Llewelyn and Joanna. What a story. You learn so much about Welsh history through the evils of King John. A story of true love even though Joanna was an adultress. ( )

I absolutely loved this book. The weaving of a story based on facts made this a wonderful read. It was not a dry read of history nor was it a bodice ripper of a gothic romance. It seemed to be very natural and realistic and read smoothly. ( )

Clearly well-researched but fell a bit flat--too many characters spread out over too many pages. ( )

Read this for bookclub - which is good for making me branch out. I'm not a huge fan of historical fiction, but this novel caught me at a good time. Having just read a history of medieval times, I was pleasantly surprised to see that Ms. Penman had done a good job of portraying some of the realities of that time - particularly in terms of the pervasiveness of the Catholic Church and the reality of the afterlife that so many believed in. I enjoyed learning more of the history of the times and found the book very readable. ( )

Wow. I love historical fiction, *especially* when it's well researched. Therefore, I really liked this book, as I kept googling the information weaved around the storyline, and it was factually accurate. Somehow that just makes the book come alive for me.This is definitely not a book you can read quickly! It takes place mostly in Wales in the 13th century, and having little knowledge about that time period, was fascinating to me. I did know that you never call a Welshman 'English' and vice-versa, but I never really knew why until I read this book. The English and Welsh princes are always at odds or at war. Their interaction with one another as well as the women in their lives is hard to keep up with, though. I had to keep flipping back to check the years, etc. Read this book when you have lots of quiet time - you have to pay attention. No speed reading in this one! ( )