• Author
  • Book
  • Story behind the book
  • Media Links
  • Reviews
Marion Stein

Marion Stein

About

Marion Stein is a native New Yorker who returned to her hometown in September 2001 after living many other places. She has an MFA in creative writing from Sarah Lawrence as well as an MSW from Hunter College. Marion's careers have included crisis clinician, teacher, tarot card reader, grant writer and temp. She is an avid blogger and the author of The Death Trip and Loisaida -- A New York Story.  She is currently working on an expansion of her novella, Hungry Ghosts which was shortlisted for the 32nd annual 3-Day Novel Contest.

The Sons of Godwine: Part Two of The Last Great Saxon Earls

The Sons of Godwine: Part Two of The Last Great Saxon Earls

0.0
0 ratings

Description

<p>Emerging from the long shadow cast by his formidable father, Harold Godwineson showed himself to be a worthy successor to the Earldom of Wessex. In the following twelve years, he became the King's most trusted advisor, practically taking the reins of government into his own hands. And on Edward the Confessor's death, Harold Godwineson mounted the throne—the first king of England not of royal blood. Yet Harold was only a man, and his rise in fortune was not blameless. Like any person aspiring to power, he made choices he wasn't particularly proud of. Unfortunately, those closest to him sometimes paid the price of his fame.<br /><br />This is a story of Godwine's family as told from the viewpoint of Harold and his younger brothers. Queen Editha, known for her Vita Ædwardi Regis, originally commissioned a work to memorialize the deeds of her family, but after the Conquest historians tell us she abandoned this project and concentrated on her husband, the less dangerous subject. In THE SONS OF GODWINE and FATAL RIVALRY, I am telling the story as it might have survived had she collected and passed on the memoirs of her tragic brothers.<br /><br />This book is part two of The Last Great Saxon Earls series. Book one, GODWINE KINGMAKER, depicted the rise and fall of the first Earl of Wessex who came to power under Canute and rose to preeminence at the beginning of Edward the Confessor's reign. Unfortunately, Godwine's misguided efforts to champion his eldest son Swegn recoiled on the whole family, contributing to their outlawry and Queen Editha's disgrace. Their exile only lasted one year and they returned victorious to London, though it was obvious that Harold's career was just beginning as his father's journey was coming to an end.<br /><br />Harold's siblings were all overshadowed by their famous brother; in their memoirs we see remarks tinged sometimes with admiration, sometimes with skepticism, and in Tostig's case, with jealousy. We see a Harold who is ambitious, self-assured, sometimes egocentric, imperfect, yet heroic. His own story is all about Harold, but his brothers see things a little differently. Throughout, their observations are purely subjective, and witnessing events through their eyes gives us an insider’s perspective.<br /><br />Harold was his mother's favorite, confident enough to rise above petty sibling rivalry but Tostig, next in line, was not so lucky. Harold would have been surprised by Tostig's vindictiveness, if he had ever given his brother a second thought. And that was the problem. Tostig's love/hate relationship with Harold would eventually destroy everything they worked for, leaving the country open to foreign conquest. This subplot comes to a crisis in book three of the series, FATAL RIVALRY.</p>

Story Behind The Book

The Death Trip was originally written for the 3 Day Novel Contest. I want to explore questions about end of life and the choices we make. I'm a big fan of The Matrix, especially the first film, and The Death Trip is an exploration of the question -- if given the choice between a reality of death and suffering or a dream of an idealized existence, which would you choose?

Media Links

Reviews

<div style="margin-bottom:.5em;"> <span style="margin-right:5px;"><span class="swSprite s_star_5_0"><span>5.0 out of 5 stars</span></span> </span> <span style="vertical-align:middle;"><strong>Perfection in Novella Form</strong>, December 1, 2009</span> </div> <div style="margin-bottom:.5em;"> <table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tbody><tr><td valign="top">By </td><td><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/pdp/profile/A99HBVQL5ST66/ref=cm_cr_dp_pdp"><span style="font-weight:bold;"><span style="white-space:nowrap;">Nautiknitter<span class="swSprite s_chevron custPopRight"></span></span></span></a> (CA) - <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/cdp/member-reviews/A99HBVQL5ST66/ref=cm_cr_dp_auth_rev?ie=UTF8&amp;sort_by=MostRecentReview">See all my reviews</a></td></tr></tbody></table></div> <div class="tiny" style="margin-bottom:.5em;"> <span class="crVerifiedStripe"><strong class="h3Color tiny" style="margin-right:.5em;">Amazon Verified Purchase</strong><span class="tiny verifyWhatsThis">(<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/community-help/amazon-verified-purchase">What's this?</a>)</span></span> </div> <div class="tiny" style="margin-bottom:.5em;"> <strong><span class="h3color tiny">This review is from: </span>The Death Trip (Kindle Edition)</strong> </div> I downloaded the sample of this short story/novella and was immediately hooked. For 99 cents, it was a no-brainer to buy. The author does an excellent job of quickly developing the characters and their relationships while moving the story along at a good clip. The plot touches on very sensitive topics, and shows both sides of the issues fairly equitably, though there's clearly a bias in the end. And the ending was perfection. I look forward to reading more of Marion Stein's work! <strong>Review by: </strong> <a href="http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/DutchMom">C </a><br /><br /><strong>From Smashwords readers:</strong><br /><a href="http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/DutchMom">Koeber</a> on Dec. 01, 2009 : <img src="http://www.smashwords.com/static/img/star.png" alt="star" /><img src="http://www.smashwords.com/static/img/star.png" alt="star" /><img src="http://www.smashwords.com/static/img/star.png" alt="star" /><img src="http://www.smashwords.com/static/img/star.png" alt="star" /><img src="http://www.smashwords.com/static/img/star.png" alt="star" /><br /> Excellent story on a compelling subject. The story is eerily believable, and the author clearly has a solid knowledge of end of life dilemma. I have worked in the hospice field for many, many years and found this book riveting, funny and poignant. Not usually a sci-fi fan, but thoroughly enjoyed this. Five stars!<br /><br /><strong>Review by: </strong> <a href="http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/pdallen">PD Allen</a> on Nov. 20, 2009 : <img src="http://www.smashwords.com/static/img/star.png" alt="star" /><img src="http://www.smashwords.com/static/img/star.png" alt="star" /><img src="http://www.smashwords.com/static/img/star.png" alt="star" /><img src="http://www.smashwords.com/static/img/star.png" alt="star" /><img src="http://www.smashwords.com/static/img/star.png" alt="star" /><br /> Grim story, the last third is pretty intense. The author has developed some intriguing ideas about medicine, the pharmaceutical industry, and consumer culture. She has an adequate knowledge of pharmacology and ethnobotanics. I love a good corporate conspiracy, and this one is very well-done, making possible some interesting statements about the modern world in which we live. The ending presents the main character with a tremendous dilemma.