The Saxon Princess

Ladies of Valor #1

by Anne R. Bailey

1093, ScotlandThe unexpected death of the king, her father, brings chaos to the Kingdom of Scotland. A succession crisis leads to an outbreak of civil war. Edith, Princess of Scotland, and her surviving siblings are forced to flee into exile. In England, she might be safe from murderous uncles, but she quickly finds herself in yet another prison.

As the daughter of Margaret of Wessex, royal Saxon blood flows in her veins. Many see her as a prize. After all, with England still fractured after the Battle of Hastings, her marriage might unite the Normans and Saxons at last. But Edith refuses to allow others to decide her destiny. She will carve out a life for herself, even if it means defying the king.

A story of perseverance, adventure, and even a bit of love.

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Historical Fiction Standalone.
Written in Third Person. US English.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Scotland, 11th Century, British Literature, Historical, Fiction, Womens Fiction

240 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 2, 2024

About the author

Anne is a novelist, entrepreneur and when she can find the time: wife.

Her love of historical fiction, writing, and romance encouraged her to dive head first into the world of publishing. With a cup of warm coffee by her side and her dog at her feet, she can be found at her desk writing late into the night.

Reviews

[➳Elizabeth Rose♥ · Rating 4 out of 5]

If I already knew the story of Edith/Matilda this probably would’ve been quite boring, but I didn’t, and I loved it ❤️ a sweet story and a nice quick read!

[Shaunna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good writing but…

The characters in this novel were well portrayed. The story fascinated me. However, this novel needs a good proofreader! There are countless errors that distracted me throughout.

[ItsMeMel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thoroughly enjoyed this fast paced historical fiction gem.

I came upon this book by way of suggested reading on Amazon, I think. I hadn't heard of it before and I must say, I'm glad this popped up. It's been a little awhile since I've read a historical fiction as I've been so engrossed in my fantasy/romantasy fixation I've strayed away from my first love of historical fiction. This book was a pleasant and engrossing welcome back.

The characters are intriguing and well written and the pace kept me glued to the pages. I was taken in quickly and it never let go. It's a quick read, perfect for a weekend read or beach trip book.

It could've benefitted from better editing but the errors didn't detract from the flow of the story in a jarring way for me so I didn't sweat it. Overall, this book was a welcome delight and I can easily see myself reading more from this author.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Saxon, Scottish...Oh My!

This is not a bodice-ripper or a story of some princess being swept off her feet by a pirate or a woodcutter. It is so much better! If you think historical fiction set in the 11th century must be unbearably dull, this book proves you wrong. The action begins on the first page, never slowing down until the last page, with a most satisfactory ending.

Princess Edith of Scotland was a young woman ahead of her time, highly educated while also following her gender-determined roles. By age 13, she was innately savvy politically and was nobody's fool. This is a fascinating story of the early power struggles in England after the Norman Conquest. I read it in one sitting...it's that compelling. It's about time the women of that era got some long-overdue accolades. I highly recommend this first book of a brand-new series. (I hope the next one isn't far behind.)

[Lianna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Four stars just because I thought Edith and Henry would have gotten married much earlier and we would see some of their married life. Also half of the book was about Scotland so I thought we would see more of it. In the end there was no mention nearly about any of Edith's past life except for Mary. Why create a scenario through half of the book if you aren't going to mention any of it again.

You know what, I am going to lower it down to three stars. Last 50 pages were basically pointless. Edith was doing nothing.

[Alannah Templon · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good story about the early life of Matilda of Scotland before she became queen. A few things to note. There were lots of grammatical errors and this book could have benefited by some edits. Also, I wish that I had gotten to see more of her queenship itself and her relationship with Henry I. Overall enjoyed this quick read.

[Christine Cazeneuve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mighty Matilda

I've always liked reading about Queen Matilda and this book by Anne Bailey is enjoyable. It's a different view of her life and starts off after what I'll call her first Cristina years. Watching her relationship with Henry develop over the years is fun and she was such a spitfire. I do feel that it rushed the last 5% of the book but by no means should deter you from reading it.

[E A Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is exceptional and the author certainly knows her history. While some has to be completely made up as not enough records exist, this book is great. Edith is easy to follow and you can feel her confusion, but also her strength. I appreciate the author made the Saxon - Norman relationships difficult and even included the language barrier that existed at this time.

[Lori Henderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

good interpretation

The story flowed very nicely. I liked that it followed historical fact. I enjoy reading about this era. Only negative was the quantity of typos. The authors comments at end repeat themselves. It’s a shame because they do detract from the story. Hopefully author will go back and update.

[Deborah Terrill · Rating 3 out of 5]

Needs proofreading

The story was ok, a little predictable. But the grammatical errors and punctuation errors were egregious. Sometimes, entire phrases were left out or repeated. Ruined the experience.

[Carol Beckman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wanted to know more!

This an era new to me and enjoyed learning about the Norman and Saxon power struggle. This was an interesting romance but I wanted to know how her later life earned her such respect.

[Pamela · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fascinating look at this woman who became an early queen of England. The entire book is about her upbringing in Scotland and her years in two different convents. I would have really enjoyed the book more if it had continued through the important role she played as Queen Matilda.

[brian rees and Brenda Rees · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliantly told

This was a very good read and brought
This important time in history very
A live n! Henry and .Edith were brought
Into the 21 st century

[Blubonnet1 · Rating 4 out of 5]

06/28/2024

[Ursula Garcia · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dull read despite an interesting story. I found the writing wooden and the characters extremely flat.

[Larral Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great novel based on real life. I really enjoyed this book.

[Welmoed · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was ok, just a bit boring but that’s to be expected when you’re writing about women’s lives in the 11th century and they have to wait in a convent…Nothing much happens except for Henry’s visits.

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed The Saxon Princess by Anne Bailey - exactly my sort of book!

The medieval setting was well done and believable.

The heroine was strong and clever but realistically so considering the era.

The romance was enough but not too much 😉.

Thank you, Anne, for the great story.

[John W · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great read but poorly edited

It brought the historical period and persons to light and kept me engaged. However there were grammatical errors that stood out and should have been edited out.

[Lauren Sophia · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

[Sheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book picks up about halfway through so I’m glad I stuck with it but I found it rather lackluster and somewhat hard to follow.