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Guerin and Juliana start out their life together having to defend their property and their lives from the intrigue of two courts, their distrust of one another and the secrets they are keeping from each other. Hana Samek Norton delivers a well-researched story with a tangled plot. I recommend this book and hope you enjoy it even half as much as I did. The opinions expressed are my own and are based on my observations while reading this novel.
Read Hana Samek Norton's blogs and other content on the Penguin Community. A transporting debut novel set in thirteenth century France-a time when chivalry. The Sixth Surrender: A Novel [Hana Samek Norton] on donnsboatshop.com *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. A transporting debut novel set in thirteenth century.
Myla is a life-long resident of Nova Scotia, Canada. She is married with two sons. A self-described bookworm, her hobbies also include knitting, painting, photography and music.
Continue shopping Checkout Continue shopping. Return to Book Page. I have read a lot of non-fiction and connected to the real historical figures Eleanor of Aquitaine and The Pearl of Brittany. I just wanted to get to the end of this convoluted novel. Anne, a very well compensated courtesan of sorts, made me laugh. It's my favorite genre.
Your email address will not be published. Ontario, Canada mom of two girls. Now check your email to confirm your subscription and get your free e-cookbook, Tasty Chicken Recipes. Nothing like a slap in the face for Juliana. The story does go on to show us the back and forth skirmishes between King John and King Phillip of France.
It shows us how backstabbing and loyalty comes with a huge price and no one is safe from the almighty clutches of Greed. Jan 21, Misfit rated it it was ok Shelves: View all 5 comments. Jul 28, Olivia rated it liked it. This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. It took a while for me to get into this book, but then I couldn't get enough. I'm a big fan of historical fiction so I appreciate all the research the author did. It just made everything sour for me.
Feb 07, Ginger Pollard rated it it was ok.
I had high hopes for this book, but it fell flat for me I love Historical Fiction. It's my favorite genre. I love books about Eleanor of Aquitaine. There's too much going on in this book, yet nothing getting done. Aug 05, Louise Leetch rated it liked it. Author Norton chooses a minor player, Juliana de Charnais, as a link to the machinations of Alienor the French spelling used by the author , her son and the nasty old Lusignans.
However, all is not well in the arranged marriage, as any reader of historical romance would know.
Of course, Philip and Armand de Lusignan have plans of their own. Oct 19, Free Fall rated it really liked it. Once I started reading, I really couldn't stop.
Juliana is a novice nun who chooses marriage and her home of Tillieres in place of becoming cloistered. The queen-duchess, Alienor, gives her hand in marriage to Guerin de Lasalle, a mercenary with a lot of secrets. Really, a ridiculous amount of secrets. His origin seems to be made up of a bunch of lies and misdirection, much of which is revealed only in the latter half of the book. So the newly wedded couple is extremely unh What a rush! So the newly wedded couple is extremely unhappy with their plight, but they resolve to annul their marriage as soon as possible.
Meanwhile, King John yes, the one who signed the Magna Carta , wars with his neighbors, his relatives, and his own barons. This leads to quite a distraction for Juliana and Guerin. I rather liked the other characters, the secondary ones. I'd have liked to know more about Juliana's wards, but both Anne, mistress of Guerin and a couple of other men, and Alienor were well fleshed out. Given that this is a historical novel, I cross-checked some of the references on wikipedia. Much of the political warfare and the noble families were accurate, at least in general, for which I was grateful to see.
On the other hand, a lot of sexual tension between, well, a lot of people. I realize that men in medieval times were probably accustomed to beating wives and committing adultery, but I still found it surprising that Juliana would forgive her husband's faults so easily. Not to mention the possibility of sexually transmitted diseases Anyway, I enjoyed the book immensely. I do have objections, though: Eleanor d'Aquitaine's Court of Love or not, it seems a little too neatly tied up. Dec 26, Linda rated it really liked it.
Aug 04, Amanda rated it liked it. Set in the thirteen century, young Juliana also known as Sister Eustace lives a content life as a humble nun, but as the only heir to Tillieres, she desires to protect and keep her home which, of course, requires that she marry.
