Threads of Silk

The Silk House #3

by Linda Lee Chaikin

Royal French Court intrigue surrounds a beautiful young couturiere and her dashing nobleman-husband as Queen Mother Catherine de Medici unfolds her devious scheme to preserve her reign. Rachelle Macquinet, couturiere from one of France's most celebrated silk-making families, is under palace arrest at Fontainebleau. While creating a royal gown, she is ensnared, along with her husband, Marquis Fabien de Vendome, in the Queen Mother's secret murderous scheme. Fabien has returned from a venture against Spain to claim Rachelle as his bride, but not without a the Queen Mother plans to implicate him in an assassination! Fabien and Rachelle are caught in history's deadly swirl and love's uncertainties as they seek to escape to the safety of England. Faith in Christ must uphold them in a time of great persecution that demands greater courage.

Genres: Christian Fiction, Historical Fiction, Christian, Romance, Fiction, Historical, Historical Romance

Paperback

First published January 1, 2008

About the author

Linda Chaikin is a Christian fiction author with a focus on historical fiction. She sometimes publishes using the name L.L. Chaikin.

Linda was the youngest of 10 children and her father died shortly after she was born. She wrote her first full-length novel with pen and paper at the age of 14 - this novel was later rewritten as Wednesday's Child, part of the Day to Remember series.

She met her husband, Steve, in a Bible study, and they were married 6 months later. They both went to Multnomah School for the Bible, now known as Multnomah Bible College and Biblical Seminary in Portland, Oregon.

Reviews

[Fam · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a little slower than the first 2 in the series, but still a very good book. Biggest disappointment came from the cliffhanger at the end of the book, with a promise for Book 4. When I couldn't find it, I contacted the Author and was told that the publisher decided 3 was enough. Chaikin then gave me a one paragraph wrap-up. Bummer! I would have definitely read a 4th book!

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Summary: Rachelle and Fabien continue their romance in the face of Catherine Medici's plots and amidst impending religious civil war. Their families are in danger and they are in deep danger due to their beliefs and positions relative to the throne. With their deep faith, they must try to make it through alive.

Thoughts: This book starts rather thrillingly with suspense as Rachelle and Fabien try to stay ahead of Catherine Medici and her plots.

I guess my biggest problem with the book is that the protagonists sucked while the villains didn't seem that bad. Rachelle is a drip to me and I kept imagining Fabien as speaking English in an exaggerated French accent rather than speaking French which has been translated for my benefit in to English. This makes him seem skeevy. Andelot just seems like a total loser. In contrast Catherine Medici is portrayed in a relentlessly bad light while I find her travails interesting. I mean, she's a foreign queen with a dead husband who was always more devoted to his mistress than to her and children who probably wouldn't look after her and are weak anyway. What would she do if she wasn't Queen Regent? Probably be stuck to wither away in the country or be sent back to Italy, which was no longer home. I'm very sympathetic to her and that weakens the book for me. In fact every time, the main characters talk about how awful she is, I like her more. Maurice is also positioned as a villain but I usually found him rather hapless and more of a stock character than a person with real motives and feelings so he was neutralized. Luckily the Guises are quite villainous; they're probably one of the few sets of characters where I agreed with the author's writing.

I really liked that they included the glossary of terms at the end instead of the beginning like in the other books because I find it easier to access that way. I also found the language even more flowery than in the previous books but it's probably at about the same level as them.

Note: At the end, it says there is a fourth book coming in 2008. As far as I can tell, that never happened which makes the ending of this book very unsatisfactory for those who like closure. Luckily I can share that Catherine Medici lived another 29 years (to 1589) meaning that she had plenty of time for scheming.

Overall: 3.5/5 Overall I'm glad I read this because I've been wanting to read the trilogy for a while but it wasn't fantastic; I'm not sure I would have read all of them if I hadn't checked them out of the library at the same time.

Cover: I love the blue-I think this was my favorite and was the book that first caught my eye.

[Sheila Samuelson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I started reading this series in November of 2019 but never finished so i was really excited to finish this series...Finally!!

The excitement slowly died tho, i feel like the first 2 books in this series were really good but this one fell flat for me and is why i only rated it 3.5 stars.

I also felt like it didnt wrap up all the characters storylines.

The plot and characters were still enjoyable i just wish the storylines brought more to the story than it did.

I'll still check out her other books tho!!

[Hanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

By the third (and I guess the last??) book, I'm finally starting to get the hang of the historical characters of the French Court, their relationships, and their cunning schemes. Good grief, if government was this political 400 years ago, how can anyone imagine that political matters these days are in the least bit honest and legitimate?

Set still in the 1500s (as I can tell by checking Wikipedia), Rachelle and Fabien are progressing in their romantic relationship. This book is much more enjoyable to me than #2, pretty exciting, and surprising to see where it guides my sympathies!

Pure evil plays a definite part in this book, in addition to weak faith that crumbles against the wiles of the devil. Much joy is also included, and surprisingly, bad events do not happen at every turn.

In contrast to the disaster of Prince Antoine, the spiritual growth of Andelot is one of the most pleasurable parts to the story. To have a representation of a young Christian (Huguenot) continuing to grow, becoming more mature, and proving himself trustworthy to the cause of Christ, is refreshing both in book and in reality. Oh, that we would see more Andelots in real life! But then, the purpose of Andelot isn't for him to preach his beliefs to the world so that all see his faith.

Truly, it's too bad that the "Book 4 coming in 2008" promise didn't prove trustworthy, for though readers can fill in the unknowns regarding the main characters, the intrigue of the court, with Queen Jeanne and the House of Guise and Margot was ramping up to a fabulous climax.

