The Last Casualty by Andrew Leatham

Rating: ★ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆

Obtained from: Netgalley

Read: December 29, 2016

Belgium, 1917. Wilf joined up at seventeen, wanting to do his bit. But now he is broken by the death and human agony surrounding him. The smell of the rotting corpses, the vermin gnawing on the corpses in No Mans Land, has all been too much. After a brief period of R and R, he knows he cannot return to the line, but off he is sent. When his courage falters, he’s charged with cowardice, court martialled, and shot at dawn. Lancashire England, 1995. Joanne Neally’s grandmother has died. While cleaning out her house, she finds the telegram that informed her family of the death of her great grandfather, simple and unpunctuated: Regret to inform you Private 792163 Isherwood Wilfred 3rd Batt Pennine Fusiliers died of gunshot wounds Ypres August 22 1917. Joanne is moved to tears by the telegram, but it is the diary she finds next that will change her life forever, for Wilf Isherwood detailed his experiences at Passchendaele, one of the fiercest and bloodiest battles of the Great War. A battle that cost the lives of half a million men, and changed the landscape of Belgium forever. Joanne, who is in an unhappy marriage, decides to clear Wilf’s name. It is obvious he was suffering from shell shock, and a pardon is in order. As she enlists help from the local legion, she discovers a man at a care home who knew her great grandfather. The more he tells her about the horrors they saw, the more determined Joanne is to clear Wilf’s name. But as her job and her marriage fall apart, everyone around her wonders about her loyalty to a man she never met, and how much she is willing to pay to clear his name. 

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Shot at Dawn, National Memorial Arboretum
by Harry Mitchell / CC-BY-4.0

I'm not known for mincing my words so if you don't appreciate critical commentary take the hint and jump ship now. I read negative reviews, I write negative reviews, and I am not ashamed of it. You're not required to agree with my stance nor my assessment of the novel in question, but I'm allowed an opinion just the same so you'll just have to deal the fact that this review actually exists. Don't like it? Don't read it. It's no skin off my nose one way or the other. 

Without further ado or disclaimer, I want to say that Andrew Leatham's The Last Casualty wasn't my cuppa tea and I would find the novel impossible to recommend. The historic subject matter boasts natural intrigue, but the fictional elements felt carelessly constructed, incomplete, and underdeveloped. Consider yourselves warned folks, there are spoilers ahead. 

The Shot at Dawn campaign is remarkable in and of itself, but Leatham's protagonist has virtually nothing to do with the movement. Joanne makes contact with the member of the group, but Leatham fails to develop that relationship and takes the story in an entirely different direction. There is a footnote at the end of the narrative about the success of the campaign, but the actual push for the posthumorous pardon of war victims is otherwise absent from the telling. 

Joanne's deterioration, if that is in fact what Leatham was trying to illustrate, is ambiguous at best and I couldn't decide if she was a rational character trying to clear her grandfather's name or an irrational character that suffered the effects of battle fatigue without having actual experience of it. Wilf has moments, but his story is pretty cut and dry. Joanne's husband Frank is easily the most interesting character in the narrative, but he is never fully explored and his vacillating love/hate relationship with his wife proved both contradictory and confounding. 

The nail in the coffin, however, is how Leatham closed the story. The author's conclusion is inconclusive and leaves the reader questioning the purpose of the narrative. Joanne does not fail in her quest, but she doesn't succeed in it either. It actually feels as if she loses her damned mind before she even gets her feet on the ground, but that's just me. I wish I were joking when I say that I finished the book and checked to make sure my ARC had downloaded properly, but I'm not. The main story line doesn't go anywhere and unlike my fellow reviewers, I refuse to excuse that reality out of admiration for the history involved. 

I think the content great, but to be perfectly honest, I've seen it before and I've seen it done better. If you're that interested, save yourself the trouble and track down a copy of The Lost Soldier by Diney Costeloe or Barbed Wire and Roses by Peter Yeldham and call it a day. Leatham's idea had merit, but his execution leaves much to be desired and struck me as a total and complete disappointment.

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He took Wilf by the left elbow and guided him steadily out of the cell where two more armed men from the regiment took up station in front. The party marched quickly along a short corridor, Tubby Clayton following behind, praying loudly. But no one was listening.

