I’m very happy to be part of The Last Queen Virtual Book Tour. I know I’ve told you before that when I was a kid I was fascinated by the story of Juana La Loca but thanks to the rich novel by C.W. Gortner, The Last Queen, I was finally able to get a bit more history, see the story in a different perspective and just be transported to another time. So I hope you’ll enjoy reading a bit more about the book.

“I was thirteen years old when my parents conquered Granada. It was 1492, the year of miracles, when three hundred years of Moorish supremacy fell to the might of our armies, and the fractured kingdoms of Spain were united at last.”

And, so the young Juana, daughter of Queen Isabella of Spain, begins recounting her tale. The story unfolds with the young woman witnessing her parents triumph over the Moors and through her sensitive eyes the reader sees the beauty of Granada and how Juana starts to understand about the love for a country and ideals.

As she grows up she learns about the duty that awaits her and her siblings. Their marriages are meant as business arrangements to strengthen Spain and its power above other European nations and Juana’s destiny is bound to Philip the Handsome of Flanders so at sixteen she is sent to him. Philip was heir to the Habsburg Empire and Juana’s parents hoped that this alliance would once and for all give Spain a greater advantage over France.

Although Juana at first resisted going to Flanders when she meets Philip both will find themselves filled with passion and longing for the other. It seems that this will actually be a happy marriage but Juana has many enemies, one being Philip’s most trusted advisor. Just as Juana works to try and get Philip to support Spain, Philip is increasingly finding himself leaning toward the French.

There are scandals, betrayals and a battle for power across countries and families. The novel brings to life the story of an often misunderstood queen. What it also made me realize was just how much power was above all else as often Juana went years without seeing her children. No matter a person’s wishes but if they were born into royalty their duty was to the throne.

I throughly enjoyed this novel and although I knew the “ending” in a way as I’d heard some about Juana of Castile I was still racing to read the end I was so caught up in the story. I hope you’ll keep this book on your radar for when you are in the mood for a fascinating historical tale.

You can also visit C.W. Gortner’s website to find out more about the book or read his blog and please stop by at the other tour stops for author interviews, guests posts and more reviews.

Now, because I couldn’t resist, I’ll leave you with this photo I took when I visited Granada in 1996. It was my first trip to Europe. One of my friends and I traveled through Barcelona, Madrid, Sevilla, Cordoba and Granada. I have lots of great memories and thanks to this book I just had to pull out my scrapbook and revisit all over again.

“Seek not paradise! It is here – it is here!” ~Arab poet on Granada

I’ve been meaning to tell you about two good mysteries I’ve read lately so if you enjoy a good mystery, grab a cup of something delicious and read all about them.

I know I’ve mentioned that I’m a fan of the Brother Cadfael series that was adapted for television and starred Sir Derek Jacobi, but I always wanted to read one of the books and so I began at the beginning with A Morbid Taste For Bones.

The first book involves a quest to retrieve the relics of Saint Winifred from a small Welsh village to take them to Shrewsbury Abbey, where Brother Cadfael is the herbalist. Of course things don’t go as planned and someone is murdered.

I absolutely loved this one. I admit I don’t know if it’s partly because I enjoy the television series so much, and of course in my mind Derek Jacobi is Brother Cadfael, but I found it very well written with great character development, and a good bit of intro into society of the time and place. Here’s my full review.

Next is Homicide In Hardcover by Kate Carlisle which is the first in a promising new series about a bookbinder. Brooklyn Wainwright’s mentor Abraham Karastovsky is murdered on the night he showed his work on a famous, and supposedly, cursed copy of Goethe’s Faust.

There are lots of potential suspects, a handsome British security officer and of course an interesting look at the world of book restoration. I had a couple of quibbles with this book, the main one being that the book in question I would think should have been turned over for evidence after it was found with blood after Abraham died. Some of the characters seemed a bit too over the top for my taste as well but I guess what won me over was the bookbinding and restoring part.

Given that I do bookbinding and would one day like to try my hand at restoration, I couldn’t help be drawn into the story. I’ll be looking for the second book in the series but for now here’s my full review.

And, now what mystery am I reading? Behold, Here’s Poison by Georgette Heyer. I love the atmosphere but I have to say I felt like I was dropped in the middle of an act in progress. Lots of characters and their intentions are introduced right off the bat as well as the murder so I actually had to start taking note of who was who.

Now that I’m a bit further along I don’t feel so lost anymore and am trying to figure out who poisoned the master.

Tell me if you’ve read a good mystery I should add to my list because you know I’m always looking for more.