Well done! Another sensational book from Elizabeth Chadwick!! Like another reviewer of this book, I too had to stay up way past my bedtime to finish this too hard to put down!
In my last review for The French Revolution series by Jean Plaidy I mentioned that I just didnt feel the emotional connection with the characters, but not so with The Marsh Kings Daughter! The heroine, Miriel, is a woman after my own heart. She is a strong, intelligent and passionate woman who fights for what she wants in life. The more people try to beat her down the more she will fight back.
The love story between Nicholas and Miriel is deliciously sweet and the love scenes will leave you needing a cigarette after reading!
I love the way a good novel brings you right into the action and into the feelings and emotions of the characters. I felt a wide range of emotions during my reading experience
from pity to love to trying to resist the urge to jump through the pages and rip a guys head off! Thats the beauty of Elizabeth Chadwick! Thanks EC!
Overall: 5/5
Song: Wont Back Down by Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers
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The Marsh King's Daughter by Elizabeth Chadwick
MKD is my favorite EC novel primarily because Miriel's circumstances force her strong will to 'work with what she's got', and exactly within the context of her times. She is a survivor and I just love that she takes advantage of opportunities involving marriage without going to the 'dark side', in a manner of speaking, while pursuing her considerable commercial talents and reaping the financial rewards.
Otherwise I guess she'd have been a pro at running a very large convent. Miriel just seems born to manage. She may think she needs the purloined treasure to succeed in her ambitions, but she truly has the wit and resource within to reach her goals. This girl is no pushover.
I also love the many plot changes in this story. Nicholas' interwoven presence in Miriel's life is so well done. A twisty path to probably-happy-ever-after is always so much fun for romantic characters.
Lastly, EC's descriptions of King John's treasure getting lost in the marsh is one of my all time favorite scenes. I'm in the moment with those characters every time I read it. I'd love to visit the site one day.
Otherwise I guess she'd have been a pro at running a very large convent. Miriel just seems born to manage. She may think she needs the purloined treasure to succeed in her ambitions, but she truly has the wit and resource within to reach her goals. This girl is no pushover.
I also love the many plot changes in this story. Nicholas' interwoven presence in Miriel's life is so well done. A twisty path to probably-happy-ever-after is always so much fun for romantic characters.
Lastly, EC's descriptions of King John's treasure getting lost in the marsh is one of my all time favorite scenes. I'm in the moment with those characters every time I read it. I'd love to visit the site one day.
We are the music makers, And we are the dreamers of dreams ~ Arthur O'Shaughnessy, Ode
I stayed up far too late to finish this. The twists and turns of the plot line were compelling and the characters completely real, making me love, hate, cry and hope by turns. there was very evocative descriptions too and I like the way that two true anecdotes - the loss of King John's treasure and a runaway nun - provided the basis for such an enthralling story. I also learnt a lot about medieval shipping!
I loved this novel too! But I do have a question...and I'll probably sound really dumb here...where does the name come from. From the story I just don't get it. Was King John the Marsh King? If so, the heroine wasn't his daughter. Was it the stepfather?? Help, lol! It's been bugging me since I read it last year.
Books to the ceiling,
Books to the sky,
My pile of books is a mile high.
How I love them! How I need them!
I'll have a long beard by the time I read them. --Arnold Lobel
Books to the sky,
My pile of books is a mile high.
How I love them! How I need them!
I'll have a long beard by the time I read them. --Arnold Lobel
Sorry, been out and about today and supposed to be working, so not around much!
Thanks for the kind words folks. To say that MKD is all my dad's fault. We went on holiday to the Wash area when I was about 11. I was sitting on the beach, digging in the sand with my little brother when dad remarked with a twinkle that if I was lucky, I might come across King John's buried treasure. Well, that set me off. I spent the rest of the holiday digging holes all over the beach and searching! Of course the place is now likely miles inland if anything is ever going to turn up. But the idea remained with me. What would have happened if someone had found the treasure back then? What would they have done with it? You can hardly go and flog something like a crown on the medieval black market without being noticed! So, a few decades down the line, I chose to explore the idea.
LCW - the title. It was inspired by the Hans Christian Andersen Fairy tale of that title which is partly about a woman being pinned down in a bog - i.e. disempowered. That was how I felt about Miriel at the start. She was having her life taken away; various people were pinning her down, and in an area renowned for bogs and quicksands. Also it's a reference to the Empress's crown itself. A female symbol of power, lost in the marsh - perhaps still there. Who Knows? Bottom line. It's a reference to Miriel pinned down, it's a reference to the crown, and it's a catchy evocative title. The latter was a consideration, but it was the Andersen fairy tale that happened to dovetail with the ideas started by my dad back on that beach near Hunstanton.
