Customer Reviews

Hugh and Bess: A Love Story

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

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.

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.

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.

OK: I'm an admitted medievalism geek, especially the British Isles and Normandy. And I'll read anything that remotely touches on the life or impact of Simon de Montfort. If you know HIS story and place in English history, this story and the era in which it occurs (after deMontfort by two generations) will have more impact. If you don't know de Montfort from Montbatten, no worries: it's a great read with much more than the usual amount of verifiable research. The narrative was well written, with only a few rough spots that aren't dealbreakers, and the action is credible. I flew through the book and it took me completely away from 21st century woes. All right, I'm done now. Enjoy!

As a huge fan of Higginbottom's first novel, I was eagerly anticipating her second novel and was pleased to discover that it was sort of a continuation on her last, dealing with who we know in history as Hugh le Despencer III (at least of the 14th Century). Once again, Higginbottom did not disappoint her readers providing a vivid scene of royal life in the 1300s. Furthermore, her writing conveyed to me the same strong emotions of life and has (in my humble opinion) done the difficult task of bringing these long-ago historical people to life. I won't spoil with details, but it is a great read, perfect for curling up on the couch with a warm drink.

My only one complaint is that it wasn't longer because I thoroughly enjoyed it and was sad to put it down!