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The King's Daughter (2009)

The King's Daughter (2009)

Book Info

Author
Series
Rating
3.74 of 5 Votes: 2
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ISBN
0758225458 (ISBN13: 9780758225450)
Language
English
Publisher
kensington

About book The King's Daughter (2009)

Depois da agradável surpresa que foi A Aia da Rainha, a curiosidade por ler o volume seguinte da série era mais que muita. O título deste livro apontava para um enfoque na rainha Maria I, mas, tal como o título do volume anterior, acaba por induzir o leitor em erro. De facto, a história gira em torno de Isabel Tornleigh, filha dos protagonistas de A Aia da Rainha, e tem como pano de fundo o período conturbado de rebeliões durante o reinado de Maria I de Inglaterra e da luta desta contra os hereges.No meio deste turbilhão social, em que a corajosa Isabel toma o partido dos rebeldes, a jovem vê-se subitamente obrigada a tentar salvar o pai da prisão e da eminência de ser enforcado e tem para isso a companhia do espanhol Carlos Valverde. É nesta busca que o livro se centra, mas o enredo foca-se também bastante nos movimentos da rebelião liderada por Thomas Wyatt.Para além de conter uma perspectiva histórica bastante interessante sobre os principais factos que marcaram esta rebelião, julgo que a autora é bem sucedida na criação do ambiente adequado para a cidade de Londres e na descrição das condições bastante precárias das prisões da altura. Tudo isto demonstra que Barbara Kyle se documentou bem em termos históricos, o que funciona como uma mais-valia para o livro. As minhas reticências prendem-se mais com o desenvolvimento das personagens e do próprio enredo. As primeiras parecem mais ou menos estereotipadas (talvez com excepção de Carlos) e as situações apresentam por vezes um elevado grau de previsibilidade, o que só por si não é mau, mas neste caso considero que podia ter sido melhor trabalhado. Também não achei a componente romance do livro muito convincente.Em termos gerais, considero que fica um pouco aquém do volume anterior, mas gostei o suficiente para desejar ler o próximo da série. De referir ainda que foi o meu primeiro empréstimo das BLX (rede de bibliotecas de Lisboa), que pretendo utilizar mais amiúde nos próximos tempos.

After being only lukewarm toward the previous novel in the series, The Queen's Lady, it's a surprise that I even bothered to pick up this book in the first place. Basically, I just saw it on the clearance rack at Half Price Books during their 20 percent off everything sale and figured why not? I could do with a cheap historical fiction novel about the Tudor era. After being constantly pestered by Amazon about the upcoming novel in the series, I thought it was time to decide once and for all if this was a series that I was interested in.The King's Daughter follows the adventures of Honor Thornleigh's daughter, Isabel during the reign of Mary Tudor. As Mary prepares to marry the incredibly devout Prince Philip of Spain, Isabel prepares to marry herself, but unwittingly finds herself caught up in a scheme to dethrone the Catholic Mary and replace her with the Protestant Elizabeth. The stakes raise even higher when Mary puts Isabel's father in prison, and her only hope lies in a mysterious and roguish Spaniard.I guess I'm not entirely sure what to expect in the next volume of the Thornleigh series. Maybe something more engaging and unexpected, but that's not what I got here. It was really just more of the same from The Queen's Lady, only surrounding a different protagonist and a different monarch. I still had issues here with Kyle's somewhat weak writing, flat characters and an overall not-that-great story. I was at least able to finish it, but I wouldn't recommend this book, or its predecessor, as anything more than a library read.

Do You like book The King's Daughter (2009)?

Depois de ter lido “A Aia da Rainha” fiquei à espera que surgisse a oportunidade de comprar e ler o segundo volume.Tal como no livro anterior, o título poderá ser algo enganador, pois julgamos que a história gira em torno da Rainha Maria, no entanto, serve apenas como pano de fundo.Acompanhamos Isabel Tornleigh, filha das personagens principais do livro anterior, e que, sem saber o passado dos seus pais, também tenta ajudar os hereges, paralelamente, Isabel tenta também salvar o seu pai, com a ajuda de Carlos Valverde.Apesar de nos apresentar os principais momentos de rebelião de Thomas Wyatt, a religiosidade de Maria, o ambiente que se vivia em Londres, não consegui sentir muita empatia por Isabel Tornleigh e achei que a história custava a desenrolar. Só nas últimas 150/200 páginas, é que achei que melhorava.Não sei se terei escolhido mal a altura para o ler, se está efectivamente abaixo d’ “A Aia da Rainha”, mas foi um livro que não me “encheu as medidas”.
—Patricia Rodrigues

With a title of "The King's Daughter" and a synopsis that states this novel is set in the reign of Mary Tudor, I of course expected the novel to be predominately about Mary herself. This was not at all the case. The novel's protagonist is in fact a fictional character named Isabel Thornleigh; a girl who is loyal to the rebel cause that initiated the Wyatt rebellion of 1554. She finds herself battling to save her father's life from an eneny who has the ear of the Queen herself. Aiding Isabel in her quest is a Spanish mercenary who has lived his life offering services to anybody with enough money to pay...until he meets Isabel. She soon begins to give him a lesson in loyalty, and in love.Considering this novel was not at all what I had expected it to be, I loved every second of it. The storyline was gripping and it kept my anticipation levels high throughout. There was never a dull moment. Isabel's involvement in Wyatt's rebellion was interesting, and the relationship between her and Carlos made for a very entertaining read also. However this is by no means an overly romantic tale, rather it shows how two people can find companionship in the most unexpected of places--and at the most inappropriate of times.This novel is for anyone with a love of British historical fiction who wishes for a change from the normal portrayal of life from the point of view of the Royal Court. Here is a novel that will take you to the poorer parts of London, through it's many jails, and into the camp of a rebel army. Through Isabel's eyes the reader is shown the fear many people shared at the start of Mary's reign. Whether due to xenophobia, or for fear of religious persecution, many were afraid of what her reign would bring. It was a turbulent time of British history, and this historical mystery utilises every aspect of that.
—Jennifer

Inappropriate title for this book. The heroine is Isabel Thornleigh, therefore the title of the book should be based on her.It is an engaging novel with exciting events, however I was disappointed in the outcome of one particular character: Edward Sydenham! Yes, yes I know that I am acting like a spoilt child but I feel I am entitled to roll my eyes in disbelief and curl my lips up in defiance. Barbara Kyle took to long to deal with that despicable man and when she did punish him, there was not enough juicy wrath. There were other characters that the story could have progressed with, without Edward Sydenham, for example Carlos Valverde. A ruthless mercenary who turned out to he a handsome caring man.The first chapters of the novels was delicious, the scenery and people so aptly described. However, a particular incident involving Isabella left a sour taste in my stomach that I could not raise above that wave to enjoy how the plot thicken. Plus, Edward... yes I just do not like that man!So, my low rating is based on my taste. It had nothing to do with the flow of the plot, the dialogue, the appeal to the five senses because that was well written. It has to do one traitor testing my patience.Lovely end though...the novel would make a great film.
—Noirfifre

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