The Eagle's Daughter

Two princesses from Byzantium enter into the royal family of the newly created Holy Roman Empire , and are swept (or sweep themselves, rather) into a grand adventure for the security of the realm. This is how historical fiction should read. I liked the characters, particularly the main one, and I was constantly hoping for the best while fearing the worst. This is a good book to read if you’re in GRR Martin withdrawal—it’s not as enthrallingly epic, but the court politics are realistic and the battles are well-written and suspenseful.

This is the only one of this series I have had in a print copy; in fact, until I ran across the Kindle editions I wasn't aware it counted as part of a series.

Set in 970 and beyond, it deals with the marriage of Princess Theophanu of Byzantium to the Holy Roman Emperor, Otto II. The book's focus is on one of Theophanu's companions, her widowed cousin Aspasia, who accompanies her to Germany and ends up as teacher to the children of the court. This is a straight historical novel, with no fantastic elements, unlike the first instalment in the series.

Recommended.

This book was better written than I thought it might be. Set at the Holy Roman court in the 970's, the career of an imperial tutor, imported from Byzantium, is explored.