Half-Saxon,
half-Norman, Saewulf Brader longs for something more than his current
position. Even if he cannot be knight, at least he might be rewarded
with land for his loyalty to his liege lord. Her father dead during the
Battle of Hastings, Erica knows she must end the blood feud between her
family and another Saxon tribe if the Saxons have any chance of driving
away the Normans. She will do anything to stop the blood feud, no
matter what the cost to herself. When Wolf enters Guthlac's hall as a
spy, Erica's beauty captivates him while the threat from Guthlac's men
stirs his heart and memory. He must do everything he can to protect
her. Torn between his duty to his liege lord and his desire for Erica,
can Wulf keep her safe without compromising his spy mission? Will Erica
ever be able to trust him when she discovers he is a spy for the
Normans?
HIS
CAPTIVE LADY is an awesome Medieval romance! From
Carol Townend's past works THE NOVICE BRIDE and AN HONORABLE ROGUE, I
already knew I liked her writing style I would love her writing no
matter what story she writes, but HIS CAPTIVE LADY is even more
incredible than my wildest dreams! Wulf is amazing hero. His divided
loyalties create a depth of character seen from inside his heart and
values, a heart both loyal to the Saxon culture and his Norman lord and
yet a heart that longs for love and a higher good that transcends political loyalties. Wulf cleverly manages to act
with honor and deal with the trouble that came his way...and
trouble he saw aplenty! Carol
Townend creates such an ingenious yet tender hearted man ----brave like
a warrior, and a heart more noble than any knight. Erica with her
innocence, her daring, her values steals the heart from the first
pages. Erica is a bit of a trailblazer in her desire for peace and yet
Carol Townend also allows the reader to see her fears and her devotion
to those who serve her.
Guthlac, Hrothgar and all
the Saxons made my Medieval heart go aflutter. HIS CAPTIVE LADY give
such an accurate picture of that culture both after the Battle of
Hastings and in the legends and history in the hearts of the Saxons.
Carol Townend paints such an awesome image of the warrior arm rings in
this one scene that she made me see my medieval studies in a new way,
with a new vision ---a human vision --- but it wasn't just that one
scene. Carol Townend picks up on that scene and develops it into a
beautiful theme interwoven throughout the story. In another beautiful,
amazing scene (so awesome that I had to read it aloud to friends
telling them how it just made me gasp from its beauty), the author
takes and changes the Beowulf story in the life of a character who
lived later. Once more, this scene is not dropped but changed and
developed throughout the story. Everything in this book just fits so
well together as echoes of past scenes reverberate in new contexts,
adding layers of richness to this romance. I adored the picture Carol
Townend paints of the changes in the Saxon culture after the Normans
have invaded. Beatiful imagery!
HIS
CAPTIVE LADY---how does a person even describe a book that just hits a
reader on every chord except to say that for me, this book was 7th
heaven. How much do love this book? Rating: 5++! It's more than a
rating though. I actually bought multiple
copies of this
book for me because I want to re-read this book so much that I will
wear it out more than once. HIS CAPTIVE LADY is not just a 2008 top ten
read but a top all time read for me! HIS CAPTIVE LADY with its fine
rendition of Medieval Saxon culture and literature is a romance
thatwill appeal to both historical romance lovers and Medievalists
alike!
Personal
notes
I am so happy to see
a medieval historical writer doing this period! Carol Townend has a
unique fresh voice. This period and the earlier Anglo-Saxon period is
one of my favorite periods and it is just so cool to see what she does
with it. Back when I was in grad school, we had an Old English study
group that got together to read and translate the Old English
Anglo-Saxon poetry together. I love this poetry like none other. I
wrote my MA thesis on one of the poems and the dream vision genre. But
what makes me so enthusiastic about Carol Townend is not just that she
sets her romances in this period but it's what she does with it! Like I
said...new, fresh, even to me who lived and breathed this time period
and earlier....even to me, Carol Townend brought me new ideas and new
understandings. Beautiful romance--the romance between Wulf and
Erica---- and so much more too!
Once
in school I had to take this
this very pedantic course on Advanced French grammar and composition.
Every week, we had to write these papers using some grammar structure
(result, cause, etc) and a specialized vocabulary. This course did not
count since it wasn't literature but I had to have it before teaching
so it was in addition to a normal workload. I decided to have some fun
for me and the prof. so I wrote these ridiculous stories, taking
characters from Beowulf and writing outrageous stories--things that
made me giggle because they were so bizarre. Well, that was for
amusement and not real writing. My stories were just the rantings of an
overworked and very punchy student...and Carol Townend's stories are
just beautiful but I thought maybe this little story might show one
more level why this book blew me away!
