The Captive Heiress: a young heiress & a squire find love in the tumultuous court of Henry II

by Blair Bancroft

Alecyn de Beauclaire, an orphaned heiress, is taken captive at age nine by the Earl of Rocheford who wants to enjoy the income from her estates. Her first friend in the strange new world at Castle Rocheford is Ranulf Mort à Mer, a descendant of Vikings and a penniless squire with no hope of ever being able to afford a horse and armor so he can become a knight. As the years go by, their friendship is unwavering, even when tested by the preaching of monks who declare that all women are evil and should be shunned. When Alecyn is almost fourteen (a marriageable age in Medieval times) King Henry II makes Alecyn his ward. She is thrilled because she knows the king will want to keep her money for himself and, therefore, will not marry her off for several more years. Perhaps there is still time for Ranulf to become a knight and distinguish himself in battle. In her position as companion to the royal children and songstress to the royal court, Alecyn learns not only the epic romance of chivalry, but the dark side of romance as she witnesses the love/hate relationship between the king and queen. Ranulf, meanwhile, learns to fight side by side with a new friend, William Marshall. But even Ranulf's eventual elevation to knighthood is not enough to qualify for the hand of an heiress to four fine estates. Until, one day, Queen Eleanor goes for a hunt on her lands in the Aquitaine, and Ranulf and his friend, William Marshall, are among her escorts. Perhaps, just perhaps, if the three young people survive captivity by Eleanor's rebellious knights, they may have a future after all. But which young knight will King Henry choose for Alecyn? Author's THE CAPTIVE HEIRESS was written as a painless way for people from nine to ninety to learn about Medieval times, particularly the tumultuous twelfth century. In addition to a look at the dramatic lives of King Henry and Eleanor, readers will catch a glimpse of the early days of their many children, including Richard and John who became famous through the Robin Hood legend. Another very important character is William Marshall, often called the greatest knight who ever lived. Please see the "Whatever Happened to . . ." section at the back of the book for the rest of the story of the many real characters in THE CAPTIVE HEIRESS.

Genres: Historical Romance, Medieval

132 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 29, 2011

About the author

Blair Bancroft is an award-winning author, multi-published in several different romance genres. Her eclectic background includes a career in music, with forays into editing and costume design. She wrote her first novel only after it occurred to her that her mother being a successful author didn't mean she couldn't be one too. Blair has traveled most of the United States and as far away as Siberia and Machu Picchu, with emphasis on touring Great Britain and Ireland, and enjoys using bits of her travel experiences in her books.

Blair’s first book, TARLETON’S WIFE, won RWA’s Golden Heart award. Her traditional Regency, THE INDIFFERENT EARL (now published as THE COURTESAN’S LETTERS) won the Best Regency award from Romantic Times and was a nominee for RWA’s RITA award. She has also won a Best Romance award from the Florida Writers Association and Best YA award from EPIC. To keep things lively, over the last few years Blair has added the genre Regency Gothic and the Space Saga series, Blue Moon Rising, to her list of books.

Reviews

[Gillian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok. Lacks depth but it is an easy enjoyable read for when you just fancy something comfortable with a good old fashioned happy ending.

[juanita dennis · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Captive Heiress

Orphaned and captured at such a young age. Held captive until she became marriageable. Endured many changes in her youth yet came forth as a very mature young lady.

[Jo Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Captive Heiress, a story of a grieving young girls struggle with life in a hard and unforgiving area., September 18, 2013
By Jo Smith
This review is from: The Captive Heiress (Kindle Edition)
Sunlight shimmered off the child's tears as well. She was nine years old . And desolate. Wow what and opening. How could you not be captured by the picture this paints? Blair Bancroft does this story with light delicate descriptions of the gardens and gowns of the time. She also draws you into the emotional story of 2 young lovers and the driving Knights, Kings, Princes' awaiting to be crowned King, Lady's awaiting to find out who will be chosen as a husband for them and the few friends you can trust. You will find yourself grieving for the loss of the brave Knights and separation of friends. Blair's writing brings the characters to life before your eyes. This is a wonderful change from most of the books I've read for sometime now. True love, devotion and willingness to wait until marriage (even if it takes many years) to truly belong to another. Today love is falling in bed with the other on the first date. I think you will love the story and people you meet as you turn page after page to the beautiful ending. This will be a book to put on the shelf and pull out to reread a real romance again and again.

[Mieke · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't even remember why I bought this book, probably based on a recommendation or as an inexpensive deal on Amazon! A quick, fluffy read, nothing historically bulky here; reminded me a lot of the historical romances I read in my early twenties and I would recommend it for those who enjoy an easy read heavier on romance and light on history.

[ROMANTIC HISTORICAL REVIEW BLOG · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reviewed by Lady of Misrul at Romantic Historical Lovers:
http://romantichistoricallovers.wordp...

[Vanessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This lacked secondary characters and true dramatic build-up to get it a 4 in my book. The narrative is quite good, but for much of the book it doesn't go anywhere.