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I have been recommending all of the Roselynde Chronicles to anyone interested in Historical Romances for years. I was delighted to find them in kindle version because I could reread them so easily and have them all at the tip of my finger. Just because these were originally written a few years ago in no way takes away from their dynamic effect. You are enveloped in history and the customs of the time. How did women get in and out of their cloths before buttons? Does the curve of a spiral staircase have a practical purpose? You will absorbe all kinds of tidbits of interest when reading Roberta Gellis.

Love historical romances. Gellis makes the events of the middle ages interesting and factual while telling a compelling love story rich in detail of the time it is occurring. I think history could be told effectually this way and make students happy to read it.

As usual, the women of Rosalynde do themselves proud, with another fiery, intelligent member. aS we have grown to expect, Sybelle is sharp, passionate, and well able to separate passion and practicality.EVen though quite a bit younger than her chosen husband, I Have faith she will keep him on his toes.
Love the plot and the historical detail woven into every book in the series

I really did not expect to like this book as well since the character of Fenice was first introduced as a child and I was unsure how interesting her life would become. However, Ms. Gellis contrived to turn shy, timid, Fenice into a brave young woman. There are few writers who write with such historical accuracy and still manage to tell a very entertaining story.

What a wonderful day it was when I discovered Robert Gellis! I think I have read everything she has written. I love romance and I love history. But most "historical romances" contain very little history. Many have great plots but ignore the political and social context and are full of anachronisms.

Gellis' stories are always fun and action-packed. But they occur in a real political, social, and cultural context. Consequently, I learn a little history each time I read one of her books. Her characters' beliefs, behavior, and reactions are appropriate for the time in which they lived. To give the current day reader some relief, she has invented a "strange" family, whom none of their contemporaries can fathom, who give equal rights and education to women. Although she implies they are better off doing it our way, she does not pretend that they are representative of their society.

Gellis' action always takes place within an historical context. In this book, it takes place during the reign of Henry III of England. She chose a surprising incident during Henry's long reign, which I had always thought of as peaceful - certainly more peaceful than that of his father, King John, or his son, Edward I. Her choice shows that, during the Middle Ages, there was no real peace. Even when the characters were not fighting King Henry, they were fighting other property holders.

Gellis' depiction of sex is interesting. Because bloodlines and gender determined access to wealth, among aristocrats, virginity before marriage was extremely important. Marriages were arranged to increase a family's wealth and power. Bastards were unacceptable, not because they were conceived in sin, but because they did not have legal bloodlines.

Medieval sexual morays were not puritanical. Gellis implies that men constantly sought extramarital sex because they believed masturbation was more sinful than having sex with a prostitute or a promiscuous woman. Aristocratic women looked for extramarital sex because they couldn't stand the partners foisted upon them in their arranged marriages or because they were bored. Consequently, bastards abounded. Nobles often recognized them and managed to give them land, titles, and good marriages.

Gellis shows that attitudes towards death and injury also differ from ours. Young aristocratic men in Gellis' books love fighting the way men love sports today. They are completely callous about the injuries or deaths they inflict on others - especially unfortunate members of the lower classes who happened to be in the way and can not defend themselves. Like our athletes, they ignore the danger of injuries or death.

The one quarrel I have with Gellis is her romantic depiction of illness and the powers of Medieval medicine. During the Middle Ages, life expectancy for women was age 28. For men it was age 39. Even the most highly placed people died of diseases we hardly notice today. For example, King Richard Lionheart died when a minor wound became infected. Women regularly died in childbirth. I also wonder why, with so much promiscuity and no condoms, they were not all afflicted with VD!

Been reading Roberta Gellis for years and am never disappointed

Good reading the book and Wilma D.Nichols of the world shaving and fun with their grandkids the world fun with your fun with you fun with

I loved the crisp characterization - Sybelle is so different from Alinor and Joanna, and it shows! Robert weaves history into the plot with respect for the sweeping events of the era, while bringing it to life.