Sharon Robards

I never knew much about George I or the girl who would become his queen, Sophia of Hannover. I enjoyed the historical fiction portrayal of the utter cut-throatedness of the women behind the men that ruled Europe, and how conniving they could be to achieve their goals.

The story of Sophia Dorothea and what led to her 30+ year forced imprisonment by her husband King George I is widely popular, but also shrouded in mystery that is still debated today by scholars. This story was cleverly written, transporting this reader back 300 years to the lives of these very real people. The emotions and motivations of the characters are believable and do not contradict what is known of these real people. The emotional rollercoaster was exciting and kept me wanting to show more read more.

The one negative I have was the very beginning of the story. I felt like I was thrown into the deep end being expected to know who everyone was. Now, as a student of history I didn't have a problem with this, but someone who is not familiar with all the historical characters surrounding the history of King George I and Sophia Dorothea may be a bit confused. It wasn't until about a quarter of the way into the book that I felt the characters settle in my mind. I think this may have also been because this book may be a sequel to a previous book by this author, although it is not listed as one. Perhaps if you read the first book, which is about the parents of these main characters, a lot of the secondary characters would be more familiar. This reader has not read the first book.

The guide of characters at the back of the book was helpful but it would have been better at the beginning to help keep everyone sorted, especially since almost everyone shares names (perhaps this is more the publishers fault then the authors). Also, at times I felt the dialogue a bit forced and almost as if some thoughts were incomplete.

Overall, a wonderful story of courtly love, politics, and intrigue told by a fantastic storyteller and based on historical events. show less

In 1966 when 17 year old Sylvia finds herself pregnant to her boyfriend Tommy her mother spirits her away to a hospital run by the Catholic church where she is to wait out her time until her baby is born. She is locked in and not allowed to see Tommy, who has promised to stand by her and provide for the baby that she so desperately wants to keep. The nuns believe the best thing for the girls is for them to give up their babies for adoption and forget all about them and try to coerce Sylvia show more into signing adoption papers for her baby. However, this is also a time of great change for the Catholic church with the many modernising reforms announced under Vatican II, and one nun, Sister Gregory has started to question her role in the Church. As she becomes close to Sylvia she also questions whether they are in fact doing what is best for the mothers and babies.

This a thoughtful, insightful novel of a difficult time for unmarried mothers in our society. The characters of Sylvia and Kim, the friend she makes at the hospital, and Sister Gregory are well drawn and the limited choices for women in those days clearly shown. show less

I enjoyed this book the three times that I have read it. Some of the strongest women look as if they list in this life only to show their true strength.