Review + Giveaway: To Serve A King by Donna Russo Morin

Be sure to sign up for a chance to win a copy of To Serve A King in the comments section below!

To Serve A King By Donna Russo Morin

★★★★

Source: I received a copy from the author in exchange for a fair & honest review.
Release Date: February 2011

Review:  I experienced a lot of firsts from reading just this one book. For instance, this was my first time reading a book by Donna Russo Morin and I haven’t read a historical novel centered around King Francois I’s court until now. Also, I believe it was the first novel I have read where the heroin was a female spy. This book was so rich and vibrant I couldn’t get enough of it.

The story started during one of the most historical moments in European history. It opened with the meeting between two of Europe’s most feared and respected kings: King Henry VIII and King Francois I. Their meeting became known as The Field of Cloth & Gold, which was brought on to signify a friendship and form an alliance between their two countries. This moment was definitely out shined once a colossal fire broke out in their camp tragically killing innocent bystanders and leaving little two year, Genevieve, an orphan. Henry VIII saw this as an opportunity he could not pass up.

We all know both Henry VIII and Francois I had multiple spies in each other’s court, but Henry VIII devised a plan that would put a spy right under Francois nose without him suspecting a thing, which is where little Genevieve came in to play. Henry had Madame de Montlhery raise Genevieve as her niece, which later I concluded the most likely possibility was that Montlhery was one of his spies as well. 

For nineteen straight years, Genevieve was brought up to despise the man who murdered her family with that man being King Francois I. Under the supervision of her aunt, Genevieve was schooled in areas that no proper woman of the times should have been educated in. She was taught to decipher encrypted codes, hunt, and ride like a gentleman. She became an expert with the sword, dagger, and highly accurate with a bow. Genevieve was being molded into a killer spy for Henry VIII.

When the time was right, Genevieve was sent to the court of the man she was taught to hate with every bone in her body. She becomes a lady in waiting for the king’s mistress, the Duchess Anne de Pisseleau with her sole purpose being to spy for the one man she felt she could count on, Henry VIII. Genevieve had no idea how much she would come to love being a courtier. It was the first time she ever had any friends and people she thought truly cared about her well being. 

The longer she remains in the French court the harder it is for her to continue to despise the one man she swore to make pay for her parents’ untimely demise. She begins to struggle with where her loyalties should lie. Should she remain loyal to the one man who has equipped her with the necessary tools to avenge her parents’ death or should she switch sides and be the faithful courtier and friend to the man who took her in and provided her with a warm bed, food, and most of all friendship and trust. Genevieve knows she must choose soon and when she does there will be no turning back.

Opinion: I loved this book! Kudos to Donna Russo Morin! I love a good book with a strong woman as the heroin. This had all the fine trimmings, which makes a good historical book worthwhile. I loved the twists and turns throughout the novel and how Morin really paid attention to detail. I did find the book had a few slow points, but it was an easy read, which was nice because I was studying for finals while also trying my hardest to keep up with my review requests. This book is highly recommended to all those who love both the French, Tudors, and thrill seeking adventures!

Giveaway:
Donna Russo Morin has so graciously offered up a copy to one lucky winner! This giveaway is only open to US Residents and it ends May 18^th.  All you have to do is say which king you'd be loyal to. Does your loyalty lie with King Henry VIII or King Francois I and why?

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Guest Post W/ Donna Russo Morin: Discusses the Remorse & Redemption of King Francois I

 

  

I am so pleased to welcome Donna Russo Morin author of To Serve a King, to All Things Historical Fiction. She is here to discuss the remorse and redemption of King Francois I of France. Be on the look out for my review of To Serve A King in the next couple of weeks along with the chance to win a copy!

 

The Remorse and Redemption of a King and his Court

François I reigned in France during the same era in which Henry VIII ruled England. When I found him in my research for a previous novel, I was struck by what he and I had in common: in the realm of historical fiction, the Tudor stories tend to be a bit more popular than those set in other European countries, like mine. And while François was not only more powerful and contributed more to the world, he has always taken a back seat to Henry in terms of the history of the period. These two kings, along with Charles V of Spain, were constantly trying to outdo and overthrow the other. In that, I found the context for my story.

For a king who was rarely portrayed in historical fiction, and then only as a supporting character, I found great depth in this ruler often referred to as the Renaissance Warrior. His mother, Louise de Savoy, fought the courts to raise François, his sister, and the children of her recently deceased husband’s mistress. She emerged victorious, and with a loving and disciplined hand, raised them all as her own. François was surrounded by women for most of his childhood and adolescence, and his empathy for the feminine sensibility would color the rest of his life. These women, especially his mother and sister, were intelligent, educated, and sophisticated; they exposed him to the very best in art, literature and music that the late Renaissance had to offer and he would later dedicate his life to the artistic enrichment of his country. Few other rulers can compare in leaving a more notable and lasting cultural legacy than François I. By establishing the Lecteurs Royaux in 1530, François laid the foundation for the Collège de France. His compilation of books evolved into the Bibliotheque Nationale. And, most noteworthy of all, his trove of art became the nucleus of the world famous collection now held at the Louvre.

When writing François I, I was not unmindful or blind to his brutish youth, however I was deeply aware of the personal hardships he had encountered—the loss of spouse, the loss of beloved children, the slow torture of watching his own power diminish as he aged. In the major biographies read during my research, I found a great dichotomy between his early years and those in his latter days. I was struck by the notion, and the hope, that we have the ability to become truly conscious beings and in the clarity of vision such consciousness affords, we can look back and see the road behind us with all its potholes and wrong turns. It is distasteful to have regrets—the acidity sticks in the craw and repeats offensively—but if conscious of their power as tools, the enlightened can use them to find remorse, and it is in remorse that we are redeemed. Thus was how I found François; it is how I wrote him. I can say with certainty there was a wish in such a rendering.

In this book, as in my first two books (The Courtier’s Secret 2/2009 and The Secret of the Glass 3/2010), there is always a subliminal theme which mirrors events or emotions taking place in my own life. To Serve a King is no different. I was going through one of the most challenging phases of my life while I was writing this book, so challenging in fact, I wasn’t sure I would get it written. And as happens for many people in such circumstances, overcoming the emotions of such challenges—anger and hate—is the true test. And so it is for my main character, Geneviève Gravois. To Serve a King is a story of intrigue, murder, passion and betrayal. But at its heart, it is a story of redemption.