The Knight and The Rose
Grade : B-

The Knight and the Rose is a Medieval with a capital M, and those of you who read Isolde Martyn's debut book, The Maiden and the Unicorn, know exactly what this means. If you like historicals with a lot of attention to detail and a real sense of the period, this very well may be just the book for you. Joanna FitzHenry is married to the loathsome Sir Fulk de Enderby and desperate for a way out - any way out. She is willing to take religious vows or even do away with herself if necessary rather than be raped or beaten by him again. But her mother, Lady Constance, comes up with an alternative to perpetual chastity or suicide. She suggests that they find a man who will be willing to testify before an ecclesiastical court that he married Joanna two years ago, well before her marriage to Sir Fulk. Such an assertion, if accepted, would nullify her marriage and set Joanna free.

The man selected for this deception is Geraint, who is posing as Gervase de Laval due to the fact that he is now deemed a rebel for fighting on the losing side at the Battle of Boroughbridge. Geraint has with him the wounded Edmund Mortimer, son of the imprisoned Sir Roger Mortimer. He has sworn an oath to get Edmund to safety, so when Lady Constance threatens to inform on them Geraint has little choice but to agree to her plan.

Neither Joanna nor Geraint is in a position to form romantic attachments. Both are wounded and suspicious. But when thrown together and forced to be "married," each begins to notice the fine qualities of the other. Can love grow when so much else is at stake?

Those readers who disdain "wallpaper history" in romances will no doubt be delighted with this book. The medieval period seems authentically explored. All of the bodily excretions, dirt and grime, blood and gore, and political alliance and re-alliance are present in good measure. Numerous historical personages make appearances including Queen Isabella, her lover Sir Roger Mortimer, and the elder and younger Hugh Despensers. Some of this is quite interesting and educational, and I found myself immersed in my Brittanicas more than once.

But because there is so much attention to detail and medieval phraseology, the book was a little hard to get into and occasionally confusing. Author Martyn also has a rather indirect way of describing things and a tendency to refer to her characters by their occupations or other designations such as "the stranger" or "the prisoner." I did have to concentrate to follow the narrative, and it wasn't until well into the second half that my interest was really engaged. If I hadn't been reading this for review, I wouldn't have finished it.

The book is fascinating, though, if you stick with it. Joanna encounters numerous difficulties in her attempt to nullify her marriage, and the plot twists and turns several times before the last page. Martyn exposes her characters' secrets slowly while showcasing their personal attributes. Joanna and Geraint are both very sympathetic, and there are many sparkling moments of sexual tension. I was not entirely convinced, however, of their total passion for each other by the end.

This is a very hard book to grade. On the one hand, I am very impressed with the author's achievement. I haven't read too many medievals that read like they are really set in the medieval period. This one definitely seems authentic. On the other hand, I really had to force myself through the first part, and it wasn't until almost the end that I couldn't put it down. For those readers who want easy, breezy, escapist romance, this would not be it.

Still, there's a truly meaty read here for those who want to make the effort, and to them I would recommend The Knight and the Rose without hesitation.

Reviewed by Rachel Potter
Grade : B-

Sensuality: Warm

Review Date : January 25, 2002

Publication Date: 2002

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Rachel Potter

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