Girl on the Golden Coin

I have been dying to read this book since last June, when I hosted the author on my blog ahead of the Historical Novel Conference. Since then, there's been a lot of buzz about this book because one, the author is sweet and adorable and I just want to eat her up with a spoon; and two, the novel has a staggeringly gorgeous cover (click the image for the full-blown hi-res version).

As it turns out, there's a pretty fabulous story here, too!

Set between 1661 and 1688, at the height of the Restoration in Great Britain -- the rule of Charles II -- the novel is narrated by English noblewoman Frances Stuart. Frances is part of a group of exiled English royalists holed up in France, serving the Queen Mother there while hoping for an invitation to show more join the court in England. When her great beauty attracts the attention of King Louis XIV, she becomes a pawn in a greater political struggle for power, as she is essentially ordered by both Louis and the Queen Mother to become mistress to the 'merry monarch', Charles II.

At risk of literally recounting the whole novel, I'll stop here, but add that Frances is an intriguing, complicated heroine. Loyal to her family, she tries to be obedient to Louis and the Queen Mother, but finds herself attracted to the rakish king.  Her purity and admiration of the man Charles can be becomes a kind of erotic charge between her and her monarch -- not helped that his wild mistress, the infamous Countess Castlemaine, Barbara Palmer, throws parties that invite sexual shenanigans.

Frances could have been portrayed as uncomfortably priggish or judgmental, but instead appears to be a very human woman: tempted, conflicted, concerned with both her honor and with the yearnings of her body.  She made the entire novel for me -- her 'voice' was warm and real -- and I loved every minute with her.  This is a coup for Jefferson, because ever since reading Susan Holloway Scott's Royal Harlot, her novel about Barbara Palmer, I've had a soft spot for the woman -- and in this book, I wanted to slap her for being so awful to Frances.

The historic details here are rich without overpowering the story and the pace is very fast -- Frances' life is full of excitement and drama. There are some sexytimes, too, but those scenes fit with the story and didn't feel egregious or outrageous to me. My only complaint is that I would have liked a little more lingering near the end -- the novel felt rushed at times, especially with Charles' death -- but otherwise, I was sucked in from the first page.

There's a full six pages of Who's Who at the novel's open, for which I'm deeply grateful, and a four page Author's Note.

A delicious debut, Jefferson's novel is a delightful introduction to a tempting heroine and a rich story of a wild, tumultuous era. In an interview with Megan of A Book Affair, Jefferson says she "became obsessed with the desire to do for the Stuarts what Philippa Gregory had done for the Tudors" and I think she's done that! Here's to more Stuarts, and to more from Jefferson. show less

If one word could be used to describe Marci Jefferson GIRL ON THE GOLDEN COIN, it would be: captivating. It’s beautiful, lush, and breathtaking. I didn’t want it to end!

Not many people may know the story of Frances Stuart, but no doubt you’ve seen the image of Britannia on British currency. Dressed in roman robes, she’s seated holding a trident while wearing a Corinthian helmet and beside her is a shield depicting the unification of Scotland and England. In 1672, Frances served as the model for Britannia and since then has been featured on medals and coins. She’s since been retired, but in 2006 appeared on the fifty pence. Right in front of me as I write this review is that fifty pence though I’m lucky to have several 19th show more century British coins that feature Britannia. Since reading GIRL ON THE GOLDEN COIN, I find myself looking at them and am in awe of the woman who ultimately said no to one of world’s most powerful men.

As far as characterization, we have good character development. Our primary character is Frances Stuart who has been living in France with her mother and siblings. There she is attached to the royal household when Henrietta Maria of France’s daughter gets married to King Louis XIV’s brother, Phillipe. I won’t go into detail regarding characters since we have a wide array of secondary characters that a play an important and yet at times a minor role. Don’t let this put you off from reading since Jefferson gives us a handy guide at the beginning of the book which is detailed enough that you get an idea of who’s who. The characters of most interest and the ones that play a vital role besides Frances are Henrietta Maria of France, Louis XIV, Charles II, the Duke of Buckingham, Lady Castlemaine, and the Duke of Richmond and Lennox.

