The Lost Duchess Kindle Edition

I have to commend the author on the research she did on the subject of the Roanoke Colony and all the latest information on it. I literally lived and breathed with the colonists as they made the long journey to America and struggled for survival in a world inhabited by those that hated them (for the most part). From the Tudor court of Queen Elizabeth to the dangerous paradise of the Caribbean islands to the wilds of Virginia, each scene is lush and vivid with life. The author even brought in some of the latest to come out of archeology and research on the colony like the gold ring and the patch on the map. It all made for a novel that will transport you to another time and place.

I enjoyed the depth of the characters and sweetness of romance in this novel. Everyone was distinct and stood out all on their own. Possessive Elizabeth, dreamy Governor White, determined Emme, and knowledgeable Kit drew me into the story right along with the dramatic surroundings. I felt that Emme and Kit fit each other extremely well. He seemed to be the calm grounding for a floundering Emme. And she provided someone for him to focus on and build a life around besides his son. I'm finding it a bit hard to put into words, but bottom line is the romance was beautiful and the characters breathed with life.

Then there came the ending... The narrative seems to suddenly go from blood-thumping showdown to everything being hunky dory in story land. There are huge questions (at least for me) left unanswered in the end, and I'm not even talking about the fate of the Lost Colonists. And some of the characters get to safety way too easily. There's at least another 50-60 pages of story, I felt, that could have been told. Did all this destroy the book for me? No. It's still a pretty strong novel, but be prepared for a bit of disappointment along the way.

I would recommend this novel to anyone looking for a good historical fiction, as long as you go in knowing that it's not perfect. The historical details, the characters, and the relationships carry it through any disappointment that may arise.

When you need to get away from all that is going on in this world, and especially
the bad news, this is a great book to read. You not only enjoy the history side of it
but you have a great love story that you can hand to your family and not ashamed
of what they may read. It is a good decent book. I pass it to my friends and sometimes
they are long about passing to the next one but they eagerly wait and look forward
to learning and enjoying .

I have been intrigued and slightly obsessed since my teen years with the fate of the 'Lost Colony of Roanoke,' which in the late 1500s became the first English colony in America. Studying more of this era from the Colonial American stand point in high school and for my BA degree in History here in the U.S., I mostly looked at it from an American soil standpoint. I haven't delved as much yet into the background information from the Elizabethan England side of the adventure of colonization.

When I saw the British author and historian Jenny Barden had a book publishing this month that surrounded a lady-in-waiting, Emme, from Queen Elizabeth's I court who joined the team heading to Roanoake, I jumped at the chance to hear their side, so to speak, of Sir Walter Raleigh's quest to the New World.

Jenny opens her sophomore novel, The Lost Duchess, with emotion and heart-wrenching prose that instantly connected me to her protagonist, Emme. Queen Elizabeth I was rather known for her explosive temper, a little like her father, and her impulsive and selfish needs. When something horrible happens to Emme, she is shamed and has to squelch her feelings so as not to anger her queen, for which she serves in close company.

Though Elizabeth I was known for pretty much treating her friends, her ladies-in-waiting, like servants who were to be at her every beck and call, even to the point of not having sex or getting married, Elizabeth was also given to mercy and the emotional needs of her friends as well. As she lets Emme take the voyage to the New World, Emme is given a chance to run from any shame she might have otherwise endured and start her life anew.

The novel is so well-researched and the characters fully dimensional. I felt connected to each of them and felt they were authentic and accurate, even those who were truly from the history books. As Jenny introduces one of her secondary characters from her first novel, Kit, a romance ensues between Emme and he. I felt as if I was reading the tale of two soul mates who fall in love on an epic adventure, not knowing what lied ahead of them in the future.

Jenny's book was full of mystery and intrigue, which made a great historical novel that I didn't want to put down. I liked how she incorporated into the story some of the most up-to-date findings about the Roanoke colony. She offers readers a plausible outcome to a long sought after mystery. Of course, some things are still unanswered, but well...they are unanswered in the history books so while she gives us a possible version, she also lets the novel open to breathe and for readers to come to their own conclusions as well.

I would highly recommend The Lost Duchess to any historical fiction lovers of the Tudor Era but who want a new twist or unique players and storyline or to a readers who like Colonial America history, adventure, and epic novels of histories lost mysteries. It was fully well-written in plot development, character structure, and full of vibrant details that made you feel propelled into the story.

Taking Elizabethan England and the wild, lush land of Virginia and converging them together really gave insight into two totally different worlds and the curiosity of men to explore and conquer. I felt the ocean mist on my face, the heart beat of abandon, the remote environment of the Caribbean, and the hardships of pioneering new land.

This is definitely a book I'll put on my shelves under Colonial America, as more books need written about this time period (ah, which of course is why I am writing one from the 1600s)! It's from a unique perspective, but one that can serve as an example of solidly written historical fiction of this time period. It's full of historical research and details so that it is a wonderful resource and will be a joy to re-read whenever I feel my craving for the mystery of Roanoke start to surface once more.

I was given a copy of this book in exchange for honest review.