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Been trying to order books for my Kindle thru our library site which a neighbor recommended to me. Haven't gotten so far as to actually order, we'll see how that goes..... My question re the Chadwick's is this..... there is book one listed-Greatest Knight-which I already have on my Kindle; Then book 2 is listed -Scarlet Lion-which I need but then it jumps to book 4-The Lady English.
It stands to reason that if there's a book 4 then there should be a book 3-but that's not listed. So, doing some research here on PBS, I click on "For the King's Favor"-is that book 3? But then there's a tag listed that says it's the same book as "A Time for Singing". Given that-I threw in the towel and came to the experts...take pity on a novice please.... Oh, here's the Chadwick's that I have-where should I start.....???? Greatest Knight-on Kindle The Lady English-on Kindle For the King's Favor-in pb A Place Beyond Courage-in pb TIA Jan
Last Edited on: 7/3/12 8:23 PM ET - Total times edited: 1 |
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Lady of the English is a stand alone and really has nothing to do with the Marshal books. I would definitely pair up The Greatest Knight and then follow with The Scarlet Lion. The Time of Singing and To Defy a King should be read in order if you don't want to be spoiled about Roger and Ida later in life. The Marshal family is prominent in these two books, but I wouldn't say they should be read in any order with TGK and TSL. A Place Beyond Courage was written after The Greatest Knight and The Scarlet Lion. While the events precede those of TGK and TSL, it is a stand alone and you can read it with the other two or not. Personally, I enjoyed reading APBC after reading the two Marshal books and having gotten to *know* William first. I adored seeing him as a young child after knowing him as a man. |
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Jan, The Greatest Knight was written first; thus a lot of us read that one first, then backed up for the backstory with A Place Beyond Courage which is about William Marshal's father & William's early, formative years. By the time I got around to reading these books, I read them in chronological order & am glad I did (Linda would disagree). So: 1) A Place Beyond Courage - John Marshal, William's Father 2) The Greatest Knight - William Marshal, Book One 3) The Scarlet Lion - William Marshal, Book Two Then: 1) For the King's Favor (aka A Time of Singing) - Roger & Ida Bigod 2) To Defy a King - Mahelt Marshal (William's Daughter) & Hugh Bigod (Roger Bigod's Son)
They are all wonderful! Enjoy! Kelly
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Jan, I started with A Place Beyond Courage. Just finished it last week and absolutely loved it. I am certainly not an expert but I think this is correct. A Place Beyond Courage is considered a stand-alone and is not about William Marshall, but about his father John. The William Marshall series is: 1. The Greatest Knight 2. The Scarlet Lion 3. For the King's Favor/The Time of Singing 4. To Defy A King Lady of the English is also considered a stand-alone and is not about the Marshalls but about the Empress Matilda, daughter of Henry I, and his widow. Now, someone who is more knowledgeable will need to confirm or correct this information. Fantastic Fiction is a very valuable source in getting series in the correct order but they do occasionally have mistakes. |
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Shoot, I have "For the King's Favor" but have only read "The Greatest Knight." Should I wait on reading it until I've read "The Scarlet Lion?" |
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When I came here for newbie advice I was told to read A Place Beyond Courage first. I'm glad I did. I was also told to read The Love Knot by Chadwick and it was the. best. book. ever! Very good story! My favorite Chadwick so far. |
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Mimi, I think you should. Try to get your hands on The Scarlet Lion & read it before jumping into the Bigods' stories. Reading them in chronological order is important for the historical background of the characters, their politics, what has happened to them, etc., etc. (IMO, of course). Kelly
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See, I KNEW I could count on you guys! Oh, I have To Defy a King too. Off to put the Love Knot on my list. For the King's Favor and a Time for Singing ARE the same-good to know-will take that one off.... For the Marshall series, I just need Scarlet Lion. I'm pretty close on the wl. So I'll start with the first two and see then if I "must" break down and buy SL for the Kindle when I get to it. Jan |
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Thanks!
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I liked reading a A Place Beyond Courage first. Grounds you for the rest of the marshall series. I really like the Love Knot. I think I need to read another Chadwick book soon.