Narration is first person via Frances and it makes sense since this is about her. Frances is a trustworthy narrator though at the beginning I doubted I could trust her because I wasn’t sure how open she would be. As her journey progresses, she becomes quite comfortable in her storytelling. Jefferson could have easily made this narrative a bit jaded with an older Frances looking back, but instead we get an innocent girl who is forced to play a game she had no interest in. We see her stumble, go with the flow and ultimately hold her own, but I really liked that growth progression we see at the start of narrative so by the time we get to the end, we get the Frances from the beginning. The language is a bit too modern, but it doesn’t distract the reader from enjoying this.

I know people tend to shy away from historical fiction because they worry they will be inundated with nothing but historical facts. While it’s evident Jefferson did extensive research for GIRL ON THE GOLDEN COIN, she doesn’t overwhelm the reader with history. She subtly interweaves historical fact with fiction and it’s easy to read and enjoy. At no point does the reader feel like they are sitting in a history course or will be quizzed at the end. If I have one slight complaint, it’s the reference to Frances not wanting to be Anne Boleyn. As a historian, it felt a bit too modern and while I’m not saying people in the 17th century weren’t aware of Anne Boleyn and her influence, the way Anne Boleyn is spoken of, it’s more towards a modern point of view.

Ultimately, what I adored about Jefferson’s GIRL ON THE GOLDEN COIN is how innocent and real it felt. It’s rare for an author to portray a king as a man and not someone with an abundance of power who can’t take no for an answer. Jefferson gives us a king who is human and we can make a connection with him. It’s easy to develop a crush on him and find him sexy as he comes alive on page and you can’t help but feel a bit jealous of Frances. And yet, when the Duke of Richmond and Lennox makes an appearance, you’re comfortable with him and want him and Frances to ride off into the sunset and live happily ever after. Regardless of which two men you will root for, they are very much alive as you read and it is a testimony to Jefferson’s talent.

I’m not going to lie and will admit how disappointed I felt when I read the last page. Jefferson has written a beautiful novel that will leave you thinking about the characters long after you’ve read the final page.

If you’re a fan of historical fiction I highly recommend Marci Jefferson’s GIRL ON THE GOLDEN COIN. Just be aware: I’m not responsible if you develop a crush on Charles II. show less

An interesting novelization of Frances Stuart's scandalous life in Restoration England. In this version, Frances, a lady serving Charles II's sister Minette in France, initially rejects King Louis XIV and is then charged by him to support an alliance between France and England by becoming Charles II's mistress. While the novel makes for fun reading about the bawdy Restoration period, many of the characterizations seem undeveloped and at odds with historical personalities. Nevertheless, Restoration England never makes for dull reading.

When Frances Stuart turns down the french King, she is sent to England with orders to seduce King Charles II and force through a French-English alliance. Determined to maintain her virtue, she finds a way to give everything to Charles but her virginity. Amazingly, this is an effective strategy and he falls in love with her.

Overall, this was a well written and intriguing book. Although Frances Stuart has been depicted through history as a feather-brain, this book shows her depth and strategy as she struggles to maintain her vows to two warring kings. An interesting historical figure, I have read little about Frances Stuart until now. I look forward to reading more books from Marci Jefferson.

I received a signed copy of this book through show more the publisher at PLA's annual conference. show less

This is a fascinating fictionalized look at Frances Stuart's life. I did not know much about Frances before reading this book so I did some research on her and it made me eager to read this. Frances' face was used as a model for Britannia on British coins and medals. King Charles II of England fell in love with Frances while she was a lady-in-waiting to his wife.

While this is a fictionalized view of Frances Stuart's life, the author does base it on history. There are some unknowns about Frances and I feel like the author did a good job at filling in those unknowns and then explaining to readers her reasoning based on certain sources and known historical facts. I loved how she portrayed everyone in this book. I felt so connected with show more Frances and couldn't help but cheer her on throughout the book.

I would highly recommend this book to historical fiction fans and particularly to people wanting to know more about Frances Stuart. I look forward to reading more from Marci Jefferson.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me the chance to read this book. show less

I found this to be an easy read. It is clear the author did a lot of research about Frances Stuart, which also made it interesting to me since this is a time period (King Charles II) I'm not very familiar with.

I enjoyed the beginning a lot more. As it got closer to the end, it started to plod. But if you like historical novels and this time period, check it out.

I could not wait to get my hands on this novel, and in the end it was just alright. I felt that the Frances Stuart depicted here fell flat and was shallowly written. The novel does follow a well thought out arch and there are many interesting supporting characters, that at times are more interesting than the main character.