Formidable grasp of characters and their inner lives

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	• Here Be Dragons Sharon Kay Penman Ballantine Books, 1993 - 720 pages average customer review:based on 148 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Formidable grasp of characters and their inner lives

The mark of a great novelist is their ability to make you feel for the characters - their pain becomes your pain, their happiness becomes your happiness. Here Be Dragons drew me into a world of kings, princes, warriors and maidens - and made me feel for the characters, deeply. Rarely have I had such a profound experience.

The story of Here Be Dragons takes place in 13th century England and Wales, sprinkled with a colourful cast - Llewellyn the Great, King John of England, Joanna Plantagenet, King Philip of France, the fiery Eleanor of Aquitaine, to name just a few. It's not necessary to be familiar with the political context of the time, as the novel does a good job of setting the scene. The heart of the story, however, lies in the characters.

Penman is a master of believable characterization - even though we know very little of this period, she manages to create characters that are fresh, complex, endearing and truly multi-dimensional. While many a novelist would have resorted to historical clichés - John, the "evil" king, Joanna, the alienated wife - Penman casts history in a fresh light, creating personas with shortcomings and virtues, joys and tribulations.

By the time the novel ends, it's hard to rip yourself away from the people you've come to know so well. Luckily, there are two sequels in the series - Falls the Shadow and The Reckoning, both equally as brilliant.

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Loved it . . .

Sharon Kay Penman is incredible, again. I really liked this book. Probably not quite as good as Sunne in Splendour, but a fantastic story about real historical figures that prior to this book I had never even heard of. I empathize with some of the reviewers who indicate the book drags a little in the middle, which it does, but I think the ending makes up for it! Ultimately, this book is a great story and I highly recommend it.

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Like traveling through time

After reading Katherine by Anya Seton I was in search of a novel in the same tradition, historical fiction, well researched and gripping.

With Here Be Dragons Sharon Kay Penman accomplishes just that.

Her descriptions of King John are incredible. He becomes human, at times a despicable human, but nontheless human, subject to the same jealousies, love, and fears as anyone else....with the added stress of ruling an empire.

The charecters of Joanna and her prince are no less colorful. Their love story was not only a real one, but Penman makes is accessible to the reader...in the same tradition as Seton. Penman likes to depict strong female charecters from history...these are real people, with extraordinary lives.

I love this book, and will return to it many times to read and read again. I'd recommend this to anyone who really wants to escape into what they are reading...and of course learn a few things along the way.

The whole series is well researched and well written!

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Expertly blends history and romance!

This is not a war novel and it is not a romance novel. It is, IMO, the perfect blend of historical fiction and romance. Although the novel is centered around the true love story of Joanna, daughter of King John, and Llewellyn, unofficial Prince of Wales, there is so much more to this epic novel. You are caught up in the world Penman creates. The descriptions are so lush and vivid it's like reading a movie. I absolutely love this story and highly recommend it!

Too long

Good book but too long. Begins to be more of a task to finish than an enjoyable adventure about half way through the book.

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reviews: 1, page 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11

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