Svetlana's Reads and Views

Name of Book: By Love Divided Author: Elizabeth St John ISBN: 9780999394410 Publisher: Falcon Historical Press Part of a Series: The Lydiard Chronicles Type of book: English civil war, debts, gunpowder, family, romance, 1630-1646, strategy, military, siege, royalty, Roundheads vs Cavaliers, battles, war Year it was published: 2017 Summary: Fiercely independent, Luce Apsley rejects the dazzling English court and an entitled marriage arranged by her aristocratic family, and falls in love with a Roundhead soldier. Her mother has embraced the Puritan cause and yet her beloved brother, Sir Allen Apsley chooses to fight for king and country. As England falls into bloody civil war, Luce embraces Parliament's radical views and confronts the very core of the family's beliefs. And when their influential Villiers cousins raise the stakes, King Charles demands loyalty. Allen and Luce face a devastating challenge. Will war unite or divide them? In the dawn of rebellio...

Name of Book: The Lady of the Tower Author: Elizabeth St. John ISBN: 9781523417889 Publisher: self published Type of book: history, England, Frances Howard, George Villiers, Duke of Buckingham, war, El Dorado, 1603-1630, slaves, Walter Raleigh, destruction, greed, corruption, tranquility, family, relationships, rivalry Year it was published: 2015 Summary: Orphaned Lucy St.John, described as "the most beautiful of all," defies English society by carving her own path through the decadent Stuart court. In 1609, the early days of the rule of James I are a time of glittering pageantry and cutthroat ambition, when the most dangerous thing one can do is fall in love . . . or make an enemy of Frances Howard, the reigning court beauty. Lucy catches the eye of the Earl of Suffolk, but her envious sister Barbara is determined to ruin her happiness. Exiling herself from the court, Lucy has to find her own path through life, becoming mistress of the Tower of London. Rid...