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Nursing Fox by Jim Ditchfield

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆

Obtained from: Netgalley

Read: June 4, 2016

At the outbreak of World War I, Lucy Paignton-Fox enlists in the Australian Army Nursing Service and leaves her family's cattle station in the Northern Territory to join the war effort. During the Gallipoli campaign she serves in hospitals in Egypt, but when the Anzacs are posted to France she moves with them. A talented and spirited nurse, with dreams of one day becoming a doctor, Lucy finds more opportunities than she ever imagined: working alongside doctors and surgeons, sharing the soldiers' dangers, helping them through their pain, and making lifelong friends. But with war comes suffering. Lucy sees it all around: sorrow, disease and death. How long can she stay separated from it all? Adam Hayward joins the British Army after a devastating attack on his family. Accepted into the air force, Adam tests his luck in the cockpit fighting for those he loves. But with aircraft technology booming, can Adam continue to stay ahead of the game? John Mitchell's determination leads him slowly up the ranks. With more responsibility than ever, he becomes disillusioned with the horrors of war, but he can't help admiring the brave nurses who do so much to help the wounded men. Nursing Fox details the experiences of Australian nurses during the Great War. It honours their journeys and shows the impact that the nurses had on the soldiers with whom they crossed paths.

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I enjoyed the time I spent with Jim Ditchfield’s Nursing Fox, but I will not deny that I have mixed feelings about the book. To be perfectly honest, I think the narrative suffers an excess of plot and despite my appreciation for the material, I could help feeling frustrated at being pulled so many directions at once.

Don’t misunderstand, Nursing Fox has a lot going for it and reading the novel affords a great deal of insight to the World World I experiences of Australian forces both on and behind the lines. I was fascinated by the wealth of detail Ditchfield managed to weave into the fabric of the narrative and felt the material was exceedingly well-adapted.

That said, the novel alternates between three distinct points of views and while I found Lucy Paignton-Fox, Adam Hayward and John Mitchell quite interesting, I felt the rotation between them distracting and wished Ditchfield had limited himself to Lucy’s point of view. Lucy’s story arc was the most prominent of the three and I think the novel would have read more cleanly and felt more cohesive if the author had limited himself to a single protagonist.

When all is said and done, I can see recommending Nursing Fox to fellow readers, but I think it could have been stronger narrative if there hadn’t been so much going on.

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Lucy sat on an empty bed, her face buried in her hands as tears of relief streamed down her face. She thought back to the CCS. After all these years, all the bombs and all the shells. The fighting might be finished, but the war would never be over for her. She’d never be able to forget the hundreds of operations and the rows of graves that emphasised the failures.

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A Woman's Diary of the War by Sarah Macnaughtan

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

Obtained from: Netgalley

Read: April 11, 2016

This is one of the most powerful descriptions of the scourge of the First World War by a woman who was on the front lines and ultimately gave her life for the cause. Sarah Broom Macnaughtan volunteered with the Red Cross Society when World War One broke out, and that is when she started keeping a record of what she saw. In September 1914 she travelled to Antwerp in Belgium as part of an ambulance unit, and as Head of the Orderlies she was witness to hundreds of wounded and dying men passing through her hospital. Her and her staff desperately tried to help them as best they could despite limited resources, and bombs falling all around them. For her bravery and work under fire in Belgium, she eventually received the Order of Leopold.

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Sarah Macnaughtan's A Woman's Diary of the War caught my eye the moment I stumbled over it. I've been looking for a surgeon's memoir from either world war for ages, but a nurse's memoir was an equally welcome discovery. 

Macnaughtan's observations are poignantly honest and unguarded. Her perceptions regarding the war in Belgium are not shaped by political affiliation or historic interpretation. They are personal, the kind of simple contemporary insights that are priceless to those interested in understanding the conflict through the eyes of those who witnessed it firsthand. I wish there had been more biographic information included in the book, but the writing is solid and the material itself makes the title more than a little worthwhile.

A Woman's Diary of the War is a short piece, only ninety-three pages in length, but it makes an interesting companion to Sapper Dorothy: The Only English Woman Soldier in the Royal Engineers 51st Division, 79th Tunnelling Co. During the First World War and stands as a brilliant example of British understanding and rectification of the conflict.

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We were breathless, not with fear, but with astonishment.

