As the eldest daughter of the new Earl of Salisbury, young Bess de Montacute is anticipating a suitable match. When King Edward III and her father choose Hugh le Despenser, the son and grandson of disgraced traitors, as her husband, she is aghast. Meanwhile, Hugh must give up the woman he loves in order to marry the reluctant Bess. Far apart in age and haunted by the past, Hugh and Bess must somehow make their marriage work. But just as they grow closer together, they are threatened by a merciless enemy that endangers all whom they hold dear. Set against the chivalry and pageantry of the fourteenth-century court of Edward III, Hugh and Bess is a story of love and loss, of letting go of the past-and of embracing the future.
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". . . Filled with a gentle, dry, very subtle sense of humor . . . I was awash in nostalgia after reading this book." -- Dear Author, January 2, 2008
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
"It looks as though I'll be the first Hugh le Depenser in four generations to die in bed.",
By Luan Gaines "luansos" (Dana Point, CA USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER) (VINE VOICE) (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)
This review is from: Hugh and Bess: A Love Story (Paperback)
Following her successful The Traitor's Wife, Higginbotham focuses once more on the Despensers, this time the son of Hugh le Despenser, infamous lover of Edward II who shocks England with his outrageous affair and demands for the king's favor. Flaunting his position, Hugh le Despenser is despised, brilliant but often blamed for Edward's problems, a larger-than-life figure that shames the queen by his very presence at court. Eventually the foolish king will go too far, become careless, Queen Isabella and her consort, Roger Mortimer pursuing king and lover as they attempt to leave the country. Cornered with Edward, Hugh meets his fate at the end, drawn and quartered, as is his father, the elder Hugh le Despenser. Edward is imprisoned, the queen and Mortimer ruling for the child king, Edward III. A third Despenser avoids the fate of his traitorous father and grandfather. The hated Hugh's son, a promising young man left to guard the castle and hold out against Mortimer's forces, young Hugh successfully wins the support of the locals. Forever tainted by the sins of his father, Hugh could not be more different in temperament, condensing all the best qualities of father and grandfather. After four years of imprisonment, no longer considered a threat to the throne, the queen permits the release of young Hugh le Despenser. A loyal citizen and able soldier, by the time Isabella and Mortimer have faded into history, Hugh fights at the behest of Edward III, consistently proving his mettle and winning the respect of the court. In seeking a royal-approved marriage, however, Hugh faces his most daunting task, winning the affections of the immature Bess de Montecute, daughter of the Earl of Salisbury, one of Edward's court favorites. Forsaking the commoner he has loved since his youth to do his duty and marry suitably, Hugh could not be more patient with his new bride. But young Bess is solely unprepared for her position as wife, although she readily adapts to the management of Hugh's estates. Rather, their private relationship continues to be a hurdle until Bess realizes the extraordinary opportunity that is hers, a marriage of love, not just duty. It is this unfolding romance that the author portrays in her novel. In an age of violence and unpredictability, when a soldier's life can end with one stroke of a sword on the battlefield, Hugh and Bess share an exceptional marriage, certainly an anomaly in their society. Life and death married to fate, the 14th century offers no longevity; in that context, even the rare love affair of Hugh and Bess le Despenser is sundered by the great pestilence that decimates almost a third of the country. Higginbotham captures this bright moment in time. Luan Gaines/ 2008.
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Not long enough!,
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This review is from: Hugh and Bess: A Love Story (Paperback)
Though I did find this a good read, I was disappointed in the lenth of the story. (Yes, it states 187 pages in the description.)I love historical fiction from this time period and look forward to new novels as they come out. This book just doesn't have the depth of most of them.I loved her last novel, The Traitor's Wife.
7 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Hugh and Bess: Just a Story,
By Kristen "historical fiction junkie" (Central Pennsylvania) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Hugh and Bess: A Love Story (Paperback)
This short book is a simply written mediocre story about two members of the nobility set during the reign of Edward III. The usual factors in a good medieval-period fictional account of history are present, but not terribly well developed. Hugh and Bess will deliver a love story that takes a while to bloom, a little court intrigue and politics, war with the French & long separations, and descriptions of opulent clothing. It's a bit like reading an account of how your neighbors met each other under awkward circumstances, took a while to really take to each other, but eventually had a happy marriage & lived pretty normal lives. Good for them... but I'm not sure I'd write a book about it. To be clear, this is not a badly written book and it isn't boring. It's just a book that will do for killing an afternoon or two. If you are looking for some easy to read escapism with a touch of romance (sans the bodice ripping and sex you find in airport "historical romances"), Hugh and Bess will do a fine job of entertaining you for a day or two.
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Sir Hugh, Lady Despenser, Hanley Castle, Lady Welles, Joan of Kent, Sir Guy, Lady Isabella, Earl of Salisbury, Queen Isabella, Elizabeth de Burgh, Thomas Holland, William de Montacute, Queen Philippa, Caerphilly Castle, Tewkesbury Abbey, Jean de Vienne, Countess of Salisbury, Sir Thomas, Lord of Glamorgan, Master Hugh, Good Lord, Windsor Castle, Countess of Montfort, King Edward, King Philip Browse Sample Pages:
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Sir Hugh, Lady Despenser, Hanley Castle, Lady Welles, Joan of Kent, Sir Guy, Lady Isabella, Earl of Salisbury, Queen Isabella, Elizabeth de Burgh, Thomas Holland, William de Montacute, Queen Philippa, Caerphilly Castle, Tewkesbury Abbey, Jean de Vienne, Countess of Salisbury, Sir Thomas, Lord of Glamorgan, Master Hugh, Good Lord, Windsor Castle, Countess of Montfort, King Edward, King Philip Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
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