 Thank you to Rachel from Rachel's Random Resources for inviting me to participate in the blog blitz for this charming collection of Christmas novellas.   Tudor Christmas Tidings Make Merry at Court …with three Tudor Christmas stories! In Christmas at Court Sir John Talbot and Lady Alice’s secret betrothal must wait until Henry Tudor claims the throne. Next in Secrets of the Queen's Lady the lady-in-waiting to Anne of Cleves is unexpectedly reunited with a handsome—younger—diplomat at the palace’s festivities! And in His Mistletoe Lady Catherine seeks help from a mysterious Spaniard to free her father in time for Christmas! Purchase Links Amazon UK / Amazon. com / B&N / Kobo My thoughts: This was a truly delightful collection of Christmas stories written by three very talented and experienced romance authors. All three stories are set in the Tudor times. I loved all of them and would find it difficult to choose a favourite- they all deal with slightly different aspects and challenges a couple deeply in love would have faced in those times. In Christmas at Court seventeen-year-old Lady Alice knows her time to get married has come, but it can only be done in line with her family wishes and the permission of King RichardIII. Her parents married for love and had a wonderful life together. How she would have liked a marriage like this for herself, even though when her mother falls ill and dies, her father's grief is almost unbearable. Lady Alice lives in very uncertain and dangerous times and must keep her wits about her, if she wants to survive. When the Dowager Queen tells her she is to be bethrothed to a young nobleman from the North, a son of one of King Richard's most loyal supporters, Lady Alice wonders what kind of game she is being made a part of. And it is a political game with very high stakes for all involved. By their betrothalSir John and Lady Alice's families promise to support young Henry Tudor in his attempts to take the throne and marry Princess Elizabeth York, the daughter of former King. This way Lancasters and Yorks will be united. It was fascinating to read about the betrothal customs and its significance in those times. Sir John and Lady Alice obey their families wishes, but can they trust each other? and could it be that in this political game where their feelings shouldn't matter at all, they can find true love? Secrets of the Queen's Lady takes us to the times of King Henry VIII and the court of his 'discarded' wife Anne of Cleves. Their marriage was annulled by the King who had alredy met and quite probably fallen in love (or lust) with his next wife Catherine Howard. Despite the very public humiliation of being judged and found too plain for the King's affections, Anne of Cleves might have had a lucky escape- she did outlive all of his wives, after all. Lady Philippa is one of the few English ladies who was the Queen Anne's lady-in-waiting and did not abandon her service after the marrriage was annulled. She is sweet, kind, intelligent, and dutiful. Her family chose her husband for her when she was but a child. Unfortunately, the marriage was very unhappy, something Lady Philippa has been hiding from the world for years. Even after her husband's death, she protects his reputation. When Sir Christopher (Kit) comes to spend Christmas festivities at the palace of Anne of Cleves and reminds her that they met before, Lady Philippa unexpectedly feels attracted to this young and handsome diplomat. Their feelings are mutual, but his family, like hers in the past, would like him to put the family duty first and marry another noble lady. I loved the fact that Lady Pippa was older than Kit. The old saying that love knows no age has never been truer than in this story of the two dutiful soulmates who deserve their own happiness and happily ever after. I didn't know that Christmas trees was a German, not English tradition at the time, so setting the story at the court of Anne of Cleves allowed this much beloved element of Christmas decorations make its appearance. His Mistletoe Lady was such a compelling read- I raced through the pages keen to find out how the story of Lady Catherine Greaves, daughter of a Spanish lady-in-waiting at the court of Queen Catherine of Aragorn who married an English nobleman, and Senor Diego de Vasquez, a handsome Spanish widower who cames to the court of Queen Mary and King Phillip and has a secret mission of his own. It was such an interesting mix of the two cultures and how they sometimes blended, sometimes clashed at the court. I truly admire the research and thought that the authors put in in order to let us experience Christmas festivities in Tudor times -with all their feasts, games, music, dances, and sometimes mischief, and let us feel the joy this festive season brought in those uncertain times. And love? Well, love truly knows no age and no borders, but is based on trust and mutual respect, something Blythe Gifford, Jenni Fletcher and Amanda McCabe wonderfully show in this entertaining collection. About the authors: About Jenni Fletcher Jenni Fletcher is from the north coast of Scotland and now lives in Yorkshire where she writes historical romance novels. She studied English at Cambridge University before doing a PhD on Edwardian literature & psychology at Hull. She has been nominated for 4 RoNA awards and won for Short Romantic Fiction in 2020. In her spare time she loves baking and, of course, reading. Social Media Links twitter @JenniAuthor / facebook  About Blythe Gifford After many years in public relations, advertising, and marketing, Blythe Gifford started writing seriously after a corporate layoff. Ten years and one layoff later, she became an overnight success when she sold to the Harlequin Historical line. Her books, set in the 14th to 17th centuries, typically incorporate real historical events and characters. The Chicago Tribune has called her work “the perfect balance between history and romance.” Blythe lives and works along Chicago’s lakefront. website / facebook / twitter / pinterest / instagram About Amanda McCabe Amanda wrote her first romance at the age of sixteen--a vast historical epic starring all her friends as the characters, written secretly during algebra class (and her parents wondered why math was not her strongest subject...) She's never since used algebra, but her books have been nominated for many awards, including the RITA Award, the Romantic Times BOOKReviews Reviewers' Choice Award, the Booksellers Best, the National Readers Choice Award, and the Holt Medallion. She lives in Santa Fe with a Poodle, a cat, a wonderful husband, and a very and far too many books and royal memorabilia collections. When not writing or reading, she loves taking dance classes, collecting cheesy travel souvenirs, and watching the Food Network--even though she doesn't cook. Amanda also writes as Laurel McKee for Grand Central Publishing, the Elizabethan Mystery Series as Amanda Carmack, and the Manor Cat Mystery Series as Eliza Casey. instagram / pinterest / facebook Comments are closed.
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