Set during the time of Jacobite Risings that saw Catholic subjects rebelling against a protestant ruler, the daughter of an English Duke finds herself secreted in a Scottish Laird’s tower in Laura Frantz’s The Rose and The Thistle. As Lady Blythe anxiously awaits word from her father, as he evades capture for his Jacobite leanings, Everard Hume must deal not only with the dangers in providing haven to a Catholic but to the unrest within his own family as the new Earl of Wedderburn.
“Yer as welcome as water in a holed ship.” ~ Everard, p.95
Steeped in the politics of 1715, the story finds Everard being pressured by the King’s council to raise an army and fight against the Jacobites. But even as he resists the call to arms, the growing attraction between Everard and Blythe creates further complications.
“Marriage is not a right, nor is singleness a curse.” ~ Blythe, p.13
Gently paced, The Rose and the Thistle allows the reader time to fall into the depths of history and emotion that Laura Frantz imbues into her writing. And beyond the meticulous research and the immersive storytelling, from the intelligence of the heroine to the delightful way in which their linguistic differences are portrayed, there are so many details to be savored and characters to love, hate, suspect, and even admire.
Highly recommended.
I voluntarily received and read The Rose and the Thistle as part of the launch team, courtesy of the publisher. A positive review was not required and all opinions expressed are my own.
About the Book
In 1715, Lady Blythe Hedley’s father is declared an enemy of the British crown because of his Jacobite sympathies, forcing her to flee her home in northern England. Secreted to the tower of Wedderburn Castle in Scotland, Blythe quietly awaits the crowning of a new king. But in a house with seven sons and numerous servants, her presence soon becomes known.
No sooner has Everard Hume lost his father, Lord Wedderburn, than Lady Hedley arrives with her maid in tow. He has his own problems–a volatile brother with dangerous political leanings, an estate to manage, and a very young brother in need of comfort and direction. It would be best for everyone if he could send this misfit heiress on her way as soon as possible.
In this whirlwind of intrigue, ambitions, and shifting alliances, Blythe yearns for someone she can trust. But the same forces that draw her and Everard together also threaten to tear them apart.
The Rose and the Thistle by Laura Frantz | Revell, January 2023 | paperback, 416 pages
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