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A Triple Knot by Emma Campion

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆

Obtained from: Netgalley

Read: May 12, 2014

Joan of Kent, the renowned beauty and niece of King Edward III, seems blessed with a life of royal privilege until her father is executed for treason and she becomes a ward of the king, living amongst those who deem her the daughter of a traitor. Joan begins to understand the brutal constraints and dangers inherent in being of royal blood. There is one at court who loves her, but his love proves the greatest threat of all. As an impetuous teenager, she escapes into a clandestine marriage in a bid for freedom, then must hide it for nearly a decade, as her guardians marry her off to another man. After her first husband's death, Joan—now a mother of four—enters into another scandalous relationship, this time with the heir to the British throne, Prince Edward, hero of Crécy and Poitiers, who has loved her all along. But his devotion comes at a terrible price. Haunted by nightmares of her father's execution and the ruthlessness of her royal kin, Joan must reconcile her passion for the crown prince with the potentially tragic costs of a royal life.

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James Purefoy as Thomas Coville/Edward, the Black Prince
in A Knight's Tale. © Columbia Pictures

I give author Emma Campion credit for recognizing the potential in Joan's story, but that said, I can't say A Triple Knot impressed me as much as I'd hoped it might.

Generally speaking, this is where I'd offer readers a cautionary warning regarding spoilers, but I find doing so in this case irrelevant as the marketing department has spelled out the entire plot in the jacket description. There are a few minor details left out, but honestly, if you've read the blurb you know every major plot twist between page one and four hundred eighty so if you've made it this far you can rest easy knowing nothing I say will ruin your experience. 

In looking at the cast, I can't say Joan held particular appeal for me, but she is well-rounded and I enjoyed watching her mature as the story progressed. I greatly admired Campion's treatment of Thomas Holland, as well as the darker drama Edward brought to the narrative, especially as mention of the Black Prince always reminds me of James Purefoy's rather sympathetic and light-hearted interpretation. Unfortunately, I felt all three leads upstaged by members of the supporting cast. 

Reading the book over Mother's Day weekend, I suppose it's rather apropos that I found Margaret Wake, Maud la Zouche, and Philippa of Hainault the most interesting of Campion's characters. Their motivations, machinations and movements were fascinating and more than once prompted me to consider the intricacies of maternal devotion and influence in a period where women enjoyed relatively little authority or power.

I felt William de Montacute the weak link in the narrative. His character is fairly one dimensional which was disappointing as I felt Joan's second husband should have enjoyed more prominence. He may be a scum-sucking bottom feeder, but I genuinely feel his role demanded more import than Campion extended here.

Finally, the narrative's irregular pacing and linear presentation didn't sit well with me. Some incidents, like Joan's hanging the silk or her crossing to Ghent are beautifully detailed, but others, such as the pestilence, the births of her children and the siege camp after the Battle of Crécy felt weak and underdeveloped.

Bottom line, I enjoyed the history, but can't help feeling cheated by Campion's portrayal. At the end of the day, I feel there is more to Joan than the complexity of her multiple marriages and was disappointed that the author chose not to explore those avenues of her life and/or character. 

Note: Since penning this commentary, Broadway Books has revised and corrected the jacket description. The current blurb omits those statements that spoil the story and correctly identifies Joan as Edward III's cousin rather than his niece. My review retains the original blurb as that is the description that graced my ARC. 

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Blinded by tears Joan pushed her way through the crowd, stumbling, whispering her apologies, shaking her head at expressions of concern, running as much from the sound of Ned’s voice as from Thomas and his brothers, running from herself, from the hopeless tangle of her life.

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Aiding the Enemy by Julie Rowe

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆

Obtained from: Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours

Read: October 23, 2013

German-occupied Brussels, Belgium. December 1915. Rose Culver is in grave danger. For months the Red Cross head nurse has been aiding Allied soldiers caught behind enemy lines, helping them flee into neutral Netherlands. It's only a matter of time until she's caught. Which makes it the wrong time to fall in love with a handsome German military doctor as devoted to the sanctity of human life as she is. The Great War has caused Dr. Herman Geoff to question everything he once believed. He knows Rose has been hiding British soldiers in her hospital—he's even treated some of them, refusing to go against his own Hippocratic oath. As a doctor, he admires Rose's skill and conviction. As a man, he can no longer deny his attraction to her. But when Rose is arrested for treason, Herman must choose between love for her and duty to his country…

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Dedication at Tyne Cot Cemetery in Passendale

Though I reviewed them in chronological order I actually read Julie Rowe's War Girls series in reverse which means I started with book three, Aiding the Enemy. Now I'm not going to say you can't follow my example, that doesn't seem exactly fair, but I think there are pros and cons regardless of where you choose to begin. 

