The Greatest Knight/The Scarlet Lion

[EC2]

Thanks Em, and welcome to the forum.
Sorry about the 'jibbering wreckedness'!
The December issue is one of my earlier novels, so slightly different in feel to the Marshal ones i.e. the lead players are imaginary. It was fun revisiting it last year to edit. It had been a while since I'd looked at it and I couldn't remember what happened!

[sharon]

Hi, everyone.
I wanted to spread the good news for those who have not heard. September 1st is the American pub. date for Elizabeth's The Greatest Knight. We can thank Sourcebooks for realizing she has so many American fans.
Sharon

[JaneConsumer]

It's about time. Kudos!

[Ludmilla]

My local bookstore must have put it out early. I was in there buying something else on Saturday and it was on the new paperback table, so of course added it to my pile of purchases.

[Misfit]

Good news for US readers, EC's books are hard to come by here. Hope to see lots of new fans.

[EC2]

Thanks chaps.

Also to say while I'm here and Sharon having dropped in, I should be hosting an interview with Sharon on my blog soonish - like in the next couple of weeks. I'm really looking forward to what she's going to say re her work!

[consterdine]

I started The Greatest Knight on monday and will finish it tonight. I've read it in every spare moment I've had. What a great read it is! I recommend EC to anyone who wants this era of history brought to life or who loves a rollicking good read.

The real pleasure for me is that it puts flesh on the bones of historical figures that all too often seem very dry and one dimensional in standard historical texts.

The reign of Henry II is one of the strangest times in British history and Eleanor is a figure that has been too long in the shadows. A strong, 'modern' matriarch with style, a beating heart and a joy de vivre. Why aren't we told that these women existed?

As for the writing, the character of William Marshal is beautifully crafted through his good fortune, misfortunes and courtly sophistication. That this medieval man is so in touch with his feminine side may be a contemporary twist but it enables an inspiring, intriguing and almost irresistable character to emerge.

Overall the writing transports the reader and weaves a wondrous world that you can immerse yourself in. Thank you Elizabeth for a beautifully told story.

[Ash]

[quote=""consterdine""]
The reign of Henry II is one of the strangest times in British history and Eleanor is a figure that has been too long in the shadows. A strong, 'modern' matriarch with style, a beating heart and a joy de vivre. Why aren't we told that these women existed?
.[/quote]


Interested why you'd think the first, and wondering if Eleanor has been in the shadows. Seems like of all the non Tudor queens written about, she gets quite a bit of press. As to your last question - its like anything else, often what we don't know is something we just discover ourselves, and sometimes thats half the fun!

[consterdine]

[quote=""Ash""]Interested why you'd think the first [/quote]

If by this you mean, Why do I think the reign of Henry II was amazing I'd say it's because he had 4 feuding sons and, remarkably(?), crowned one of them King while he was still King. Add the Anarchic years preceding him and then Eleanor into the mix and I think it gets quite interesting

You're right that finding stuff out for yourself is half the fun but as a father of a 7 year old girl I'm constantly looking for strong felmale figures and role models that will allow her to feel the freedom and self-determination that is rightly hers, just, at the start of C21!

[Tanzanite]

[quote=""consterdine""]You're right that finding stuff out for yourself is half the fun but as a father of a 7 year old girl I'm constantly looking for strong felmale figures and role models that will allow her to feel the freedom and self-determination that is rightly hers, just, at the start of C21![/quote]

At the risk of going off -topic, the best role models to provide this are you and her mother and in particular in the way that you treat your daughter as she grows up as well as how you treat the other women in your life. If she sees that the man she admires and loves the most treats her and women in general with respect and the belief that they are in charge of their own lives, she will grow up believing it and will accept nothing less from anyone, including potential boyfriends or husbands.