The Sons of Godwine: Part Two of The Last Great Saxon Earls
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
If you’re a fan of Shakespeare’s play about Richard II—like I was—you might be surprised to discover that his tragic ending was the culmination of 20+ years of struggle between the young king and his nobles—especially his own family. Richard did not have an easy time of it from the very beginning. Crowned at age 10, he faced the horrific Peasants’ Revolt at only 14, and still managed to save the day when his elders failed to support him. Throughout his minority he was at odds with his uncles—first John of Gaunt, and then almost fatally with Thomas of Woodstock, the Duke of Gloucester, who persuaded Parliament to execute and outlaw Richard’s friends and advisors. Henry of Bolingbroke, who deposed him at the end of the play, was Richard’s first cousin. With a family like that, who needs enemies? A KING UNDER SIEGE is volume one of “The Plantagenet Legacy” and takes us through the king’s minority which lasted until he was twenty-two, setting the stage for the king’s retribution and final downfall.
Reviews
<p><span style="color:rgb(15,17,17);font-family:'Amazon Ember', Arial, sans-serif;font-size:14px;">What a great talent author Mercedes Rochelle has! She has taken some dusty, old bits of history and created a wonderful story! I was on the edge of my seat. Such a pleasure to read.</span><br style="color:rgb(15,17,17);font-family:'Amazon Ember', Arial, sans-serif;font-size:14px;" /><span style="color:rgb(15,17,17);font-family:'Amazon Ember', Arial, sans-serif;font-size:14px;">"A King Under Siege" reads just like a modern-day, political thriller. Plots and scheming abound in the castle and in many other centers of power. Intrusions by foreign governments and secret military actions occur frequently.</span><br style="color:rgb(15,17,17);font-family:'Amazon Ember', Arial, sans-serif;font-size:14px;" /><span style="color:rgb(15,17,17);font-family:'Amazon Ember', Arial, sans-serif;font-size:14px;">Exquisite scene-setting, intricate plotting, wonderful dialogue and realistic characters at so many levels. The extensive research Mercedes has done makes this story come alive!</span><br style="color:rgb(15,17,17);font-family:'Amazon Ember', Arial, sans-serif;font-size:14px;" /><span style="color:rgb(15,17,17);font-family:'Amazon Ember', Arial, sans-serif;font-size:14px;">I give A King Under Siege a score of 4.9 stars!<br />
- <em>Mark Schultz, Amazon</em></span></p>
