I’m so excited to be taking part in the blog tour for The Queen’s Vow,
by C.W. Gortner – I had the pleasure of reading this in 2012 and couldn’t wait
to pose some questions about the book which transported me into history…….my
review follows also. I hope everyone is
inspired to read this – it is a firm favourite of mine and was a joy to read.
Did you visit any of the sites from the book prior to writing it, (are
there any ruins left from the castles, or the household in Arevalo?), or
do you draw mostly from your experience of growing up in Southern Spain and your love of history?
Though I often rely on
my own experiences and love of history, I still think traveling to the sites
where my characters lived is a must. Fortunately, Spain is one of my homes and
favorite places to visit; while the landscape has greatly changed
from Isabella's time, there are still a significant number of extant sites
associated with her -- all of which I visited to re-trace
Isabella's footsteps and are featured in The Queen's Vow . Her childhood home, the castle of Arévalo, is about 2 hours from Madrid and sits on a desolate
escarpment in a truly forbidding landscape. The city of Avila, with its
massive medieval walls, is about an hour from there. In central Castile, Segovia is the site of the
world-famous alcazar, every girl’s fantasy palace, with its peaked turrets
and curving fortifications— ironic, given how dangerous life within
its vaulted halls was for young Isabella. Traveling about 7 hours south is
Sevilla, and its beautiful alcazar built by the Moors and expanded by
subsequent rulers, where a troubled Isabella arrived shortly after her
coronation. Córdoba, capital of the Moors until the 13th
century, has the exquisite red-columned mezquita, or mosque, and
Palace of the Catholic Kings on the edge of the Guadalquivir River. Another 3 hours up to
the mountains is the magnificent citadel of Granada, site of that most
renowned of places associated with Isabella: the Alhambra.
Do you have a favourite character from The Queen's
Vow?
I try not to play favorites, otherwise I
fear that it will show through in the text and reflect poorly on my other
characters. When I'm working on a novel, the cast becomes my surrogate family;
I like some characters more than others, naturally, given their
disparate personalities, but I want to stay true to each one and give him or
her my very best in terms of reflecting their reality for the reader. Even
Torquemada has a reason for what he does; it may not be pleasant, but he
does have his own beliefs, his strengths and weaknesses. That said, my lead
character - in this case, Isabella herself - is always going to come first in
my overall affection. I really felt as though I came to understand
her during the process of bringing her to life for this novel; I struggled
with her as she fought for her throne and wrestled with her doubts; I recoiled
at times from her sense of self-righteousness and moral inflexibility,
and always stood in awe of her courage and passion. She was not an easy woman
to get to know but in the end, I feel she was worth the effort.
If you had to cast Isabella and Ferdinand in a movie, who would you
choose to play their roles?
This is always such a
tough question for me! I "see" the characters when I write
them both emotionally and physically; they become their own distinct
persons and thus, it's challenging to try and clothe them in another's
skin, such as that of an actor or actress. For Isabella, perhaps Emma
Roberts or Lea Seydoux; for Fernando, Max Irons or Aaron Johnson. The actors
would have to be young, but able to convey that complex range of experience and
of maturity that both Isabella and Fernando had, even in their teen years.
Thank you so much for
taking this time with me. I hope your readers enjoy The Queen's
Vow. To find out more about me and my books, please visit me at
www.cwgortner.com
Title: The Queen’s Vow
Author: C.W. Gortner
Publisher: Hodder &
Stoughton
Published: January 2013
ISBN: 978 1444720792
Rating: 5/5 with merits
The cover on this looks
fairly ornate, with swirling embossed gold leaf detail to the sides of the
Queen on the cover.
First off, I have to say
WOW!!! I adored this book. This blew my mind with the stunning amount of
detail and thought that has gone into each and every page. I haven’t read much historical fiction
recently, so this was a pure delight to read and immerse myself in. If time machines were books, then this is a
gem of a time machine. I know I have to
give it a rating, as with all my reviews here, but this blows the top off my
rating system….that sounds really gushy…but I thoroughly enjoyed reading this
and my praise is very well deserved.
This is storytelling at its very best - when it feels so very real the
characters aren’t just on the page anymore.
The Queen’s Vow details
Isabella’s life from childhood right up to her ascension to become Queen of
Castile alongside her husband Ferdinand.
Prior to this book I had a teeny semblance of an idea as to her life,
mainly that of the Spanish Inquisition.
The Queen’s Vow took me on an unforgettable journey with Isabella. Her passion for Castile was a running theme throughout the book. I saw how she was treated, and how despicable
many of the male characters were – I really wanted to reach through the pages
and slap many of them for their actions!!!
I could really feel the way in which women during this time were
treated, along with how corrupt and self serving many of those in Court
were. I was shocked at how little regard
Isabella’s half brother had for her and how weasly those he surrounded himself
with were.
I got to know Isabella and
her formidable characteristics. I saw
through her eyes how women were treated, and how she strived to make women’s
lives better. I appreciated how well
ahead of her time she was, especially when she commissioned a printing press
and set about making learning accessible for all, as well as being totally
devout to her religion and a faithful wife.
I felt her pain when she miscarried and her joy when her son was born,
along with the bittersweet birth of her daughters which had less value in
society even with their heritage.
The Queen’s Vow swept me
away through the passages of time so I was with Isabella throughout the
book. I really did feel like I was
surrounded by history and real life characters.
This is historical fiction at its best.
Thank you so much C.W.Gortner!
What a high bar you’ve set with this book!
Book Synopsis:
A compelling novel which reimagines the early years of one of history's
most notorious queens in all their passion, treachery and bloodshed. 'I
am Isabella, Queen of Castile ...' Isabella was the notorious
warrior-queen who, along with her husband Ferdinand, transformed Spain
forever. Popular belief has her as a religious fanatic persuaded into
the horrific excesses of the Inquisition by her confessor, Torquemada;
but C W Gortner paints a picture of her early life, showing us a
headstrong, passionate girl who grew into the most powerful queen Spain
ever knew and whose vision and imagination allowed Columbus to discover
America.
Source- Many thanks to the
publisher, an ARC was received in return for a honest review.
