The Winter Mantle

Rating:
Summary: 1067-1098 Comes Alive
Review: Elizabeth Chadwick has written a wonderful book based on Waltheof Siwardsson, Earl of Huntington and Northampton, and his lady love Judith, niece to William the Conqueror. These are real people and real events and the story is written so well that the reader can actually experience the emotions of the characters.

Ms. Chadwick has written a sequel to this story which should be out this year (2003), and she is currently working on a prequel to The Lords of the White Castle.

Rating:
Summary: 1067-1098 Comes Alive
Review: Elizabeth Chadwick has written a wonderful book based on Waltheof Siwardsson, Earl of Huntington and Northampton, and his lady love Judith, niece to William the Conqueror. These are real people and real events and the story is written so well that the reader can actually experience the emotions of the characters.

Ms. Chadwick has written a sequel to this story which should be out this year (2003), and she is currently working on a prequel to The Lords of the White Castle.

Rating:
Summary: Happy endings elusive; intrigue and love plentiful
Review: I had always wondered what happened to the Saxon nobility after the Norman Conquest of England in 1066. Elizabeth Chadwick offers a partial explanation in this rousing tale of medieval love, war and political intrigue. Like many of Chadwick's novels, it is loosely based on real historical figures and events.

It's a few months after the Conquest, and, among the Saxon nobles being held in Rouen, France by a distrustful King William is Earl Waltheof of Huntingdon. The King's niece, Judith, immediately feels drawn to this giant of a man with his Viking looks. Waltheof is even more certain of his own desires: He decides then and there that he will have Judith for a wife. When William refuses to grant him Judith's hand, Waltheof takes part in a rebellion against his new king. The rebellion is put down, but William comes to see the prudence of a familial alliance with this young earl who is so beloved by the English people.

Now married, Judith and Waltheof face the real challenges of their relationship. Their loyalties are nearly opposite, and the strong personalities that made courtship exciting are a hindrance to wedded happiness. When Waltheof makes another misstep, Judith must make the most wrenching choice of her life, one whose consequences will endure for her lifetime and beyond.

Love isn't always enough to bring about a "happily ever after," and at no time was this more true than in the Middle Ages. The dilemmas faced by the real people in THE WINTER MANTLE are compelling, heartbreaking, and anything but black and white. Yet not all hope is lost, and each character finds, in the end, his or her own version of closure.

As if being the consummate storyteller wasn't enough, Elizabeth Chadwick is a master of medieval history. If you want to know how they really lived, loved, fought and died, there's no more pleasurable way to find out. Sharon Kay Penman is mesmerizing, and meticulous with dates and events, but she doesn't bring us nearly as close to the splendor and grit of the medieval world, nor to the peculiarities of the medieval mindset.

One final note: In case you don't already know it, there are TWO Elizabeth Chadwicks, and Amazon does a poor job of differentiating between them. Amazon has even been known to offer a book by this EC along with one by that "other" EC as a "Better Together" selection. Rule of Thumb: If it has a lurid title, like ELUSIVE LOVERS or WANTON ANGEL, it was not written by the Elizabeth Chadwick who wrote THE WINTER MANTLE, LORDS OF THE WHITE CASTLE and THE LOVE KNOT, among many other greats.

Rating:
Summary: Historical Fiction Meets Romance in 11th Century England
Review: I picked up Elizabeth Chadwick's "The Winter Mantle" after reading a couple of Sharon Kay Penman's amazing novels of merry old England, in the hopes that Chadwick's works would essentially be more of the same, which would be high praise indeed.

"Mantle" reads like a cross between a traditional work of historical fiction and a tawdry bodice-ripper. While I am not a fan of the romance genre, Chadwick has such total command of the period that "The Winter Mantle" was quite enjoyable.

"Mantle" opens in 1067 as William the Conqueror attempts to cement his hold over England following the Battle of Hastings. The English nobles -- a wild Celtic bunch with massive arms and even more massive beards -- are chafing under William's rule, and William is not one to suffer disloyalty. The theme of loyalty dominates the novel, although Chadwick focuses more on the loyalty of the heart than to the crown as she focuses on two generations of lovers.

The ill-matched English earl Waltheof and Norman beauty Judith form the first couple, and one cannot help but take Waltheof's side against his shrewish wife. Waltheof is a great big bear of a man, who wears the winter mantle of the title - a massive polar bear skin unique in all the lands. A loveable lug of an earl, Waltheof's herculean strength is exceeded only by his kindness. Judith, on the other hand, is the kind of repressed gal who cannot help becoming a wanton in the hands of her husband - and who resents him for it. Her icy resentment builds until she lashes out at Waltheof one time too many, and the consequences are dire.

The second couple brings together the Norman courtier Simon, whose life was saved as a youth by Waltheof, and Waltheof's daughter, Matilda. At first, Matilda seems to follow her father's carefree manner over her mother's rigid self-control. But gradually, Matilda's once-regressive shrewish traits become much more pronounced, and her relationship with her husband adopts a hard edge.

Through it all, Chadwick spices things up with love scenes that leave very little to the imagination. And while she does so with great skill, one grows weary of the bedroom scenes. To be sure, Chadwick can write a battle scene very well, but these scenes are remarkably truncated when compared to the drawn-out exposition of wedding nights and romantic trysts.