[Bailey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Threads of Silk began as another exciting chapter in the Silk House series. There were so many exciting things going on with all of the characters. This continued for the majority of the book. The first two-thirds were pretty fast-paced. There was a lot of great adventure and danger, and their lives were an intricate balancing act in the midst of a bunch of schemers. The last one-third of the book really slowed down for me. It seemed like a long passage of time where nothing was really happening. There was a lot of this person is planning to do this, this person is scheming against that person, this person wants that person arrested, and this person wants that person dead. It was a lot of he's saying this and she's saying that but nothing is actually happening. So while the beginning of the book whipped by, I found myself struggling through the last few pages. This was not aided by the fact that there is a promised 4th book at the end of this book, but that ended up getting canceled by the publisher. So I was trying to savor what I could from the end of this story. It ends with a cliffhanger, but as an end to a series, it is not the worst I have read. Yes, their lives are still in turmoil, but considering everything that is going on in this period of history, I am not sure there was ever going to be a good way for them to arrive at a happily ever after. So while not complete, at least there is the gift of freedom and promise for the future.

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

The famous French House of Silk daughter Rachelle Macquinet, a Huguenot, marries Marquis Fabien de Vendome who is directly involved in the intriques of the French aristocracy as well as the protection of the Huguenots. The book chronicles the near Civil War between the Catholic Church and the Huguenots interwoven with the diabolical Catherine de Medici's frenzy to hold the power of the throne of France. The book leaves one hanging at the end where the final page says Book 4 is coming but apparently was never published. That leaves many story lines unfinished. I found parts of this book hard to follow because of the number of people involved and their moving from place to place.
This fictional look at the Reformation made me take another look at the fight that accompanies staying faithful to Christ.

[Debbie .skylark. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved learning about the hugenots and this period of history in Europe, mostly France. The intrigue was amazing. BUT, at the end of this book, it says, "End of Book three, book 4 2008"!! I have searched and do not see a book 4. There is no clear ending........... So many questions remain. Does anyone have any information on why she never wrote book 4.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set during the Protestant reformation in France, this book was my favorite of the series. Most loose ends were tied up, but I would still like to know what happened after this one ended. The publisher decided not to print a fourth book in the series, so we may never know.

[Schillebeekx]

So good Icould not put it down. To find out not to be able to read how it goes on.
Why are there no further books.

[Wendy Cameron · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF - religious

[Katnip · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good, but ends on a cliffhanger that's never resolved because book 4 was never published.

[Melmo2610 · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars rounded to 3 for Goodreads. As much as I love all things France, books in this particular era just are too dark for me.

[Marla Schellenger · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a good book as far as it went. It is very disappointing to know that the promised book four was never written.

[Ingeborg Stoffer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful, historical story!

[Katherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to really like this book. And the story was okay. But I had a hard time keeping all the French names separate, especially since I was listening to it and I understand things like that better when I can see the words. I see that it is the third in a series and maybe I would have liked it better if I had read the first two, but at this point I have no interest. I really struggled just to finish listening to the book. I hoped that at least there would be some closure to the story if I finished it, but in that I was disappointed.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the book; it's a really good story but it got a little long-winded at times. Also, the religious parts I tended to just skim right over them so I could get on with the story. I enjoy a book that is clean with a religious element, (like Stephen Lawhead) but sometimes it just gets to be a little too much and I feel I'm in the middle of a sermon. I prefer to read religious books that are non-fiction. Sometimes the fiction ones get on my nerves.

[Rachelle Sperling · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really like Chaikin's mastery of intrigue and I loved book two in this series for it's spiritual emphasis. This book was well written but it felt like a "middle" book. Some plot lines were resolved, but for the most part this book just developed the series a little futher. Normal for a middle of the series book and as a part of the series it is a good read. I'm now waiting for the next book to see where the story is headed.

See my profile for my star rating system.

[Claire · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the Silk House series. The end of this book is somewhat of a cliff hanger and a note says the fourth book is to be realeased in 2008! One review I read indicated that person had contacted the author, Linda Lee Chaikin, and she had decided that 3 books in this series was sufficient. Too bad..

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this series, but there will NOT be a 4th book. Very big climax at the end, and no resolution. Book 4 was supposed to be written in 2008. I have read several sites that say they contacted the author, and she is not finishing the series. How very disappointing of her. I would give this higher stars, but I cannot when it was so very disappointing!

[Cynthia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this one the best out of the series - maybe because Rachelle finally gets the love of her life:) The intrigue in the French court is very interesting and makes me want to know what will happen to The Queen Mother and Margurite. Chaikin does a fantastic job of making history come alive!

[Summer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This entire series is a must read. I love the mystery, intrigues, romance, history, and everything in it. I love how the characters have developed over the three books. Now all I need is book four to come out. No clue as to when that will happen.

[Natalya · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another spectacular addition to the series!

[Qixochitl · Rating 4 out of 5]

The beginning was great, but the rest of the book - except for the last ten pages - was a little bit disappointing.

[Lindsey · Rating 3 out of 5]

a ltitle slow

[Breanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

nothing short of awesome

[Afifa · Rating 5 out of 5]

het was echt spannend en leuk!!!
ik hou van historische verhalen en deze verdiend een 10!

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved this series, but where is book 4? :)

[Robyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

amazing!! kept me in the edge of my seat!!! There was supposed to be a 4th book but it was never published!!

[Cassie · Rating 1 out of 5]

It was an interesting discourse on the reformation in France, but not the spy story I was looking for.

[April Perez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved the book. Frustrated to find out that there is no book 4. Book ended on a cliff hanger.