Nurse Rose Culver pushed Maria out the door in Saving the Rifleman and supported Judith in Enticing the Spymaster. Aiding the Enemy is her story. Hers and Dr.  Herman Geoff's, but if you read the blurb you already knew that. My point is reading these book as written gives you a better appreciation for how long Rose endured and stood firm against the insurmountable and the underlying correspondence between each of the stories adds a nice touch to the series as a whole.  

So what's the downside? Initially I liked the way events played out in this piece, but I've got to admit, I was less impressed with it after reading Rowe's earlier books. Like its predecessors, Aiding the Enemy centers on a couple forced to flee occupied Belgium with the German military on their heels. The couple uses a similar cover story, loose themselves to their desires and have a remarkably familiar misunderstanding before all is said and done. There are enough details to differentiate each book, but there are also enough similarities to give a reader pause. 

Weighing these aspects against each other, well it's a hard one to call. Kind of a six of one, half a dozen of the other type deal. Neither is enough to make the book, but neither is enough to break it. Truth be told, if it weren't for the maggots, I might still be sitting on the fence about this one. 

You read that correctly. My opinion of Aiding the Enemy was ultimately determined by a handful of juvenile blowflies. Well, some kind of fly at any rate. Rose doesn't encounter an entomologist in the book so the details are really anyone's guess, but that's beside the point. What I'm getting at here is my appreciation for how Rowe approached her material. We got a sense of how to treat the wounded and conduct surgical procedures in the earlier books, but that is the kind of thing I expect in war lit that features the Red Cross. What I liked about Aiding the Enemy was how it illustrated medicine as an evolving science and offered readers a certain understanding of how far we've come over the course of the last century. 

Ultimately, I liked Aiding the Enemy and think it a worthy conclusion to the three part set. Though somewhat repetitive, I can't deny the book is an enjoyable and entertaining romance with enough factual information and sentimentality to make it both historically unique and emotionally satisfying.  

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“I took a vow to prolong life, to do no harm, as you did. How can I be prosecuted for it?”

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Check out all the stops on Julie Rowe's Aiding the enemy VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR

Monday, November 11
Review, Guest Post & Giveaway at Romantic Historical Reviews
Giveaway at Passages to the Past

Tuesday, November 12
Review at Just One More Chapter
Interview & Giveaway at Book-alicious Mama

Wednesday, November 13
Review at Flashlight Commentary

Thursday, November 14
Interview & Giveaway at Flashlight Commentary

Friday, November 15
Review at A Chick Who Reads
Guest Post & Giveaway at History Undressed

Enticing the Spymaster by Julie Rowe

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆

Obtained from: Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours

Read: October 24, 2013

German-occupied Brussels, Belgium, April 1915. Judith Goddard is hiding in plain sight. A dual citizen with family ties to Belgian royalty and the British military, she works as a Red Cross nurse in a German hospital, learning what she can, ever fearful her true allegiance will be discovered. British Expeditionary Force Captain Michael Lawrence is on a mission to rescue the daughter of his mentor. He doesn't expect to find a strong beautiful woman in place of the naïve girl whose love he rejected years earlier. Jude is shocked when Michael turns up in her hospital, wounded and in German uniform. Though he broke her heart, she agrees to flee Belgium with him—she has information about an imminent attack that she must deliver to the British War Office, before it's too late. Posing as a married couple, Jude and Michael journey to the border, in constant danger of discovery—and of giving in to their mutual passion…

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Tyne Cot Cemetery Sculpture

In case you missed my review of Saving the Rifleman, know that I am not much of a romance reader. Not that I don't read it, I just don't read enough to be considered proficient in the genre. My stomping ground is usually historic fiction and it was the fact based material that led me to Julie Rowe's Enticing the Spymaster.

Again, I liked the setting. Belgium during WWI, very cool, but this is book two. Rowe presented this same material in book one and while I still think it makes an interesting backdrop, she doesn't score new points offering me something I've seen and applauded her for in the past. 

