Heart's Conquest

by Gladys Malvern

Historical fiction set in the time of the Norman Conquest. Beautiful Alicia, a young Saxon woman, is determined to resist the bold Normans, particularly the handsome but arrogant knight, Gilbert.

Genres: Historical Fiction

182 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1962

About the author

Gladys Malvern wrote almost four dozen books in her prolific career as a writer of historical and biographical Young Adult fiction. She was born in Newark, New Jersey on July 17, 1897. Her family roots were in Virginia and her ancestors include such historic American names as Lee, Rolfe, Randolph, and Custis.

Reviews

[Krista the Krazy Kataloguer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gladys Malvern does it again! This time the setting is England in the year 1066. The novel opens with the death of King Edward the Confessor, and the coronation of Harold of Wessex. Observing all this is Alicia the Beauteous, a noble girl of 16, proud to be English, and confident that William the Conqueror's invading army will easily be defeated by Harold and his men. As with other novels by Malvern, there are two stories being told here. First is the story of the Norman Conquest--William the Conqueror wins the battle and the throne of England, and begins to encourage building and the arts, as well as rewarding his followers with the properties of any English noble who will not swear allegiance to him. The second story is the tale of Alicia, a young girl who loses her father and brothers in the battle and her lands to the Normans, and wants only revenge. She views herself as a patriotic Englishwoman when she agrees to help foment rebellion against the Normans, little understanding or caring about the consequences of her actions to the people around her. In many ways she reminds me of Stephanie, the character in Malvern's novel Stephanie--both born into nobility, proud, spoiled, carefree, loyal to their country, but destined to suffer hardships and to learn some hard lessons. What I liked most about this novel is what I learned about how the Norman conquest affected the people of England, both noble and commoner. Great reading, and highly recommended!