The
King's Man (Guardians of the Crown #2) by
Alison Stuart
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The second in a tantalising
trilogy from award-winning author Alison Stuart, about warriors, the
wounds they carry and the women that help them heal.
London 1654: Kit Lovell is one of the King’s men, a disillusioned
Royalist who passes his time cheating at cards, living off his wealthy
and attractive mistress and plotting the death of Oliver Cromwell.
Penniless and friendless, Thamsine Granville has lost
everything. Terrified, in pain and alone, she hurls a piece
of brick at the coach of Oliver Cromwell and earns herself an immediate
death sentence. Only the quick thinking of a stranger saves her.
Far from the bored, benevolent rescuer that he seems, Kit plunges
Thamsine into his world of espionage and betrayal – a world that has no
room for falling in love.
Torn between Thamsine and loyalty to his master and King, Kit’s
carefully constructed web of lies begins to unravel. He must make one
last desperate gamble – the cost of which might be his life.
This book is a reflection of the time it was set it. It is full of
turmoil, tragedy, and heartbreak. It is at times poignant, at times
intense and at times heart wrenching.
This reads more like a historical fiction with touches of romance
(enough to make my romantic heart glad) then a historical romance but
it is brilliantly written and thoughtfully presented.
The
English
Civil War is a terrible time in England's history, where
brother turned against brother, neighbours sold each other out and
friends became enemies. This is the setting we find Kit and Thamsine
in, thrust in a play beyond their control, where betrayals were common
and trust was a precious and often lost commodity.
Kit is everything the book says he is - a scoundrel, a rogue and a
charmer, but he also has a secret agenda and is beholden to a very
powerful man, unable to control the ebbs and flows of his own life. We
see Kit struggle with his integrity as he dances to a puppet master's
tune and ache for him as he tries without success to do what is right,
living with his conscience and believing that he is trading his
integrity for the life of a loved one. He suffers so much throughout
this story and my heart breaks for him as tragedy after tragedy befalls
him. At the core of it, he is a good man, with strong morals and an
upright sense of honor. It drives him to do the things he does even if
that does not keep the nightmares at bay.
I am in awe of Thamsine. She is thrust into a world where betrayal is a
common currency and she has no one to trust. The one person she does
choose to trust betrays her and sets her on a path much like Kit's.
Thamsine is a survivor. She's strong and she has hope. While she finds
herself in dire circumstances, driven by desperation, she does what she
can to survive. In fact, she's so strong, she makes my teeth ache. I
could never be the person she is, to have endured all she endured,
suffered what she suffered and still stay the caring, compassionate
person she is.
I don't normally mention the villain of the story, but Morton was a
very villainous villain. He was evil to the core and deserved
everything he got for all the pain and suffering he inflicted. Ms
Stuart did a great job painting him with a very black brush. He had no
redeeming qualities whatsoever.
Ms Stuart has once again managed to bring the
English
Civil War to life in this story and I look forward to the
next in the series. I'm certain it will be another stunning
read.
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Other books in the series
About the author
Alison
Stuart is an award winning Australian writer of cross genre historicals
with heart. Whether duelling with dashing cavaliers or waywards ghosts,
her books provide a reader with a meaty plot and characters who have to
strive against adversity, always with the promise of happiness
together. Alison is a lapsed lawyer who has worked in the military and
fire service, which may explain a predisposition to soldier heroes. She
lives with her own personal hero and two needy cats and likes nothing
more than a stiff gin and tonic and a walk along the sea front of her
home town.
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