The book is told from several points of view, but mostly through William's and his wife Matilda's. William comes across as a machine. He seems to have little to no emotion about anything except for his wife, Matilda. He is obsessed with gaining possessions, but there is little else to him. He actually came across as a bit dull and predictable. Even his temper was boring. He did not really keep my interest. I find it hard to believe that someone as famous as William the Conqueror could be that dull. I'm not sure if it is the fault of the author or of the character himself. Perhaps William was not that exciting except for the fact that he conquered England.
His wife Matilda, however, is quite the opposite. I found her fascinating. She was a strong and independent woman who did not let anyone intimidate her. She was passionate and lively, unlike her rather dull husband. However, she is not an entirely likeable character. She does a few things that made my jaw drop. That did not take away anything from the book. If anything, it added to it. She is an entirely human character with human faults. I actually would love to find other books to find with her in them. She was so much more fascinating than her husband.
Overall, I did enjoy this book quite a bit and found myself finishing it within a week. While William as a person was a little dull, the action and battles that he went through are not and I found myself reading just to figure out what would happen to him. I thought it was historically accurate, which is a big plus in my book. I hate historical fiction that completely disregards the facts. I would recommend it for anyone interested in this period or even to someone who has never read about it before, like myself. If you find this book, pick it up, you won't regret it.
The next in the series is The Lion of Justice, which covers the period of the end of the reign of William Rufus and the rise of Henry I until his wife's death. Again, this is a period I knew nothing about. I actually knew nothing about Henry's relatively successful reign, so I enjoyed traveling to a period I wasn't sure about. I thought it trailed on the last book quite well and that it was a worthy sequel. I actually enjoyed this one a little more, because I thought the characters were more exciting. William Rufus was quite an interesting and flamboyant character who was fun to read about and Henry I had more emotion and depth than his father William the Conqueror did. His wife, Matilda, was also more likeable than the Matilda in the other novel.
Henry I is not an entirely likeable character, he has some character faults, but it is obvious that he tries to be a good king and that he knows his own faults, although he does little to change them. I was a little lost about how he felt about his wife. It seemed as though, when he met her, he fell in love with her. However, later on it seems as though he only married her for convenience. I'm still not quite sure where he stood. It's obvious that he respected his wife, but it's terrible the way he treats his adultery as something that cannot be changed. He is a rather lecherous man, but it seems he was a good one.
His wife Matilda is an interesting woman. She seems meek and mild, and is no where near as forceful as her mother in law was, but she was an intelligent woman all the same. She seemed to have lost some of her spirit when she married Henry, but she still manages to take care of affairs for him when he was gone to Normandy. I felt that her character could have been improved if Plaidy had shown more of what she was doing while she was taking care of England. I felt that would have shown more of her intelligence, rather than just a humble and respected woman.
I felt that this was a more enjoyable novel than the first, mostly because I found Henry I a lot more exciting than William the Conqueror. He had more personality. I would definitely recommend reading this novel, even if you found the first one a little bit dull. It has less action, but the characters are more dynamic. Again, if you can find it, pick up a copy.
Matilda is a totally unlikable person. She's arrogant and forceful, with no thought for anyone but herself. Yet the reader can't help but like her anyways. I found myself rooting for her throughout the book. She was the heir to the throne and because she was a woman, she had to fight for the crown, instead of just having it handed to her like a male heir would have. I found her to be an incredible character. What I found interesting was Plaidy's interpretation of her character. She makes her out to be completely unlikable and makes her a shrew. However, I couldn't help but wonder if Matilda was a boy, if that attitude would make a difference. Interestingly enough, she strongly resembles her father and grandfather in temper and I believe would have made a good Queen. If she were a male, she would have had no problem.
Her cousin Stephen is a different story. He is made out to be a gentle and nice person, but I couldn't help but dislike him. He seemed completely false to all around him. He was nice to them, but it was never just to be nice. He always had a purpose behind it and he was scheming for a crown that did not belong to him. He claims to love Matilda and steals her crown. He does not appreciate his wife, who basically saved his life, until she does so. He is a terrible ruler. At least with Matilda, she is never false. You know where she stands. Stephen is two-faced. I found that I absolutely hated him.
Stephen's wife, Matilda, is actually someone I couldn't decide how I felt about. She seemed to be the perfect wife and actually ended up to be more intelligent and commanding than he ever could be. I actually felt that she would make a better ruler than he would. However, I couldn't help but find her to be a little sickeningly sweet. She seemed to have no flaws, which is impossible. However, out of all of the character's in the novel, I felt that she would make the best ruler. She knew when to be harsh and when to be compassionate, which the other two had no idea how to do.
I really, really enjoyed this book and I can't wait to get my hand's on another book about Matilda, because she was a fascinating woman. I would highly recommend hunting this book down, you really won't regret it. I finished it in two days because I could not put it down.
Overall, I found The Norman Trilogy to be great novels that filled in a lot of my blanks that I had about the Norman conquest. I can't wait to read more of what Plaidy has written and would highly recommend these books to anyone interested in historical fiction.
No comments:
Post a Comment