Alice |
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Just started "A place beyond Courage" which I received in Alice's Jupliee swap. Love it, love it. I feel totally drawn in to the story-very, very readable.... |
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If you go to Elizabeth Chadwick's Facebook pages and "like" her, you can get daily lines from her work in progress, a trilogy about Eleanor of Aquitaine. She's also pretty good about responding personally to her fans. Also remember to look for the "correct" Elizabeth Chadwick. There is another totally different writer with the same name. She's an American romance writer, not "our" Elizabeth Chadwick |
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I'm in love....no, really....just finished APBC. Haven't read a mediveal that I loved so much-and was so memorable since.....maybe... Gellis in college. I don't know whether to savor the Chadwick's or inhale them whole.... Should I tell y'all that I ordered two more from the book depository? The more than 50% off, free shipping and the fact that they aren't available in the US...I caved.... |
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And another virgin falls! In all seriousness, Jan ... so glad you enjoyed Place/Courage, but none of us is really surprised at all! And, after reading that first Elizabeth Chadwick book, it is really incumbent upon one to steal, beg, mortgage the house, cash in the kid's college funds ... whatever it takes to get more, more, more!! Linda could tell you all about that! She (& I, as well) discovered Elizabeth Chadwick after my Dad had died and with no one to raise an eyebrow or clear his throat (a common trick of his) when the mailman started trucking books to the front porch, Mom had free rein to gather in EC's books as fast as she could! Kelly
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I inhaled them all, couldn't space them out. Fortunately I discovered her before the book prices went through the roof. BTW, I don't know the exact date, but Sourcebooks is bringing out A Place Beyond Courage in a new US edition. Here it is, September 1. |
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I didn't find Chadwick until the folks here pointed her out to me a few years ago. I'm not sure when I read the first but probably early 2010. I was tempted to inhale them all, but after the first few, I've spaced them out, buying a few every six months or so, depending on what I can find on Book Depository or ABE. I like knowing I have a stash of superb books waiting for the next "bleh" moment when nothing else appeals. You can always count on Chadwick to pull you out of "bleh". |
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What are our thoughts on Daughters of the Grail? I'm just now over half-way through. It's a bit different from her other books - either early historical romance or her later historical figure-based novels. What do we think? Kelly
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I have that book too, thinking of reading it soon. Haven't read chadwick for several months.
Alice |
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Kelly, I didn't like Daughters; it was a DNF for me. I just couldn't get into the story. I will brave the wet noodle to admit that EC is hit and miss with me. I loved The Wild Hunt, Shadows and Strongholds, and her Marshal books. The others were just okay. I remember disliking The Winter Mantle too.
Vicky<-----ducking back into her cave |
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Vicky, This is the only EC that is just okay-ish for me. I enjoyed learning about the Cathars (had very little knowledge or awareness of them prior to this book) and a glimpse of Simon de Montfort as a young man was interesting. But the overall story was a little hard to get through. It held my interest enough to keep reading it, but that's about the extent of it. For one thing, it's tough for me to read about all the evil mankind has perpetuated throughout the centuries in the name of religion. I also get a little restless reading about complete & absolute power like the Dominican priests had in persecuting the Cathars and defining heresy to suit their own purposes. And then, there are the 6th sense powers that quite a few of our characters seemed to have in some degree or another. I absolutely do believe in 'extra powers' for lack of a better word in that we possess a sensitivity or an awareness if we but knew it & could channel it. I think it is rather arrogant of us to believe that we mortal humans & our five senses are all there is. (All topics for another day ... ) With specific reference to this book, I think EC went just a bit over the top. There was almost a sensationalism about it that didn't ring quite true. So ... glad I read it; glad it's done ... will not recommend it to anyone unless they are specifically looking for a book on the Cathars set in what is now southern France that has an element of fantasy or supernatural about it. Kelly
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Kelly, thanks for the review. I had not known about the Cathars either until they were mentioned in Four Sisters, All Queens. That sent me to Wikepedia to read more. I'm still not clear about all of their beliefs, but apparently they were pretty thoroughly squashed. Admission: I'm an EC virgin! I have The Greatest Knight and The Scarlet Lion on the TBR shelf and hope to get to them sooner rather than later.
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Donna,
If at all possible-try to find A Place Beyond Courage. It's William's parents. Even though published after GK and SL, you get to see William(and fall in love with him) like I did. "if he hasn't received his knighthood by next Christmas" it won't be thru lack of trying"-re William when he was about 8. |
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