Not only must she marry, but Juliana must pledge herself to the powerful French queen, Alienor also known as Eleanor of Aquitaine. It's not long until Juliana is swept into Alienor's complex court plots and intrigues while having to juggle an unloving and abusive husband who only wants to be rid of her. Norton paints a fascinating and detailed portrait of thirteenth century life, as well as three-dimensional characters that grow with the turn of each page.
Juliana, for example, begins as a meek, timid and frankly uninteresting character who doesn't fight back. But as the story unfolds, she asserts her wants and grows stronger. I was particularly happy to see this, especially since her growth felt natural on the page. Juliana's husband, Guerin, is despicable for the majority of the novel, but ends up in a much better place by the end.
Speaking of the end, while I enjoyed the novel, I actually had mixed feelings about the ending. On one level is was unsatisfying, but on further reflection it was a sweet, almost soap opera-like that romance fans should enjoy. Sep 29, Bdalton rated it really liked it Shelves: This book was a gift from the author. I met Hana at the National Archives where she was researching a new book.
Hana is delightful, engaged, and thoughtful. She would be a wonderful author guest for an event. I have looked at some of the reviews and saw a mix of opinion. I found the book to be packed with historical detail, a sympathetic heroine, and a bevy of plot twists. I have read a lot of non-fiction and connected to the real historical figures Eleanor of Aquitaine and The Pearl of Brittan This book was a gift from the author.
I have read a lot of non-fiction and connected to the real historical figures Eleanor of Aquitaine and The Pearl of Brittany. I listened to Sister Queens by Julia Fox at the same time and found that the Sixth Surrender echoed many of the themes of women struggling to hang onto their family inheritance and their marriages and being used as pawns by those who should love them. The cover leads the reader to expect that this is a historical romance. There is definitely strong romantic elements, but sometimes the sex is a bit rough and unromantic.
This is probably more historically accurate but less appealing to those who like their lust coupled neatly with love. The main hero is a bit of a flawed character as well. I am planning on recommending this to readers who like detailed historical fiction like the Outlander series, as long as they don't mind a hero whose moral compass appears to wander a bit. Apr 27, Tyreauna rated it really liked it. I read this book again for the second time, and I was able to enjoy it so much more considering that the plot diet fly over my head!
The main female character Juliana left a lasting impression on me, not necessarily because of her character, but because of her actions. I felt like the entire book she put up a great face against Lasalle's constant offenses. To be completely honest, I picked up on the books romantic trail more than the historic one. I didn't quite follow the whole book and was con I read this book again for the second time, and I was able to enjoy it so much more considering that the plot diet fly over my head! I didn't quite follow the whole book and was confused many times.
I felt like there were many characters and I that I couldn't quite keep up with it all. They were, for the most part, colorful and not entirely boring. Lasalle irritated me, but his outrageous actions were true to his character. The descriptions and details in the book were elaborate so it was fun to feel like you were in 13th century France! Anne, a very well compensated courtesan of sorts, made me laugh. I appreciated her insight and she did become relevant to me throughout the book. Ah, I know this review is all over the place!! But anyway, it is a long read that could be tortuous of you're not into historical fiction.
I enjoyed it enough to read it twice! Apr 28, Amanda rated it liked it Shelves: The author even says she only used secondary sources in her research for this book. There are people with these names in existence, but they're not always around at the same time. That said, this was a highly complicated and confounding book. Set at the end of Eleanor of Aquitaine's life, during John Softsword's reign, the young Juliana de Charnais has a choice of becoming a nun or marrying some douche that Eleanor found for her.
Course all of this would have been averted if she had married the man her father had set out for her originally. A lot of things are like that in this book. It's incredibly repetitious, as Lasalle Charnais's husband is incredibly secretive. The twists aren't all that shocking, although they seem to be to Juliana.
This was an alright book. If you're not so concerned about anachronisms and historical accuracy, it might be a good read. Apr 26, Kacee rated it did not like it. I wanted to like this book, but it was rather difficult to enjoy. The plot is generally devoid of action for dozens of pages at a time and when something does happen it is often so obscure that I was left having to re-read several pages trying to figure out if I missed something.
I finished the book, hoping all along it would get better, and while the second half is more exciting than the first, it probably wasn't worth my time. Mar 07, Stephi K.
