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Summary: Ms Penman always makes history come alive!
Review: I have read all of Ms Penman's books and eagerly await her next one.History comes alive from the customs and clothing to the politics and personalities in her books. Always a joy to read.
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Summary: A good read but flawed
Review: I have read several of Ms Penman's books, and this one has not grabbed me as much as the others. Ms Penman is prone to the romantic side of things (great for female readers, less so for male readers), and in "Falls The Shadow" she clicks into top romantic gear. I found it to be more a romantic novel within a historical setting, rather than a genuine historical novel - exacerbated by some historical inaccuracies. I began to get quite irritated by frequent lines of the like: "...she looked lovingly into his eyes" and "...hold me dearest", and so on. On the historical inaccuracies point, Ms Penman regularly focuses in the book on the parlous circumstances of the Jews in mediaeval England; however, she completely missed the point that the Jews were expelled from England in the 1190s during the reign of Richard I (much to his horror), and were not re-admitted until the time of Oliver Cromwell in the 1650s. Her book is set in the mid 1200s - there simply weren't any Jews in England in that period. A good read, but really a high class Mills & Boon.
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Summary: Great book by a great author
Review: I just finished reading this book, and while it wasn't quite as romantic as the first in the trilogy (Here Be Dragons), it was an excellent read. It focuses on the life of Simon de Montfort, who is often called the father of representative government. I fell in love with him while reading this, as I fell in love with Llewelyn Fawr in the first book of the trilogy. Ms. Penman's characters are so well developed that you will feel close to them, as if you knew them in real life!
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Summary: I have read this twice!
Review: I love all of Penman's books, with this one and The Sunne in Splendour being my favorites. I am facinated by the story of Simon deMonteforte, and learned much about his life and plight after her introduction in this novel. Ironically, the English Historical Society has done little to commemorate him today. I enjoyed learning about this time period through the eyes of so many characters who are not commemorated today, but who obviously had a large role in shaping the British Monarchy and popular culture's view of the past.
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Summary: Deep and Dense
Review: I loved Here Be Dragons, the first of this series of books because of its humanity. I admire this book deeply and often read it with some dread, knowing the ominous end that characters were going to come to. Its characters are both larger than life and sometimes less than human, and it is a very "male" book. (This is certainly not meant to be an insult.) I had not had much knowledge of Simon de Montfort prior to reaidng this, and I was very impressed with his story and how it connects up with the legend of Robin Hood and the stirrings of the political strength of the common man in England. I also, as several reviewers have noted, was horrified and moved by Penman's unflinching handling of anti-Semitism. She shows the struggle of genuinely good men dealing with the deep-seated cultural constructs of their times, and that is an important lesson for all of us.
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Summary: The Ultimate Soldier Statesman
Review: I picked this book up at a second hand book shop because I had read 'Dragons' several years before. I thoroughly enjoy the era and thought that William Wallace (from Braveheart) was the ultimate soldier statesman hero until I met Simon de Montfort. The book may take some time to get into, but it is worth it. It lifted me higher than I've ever been before, and left me grieving for days. This is the story of one of the greatest men that ever lived, and when you have read the book you will not believe that you havent heard of him before. I cannot recommend 'Falls the Shadow' highly enough.
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Summary: Well written!
Review: I read ALOT, and more often than not, I find myself editing the content of novels rather than enjoying them. Sharon Kay Penman's novels are so well written that I NEVER stop to criticize the writing. In fact, if I stop, it is to catch my breath after holding it during some tense scene! I just wish that she would write faster
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Summary: Princes, Knights and Earls - Does it get better??
Review: I think Penman is absolutely a masterful authoress. Here Be Dragons is one of my favorite books of all time, with some of the best characters I've come across in any of my readings...John Plantagenet, Llewelyn Fawr, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Richard Fitzroy and of course sweet and poignant Joanna...they are all wonderful and I grab at any chance to read more about them in Penman's incarnations. I clasped Falls the Shadow to my chest with joy after I finished the first book and read greedily. I have to admit that the death of a certain someone in the first hundred or so pages reduced me to tears in the middle of a crowded airport...how embarrassing! But the book itself is fabulous. My only complaint is that since the series goes generationally, some of my favorite characters fade away to be replaced by ones that aren't, at first, as cool, but generally they grow on me... It traces the characters that we left off with in Here Be Dragons, Llewelyn and Joanna and their two fractious sons, Davydd, their legitimate son and Llewelyn's heir, the one with the best brain, and Gruffydd, Llewelyn's first born and best loved and the increasing rivalry between the latter two. Davydd ap Llewelyn is another one of Penman's characters that one simply can't forget. He's so mysterious, yet so real at the same time and every time the narrative shifts to him, I read hungrily, hoarding every insight into him. Anytime I come across a mention of him in a history book or something, I become obscenely interested. I think she has a peculiar gift in that way, to make a character like poor, illegitimate Joanna and her son, minor characters in the annals of history, into real and convincing humans full of mystery and valor. It makes for a great read. Another thread that Penman picks up in this second book is the legitimate Plantagenet line, with Nell, King John's youngest, and her encounter with the smouldering young Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester. The romance between them is absolutely searing. But the ineffective English king, Nell's brother Henry, becomes a source of tension between them, just as John was for Joanna and Llewelyn in the first book, and the two men end up at odds. Simon's high principles lead him to champion the poor and downtrodden and his boisterous sons join their father's noble campaign. Unfortunately, for them, at least, Henry also has a loyal son, the future king Edward (Creepy dude in The Reckoning, let me tell you). Edward has all the genius and ambition that his father lacks, much to Simon's woe. The novel culminates with the spectacular Battle of Evesham (It's interesting that Penman, deft as she is with the love scenes, also has a real flair for the battlefield!). Even knowing what the outcome had to be, I still found myself hoping and I consider that the mark of a truly masterfully written narrative. I really like this book, but the only thing that puts me off a little bit is that her female characters seem to be 13th century Feminists and the occasional pop-psych term that crops up every now and then. All that aside, any fans of medieval history will delight in her always-accurate details about the character's daily lives as well as her high pitched battles, vivid medieval locales, her tense court gatherings and glowing character interactions. This is a must-read and I would have given it five stars had I not loved Here Be Dragons even more.