Where one cannot quibble with Chadwick is her ability to capture daily life in 11th century England. Her descriptions are concise and vivid, and her characters are remarkably individualized -- even if the mothers and daughters share some glaring-yet-unattractive traits.

And yet, at the end, when tragedy has been avoided and all is (relatively) right in the world, one feels that in the years following the Norman arrival in England there was a larger story to tell than the one Chadwick just told so well.

While not a must-read for fans of historical fiction (but clearly not a waste of time, either), I imagine this novel would be a big hit for fans of torrid romances.



Rating:
Summary: cohesive delightful historical tale
Review: In 1067, William the Conqueror has become the King of England and Normandy. To secure his hard-earned throne, he holds hostage many local nobles including the Earl Waltheof Siwardsson of Huntingdon, who remains a noble because he did not fight at Hastings. Shockingly, Waltheof finds he desires William's Norman niece, Judith and even more surprisingly they make a match of it even while treachery lurks behind every niche and cranny.

Two decades later, loyalty has become even more complex as William recently died and his two kingdoms divided between his older sons. Many of the Conqueror's followers believe that the middle son should have received nothing instead of sitting on the Normandy throne. Waltheof's oldest daughter, Matilda marries her father's former squire Simon de Senlis. Matilda and Simon want to live and love in peace, but once again treachery and shifting alliances make life as dangerous if not more so than when her father was an English hostage in a Norman court.

Though the story of William and his sons have been told numerous times few efforts match the thrilling saga provided by Elizabeth Chadwick. The story line focuses on people wanting peace and love yet caught up in an age of immense chaos and turmoil fostered by treachery, hatred and betrayal. Real people and recorded information of the period provide fans with an exciting historical novel that is probably as much factual as fictional, all elements interwoven into a cohesive delightful tale that William readers will cherish.

Harriet Klausner

Rating:
Summary: cohesive delightful historical tale
Review: In 1067, William the Conqueror has become the King of England and Normandy. To secure his hard-earned throne, he holds hostage many local nobles including the Earl Waltheof Siwardsson of Huntingdon, who remains a noble because he did not fight at Hastings. Shockingly, Waltheof finds he desires William's Norman niece, Judith and even more surprisingly they make a match of it even while treachery lurks behind every niche and cranny.

Two decades later, loyalty has become even more complex as William recently died and his two kingdoms divided between his older sons. Many of the Conqueror's followers believe that the middle son should have received nothing instead of sitting on the Normandy throne. Waltheof's oldest daughter, Matilda marries her father's former squire Simon de Senlis. Matilda and Simon want to live and love in peace, but once again treachery and shifting alliances make life as dangerous if not more so than when her father was an English hostage in a Norman court.

Though the story of William and his sons have been told numerous times few efforts match the thrilling saga provided by Elizabeth Chadwick. The story line focuses on people wanting peace and love yet caught up in an age of immense chaos and turmoil fostered by treachery, hatred and betrayal. Real people and recorded information of the period provide fans with an exciting historical novel that is probably as much factual as fictional, all elements interwoven into a cohesive delightful tale that William readers will cherish.

Harriet Klausner

Rating:
Summary: Another Excellent Medieval Historical!
Review: This is the third book I have bought authored by Elizabeth Chadwick and even though I had to order it from the Great U.K., and wait well over two weeks for it, it was well worth the wait!

This story begins with the relationship of Waltheof of Huntingdon and Judith, niece of William the Conqueror. It also details the complex friendship Waltheof nutured and strained with Simon de Senlis, originally King William's squire and royal messenger. Things do not go well for Waltheof, who is easily led by rebels that happen to be his friends and he is eventally executed at the King's command.

Meanwhile, Waltheof's daughter Matilda and her mother Judith continue to run his estates in England. However, all that is about to change as Simon is commanded by the new King, William Rufus, to take over the control of his estates much to the chagrin and disgust of Judith and much to the delight of Matilda, her daughter.

The story is epic, sweeping through the countries of Normandy, England, and the Holy Land. Matilda and Simon have a stormy but eventually loving relationship that has weathered the worst of storms. Read this latest Elizabeth Chadwick novel if you crave excellent historical fiction! You will not be diappointed!

Rating:
Summary: Engrossing Historical Epic
Review: This title began in the year 1067. King William (the Conqueror) had just triumphed at Normandy. One of his young noble hostages was Waltheof of Huntingdon. Waltheof set his eye on William's niece, Judith. During this time of war and turmoil, their lives would be tested often for loyalty toward each other and their king.

The book continued into the next generation. Matilda, Waltheof's oldest daughter, married Simon de Senlis. Simon had once been Waltheof's squire. Old King William had died and the eldest son was now king of England, while the middle son was king of Normandy. Some believed the eldest son should have received BOTH kingdoms, thus the chaos continued. Matilda and Simon would now be tested. Treason may lurk around any corner and being at court was more dangerous than anyone today could possibly imagine.

Author Elizabeth Chadwick's pen has taken real people from the past and written an awesome tale of the love, hatred, and betrayal, that existed during the past of England and Normandy. The author kept all the details she could find of the people in this novel true and only added her own fiction to the many parts of history that would unable to be found.

I found this book to be extremely well done. I am happy to recommend it highly to everyone!