I took a class from this author at a conference. She is very educated and has an interesting background. I would recommend this for die-hard historical fiction fans--specifically of the medieval variety. It's not for people who don't like history or reading about all the King-making, crossbow-shooting, heir-producing, fealty-swearing, hedonism-condoning, and religion-touting people of that time. I didn't understand much at the beginning of this book because I'm no scholar of the medie I took a class from this author at a conference. I didn't understand much at the beginning of this book because I'm no scholar of the medieval period and it picks up "in medias res".
The historical figures and political intrigues were foreign to me so I spent some time rereading pages, going back to the beginning to understand things, and looking up archaic words in the dictionary. In short it took me a long time to read this book. Despite all that, I found the book very intriguing and couldn't put it down. Jan 30, Brittany rated it really liked it. I am not a historical fiction reader at all and came across this book due to a silly reason: I was Googling the meaning of the names of my family members.
My first name is Brittany and my daughter is Eleanor. Long story short, I ended up researching Eleanor of Brittany and wondered if there were any "good books" about her. A month later, I'm writing this review.
While the book did not include much about Eleanor of Brittany as I had known before purchasing the book , I found myself excited to re I am not a historical fiction reader at all and came across this book due to a silly reason: While the book did not include much about Eleanor of Brittany as I had known before purchasing the book , I found myself excited to read and imagine what life might have been like during that time period.
I found myself staying up past midnight to finish "just one more chapter. Definitely looking forward to reading the sequel: Jan 10, Linda rated it did not like it Shelves: The Sixth Surrender is a romance dressed up as an historical novel, with a beautiful, fainthearted heroine and a devastatingly handsome, bad boy of a hero whose behavior is simply cruel.
The plot centers on the dynastic wars between the French and English during the reign of King John of Magna Carta fame, early 13th century , but there's just too much inane sexual sparring, which constantly interrupts the action. Even without that problem, the plot is choppy and confusing, even for readers fami The Sixth Surrender is a romance dressed up as an historical novel, with a beautiful, fainthearted heroine and a devastatingly handsome, bad boy of a hero whose behavior is simply cruel.
Even without that problem, the plot is choppy and confusing, even for readers familiar with that time period. Unsatisfying, except for those who enjoy the romance genre. Jun 23, Vanessa rated it did not like it Shelves: It too me three tries just to get past the first 30 pages. Still, I really wanted to read this book so I kept going. I'm not sure what the worst thing about this book was the flat and unlikable characters?
Or maybe it was the fact that the story is just so confusing The author keeps throwing names and events at the reader without any explanations whatsoever. Perhaps she thought that only people who are very familiar with the s It too me three tries just to get past the first 30 pages. Perhaps she thought that only people who are very familiar with the story and politics surrounding Eleanor of Aquitaine and her times would actually read this book. Me, I would have appreciated a glossary of names, events and the French words that are used in the book.
Sep 02, Laura rated it did not like it Shelves: After reading about pages I decided not to finish this novel. To After reading about pages I decided not to finish this novel. Too bad, because the writing is good and so is the book cover. May 03, Nora rated it did not like it. Even for the time the book is set in, Lasalle is sadistic and Juliana is a doormat. I think the author was trying to write an old-school romance, but it didn't work because the characters genuinely hate each other.
The abrupt change to love in the last third is unrealistic. The entire first half of the book is from Juliana's perspective, so the reader never understands why Lasalle does the things he does. Oct 01, Judy rated it really liked it. I thought there was a chance that this was going to be good; either that or schlocky romantic badly written overwrought historical fiction. It turned out to be well written, good historical detail, and well paced.
I think it owes a lot to Dorothy Dunnett. I couldn't put it down. I did, however, space out a lot of the geeopolitics of England and France in the first four years of the 13th century, which is when this was written. Jun 25, Kim rated it liked it. I was so privileged to meet the author of this historical novel. She is enthusiastic, knowledgeable and enchchanting! She has taken on one of my favorite families, the Lusignans. She captures the time, the unbelievably complicated family lineages, and the wonderful hauteur of Ailenor d'Aquitaine.
I found the "romance" a bit tedious given the times. Can't wait to read her next, The Serpent's Crown.