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Title: Time and Chance by Sharon Kay Penman ISBN: 0-345-39672-3 Publisher: Ballantine Books Pub. Date: 04 February, 2003 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $15.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.74 (39 reviews)
Rating: 2
Summary: A Definite Let Down
Comment: I absolutely agree with the reviewer of March 12, from Alexandria, Va. This sequel to "When Christ and His Saints Slept" was quite a disappointment. After waiting for five years for the sequel, "Time and Chance" was not at all what had been expected. The characters were two-dimensional; no depth whatsoever. Although the book was read from cover to cover, the anticipation was dissolved within the first chapter. All the other historical novels by Ms. Penman are such classics- this story of Henry II and Eleanor was 'blah'. Hate to say it, but chances are I won't read the third book in the triology. Too bad the generous writing of her Welsh series wasn't continued.
Rating: 4
Summary: A little off the pace, but still good
Comment: With "Time and Chance", Sharon Kay Penman comes back to her roost as a entertaining historical novelist. This book, the second in a planned trilogy concerning the lives and rule of Henry II of England and his consort Eleanor of Aquitaine, starts off pretty much where its predecessor, "When Christ And His Saints Slept" left off, with the twenty-one-year-old Henry firmly on the throne of England. Penman, as usual, deftly steers the reader through fifteen years, the centerpiece being the conflict between Henry and his chancellor turned Archbishop of Canterbury Thomas Becket. As other reviewers have noted, Penman has always had the gift of making the predictable suspenseful, and that's extremely hard to do in a context where an author knows the majority of her audience is familiar with the territory she's traversing. I will, however, disagree with the assessment of her treatment of Becket. Certainly any book dealing with Henry II has to cover Becket, but Penman has always made her royalty and relatives of royalty the main characters, and the point of view will always be from those characters. Henry is shown as not knowing Becket very well, and Penman simply puts the reader in Henry's position.
Not that "Time and Chance" is perfect, however. Penman is developing the romance novelist habit of using dialogue as an historical lecture, which is annoying. Also, the fictional characters of Ranulf Fitz Roy and his family (including the straight-outta-Harlequin-named wife Rhiannon) is another ploy used by lesser historical novelists for a "ooh, just look where I happened to be!" overview of history, although to be fair Penman doesn't have Ranulf showing up at every major event. "Time and Chance" is not Penman's strongest work, but she's still one of the best when it comes to making medieval history fascinating, readable, and human.
Rating: 5
Summary: Historical Fiction at its best
Comment: If you enjoy historical fiction, try this one. The writing is lighter than George (Autobiography of Henry VIII, Cleopatra, Mary Queen of Scots) but the history is there, and for the most part, accurate. Her characters are well developed, and story line interesting. It is one of those books I was sad to reach the end.
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Title: When Christ and His Saints Slept by Sharon Kay Penman ISBN: 0345396685 Publisher: Ballantine Books Pub. Date: 06 February, 1996 List Price(USD): $15.95 |
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Title: Dragon's Lair: A Medieval Mystery by Sharon Kay Penman ISBN: 0399150773 Publisher: Putnam Pub Group Pub. Date: 09 October, 2003 List Price(USD): $23.95 |
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Title: Cruel as the Grave by SHARON KAY PENMAN ISBN: 0345434226 Publisher: Ballantine Books Pub. Date: 05 October, 1999 List Price(USD): $12.95 |
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Title: The Reckoning by SHARON KAY PENMAN ISBN: 0345378881 Publisher: Ballantine Books Pub. Date: 06 October, 1992 List Price(USD): $15.95 |
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Title: Sunne in Splendour by Sharon Kay Penman ISBN: 0345363132 Publisher: Ballantine Books Pub. Date: 14 January, 1990 List Price(USD): $15.95 |
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