GISBORNE: THE BOOK OF KNIGHTS BY PRUE BATTEN - MY REVIEW & GIVEAWAY

(Book 2 of The Gisborne Saga by Prue Batten)

MY REVIEW

Ysabel is now De Courcey’s widow, Gisborne has been caught, imprisoned  and tortured with the accusation of  killing her husband.  Ysabel knows he is safe now but  why can’t he come back to her and their little son?

Gisborne and her, their love,  just past memories. She’s been left alone with their little boy, William. Gisborne has her helped and protected by loyal Ulric and a bunch of reliable servants. She must hide and move throughout Europe, as Gisborne disposes.  Problem is she is not a woman who easily accepts to be ordered  .

Gisborne has been  far away for long now,  a man of King Richard the Lionheart, who spared his life and trusts him.  She fears she will never see him again and  doesn’t know what her fate is going to be, she fears for her little William’s future,  William of  Gisborne. Will she ever see father and son together again?

The memory of them  together  “plucks at her heart like a troubador’s fingers” and makes her fall in love with Gisborne each time, though her feelings are torn.   

SOME BLOGGING AT LAST: CONCUPISCENCE & LITERARY VENTRILOQUISM

I've had some spare time to catch up with and read some interesting blogs and articles today. Well, better to say I've neglected some duties and chores (I was really fed-up of correcting and assessing tests and questionnaires, I've been doing that for days!)  and I've spent some time reading good stuff online this afternoon. I'd like to share with you the best posts I've found.

You may think I'm biased since I know the two talented lady writers, authors of the two brilliant pieces but I'm not. So, if you don't trust the objectivity of my words, just click on the links and check yourself!

LATEST GIVEAWAY CONTESTS - WINNERS ANNOUNCED FOR GISBORNE AND THE BOAR

 1. The Boar (Il Cinghiale) by Cecilia Latella
(from my review) This graphic tale focuses on the passionate love story between Richard III and the Earl of Warwick's younger daughter, Anne Neville. The story starts with a hunting scene, Richard is just a boy allowed by his father to hunt for the first time: he kills a boar. And a white boar will become his symbol once he is Duke of Gloucester, then king  Richard III.

The story is narrated from a very personal angle , focusing on the tormented, guilt-ridden soul of Richard Plantagenet  first as a boy, then as  a young man  and finally as an adult. The leitmotiv is his longing for Anne, his only love. She is the strength and light in his life, once she is no longer with him,  he will lose his will to go on living. Bosworth victory is not a merit of smart Henry Tudor, but a battle lost by a man already defeated by life.The historical facts, battles and politics,  are just hinted at:  it is mainly a romance made up of flashes with many shifts in time. 
Giveaway winners : The paperback copy in Italian has been won by Giada M.  and the e-book copy in English goes instead to Debra Brown 

2. Gisborne - Book of Pawns by Prue Batten (from my review)  Gisborne and Ysabel will be side by side in a long journey, an unfolding ride through Aquitaine and England, filled with unwanted self discovery and unwilling bonding with each other. Theirs is not a smooth, easy relationship. It will be taunted by her prejudices and lack of trust in him and his unwillingness to open to her. However, they will not be able to loose that strong, instinctive tie made of lust, passion and empathy.  She will have to face her mother’s death, her father’s financial ruin, the marriage to a brutal man, and she must grow up while trying to drown her memories of Gisborne in a sea of misunderstanding, rage and mistrust. She is sure he sold her to Benedict De Courcey, the man who ruined her father. She should only hate Gisborne but it will not be as simple as that.
Giveaway winner: Lauren Gilbert
Many thanks to Cecilia Latella and Prue Batten for their kindness and for providing the copies for these giveaways Grateful thanks to all the readers who commented and entered the contests.
You can get your copy of The Boar at lulu.com. You 'll find Gisborne on amazon Kindle store.