Kingdom of Shadows [Paperback]

Barbara Erskine (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 5, 2004

Barbara Erskine's classic bestseller, the successor to Lady of Hay, at last available as a HarperCollins paperback. In a childless and unhappy marriage, Clare Royland is rich and beautiful -- but lonely. And fueling her feelings of isolation is a strange, growing fascination with an ancestress from the distant past. Troubled by haunting inexplicable dreams that terrify -- but also powerfully compel -- her, Clare is forced to look back through the centuries for answers. In 1306, Scotland is at war. Isobel, Countess of Buchan, faces fear and the prospect of untimely death as the fighting surrounds her. But passionate and headstrong, her trials escalate when she is persecuted for her part in crowning Robert the Bruce, her lover. Duncairn, Isobel's home and Clare's beloved heritage, becomes a battleground for passions that span the centuries. As husband Paul's recklessness threatens their security, Clare must fight to save Duncairn, and to save herself from the powers of Isobel...

Editorial Reviews

Review

'Her forte is mood, atmosphere and the toe-curling frisson' Sunday Times

About the Author

Barbara Erskine is the author of Lady of Hay, which has sold well over a million copies worldwide, Kingdom of Shadows, Encounters and Child of the Phoenix. Midnight is a Lonely Place and House of Echoes were shortlisted for the W H Smith Thumping Good Read awards and were followed by Distant Voices and On the Edge of Darkness. Her most recent novels, Whispers in the Sand and Hiding from the Light were both Sunday Times top ten bestsellers. Barbara Erskine's novels have been translated into thirty languages. Barbara Erskine has a degree in mediaeval Scottish history from Edinburgh University. She and her family divide their time between the Welsh borders and their home near the coast of Essex

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Product Details

• Paperback: 768 pages
• Publisher: Harper Collins Pb (April 5, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0007173628
• ISBN-13: 978-0007173624
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 4.3 x 1.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,141,925 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful!, January 13, 2003

By 

Book Lover (SE US) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Kingdom of Shadows (Paperback)

If you like Scottish / English history and/or time travel, you need to read this book! It lead me to investigate the real Isobel and what happened to her. I don't want to give away any spoilers but what the book has Edward I condemning her to really happened!

I've read several other books by Barbara Erskine and highly recommend them all. Lady of Hay is another one that has a story based on real people. The format of the present day character always switching places with the historical person wears a bit thin after a few of her books but I guess if you find a format that works, don't change it!

Highly recommended

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, April 19, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Kingdom of Shadows (Paperback)

First I have to say that it was impossible to get hold of this book because it was out of print. One retailer made me wait for 7 month without any success. One day I ended up in a little bookstore called Shelly Leishman Books in Ottawa and the owner managed to get it for me within 2 weeks. Thank you.

Lady of Hay continues in Child of the Phoenix and Child of the Phoenix goes on in Kingdom of Shadows. Each book is independent of course. What a read. Obviously if people loved the first two books they will go after this one too. It was worth waiting 7.5 months to end up reading in within 2 days.

This book is a must read. I hope that Barbara Erskine will publish a new book soon.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars (3.5) Basic Erskine regression story, July 19, 2008

By 

Misfit (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Kingdom of Shadows (Paperback)

Kingdom of Shadows is a parallel tale of Clare Royland in the 1980's and Isobel Buchan in Scotland at the time of Robert The Bruce in the latter 13th and early 14th century. Clare is married to stock broker Paul Royland who gambled with insider trading and lost and needs to sell Clare's Scottish Castle Duncairn to raise desperately needed funds. Unhappy in her marriage, Clare turns to yoga and meditation and she begins to see visions of the past as Isobel Buchan of Scotland relives her past through Clare.

The retelling of Isobel's life in Scotland, an unhappy marriage and her ultimate affair with Robert the Bruce and capture by Edward I and imprisonment in one of those infamous cages on the castle wall is interwoven with that of the present day Clare whose husband intrigues to have her proven insane so that he can lay claim to her property. Erskine does point out in her notes at the end of the book that Isobel, her crowning of Robert at Scone and capitivy are historical fact, but the affair with Robert is merely supposition by the author.

I did find the story entertaining enough and it kept me reading, but this is definitely not one of Erskine's best -- that would be Child of the Phoenix or Hiding from the Light. While I enjoyed the story set in the 13/14C, I really didn't particularly care for Isobel, she was a little too self centered for me and as for Clare -- likeable enough but bordering on TSTL for putting up with that pompous pig of a husband and not seeing him for what he really was. If you're an Erskine fan and can get your hands on a copy somewhat cheaply go for it, but don't go out of your way either. 3.5 stars.