A Prisoner of Versaille, Reviewed
November 10, 2009
This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
A Prisoner of Versaille
Thomas Nelson (September 1, 2009)
by
Golden Keyes Parsons
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
In her deep plowing of the heart, moving from tears one moment to laughter the next, Golden will touch your heart with her dynamic Bible teaching, combined with her vivid personal examples, moving from tears one moment, to laughter the next, all the while communicating the message that God is faithful–keep trusting Him. She has a passion to communicate the Word of God in such a manner that will lead to godly living.
Golden, and her husband, Blaine, have just retired as pastors at Faith Mountain Fellowship Church in Red River, NM. They have three grown daughters and eight grandchildren. Her testimony and myriad of life experiences lend a touch of authenticity to her teaching. She loves to speak for women’s conferences, seminars, luncheons, retreats and Mother/Daughter events.
If deep Bible teaching that brings the Scriptures alive is what you want, Golden is the speaker you need.
ABOUT THE BOOK
Madeleine’s faith puts her at odds with an intimidating rival: King Louis XIV.
Having fled their homeland of France because of the persecution by Louis XIV, the Clavell family seeks refuge in Switzerland. However, the king is not about to let the recently widowed Madeleine, his childhood sweetheart, escape that easily. He sends musketeers to kidnap her and her oldest son, Philippe, holding them captive in his opulent palace. King Louis is suspicious that Philippe could be his son, and he’s enraged by the growing affection of one of his courtiers for Madeleine.
Will Madeleine escape the king with her life or lose everything that she’s fought so hard to keep?
If you would like to read the first chapter of A Prisoner of Versaille , go HERE
Sally Says: I confess — I chose to review this book because I loved the cover of the first book in the series.
My husband gave me book one, In the Shadow of the Sun King, for Christmas; but I didn’t get around to reading it until October. I found it to be a good debut novel for the author. There were some writing techniques that I thought needed work, but the plot and setting were so different from anything I’d read in Christian fiction that I overlooked the flaws. It was a good book, even if it was about the persecution of Christians — Huguenots — in France. Persecution plots can tend to be a downer, you know?
But what a fantastic surprise A Prisoner of Versailles was. The writing flaws that had distracted me in book one were gone, and the plot was even stronger than the first book with one page-turning adventure after another. The characters were well drawn, the situations real and suspenseful, the history lightly done and fascinating. I consistently found myself wondering how things were going to turn out, how the heroes of the book were going to make it to the end.
What excites me the most was the great step in quality this author took between books one and two. That excites me because authors tend to get better as they go. And book two was great. Really, it was a fantastic read.
I’ve mentioned in the past that English historicals interest me, and I now have to add French historicals. I’ve not seen a lot of that setting though, and I hope Parson keeps writing these. I thoroughly enjoyed A Prisoner of Versailles and will be eagerly watching for book three in the series — and anything else Parson writes.
Comments
2 Responses to “A Prisoner of Versaille, Reviewed”
Thanks, Sally, for your encouraging words about “Prisoner” and most of all, that my writing had improved. I’m working really hard on that, and for someone to notice it — well, it spurs me on. I am so grateful that you took the time to review my book. Thank you!
Golden, I really enjoyed the book. Can’t wait to read the next one.