Sunday, July 24, 2011

Mailbox Monday: July 25


Mailbox Monday is the gathering place for readers to share the books that came into their house last week. (Library books don’t count, but eBooks & audiobooks do). Warning: Mailbox Monday can lead to envy, toppling TBR piles and humongous wish lists!

Mailbox Monday, created by Marcia @ A Girl and Her Books, is on a blog tour!
This month's host is A Sea of Books.


Two for review this week:


The Maid: A Novel of Joan of ArcThe Maid by Kimberly Cutter. To be published October 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

The girl who led an army, the peasant who crowned a king, the maid who became a legend.

It is the fifteenth century, and the tumultuous Hundred Years’ War rages on. France is under siege, English soldiers tear through the countryside destroying all who cross their path, and Charles VII, the uncrowned king, has neither the strength nor the will to rally his army. And in the quiet of her parents’ garden in Domrémy, a peasant girl sees a spangle of light and hears a powerful voice speak her name. Jehanne.

The story of Jehanne d’Arc, the visionary and saint who believed she had been chosen by God, who led an army and saved her country, has captivated our imagination for centuries. But the story of Jehanne—the girl—whose sister was murdered by the English, who sought an escape from a violent father and a forced marriage, who taught herself to ride and fight, and who somehow found the courage and tenacity to persuade first one, then two, then thousands to follow her, is at once thrilling, unexpected, and heartbreaking. Rich with unspoken love and battlefield valor, The Maid is a novel about the power and uncertainty of faith, and the exhilarating and devastating consequences of fame.


To Die For: A Novel of Anne BoleynTo Die For: A Novel of Anne Boleyn by Sandra Byrd. To be published August 2009 by Howard Books.

To Die For, is the story of Meg Wyatt, pledged forever as the best friend to Anne Boleyn since their childhoods on neighboring manors in Kent. When Anne’s star begins to ascend, of course she takes her best friend Meg along for the ride. Life in the court of Henry VIII is thrilling at first, but as Anne’s favor rises and falls, so does Meg’s. And though she’s pledged her loyalty to Anne no matter what the test, Meg just might lose her greatest love—and her own life—because of it.

Meg's childhood flirtation with a boy on a neighboring estate turns to true love early on. When he is called to follow the Lord and be a priest she turns her back on both the man and his God. Slowly, though, both woo her back through the heady times of the English reformation. In the midst of it, Meg finds her place in history, her own calling to the Lord that she must follow, too, with consequences of her own. Each character in the book is tested to figure out what love really means, and what, in this life, is worth dying for.

Though much of Meg’s story is fictionalized, it is drawn from known facts. The Wyatt family and the Boleyn family were neighbors and friends, and perhaps even distant cousins. Meg’s brother, Thomas Wyatt, wooed Anne Boleyn and ultimately came very close to the axe blade for it. Two Wyatt sisters attended Anne at her death, and at her death, she gave one of them her jeweled prayer book—Meg.


And a 99-cent impulse buy for my Nook:


Highland Rebel: A tale of a rebellious lady and a traitorous lordHighland Rebel by Judith James. Amidst the upheaval of Cromwell's Britain, Jamie Sinclair's wit and military prowess have served him well. Leading a troop in Scotland, he impetuously marries a captured maiden, saving her from a grim fate.

A Highlands heiress to title and fortune, Catherine Drummond is not the woman Jamie believes her to be. When her people effect her rescue, and he cannot annul the marriage, Jamie goes to recapture his hellcat of a new wife...

In a world where family and creed cannot be trusted, where faith fuels intolerance and war, Catherine and Jamie test the bounds of loyalty, friendship, and trust...


That's it for me!
Have you read any of these books?
If so, I'd love to hear your thoughts!
 

16 comments:

  1. I haven't read any of the books you received this week, but I'm very interested in The Maid. Can't wait to hear your thoughts!

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  2. All three books look good. The cover of To Die For is so beautiful! I bought a copy of Highland Rebel too. I can't resist a Highland romance for 99 cents. :)

    Diana @ Book of Secrets

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  3. I've read The Maid, and thought it was pretty good. Hope you enjoy all your books!

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  4. To Die For is on my wishlist and I don't think I've ever read a book about Jehanne d’Arc. Enjoy!

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  5. I just read The Maid recently and I enjoyed it- hope you do too!

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  6. I bet The Maid is a great read! Enjoy your new books! We're heading to Blacksburg this weekend for our son's birthday!

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  7. The Maid looks very intriguing! Enjoy all of your books.

    Here's MY MONDAY MEMES POST

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  8. You've got some great historical fiction! Enjoy your books.

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  9. These are all new to me. I love the cheaper Ebook buys, and you can so many great books. Enjoy!

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  10. When do you think you'll review The Maid? I'm looking for various versions of the Joan d'Arc story and would love to know if this one's worth reading..

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  11. Looking forward to your review of The Maid as well. I've been looking for a good one on Joan of Arc and have one on my shelf thats only gotten so so reviews so I'm hoping this one is a winner. Enjoy!

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  12. The Maid looks interesting, enjoy! your reads.

    http://tributebooksmama.blogspot.com/2011/07/mailbox-monday-dark-city-by-catherine.html

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  13. To Die For sounds really good. Happy reading!

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  14. I have Judith James Highland Rebel too! I won that on Goodreads but you have to read Libertine's Kiss. That one sucked me right in and wow! I love her style.

    Kissing all of your delicious reads. Smackers of kisses abound.. smooch .. kiss.. smooch xxxx

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  15. They look good! Those $.99 books are hard to resist :)

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  16. I love those 99 cent books! They tempt me all the time!

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