Rating:
Summary: Princes, Knights and Earls - Does it get better??
Review: I think Penman is absolutely a masterful authoress. Here Be Dragons is one of my favorite books of all time, with some of the best characters I've come across in any of my readings...John Plantagenet, Llewelyn Fawr, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Richard Fitzroy and of course sweet and poignant Joanna...they are all wonderful and I grab at any chance to read more about them in Penman's incarnations. I clasped Falls the Shadow to my chest with joy after I finished the first book and read greedily. I have to admit that the death of a certain someone in the first hundred or so pages reduced me to tears in the middle of a crowded airport...how embarrassing! But the book itself is fabulous. My only complaint is that since the series goes generationally, some of my favorite characters fade away to be replaced by ones that aren't, at first, as cool, but generally they grow on me... It traces the characters that we left off with in Here Be Dragons, Llewelyn and Joanna and their two fractious sons, Davydd, their legitimate son and Llewelyn's heir, the one with the best brain, and Gruffydd, Llewelyn's first born and best loved and the increasing rivalry between the latter two. Davydd ap Llewelyn is another one of Penman's characters that one simply can't forget. He's so mysterious, yet so real at the same time and every time the narrative shifts to him, I read hungrily, hoarding every insight into him. Anytime I come across a mention of him in a history book or something, I become obscenely interested. I think she has a peculiar gift in that way, to make a character like poor, illegitimate Joanna and her son, minor characters in the annals of history, into real and convincing humans full of mystery and valor. It makes for a great read. Another thread that Penman picks up in this second book is the legitimate Plantagenet line, with Nell, King John's youngest, and her encounter with the smouldering young Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester. The romance between them is absolutely searing. But the ineffective English king, Nell's brother Henry, becomes a source of tension between them, just as John was for Joanna and Llewelyn in the first book, and the two men end up at odds. Simon's high principles lead him to champion the poor and downtrodden and his boisterous sons join their father's noble campaign. Unfortunately, for them, at least, Henry also has a loyal son, the future king Edward (Creepy dude in The Reckoning, let me tell you). Edward has all the genius and ambition that his father lacks, much to Simon's woe. The novel culminates with the spectacular Battle of Evesham (It's interesting that Penman, deft as she is with the love scenes, also has a real flair for the battlefield!). Even knowing what the outcome had to be, I still found myself hoping and I consider that the mark of a truly masterfully written narrative. I really like this book, but the only thing that puts me off a little bit is that her female characters seem to be 13th century Feminists and the occasional pop-psych term that crops up every now and then. All that aside, any fans of medieval history will delight in her always-accurate details about the character's daily lives as well as her high pitched battles, vivid medieval locales, her tense court gatherings and glowing character interactions. This is a must-read and I would have given it five stars had I not loved Here Be Dragons even more.
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Summary: a striking man out of history gets recognition long-denied
Review: I'd have to go on the side of my fellow readers who loved this book, because I certainly did, could find no fault whatsoever with either Ms. Penman's characterization, or her prose. Simon de Montfort is a man of strong ideals and morals, completely at variance with his weak-willed King, Henry III. A sort of more earth-bound Thomas Moore or Thomas Becket, if you will. (Interesting cooincidence, all three of them were opposed by Henrys.) Anyhow, I think the real strength of Penman's novel is her portrayal of her characters, esp. Simon (though take note of his wife, Nell de Montfort! Her grandma, Eleanor of Aquitaine was not the ONLY strong woman in medieval history as text books would have us believe!) It could have been so easy to place her Simon on a pedestal, or dropped a halo over his hair, but she did neither. She presented him to us--much like (and better than) her earlier Richard III--as a man, one who had his faults, as well as his moments of glory. The reader really takes an interest and becomes involved in Simon's life and his cause, and the ending is so shattering and heart-wrenching...well, I won't spoil it all, but I will say that since reading "Shadow" whenever I watch "Braveheart" on TV I throw wet tissues at Edward I's face! (No offence to Patrick McGoohan, of course!) This is a great book, a worthy sequel to "Here Be Dragons" and in some ways even better.
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