The Winter Mantle (2007 Edition) [Import] [Paperback]

Elizabeth Chadwick (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: 2007

Fresh from his defeat of King Harold at the Battle of Hastings, William of Normandy has returned home in triumph, accompanied by the English nobles he cannot trust to leave behind. For Waltheof of Huntingdon, however, rebellion is not at the forefront of his thoughts. From the moment he catches sight of Judith, daughter of the King's formidable sister, he knows he has found his future wife. When Waltheof saves Judith's life, it is clear that the attraction is mutual. But marriage has little to do with love in mediaeval Europe. William refuses to let the couple wed and Waltheof joins an uprising against him. William crushes the rebellion but decides the best way to keep Waltheof in check is to agree to the marriage. But is the match between Saxon earl and Norman lady one made in heaven or hell? As their children grow, Waltheof and Judith must choose between their feelings for each other and older loyalties...Based on an astonishing true story, THE WINTER MANTLE reaches from the turbulent reign of William the Conqueror to the high drama of the crusades...

Product Details

• Paperback: 512 pages
• Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group; New Ed edition (2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 075153840X
• ISBN-13: 978-0751538403
• Product Dimensions: 5.1 x 7.8 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.1 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,449,470 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Elizabeth Chadwick is a best selling, award winning author of historical fiction. A born storyteller, her first novel The Wild Hunt won a Betty Trask Award in 1990. She has been four times shortlisted for the RNA Award in the UK for the best mainstream romantic novel. Her book The Scarlet Lion was selected as one of the top ten works of historical fiction of the decade by Richard Lee, founder of The Historical Novel Society.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

49 of 50 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Happy endings elusive; intrigue and love plentiful, October 5, 2004

By 

Kelly Cannon Hess (Dallas, TX United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Winter Mantle (Hardcover)

I had always wondered what happened to the Saxon nobility after the Norman Conquest of England in 1066. Elizabeth Chadwick offers a partial explanation in this rousing tale of medieval love, war and political intrigue. Like many of Chadwick's novels, it is loosely based on real historical figures and events.

It's a few months after the Conquest, and, among the Saxon nobles being held in Rouen, France by a distrustful King William is Earl Waltheof of Huntingdon. The King's niece, Judith, immediately feels drawn to this giant of a man with his Viking looks. Waltheof is even more certain of his own desires: He decides then and there that he will have Judith for a wife. When William refuses to grant him Judith's hand, Waltheof takes part in a rebellion against his new king. The rebellion is put down, but William comes to see the prudence of a familial alliance with this young earl who is so beloved by the English people.

Now married, Judith and Waltheof face the real challenges of their relationship. Their loyalties are nearly opposite, and the strong personalities that made courtship exciting are a hindrance to wedded happiness. When Waltheof makes another misstep, Judith must make the most wrenching choice of her life, one whose consequences will endure for her lifetime and beyond.

Love isn't always enough to bring about a "happily ever after," and at no time was this more true than in the Middle Ages. The dilemmas faced by the real people in THE WINTER MANTLE are compelling, heartbreaking, and anything but black and white. Yet not all hope is lost, and each character finds, in the end, his or her own version of closure.

As if being the consummate storyteller wasn't enough, Elizabeth Chadwick is a master of medieval history. If you want to know how they really lived, loved, fought and died, there's no more pleasurable way to find out. Sharon Kay Penman is mesmerizing, and meticulous with dates and events, but she doesn't bring us nearly as close to the splendor and grit of the medieval world, nor to the peculiarities of the medieval mindset.

One final note: In case you don't already know it, there are TWO Elizabeth Chadwicks, and Amazon does a poor job of differentiating between them. Amazon has even been known to offer a book by this EC along with one by that "other" EC as a "Better Together" selection. Rule of Thumb: If it has a lurid title, like ELUSIVE LOVERS or WANTON ANGEL, it was not written by the Elizabeth Chadwick who wrote THE WINTER MANTLE, LORDS OF THE WHITE CASTLE and THE LOVE KNOT, among many other greats.

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Recommended reading, March 31, 2003

By 

Detra Fitch (USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Winter Mantle (Hardcover)

This title began in the year 1067. King William (the Conqueror) had just triumphed at Normandy. One of his young noble hostages was Waltheof of Huntingdon. Waltheof set his eye on William's niece, Judith. During this time of war and turmoil, their lives would be tested often for loyalty toward each other and their king.

The book continued into the next generation. Matilda, Waltheof's oldest daughter, married Simon de Senlis. Simon had once been Waltheof's squire. Old King William had died and the eldest son was now king of England, while the middle son was king of Normandy. Some believed the eldest son should have received BOTH kingdoms, thus the chaos continued. Matilda and Simon would now be tested. Treason may lurk around any corner and being at court was more dangerous than anyone today could possibly imagine.

Author Elizabeth Chadwick's pen has taken real people from the past and written an awesome tale of the love, hatred, and betrayal, that existed during the past of England and Normandy. The author kept all the details she could find of the people in this novel true and only added her own fiction to the many parts of history that would unable to be found.

I found this book to be extremely well done. I am happy to recommend it highly to everyone!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars cohesive delightful historical tale, April 15, 2003

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Winter Mantle (Hardcover)

In 1067, William the Conqueror has become the King of England and Normandy. To secure his hard-earned throne, he holds hostage many local nobles including the Earl Waltheof Siwardsson of Huntingdon, who remains a noble because he did not fight at Hastings. Shockingly, Waltheof finds he desires William's Norman niece, Judith and even more surprisingly they make a match of it even while treachery lurks behind every niche and cranny.

Two decades later, loyalty has become even more complex as William recently died and his two kingdoms divided between his older sons. Many of the Conqueror's followers believe that the middle son should have received nothing instead of sitting on the Normandy throne. Waltheof's oldest daughter, Matilda marries her father's former squire Simon de Senlis. Matilda and Simon want to live and love in peace, but once again treachery and shifting alliances make life as dangerous if not more so than when her father was an English hostage in a Norman court.

Though the story of William and his sons have been told numerous times few efforts match the thrilling saga provided by Elizabeth Chadwick. The story line focuses on people wanting peace and love yet caught up in an age of immense chaos and turmoil fostered by treachery, hatred and betrayal. Real people and recorded information of the period provide fans with an exciting historical novel that is probably as much factual as fictional, all elements interwoven into a cohesive delightful tale that William readers will cherish.

Harriet Klausner