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3.58 AVERAGE
3.58 AVERAGE
Wish I could give it 3.75 stars. It’s classic phillipa gregory. Very easy to read and sucks you into a different time. Can’t say I loved it but I enjoyed it enough to finish and came to care about some of the characters. Not sure if I’ll read book 2
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
It was ok, I think this was my first McGregor novel. It’s about a peasant woman who is a midwife in a poor village. Her husband was a drunk and used to beat her and has now abandoned her. She has two children, a beautiful daughter and an intelligent son. It is set during the time of Oliver Cromwell. A spy for the king (who is actually a catholic priest) turns up in the village. Alinor hides him and they fall in love and she gets pregnant. There is tension because the daughter is also pregnant but she is about to marry the richest boy in the village. But this marriage won’t happen if Alinor is discovered to be pregnant. The spy turns out to be super wealthy and he decides to give up spying and priesthood to marry Alinor, until he discovers she is pregnant. The daughter gets married but can only pay the dowry by stealing money from the second richest family in the village. Alinor is accused of stealing it and that she is a witch. So they dunk her, but she survives. Then for some reason the daughter steals a horse and cart and takes Alinor to London.
It feels like modern people have been transplanted into this historical setting. It doesn’t feel like they are people of their time. Also the witch stuff is very weird. They have a dunking stool for this purpose and if you survive you are a witch. But then when they dunk Alinor and she survives she is not a witch. Just a lot of inconsistencies that detract.
It feels like modern people have been transplanted into this historical setting. It doesn’t feel like they are people of their time. Also the witch stuff is very weird. They have a dunking stool for this purpose and if you survive you are a witch. But then when they dunk Alinor and she survives she is not a witch. Just a lot of inconsistencies that detract.
I've read so many Philippa Gregory novels set around the Tudor era that it took me a little while to adjust to the setting of the south coast of England during 1648. A time of civil war when Oliver Cromwell and his Round Heads fought to remove King Charles I from the throne and rule through Parliament.
There are no royal palaces in this book but homes and businesses associated with rural England, miller, farmer, markets, ferryman and of course a Lord of the Manor.
Alinor Reekie is a midwife and wise woman who understands herbs, though some would call her a witch. A husband who has abandoned her she has to older children, they live in poverty. Her brother Ned lives nearby at the ferryhouse and operates a small ferry (think big raft!) as his father and his father before him did. Ned fought in Cromwells New Model Army, and is not for the King at all.
Alinor's daughter Alys works for the Millers, but has her heart sent on marrying Richard Stoney the only son of farmer Stoney and set to inherit the family farm. But how will pauper Alinor provide her daughter with a dowry for a good marriage.
Then a well dressed wealthy man James Summer appears in the dark of the night, looking for Sir William the local lord and landowner. Known for his loyalty to the King which he has had to turn his back on to protect is home and lands, also a Catholic but of course no one ever talks of that. What could he want with him and how can Alinor help him. This clandestine meeting triggers a string of events that will change the lives of Alinor and her family.
This book took me by surprise, no princesses or palaces but the everyday life of the poor and working people of the era. There is interaction with the wider area, London, Netherlands and France and we do encounter King Charles I.
The harsh reality of being a woman, is written and bought across to the reader in a frightening and clear way by Philippa Gregory. Give yourself chance to settle into this book, but when you do you won't want to put it down.
Looking forward to finding out what history holds for Alinor and Alys in the next novel in this series.
There are no royal palaces in this book but homes and businesses associated with rural England, miller, farmer, markets, ferryman and of course a Lord of the Manor.
Alinor Reekie is a midwife and wise woman who understands herbs, though some would call her a witch. A husband who has abandoned her she has to older children, they live in poverty. Her brother Ned lives nearby at the ferryhouse and operates a small ferry (think big raft!) as his father and his father before him did. Ned fought in Cromwells New Model Army, and is not for the King at all.
Alinor's daughter Alys works for the Millers, but has her heart sent on marrying Richard Stoney the only son of farmer Stoney and set to inherit the family farm. But how will pauper Alinor provide her daughter with a dowry for a good marriage.
Then a well dressed wealthy man James Summer appears in the dark of the night, looking for Sir William the local lord and landowner. Known for his loyalty to the King which he has had to turn his back on to protect is home and lands, also a Catholic but of course no one ever talks of that. What could he want with him and how can Alinor help him. This clandestine meeting triggers a string of events that will change the lives of Alinor and her family.
This book took me by surprise, no princesses or palaces but the everyday life of the poor and working people of the era. There is interaction with the wider area, London, Netherlands and France and we do encounter King Charles I.
The harsh reality of being a woman, is written and bought across to the reader in a frightening and clear way by Philippa Gregory. Give yourself chance to settle into this book, but when you do you won't want to put it down.
Looking forward to finding out what history holds for Alinor and Alys in the next novel in this series.
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
I preferred her books which are based on real people, and this one felt quite slow and heavy going.
emotional
informative
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Disappointing and not as interesting as the usual PG books.
hopeful
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A