The obvious question now is what's new? Well, I liked the relationship a lot more this go round. Jude and Michael share a past and though we don't get it first hand, the fact that it exists makes their romance significantly more believable than that of their predecessors. Ideally, yes, I would have liked to witness those events as they played out, but the reality is this is a novella and Rowe's treatment of the material is quite an innovative means of mirroring the depth that is usually limited to full length narratives.

Another thing that worked, poison gas. One of the most recognized weapons of the conflict, I liked seeing this material raise its ugly head in the middle of a war time romance. Maybe it is just me, but the fact that Rowe pushed something as horrid as chemical weaponry into a genre that is characterized by optimism and passion blew my mind. The inherent contrast in that really appealed to me.

The downside here was Jude's background. She is a beautiful, intelligent, brave, competent nurse who just happens to be the daughter of one of King George’s closest advisers and a blood relation of the Belgian nobility. Am I on a limb by myself or does that sound just a bit too cliché? Two books in, I know Rowe is more creative than this, I've seen it and I still feel she overdid it here, forcing too much situational drama into a character that didn't need it.

I don't know what was going on with Rowe's leading lady, but in general I like what Rowe is doing with this series. The material she is utilizing commands a large degree of interest and the books it is inspiring her to write can be enjoyed by a much wider base of readers than that of traditional and classic romance alone.

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She was of the opinion that generals, no matter which side they were on, needed to see the human cost of their wars. Perhaps if they had the stench of rotting flesh constantly assaulting their noses, they’d make peace instead.

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Saving the Rifleman by Julie Rowe

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆

Obtained from: Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours

Read: October 24, 2013

German-occupied Brussels, Belgium. Great War, 1914. British Red Cross nurse Maria Hunt lives in daily fear that the Germans will uncover her secret: she helps wounded British soldiers escape. Lieutenant John Bennet is wounded and running out of options. Trapped behind enemy lines while collecting intelligence, he needs to get out of Belgium if he's going to escape with the information and his life. Maria is devoted to her patients and her cause, but something else compels her to risk her life for this soldier. While a man of Lieutenant Bennet's station would barely speak to her in other circumstances, something in his kind eyes inspires a passion deep within her. As his injuries worsen, can Maria find the courage to guide him through the war-torn countryside? And should they make it back to England, will their burgeoning desire survive the ravages of war?

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Tyne Cot Cemetery & Memorial, South Apse Terrace

At first glance, I wasn't sure about Julie Rowe's Saving the Rifleman. I was intrigued by the historic setting, but in all honesty I was afraid of repeating the experience I had with Charlie Cochrane's Promises Made Under Fire. I have nothing against the genre, I am just not well-versed in it and as such, don't have a lot of confidence in my ability to review these titles. This being the case, I humbly ask that you bear with me and continue reading with the understanding that my background is in historic and young adult fiction rather than romance.

Okay, enough with the disclaimer and on to the review. In terms of content I think Saving the Rifleman has a lot going for it. WWI, occupied Belgium, how often do you find this stuff? I mean really. France, Germany, those titles are a dime a dozen, but Rowe tapped into a lesser known chapter of the war and though her focus is not the history of the occupation itself, the time and place give Saving the Rifleman a really fresh and original feel. 

Another thing I liked about this piece was the level of conflict Rowe worked into this story. For a war time romance, this piece is really very well-balanced. I wouldn't go so far as to say I was genuinely concerned over the fate of Rowe's leads, but I wasn't bored and that is certainly saying something. 

My only complaint about this book is how underdeveloped the relationship between Maria and John felt. I understand the modest length of this piece meant Rowe didn't have a lot of wiggle room to explore and develop their feelings, but all the same, the accelerated velocity of their romance felt a bit too contrived for my taste.  

So do the pros outweigh the cons? I think it's pretty obvious they do. Maybe it is a little forced, but Saving the Rifleman is still an enjoyable piece, a light historical with a unique premise and that sets a nice pace for the rest of the War Girls series. 

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“Anyone who thinks they can truly have power over another person, let alone another country is deluded. Power is an illusion. The only people we have power over are ourselves.”