Thanks for the kind words folks. To say that MKD is all my dad's fault. We went on holiday to the Wash area when I was about 11. I was sitting on the beach, digging in the sand with my little brother when dad remarked with a twinkle that if I was lucky, I might come across King John's buried treasure. Well, that set me off. I spent the rest of the holiday digging holes all over the beach and searching! Of course the place is now likely miles inland if anything is ever going to turn up. But the idea remained with me. What would have happened if someone had found the treasure back then? What would they have done with it? You can hardly go and flog something like a crown on the medieval black market without being noticed! So, a few decades down the line, I chose to explore the idea.
LCW - the title. It was inspired by the Hans Christian Andersen Fairy tale of that title which is partly about a woman being pinned down in a bog - i.e. disempowered. That was how I felt about Miriel at the start. She was having her life taken away; various people were pinning her down, and in an area renowned for bogs and quicksands. Also it's a reference to the Empress's crown itself. A female symbol of power, lost in the marsh - perhaps still there. Who Knows? Bottom line. It's a reference to Miriel pinned down, it's a reference to the crown, and it's a catchy evocative title. The latter was a consideration, but it was the Andersen fairy tale that happened to dovetail with the ideas started by my dad back on that beach near Hunstanton.
Les proz e les vassals
Souvent entre piez de chevals
Kar ja li coard nI chasront
'The Brave and the valiant
Are always to be found between the hooves of horses
For never will cowards fall down there.'
Histoire de Guillaume le Mareschal
www.elizabethchadwick.com
Souvent entre piez de chevals
Kar ja li coard nI chasront
'The Brave and the valiant
Are always to be found between the hooves of horses
For never will cowards fall down there.'
Histoire de Guillaume le Mareschal
www.elizabethchadwick.com
I see! Thanks for the explanation, EC. The reasons for all of the other titles of your novels have been easy ot see but this one had me puzzled. Very interesting! I've never heard of that fairy tale so now I'm goona have to go look it up!
Books to the ceiling,
Books to the sky,
My pile of books is a mile high.
How I love them! How I need them!
I'll have a long beard by the time I read them. --Arnold Lobel
Books to the sky,
My pile of books is a mile high.
How I love them! How I need them!
I'll have a long beard by the time I read them. --Arnold Lobel
I loved this book too (as with all EC novels I've read), but I just had to comment for one reason in particular! EC, was the character Robert actually based on my ex-husband?? 
You nailed the traits of a sociopath perfectly! Even before you started to reveal the dark side of Robert, all of the clues were there (charming, possessive, etc) . I have to praise you on that - I spotted Robert for what he was at the start of their relationship (once he gave her the puppy I was urging her to start running!) . Having been a victim of a sociopath, I am always on the lookout - but I didn't expect to spot one in a medieval novel! Great job on that character.
It was a wonderful read, and of course I felt I a special bond to Miriel. Unfortunately though, I'm still waiting for my Nicholas to show up!! =)
You nailed the traits of a sociopath perfectly! Even before you started to reveal the dark side of Robert, all of the clues were there (charming, possessive, etc) . I have to praise you on that - I spotted Robert for what he was at the start of their relationship (once he gave her the puppy I was urging her to start running!) . Having been a victim of a sociopath, I am always on the lookout - but I didn't expect to spot one in a medieval novel! Great job on that character.It was a wonderful read, and of course I felt I a special bond to Miriel. Unfortunately though, I'm still waiting for my Nicholas to show up!! =)
Thanks for the info about the inspiration for the story and title, EC. I've always had a soft spot for MKD, which I read when it first came out, and i've often recommended it to other readers. It was the second EC title I came across- a few years before that I'd read "Children of Destiny" (since retitled "Daughter of the Grail") which had also impressed me.
It's a bit surprising that more novels haven't beem written about the dramatic loss of King John's treasure. There are all sorts of theories about what happened to it and who might have found it. It's kind of fun though to think of it it still lying about waiting to be discovered some day.
It's a bit surprising that more novels haven't beem written about the dramatic loss of King John's treasure. There are all sorts of theories about what happened to it and who might have found it. It's kind of fun though to think of it it still lying about waiting to be discovered some day.