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The Fire of Winter

by DK Marley

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532,953,144 (4.33)None
She is known as Lady Macbeth.What leads her down the path of murder?What secrets fire her destiny?Gruah, the granddaughter of King Cìnéad III of the Royal Clan Alpin, marries two men in less than six months, one she loves and one she hates; one in secret, the other arranged by the High King of Scotland. At the age of eighteen, she lays her palm upon the ancient stone of Scone and sees her destiny as Queen of Scotland, and she vows to do whatever necessary to see her true love, Macbeth macFindlaech, beside her on the throne.Amid the fiery times and heated onslaughts from Denmark and England, as the rule of Scotland hangs in the balance, Gruah seeks to win the throne and bring revenge upon the monsters of her childhood, no matter the cost or amount of blood tainting her own hands; yet, an unexpected meeting with the King called the Confessor causes her to question her bloody path and doubt her once blazing pagan faith. Will she find redemption or has the blood of her past fire-branded her soul?The story weaves the play by William Shakespeare with the actualhistory of Macbeth and his Queen in 11th-century Scotland. "...a woman's story at a winter's fire..." (Macbeth, Act III, Scene IV)"This beautifully written reworking of the Macbeth tale told from Lady Macbeth's point-of-view flows from the page and you quickly become immersed in the politics and intrigues of feudal Scotland as she fights for her rightful place and her true love! A mesmerising read that grips from start to finish and Gruah is now one of my all-time favourite literary crushes. " - Iain Leonard, ARC Reviewer"Brilliantly conceived and beautifully written, The Fire of Winter is a tale not to be missed by lovers of Shakespeare, lovers of history, or lovers of the written word." - Riana Everly, Author of Teaching Eliza and Through a Different Lens… (more)
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The author successfully wields her very first sentence to create a special place for Gruah right in our hearts. She not only brings the Shakespearean Lady Macbeth to life, but also informs us about the circumstances that left her with as good as zero options.

Many of us have always wondered about Lady Macbeth’s side of the story. Thanks Ms. Marley for giving the much needed answers – about Lady Macbeth’s behaviour and her subsequent demonisation.

Gruah’s love for her motherland propels her to a pedestal amongst men who fought either for the fortunes or for their personal honour.

The plot is strong, characters stronger and dialogues powerful. The is pace perfect, but the long sermons drag the book down by half a point.
Apart from other historical elements, the author uses the witch-burning metaphor brilliantly to illustrate Christianity’s impact on womenfolk: common and noble. Also, the map of Scotland as well as the Clann Alpin family are very useful.

This is a MUST READ!!!

Thanks NetGalley and Ms Marley for the book. This is an honest review.
P.S.: This book contains child abuse, explicit language and violence. ( )
  celejewels | Jul 21, 2021 |
“The Fire of Winter” by D.K. Marley is a retelling of Shakespeare’s “Macbeth,” told from Lady Macbeth’s perspective. It is also told in a more modern way (without all of the flowery, Old English words and speeches), making it accessible to today’s readers. I am only somewhat familiar with Shakespeare’s original “Macbeth” from reading it in high school. From what I remember, it seems like Ms. Marley stays true to the basic plot, characters and storyline of Shakespeare’s work.

Our main character in “The Fire of Winter” is Gruah (who becomes Lady Macbeth). I love the idea of seeing the story from her perspective and finding out what leads her to commit the awful deeds that she does. If you’re a Harry Potter fan, Gruah can be described as a Slytherin through-and-through. She is power hungry and ambitious, to the point where it becomes an all-consuming obsession and seems to drive her to madness. I find it fascinating that Shakespeare wrote a woman to machinate these elaborate schemes that killed kings and who worked the political system, in a time when women were meant to just provide heirs and stay at home embroidering. Gruah is certainly ahead of her time. She would definitely be a feminist if she were alive today.