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The Bruges Tapestry by P. A. Staes

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆

Obtained from: Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours

Read: March 20, 2013

Following a 500-year-old mystery concerning a Flemish tapestry is routine work for Detective Claire DeMaere, since she's employed by the Newport Beach Art Theft Detail. But, unlike past cases, this one involves arresting Paolo Campezzi, lover to her best friend Nora. Mr. Campezzi is a distant descendant of a Florentine Duke, who commissioned the tapestry in 1520 in Bruges, Belgium. Claire finds that she must explore the true provenance of the tapestry, free Mr. Campezzi in order to re-establish her friendship with Nora and depend on the expertise of a textile expert she doesn't know. All this must occur in 72 hours, before the Vatican takes the tapestry back. But Claire isn't the only one with the Vatican looking over her shoulder. Claire's story intertwines with a 1520 diary by Beatrice van Hecke, the tapestry-weaver's daughter. Only Claire can discover the secret that is woven in time.

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The Unicorn in Captivity

Reading P.A. Staes The Bruges Tapestry made me homesick. I'm surrounded by cold and snow and all I can think of is a sand strewn boardwalk and the Laguna Beach sawdust festival. Needless to say I fell for this piece early on, but in reflecting on my experience with it, I find my appreciation goes beyond a simple sense of nostalgia. 

As carefully as one might work threads into a loom, Staes illustrates both the mechanics that go into creating a tapestry and the artistry of any given design. The obvious effort put into researching this piece really gives the book something special. 

I also found a lot to appreciate in Claire. She is a very realistic personality, someone you can actually imagine running into on the street. It has been some time since I've seen such a down to earth character and as a reader I really appreciated how easy it was to slip into her shoes.

Most surprising, however, was the symmetry of the duel plot lines. I don't want to say too much and give anything away, but I loved how Staes connected 1520 and  2012 in multiple ways, offering up more than the historic mystery I'd expected after reading the product description. 

The Bruges Tapestry is a quick read, but an intriguing one that both contemporary and historic fiction fans will enjoy. 

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"It appears you are in possession of stolen property. That tapestry is posted on Interpol as stolen from the Vatican." 

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Check out all the stops on The Historical fiction VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR of P.A. Staes' The Bruges Tapestry

Monday, March 18
Review & Giveaway at Peeking Between the Pages

Tuesday, March 19
Review at Book Lovers Paradise
Review & Giveaway at Unabridged Chick

Wednesday, March 20
Review at Turning the Pages
Guest Post at Book Lovers Paradise

Thursday, March 21
Review & Giveaway at Kinx’s Book Nook

Friday, March 22
Review at A Book Geek

Monday, March 25
Review at A Bookish Affair
Review at Flashlight Commentary

Tuesday, March 26
Review at Ageless Pages Reviews

Wednesday, March 27
Review at Confessions of an Avid Reader

Thursday, March 28
Review at The Book Garden
Interview at The Maiden’s Court

Friday, March 29
Guest Post & Giveaway at Broken Teepee

Tuesday, April 2
Review at A Chick Who Reads

Wednesday, April 3
Guest Post at A Chick Who Reads

Thursday, April 4
Review at Book of Secrets
Review & Giveaway at Oh, for the Hook of a Book!

Friday, April 5

Review at Broken Teepee 

The Chalice by Nancy Bilyeau

Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

Obtained from: Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours

Read: March 7, 2013

In the next novel from Nancy Bilyeau after her acclaimed debut The Crown, novice Joanna Stafford plunges into an even more dangerous conspiracy as she comes up against some of the most powerful men of her era. In 1538, England is in the midst of bloody power struggles between crown and cross that threaten to tear the country apart. Joanna Stafford has seen what lies inside the king’s torture rooms and risks imprisonment again, when she is caught up in a shadowy international plot targeting the King. As the power plays turn vicious, Joanna understands she may have to assume her role in a prophecy foretold by three different seers, each more omniscient than the last. Joanna realizes the life of Henry VIII as well as the future of Christendom are in her hands—hands that must someday hold the chalice that lays at the center of these deadly prophecies…

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I admit it has been a while since I picked up a Tudor novel. It is such a popular period and there has been such a slew of new titles in the last few years that I suffered a little bit of burn out. This being the case, you can probably understand my initial trepidation at taking on Nancy Bilyeau's The Chalice. 

Having finished the book I look back at laugh at my skepticism. Bilyeau's writing is wonderful not to mention addicting. She strikes the perfect balance between fact and fiction, never over burdening the narrative with dreary monologues or allowing the plot to diverge too far from historic events.

