First Chapter, First Paragraph is hosted weekly by Bibliophile by the Sea. Share the first paragraph of your current read. Also visit Teaser Tuesdays meme hosted by Jenn.
Genre: historical fiction
First chapter, first paragraph
October 1589: Leicester House, the Strand
The wax sizzles as it drips, releasing an acrid whiff. Penelope presses in her seal, twisting it slightly to make it unreadable, wondering if it - this letter- is folly, if it could be construed s treason were it to fall into the wrong hands.Book description: The daughter of the Queen’s nemesis, Penelope Devereux, arrives at court and finds herself in love with one man, yet married off to another...She and her brother, The Earl of Essex, are drawn into the aging Queen’s favour but his enemies gather and Penelope must use her political savvy to prevent the unthinkable from happening. Told from the perspective of Penelope and her brother’s enemy the politician Cecil, this story, wrought with love, hatred and envy, unfolds over two decades in which we see the last gasps of Elizabeth’s reign, and the scramble for power in a dying dynasty.
"Do you think..." she begins to say to Constable, who is standing at her shoulder.
"I think you risk too much."
Based on the opening paragraphs and the book description, would you read on?
Sounds good but I like my historical fiction a little lighter than this one sounds. I'm teasing Ever After by Jude Deveraux on my adult blog this week. It's a romance with ghosts. Happy reading!
ReplyDeleteSounds interesting. I haven't read much historical fiction set this far back but I'd like to. I'd definitely keep reading to find out what happens to the letter if nothing else!
ReplyDeleteThis sounds excellent! Happy Tuesday, Harvee!
ReplyDeleteGood intro. I read a lot of historical fiction but tend to steer away from the "palace intrigue" sort. But this one sounds interesting -- hope you enjoy it.
ReplyDeleteThe Tudors are always interesting.
ReplyDeleteI don't read a lot of historical fiction, but this one is intriguing. Thanks for sharing, and here's mine: “BEFORE WE MET”
ReplyDeleteI love the cover of this one. I admit I am not a huge fan of historical fiction set around royalty, but now and then a book will strike my fancy and I'll give it a try.
ReplyDeleteI read this kind of historical fiction but mostly in intermittent binges. This sounds like something I'd like when I hit the binge part of the cycle.
ReplyDeleteI was given an ARC of this by a co-worker, but I haven't read it yet. It does look good, though!
ReplyDeleteHere's my teaser, from Alex Bledsoe's LONG BLACK CURL;
http://www.pagepilgrims.com/tuesday-teaser-june-16/
I don't often read historical fiction, but this sounds like an interesting story that I'd enjoy.
ReplyDeleteMy Tuesday post features A Walk in the Woods.
I don't usually like historical quite that far back, but I might make an exception. It does sound good.
ReplyDeleteI think that I have noted before that I usually prefer books to start with a bit of description and with plot developments. This one sounds like it jumps in a little too fast.
ReplyDeleteNevertheless the plot description makes this sound like it might be interesting.
Not my favorite time period sadly. I do hope you enjoy it.
ReplyDeleteThis is definitely one for the Tudor fans who lap up the Henry VIII and Elizabeth I novels!
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