This Week's Winners

Hey folks - you may have noticed (or not) that I have been setting most of the book giveaways to end on Friday nights.  That way I can post winners in one post on Saturday and participants can know to look for the winners' post each Saturday.  Hope that makes it easier for me and you. :-)
Here we go with four giveaways that ended 3/18.

CONGRATULATIONS to all the winners!

Help Me Pick my Next Audible Read (Listen)!
The most votes went to choice # 1 so today
I downloaded:

Outside In (Harlequin Teen)

Maria S

13, rue Thérèse: A Novel



I loved the various mementos! Thanks for sharing.

LAMusing

To Defy a King

Terri

My Love, My Enemy

 

lmcgeen

I will email these winners tonight or tomorrow. (I have had a small relapse on the cold so may be going to bed soon.)
If any of you see your name as winner PLEASE feel free to email me:  msereads@gmail.com

Guest Post: Digging for Gold. Choosing the People I Want to Write About by Elizabeth Chadwick

Please welcome Elizabeth Chadwick to Reviews by Martha's Bookshelf as a Guest Blogger today. 

Many thanks to Martha for inviting me onto her blog to talk about how I choose my characters.

Digging for Gold. Choosing the people I want to write about.

I was eleven years old and on the family summer holiday at an English Coastal resort called Hunstanton in the county of Norfolk.  It stands on a shore line known as The Wash, notorious in legend for being the treacherous stretch of sands, mud and quicksands where King John lost his treasure when his baggage train was caught out by the tide while taking a short cut.  My father, with a twinkle in his eye said: ‘You know, if you dig in the right place, you might come across King’s John’s lost treasure.’

That was it.  I spent every spare minute at the beach, digging holes all over the place, searching for the missing gold – without much luck it has to be said.  The land has been reclaimed from the sea in this area, and what was the original tidal crossing for King John’s baggage train, is now somewhere several miles inland.  Nevertheless, I did find treasure of sorts in a couple of ways, because that incident led to two novels and a slight change in my career path.

Down the years, I often thought about that holiday in Hunstanton, and wondered what had happened to the treasure.  What if some of it was washed up the next day, or rescued at the time?  We know that one of the items lost around the time was a crown that King John’s grandmother, the Empress Matilda had brought from Germany.  I began asking myself what would have happened if someone had found the crown.  What would they have done with it?   It’s not the sort of item you can easily sell, display round the house or wear. You could melt it down, but at that time, you would have to be a person of rank to have access to gold and jewels and you would immediately arouse suspicion.  It would be difficult for other than the king or an aristocrat, to do anything with such an item.  I was fascinated by the idea of an ordinary person coming into possession of the crown and sundry other bits of the treasure and decided to explore the ramifications in a novel.  The book became The Marsh King’s Daughter.  The hero and heroine were imaginary, but the historical background was real and most of the historical incidents.  While writing, I needed to find out about a person called Eustace the Monk who had really lived and in his day was a mercenary pirate and the scourge of the English Channel.  I discovered what I was looking for in a book titled Two Medieval Outlaws: Eustace the Monk and Fouke FitzWaryn by Glyn Burgess.  It was a translation of two medieval chronicles/tales about these men who had turned outlaw.  Being as I had the book anyway, I read Fouke’s story too and realised that here was a tale bursting to be told.  Fouke, or Fulke FitzWaryn, was a Shropshire baron who rebelled against King John, and with his small band of men, ran rings around the king for several years until John finally made peace with him, buying him off with privileges and a great heiress to wife.   Some scholars say that this is where the Robin Hood tales originate.  Up until this point I had never written about real protagonists, but I was keen to write Fulke’s story and taking a chance, dipped my toe in the water.  The result was a novel titled Lords of the White Castle, which wound up being shortlisted for The Best Romantic Novel of the Year Award in the UK.  Another author on that shortlist was Philippa Gregory with The Other Boleyn Girl.  The readers seemed to like my new direction; I certainly did.  Writing Fulke’s story had given me a taste for finding out about people who had actually lived in the middle ages and for bringing their forgotten life stories to modern readers.

My subjects are usually chosen from something that sparks my interest about them, and it usually happens as a ‘ping’ moment when I am writing the previous novel.  My books about the Marshal and Bigod families have all worked in this way.  The Greatest Knight, which begins the series came about because I had heard so much about William Marshal’s rags to riches story while working on research for my other 12th century novels.  I thought he might be interesting to write about, but when I began delving into the research, I realised that beyond just a good story, what a great man he truly was.  He made Fulke FitzWaryn’s life look like a staid social picnic.  William’s life was so full, that I needed 2 books to tell his tale, and even then I had to leave bits out.  Further on, For The King’s Favor and To Defy A King grew out of the two novels I had written about William Marshal.  I became very interested in his eldest daughter’s story. Rather like my curiosity about King John’s lost crown, I started asking questions about Mahelt Marshal.
What was it like to be a girl growing up within the rigid social structure of the aristocratic Middle Ages?  How would it feel to be married to someone you barely knew when you were 14 and he was 25?  How would you cope if your family saw you married to this man and then went abroad and left you with your in-laws?  What would you do if your family was threatened and you had a way to help them out but knew if you were caught, the consequences would be terrible?  What would you do if your husband left you and the enemy showed up beneath your walls and took your child away from you?  Who would you blame and how would you deal with the aftermath?

