this can't wait until next Mailbox Monday!!

Never have I wanted to hug my postman so much in my life!  I got 2 packages today that made me super duper excited and there is no way I can wait until next Monday to share them!

The first book is one that you heard me gush about a few months ago, Elizabeth I by Margaret George!!  And OMG, the cover is the most gorgeous thing I've ever seen!  And I am SO pleased to tell you that Margaret George has agreed for an author interview here at Passages to the Past!!  It will most likely take place in late March 2011 and I am so excited, but very nervous!

Release Date:  April 5, 2011

SYNOPSIS:  One of today's premier historical novelists, Margaret George dazzles here as she tackles her most difficult subject yet: the legendary Elizabeth Tudor, queen of enigma - the Virgin Queen who had many suitors, the victor of the Armada who hated war; the gorgeously attired, jewel-bedecked woman who pinched pennies.  England's greatest monarch has baffled and intrigued the world for centuries.  But what was she really like?

In this novel, her flame-haired, look-alike cousin, Lettice Knollys, thinks she knows all too well.  Elizabeth's rival for the love of Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester, and mother to the Earl of Essex, the mercurial nobleman who challenged Elizabeth's throne, Lettice has been intertwined with Elizabeth since childhood.  This is a story of two women of fierce intellect and desire, one trying to protect her country, and throne, the other trying to regain power and position for her family.  Their rivalry, and it's ensuing drama, soon involves everyone close to Elizabeth, from the famed courtiers who enriched the crown to the legendary poets and playwrights who paid homage to it with their works.  Intimate portraits of the personalities who made the Elizabethan Age great - Shakespeare, Marlowe, Dudley, Raleigh, Drake - fill these pages, giving us an unforgettable glimpse of a queen who ruled as much from the heart as from the head, and considered herself married to her people. 

Oh man is it going to be hard not diving right into it!  Patience grasshopper...


The next package was equally deelish....you know of my love of the works of Helen Hollick, so I cannot wait to read this one!  The Forever Queen (previously published under the title, A Hollow Crown) will be released on November 1, 2010.  And Helen has also agreed to come back for another interview in late October!

And I was so surprised to see that I was quoted in the beginning of the book....so cool to see my site in print!!

SYNOPSIS:  In 1022, when Emma vowed to give her soul to England, she never could have imaged how very far she would have to take that promise.  Fed up with her incompetent husband and determined to save her people, Emma must take matters into her own hands.  But can she risk everything on a gamble that could rescue a country-but ruin the rest of her life?

This vivid and compelling tale reveals the unmatched life of Queen Emma-the only woman to have been anointed, crowned, and reigning queen to two different kings; the mother of two more; and the great aunt of William the Conqueror.



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21 comments:

  1. Very cool indeed! I gotta admit though, I'm not diggin' the cover for Hollick's book.

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  2. Wow! I know I would not be able to leave that new Margaret George alone! Even though I think there was a dip in quality after Memoirs of Cleopatra, I'm still excited beyond belief to read her take on Elizabeth. I just hope Lettice doesn't take over the story - am I alone in really disliking her?

    Katherine
    historicalfictionnnotebook.blogspot.com

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  3. I read the book on Emma last year. I really enjoyed it; it was very interesting to see that side of history.

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  4. Well I received half of what you did... I am looking forward to reading the Forever Queen and I just put a pre order for Elizabeth I...long time until April but.. Looks like you have some awesome reading ahead. Have a great weekend Amy!!!

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  5. Wow Amy, what a great day for you. Congrats on being quoted in The Forever Queen! I am going to have to buy it just to check that out.

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  6. Oh my Jolly Good God! I am precisely jealous!

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  7. Wow, congrats on being quoted! I am very jealous of Elizabeth I by Margaret George. There's not much new to me about Elizabeth, but Margaret George's books are so often wonderful. I can't help but want to read it now, but I don't have a copy myself yet, LOL. Don't know how you're holding back!

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  8. These are both lovely covers. I can't wait to read them...

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  9. I love Margaret George's works.
    I received my Forever Queen yesterday too.

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  10. I had to see what made you this excited and I agree with the it :) I read a book about queen Emma once, but this Swedish author and I just loved her story. I even wrote a paper on her in uni

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  11. I got the forever queen yesterday too - which I had actually forgot about, so it was a great surprise! Can't wait to read it - it will be my first Hollick. Also, I am interested in Margaret George's book - I haven't read any of hers yet, tho I have been getting them. I'm not the biggest Elizabeth fan, and I don't know a hell of a lot about her, but I might enjoy this book.


    You're right, this couldn't wait until monday!

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  12. I think I will make George's book, the first one I read that is all about Elizabeth. I read her Cleopatra book and enjoyed it for the most part. A little long and I was tired of all the weak minded men that Cleopatra kept running into. She was in a class by herself.

    I also received Hollick's book. I'll have to go check out the front pages. Yea for Amy!

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  13. I'm so excited and happy for you, Amy! I can see why this Mailbox couldn't wait till Monday! Both books seem very inviting, and the cover of Elizabeth I is truly gorgeous. I will be as anxiously waiting as you for both of the interviews.

    Congrats on the mention of your quoted comment, that's superb! :)

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  14. These sound like two great books. I look forward to the interviews and your reviews. Should be most interesting.

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  15. Oooh, I am envious of the Margaret George! Looking forward to hearing your report...:)

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  16. I'm salivating about the new George novel! Thanks for bringing it to my attention. I've read Hollick's The Forever Queen (when it was A Hollow Crown)--it's very good.

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  17. Congrats on landing the author interview! I'm sure you'll do great! And how wonderful that your site was quoted! The Forever Queen looks like a really good book too. :)

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  18. I thoroughly enjoyed The Forever Queen when I read it a while ago now. And congrats on being quoted!

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  19. Glad you got books that you really, really wanted. Happy reading!

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  20. Happy Reading. I first met Margaret Howard with her Autobiography of HenryVIII. I read that book in a weekend. She made me no longer hate Mary Queen Scots with her incredible insights. I cannot wait to see how she treats Elizabeth...April is much to far away :0(

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