Now as far as protagonists go, you'd be hard pressed to find one comparable to Joanna Stafford. She is intelligent without coming off arrogant and kind without coming off saintly. She is incredibly dynamic, a personality I wanted to read about and at the end of the day a reader can't ask for more than that.   

Unfortunately I can't say how this its piece compared to its predecessor as I've yet to read The Crown, but I will say I appreciated how Bilyeau approached writing a sequel in that she doesn't spend a lot of time rehashing. Written as a standalone, The Chalice can be enjoyed by those with absolutely no knowledge of Bilyeau's work. 

The Chalice is an intriguing suspense made all the more fascinating in its focus on those individuals displaced by Henry's Reformation. Refreshingly different from most Tudor pieces, it is a  compelling page turner that is sure to satisfy. 

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"The reckoning is coming, it is coming," cried John. "Armageddon is at hand. In the end it will devour you all!"

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CHECK OUT ALL THE STOPS ON THE HISTORICAL FICTION VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR OF Nancy Bilyeau's The Chalice

Tuesday, February 26
Review at She Reads Novels

Wednesday, February 27
Review at The Wormhole

Thursday, February 28
Feature & Giveaway at Passages to the Past

Friday, March 1
Review at A Bookish Affair

Monday, March 4
Review & Giveaway at Broken Teepee

Tuesday, March 5
Review at The Broke and the Bookish
Review & Giveaway at Luxury Reading

Thursday, March 7
Review at Turning the Pages

Monday, March 11
Review & Giveaway at Peeking Between the Pages

Tuesday, March 12
Review at Oh, for the Hook of a Book!

Wednesday, March 13
Review at The Eclectic Reader
Interview & Giveaway at Oh, for the Hook of a Book!

Thursday, March 14
Review at Let Them Read Books

Friday, March 15
Interview & Giveaway at Let Them Read Books

Monday, March 18
Review at Peppermint, Ph.D.
Review & Giveaway at Flashlight Commentary

Tuesday, March 19
Review at Impressions in Ink

Wednesday, March 20
Review, Interview & Giveaway at A Bookish Libraria

Thursday, March 21
Review at Confessions of an Avid Reader

Friday, March 22
Guest Post at Confessions of an Avid Reader

Monday, March 25
Review at The Novel Life
Review at Devourer of Books

Tuesday, March 26
Review at Historical Tapestry & Adventures of an Intrepid Reader

Wednesday, March 27
Guest Post & Giveaway at Historical Tapestry

Thursday, March 28
Review at Layered Pages

Friday, March 29
Interview at Layered Pages

Monday, April 1
Review at Words and Peace

Tuesday, April 2
Giveaway at Words and Peace

Wednesday, April 3
Review & Giveaway at Always with a Book

Thursday, April 4
Review at CelticLady’s Reviews

Friday, April 5
Review at Griperang’s Bookmarks

Monday, April 8
Review at Unabridged Chick

Tuesday, April 9
Review at One Book at a Time
Interview & Giveaway at Unabridged Chick

Wednesday, April 10
Review at Jenny Loves to Read

Thursday, April 11
Interview at Griperang’s Bookmarks

Friday, April 12
Review, Guest Post & Giveaway at Drey’s Library

Monday, April 15
Review, Interview & Giveaway at The Lit Bitch

Tuesday, April 16
Review & Giveaway at Ageless Pages Reviews

Wednesday, April 17
Review at The True Book Addict
Review & Giveaway at Library of Clean Reads

Thursday, April 18
Interview & Giveaway at The True Book Addict

Monday, April 22
Review at Book Drunkard

Tuesday, April 23
Review at A Book Geek

Wednesday, April 24
Review & Giveaway at Review from Here

Thursday, April 25
Review at Historical Novel Review & Great Historicals

Friday, April 26
Review at Enchanted by Josephine
Guest Post & Giveaway at On the Tudor Trail

Monday, April 29
Review & Giveaway at Enchanted by Josephine
Review & Giveaway at Bippity Boppity Book

Tuesday, April 30
Review at Writing the Renaissance

Wednesday, May 1
Interview at Writing the Renaissance

Thursday, May 2
Review at Tanzanite’s Castle Full of Books

Friday, May 3
Interview & Giveaway at Tanzanite’s Castle Full of Books