Behind every historical event, behind every dry fact in a history book, there are people with feelings, emotions and motivations.  That is what I seek to bring to the fore.  Their hidden histories, told as fiction.  All I need is that first spark of interest, and I’m away with my bucket and spade!

**************************

Elizabeth Chadwick

Elizabeth Chadwick lives near Nottingham with her husband and two sons.  She is the author of novels such as The Greatest Knight, The Scarlet Lion, A Place Beyond Courage, and For the King’s Favor. Much of her research is carried out as a member of Regia Anglorum, an early medieval re-enactment society with the emphasis on accurately re-creating the past.  She won a Betty Trask Award for The Wild Hunt, her first novel. 
To Defy a King is a brilliant story of a vibrant woman in a tyrant’s world.

Please see my review and giveaway and announcement about a sale for the ebook!

Book Review and ARC Giveaway: To Defy a King by Elizabeth Chadwick

A powerful character portrayal in a wonderful historical fiction.

To Defy a King by Elizabeth Chadwick

• Paperback: 544 pages
• Publisher: Sourcebooks Landmark (March 1, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1402250894
• ISBN-13: 978-1402250897

Genre: Historical Fiction
My Rating:  4.75 of 5.0

Synopsis

The privileged daughter of one of the most powerful men in England, Mahelt Marshal’s life changes dramatically when her father is suspected by King John. Her brothers become hostages and Mahelt is married to Hugh Bigod, heir to the earldom of Norfolk. Adapting to her new life is hard, but Mahelt comes to love Hugh deeply; however, defying her father in law brings disgrace and heartbreak. When King John sets out to subdue the Bigods, Mahelt faces her worst fears alone, knowing neither she, nor her marriage are likely to survive the outcome. A story of huge emotional power set against the road to Magna Carta and the fight to bring a tyrant king to heel.

Review: This is wonderfully rich.
Mahelt is eldest daughter of the powerful Marshal family who has allies in England and Ireland.  The story opens with 10 year old Mahelt trying to play soldier with her brothers. They ridicule her but then consent to let her pretend to “protect the keep.” When they attack she manages to defeat them. Immediately the reader sees the determination and stubbornness of this fiery girl. 

Mahelt is betrothed to another strong family, the earl of Norfolk,  with lands along the French borders. When her brothers are taken hostage by King John and her own father travels to Ireland to protect his interests there, the 14 year old Mahelt is wed to 25 year old Hugh with the promise that she will live with the family for a year before the marriage is consummated.

The author weaves the growth of friendship between Mahelt and Hugh and his mother. But also  Mahelt faces difficulties obeying the instructions of her strict Father-in-Law.  At every turn it seems that Mahelt is defying some rule and trying to add her input into the business of the men. She hates King John for taking her brothers and she chafes at the political balance that the two fathers try to maintain in their dealings with a cruel and faithless King who does not keep his promises.

Mahelt is a wonderful character growing from a spoiled girl to a proud (still spoiled) determined wife, mother and chatelaine.  She is not always a pleasant or easy woman or character. Hugh is a wonderful husband for her because he is more mature and he is a calming influence to her volatile and almost termagant personality.  Mahelt is prepared to defend the Bigod fortress against the King’s attack but as a woman she is too often powerless.  Her marriage is severely challenged when Hugh fails to keep his promise to always protect her and their children.  I loved the slogan that Hugh gives to Mahelt: "Ne vuz sanz mei, ne mei sanz vus" or "No you without me, nor I without you."

I expected this might be long to read but it flowed beautifully and moved at a very good pace. This was the time of the drafting of the Magna Carta and the noble rebellions against the King. I really enjoyed learning about the different approaches of the two families in their efforts to honor their commitment to the King and yet maintain their power and their relationship with other powerful noble allies.  It was refreshing to read a story where the spouses were faithful even though they were separated quite a bit.  I recommend this book to anyone who loves strong female characters and/or historical fiction. This is the first book I read by Ms. Chadwick -- I know it won't be my last.

Additional Review Note: I listened to this on Audible. Initially I did not like the narrator’s attempt to imitate a man’s low voice but after an hour or so I didn’t even notice that problem. The narrator does a good job evoking the emotions of tenderness, confusion and pain from the characters.

xxx

Thank you to Sourcebooks for this book to read and review.

Sorry but this giveaway is limited to US entries because of the weight of the book. 
BUT GOOD NEWS.

There is a special going on for Elizabeth Chadwick’s To Defy a King and Sarah Bower’s Sins of the House of Borgia. You can now pre-order/purchase the eBooks for only $2.99! This offer only goes until Monday March 7^th so hurry!

Click here for the links to purchase through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-a-Million and BooksOnBoard

P.S. To Defy a King is only available in the US & Sins of the House of Borgia is available in the US and Canada.

TO ENTER THE GIVEAWAY FOR THE ARC COPY:

1.Visit the author's website and tell me something of interest you find there.
Please leave your e-mail!

2.  For two extra entries - comment on the Author guest post.

3. For an extra entry, become a follower or tell me if you are already a follower.

4. For two extra entries, blog, facebook, tweet (any of those networks!) about this giveaway and tell me where you did.

(Six total entries possible.)
It isn't necessary to use separate entries unless you want them in different chronological order.

* This contest is open to US only.
* No P.O. Boxes Please - for shipping reasons.
* This contest will close 10:00 PM (Central) on March 18, 2011.
The winner will be randomly selected from all entries.