Mailbox Monday!

One woman holds the key to England's most glorious empire in this intimate retelling of the launch of the Tudor dynasty

A magnificent portrait of Elizabeth of York, set against the dramatic background of fifteenth century England. Elizabeth, the only living descendant of Edward IV, has the most valuable possession in all of England—a legitimate claim to the crown. Two princes battle to win Britain's most rightful heiress for a bride and her kingdom for his own. On one side is her uncle Richard, the last Plantagenet King, whom she fears is the murderer of her two brothers, the would-be kings. On the other side is Henry Tudor, the exiled knight. Can he save her from a horrifying marriage to a cut-throat soldier?

Thrust into the intrigue and drama of the War of the Roses, Elizabeth has a country within her grasp—if she can find the strength to unite a kingdom torn apart by a thirst for power. A richly drawn tale of the woman who launched one of the most dramatic dynasties England has ever seen, The Tudor Rose is a vibrant, imaginative look at the power of a queen.

The year is 1570, and in the convent of Santa Caterina, in the Italian city of Ferrara, noblewomen find space to pursue their lives under God’s protection. But any community, however smoothly run, suffers tremors when it takes in someone by force. And the arrival of Santa Caterina’s new novice sets in motion a chain of events that will shake the convent to its core.

Ripped by her family from an illicit love affair, sixteen-year-old Serafina is willful, emotional, sharp, and defiant–young enough to have a life to look forward to and old enough to know when that life is being cut short. Her first night inside the walls is spent in an incandescent rage so violent that the dispensary mistress, Suora Zuana, is dispatched to the girl’s cell to sedate her. Thus begins a complex relationship of trust and betrayal between the young rebel and the clever, scholarly nun, for whom the girl becomes the daughter she will never have.

As Serafina rails against her incarceration, others are drawn into the drama: the ancient, mysterious Suora Magdalena–with her history of visions and ecstasies–locked in her cell; the ferociously devout novice mistress Suora Umiliana, who comes to see in the postulant a way to extend her influence; and, watching it all, the abbess, Madonna Chiara, a woman as fluent in politics as she is in prayer. As disorder and rebellion mount, it is the abbess’s job to keep the convent stable while, outside its walls, the dictates of the Counter-Reformation begin to purge the Catholic Church and impose on the nunneries a regime of terrible oppression.



A dazzling novel in the most untraditional fashion, this is the remarkable story of Henry DeTamble, a dashing, adventuresome librarian who travels involuntarily through time, and Clare Abshire, an artist whose life takes a natural sequential course. Henry and Clare's passionate love affair endures across a sea of time and captures the two lovers in an impossibly romantic trap, and it is Audrey Niffenegger's cinematic storytelling that makes the novel's unconventional chronology so vibrantly triumphant.







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23 comments:

  1. It looks like you've got some great books. Happy reading :)

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  2. This is the 2nd person I have seen that received The Tudor Rose this week. It sounds soooo interesting to me! Happy reading!

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  3. I got Tudor Rose last week and I am so psyched to read it!

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  4. Have you not read The Time Traveler's Wife yet? Lucky woman! (I loved it.) I'm also a bit envious that you got the latest Sarah Dunant book! Happy reading!

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  5. I got both The Tudor Rose and Sacred Hearts in last couple of weeks. I am psyched about reading the first one but I'm not sure about Dunant since I didn't like The Birth of Venus at all.

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  6. I read The Time Traveler's Wife and just loved it. The Tudor Rose looks good!

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  7. YOU suffering a drought??!!

    What a mailbox Amy! Lucky you:)

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  8. Tudor Rose sounds wonderful - I definitely want to read it. I've read Time Traveler's Wife twice - once just to enjoy, and once to see How She Did It - it's very cleverly constructed.

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  9. You have 2 of the ones Marie received as well! I've heard a lot of good things about The Time Traveler's Wife. I'll be checking your blog for a review on it ;)

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  10. Great mailbox, I have read the Time Trav..made me cry my eyes out

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  11. I can't wait to read Tudor Rose! This post made me remember to go out and buy it! Thank you!!!
    Great post!
    xoxo
    Judith~

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  12. Two more for my list. I am becoming obsessed with the Tudors!

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  13. I loved Time Traveler's Wife! The other two look great.

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  14. Amy~ Have to say, The Time-Traveler's Wife is one of my favorite books! And will have to try The Tudor Rose after reading your review. Where do you find the time for it all?!
    Here's to reading!
    Kirsten

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  15. So glad the book fairy visited. The Time Traveler's Wife is a wonderful read ~ adored it and the movie is coming out too *woohoo*
    Stunning cover on The Tudor Rose, sounds like it will be a good read too!

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  16. I am looking forward to our reviews of the first two :)
    Hope they live up to our expectations.
    And The Time Traveler's Wife sounds like an interesting read as well!
    Good job!

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  17. Oh The Tudor Rose looks good, I hope you enjoy reading all the new editions to your library! ^_^

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  18. I received The Tudor Rose a few days ago and just received Sacred Hearts today.

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  19. The Tudor Rose sounds like one to look out for and The Time Traveller's Wife is a personal favourite!

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  20. These sound great. Can't wait to hear your thoughts.

    --Anna
    Diary of an Eccentric

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  21. Elizabeth wasn't the only living descendent of Edward IV! She had younger sisters coming out of her ears!

    Was that written by the publisher or a reviewer? Does the book actually think she didn't have any younger sisters? (I have actually seen book covers that get facts really really wrong but the book itself gets them right.)

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  22. I got the Dunant book too! YES... The Time Traveler's Wife (IMHO) was a wonderful read. For me it was captivating and engrossing. Now humm... how to get me grubby paws on The Tutor Rose book...

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  23. I thought I was the only one who did not read the Time Travelers Wife. HOpe you enjoy it and I'll be looking for your review.

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