommend it to any
and all readers who will listen and rate it a 9/10.
Elizabeth
Chadwick was born in Bury, Lancashire in 1957 and after spending a
few of her childhood years living in Scotland, moved to Nottingham
when she was ten and has remained there ever since. Being a
storyteller all her life Chadwick, from the age of fifteen started
writing, a foray into historical fiction as her first novel led her
to the realisation she wanted to write historical fiction for a
living. In 1989 after several years of writing and work being
rejected despite winning several competitions, a literary agent
became interested in Chadwick's work, specifically the Wild Hunt. The
book was auctioned off and a year later the book won a Betty Trask
award, which was presented to Chadwick by the Prince of Wales.
Chadwick
is one of Britain's foremost Historical novelists and has been called
“The best writer of Medieval Fiction currently around” by the
Historical Novel Society. Chadwick's work has been published
nationally and been translated
into 16 languages. Chadwick is renowned for extensive research into
the medieval period and specifically the Marshal and Bigod families,
with her novels about William Marshal bringing her international
acclaim. Elizabeth Chadwick has her own website. The link is down in
the bibliography below.
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WEBSITE
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
And
there you have it a decent book for those who love to read So we'll
be leaving this here for today please leave a comment, share with
others if you want or not, Don't
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THIS
IS THE BANDERSNATCH, I'M MAMA OGRE AND REMEMBER STAY WEIRD, STAY
WACKY, STAY WONDEROUS AND I'LL SEE YOU SOON...
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