I grew anxious as the events unfurled, especially during the nail biting climax (“double, double toil and trouble”)! I would definitely recommend this book to lovers of history and Shakespeare!

Content: This is a general market book. I would rate it PG-13. Some examples of the content are: mention of ale and a man’s loins; a lady says she will be naked in bed; a man talks about bedding a woman; a woman is called a “b****”; “d***” and “hell” are used; “bastard” is used of a child born out of wedlock; a girl was raped in her past: mention of a woman’s breasts; a fade to black sex scene; a woman is raped, not much detail and it’s fade to black.

Rating: I give this book 4 stars.

I want to thank D.K. Marley and Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours for the complimentary copy of this book for review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I express in this review are my own. This is in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s CFR 16, Part 255. ( )
  Meganleigh844 | Aug 7, 2019 |
Gruah knew she was destined for greatness from a young age from seeing her destiny after touching the Stone of Scone. However, Scotland is treacherous and after watching her mother murdered, Gruah escapes to the forest and is taken care of by outcasts, Hecate and her daughters. Gruah and Hecate practice the old ways of Cailleach. The Goddess keeps a flame burning in Gruah. When Gruah is married off by her father to Gille Comgain, Gruah knows that she must find a way to be with her true love, Macbeth in order to fulfill her destiny. Through brute force, manipulation and violence, Gruah claims what is hers, but at a price.

History and literature combine to tell the tale of a woman who helped to shape Scotland's history and later become immortalized through Shakespeare's work. Through DK Marley's writing, the life of 11th century Gruah comes to life. Gruah's character is strong and unbending, stopping at nothing to fulfill her destiny that will end with her enemies dead and her and her true love as King and Queen of Scotland. However, Gruah is so filled with vengeance that her destiny will come with a high cost. Gruah's path seemed like such a slippery slope where one death only causes more death. In this sense, the realities of 11th century Scotland are brought to life. With every decision Gruah made, I kept waiting for her to learn her lesson and finally reach contentment and peacefulness, this is a long journey for Gruah. I enjoyed the continued theme of a woman's will guiding the men of Scotland who believed that they held control. From Gruah to her unassuming cousin Donella to the 'witches' Hecate and her daughters, it was their will that drove the actions of others.

This book was received for free in return for an honest review. ( )
  Mishker | Jul 29, 2019 |
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She is known as Lady Macbeth.What leads her down the path of murder?What secrets fire her destiny?Gruah, the granddaughter of King Cìnéad III of the Royal Clan Alpin, marries two men in less than six months, one she loves and one she hates; one in secret, the other arranged by the High King of Scotland. At the age of eighteen, she lays her palm upon the ancient stone of Scone and sees her destiny as Queen of Scotland, and she vows to do whatever necessary to see her true love, Macbeth macFindlaech, beside her on the throne.Amid the fiery times and heated onslaughts from Denmark and England, as the rule of Scotland hangs in the balance, Gruah seeks to win the throne and bring revenge upon the monsters of her childhood, no matter the cost or amount of blood tainting her own hands; yet, an unexpected meeting with the King called the Confessor causes her to question her bloody path and doubt her once blazing pagan faith. Will she find redemption or has the blood of her past fire-branded her soul?The story weaves the play by William Shakespeare with the actualhistory of Macbeth and his Queen in 11th-century Scotland. "...a woman's story at a winter's fire..." (Macbeth, Act III, Scene IV)"This beautifully written reworking of the Macbeth tale told from Lady Macbeth's point-of-view flows from the page and you quickly become immersed in the politics and intrigues of feudal Scotland as she fights for her rightful place and her true love! A mesmerising read that grips from start to finish and Gruah is now one of my all-time favourite literary crushes. " - Iain Leonard, ARC Reviewer"Brilliantly conceived and beautifully written, The Fire of Winter is a tale not to be missed by lovers of Shakespeare, lovers of history, or lovers of the written word." - Riana Everly, Author of Teaching Eliza and Through a Different Lens

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