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Counterpoint: Theo, Earl of Suffolk
SHORT STORY
Theo Howard, Earl of Suffolk is torn. Betrothed to a child to satisfy his family dynasty, he longs for the freedom to make his own choice. And when he attends a lavish party at his family's newly-restored palace, he is immediately attracted to Lucy, a beautiful young lavender-seller. But in this enchanted world of Shakespeare's Midsummer's Night Dream, all is not as it appears. Theo's headstrong sister Frances is determined to sabotage her own arranged marriage, and aided by the cunning of Frances and her friend Barbara St.John, perhaps Theo can find his own path to happiness and true love.
When I wrote The Lady of the Tower, the story revealed itself in the narrative of my ancestress, Lucy St.John. But, as with all novels, other characters appeared, and their voices grew strong and insistent, demanding their own story be told. This is Theo's counterpoint to chapter six in the novel, in which Theo falls in love.
A counterpoint is a melody played in conjunction with another, or an opposing viewpoint in an argument. Our lives are complex, and each one of us carries within us a counterpoint to another's story. Here is one to Lucy St.John, the lady of the Tower.
Theo Howard, Earl of Suffolk is torn. Betrothed to a child to satisfy his family dynasty, he longs for the freedom to make his own choice. And when he attends a lavish party at his family's newly-restored palace, he is immediately attracted to Lucy, a beautiful young lavender-seller. But in this enchanted world of Shakespeare's Midsummer's Night Dream, all is not as it appears. Theo's headstrong sister Frances is determined to sabotage her own arranged marriage, and aided by the cunning of Frances and her friend Barbara St.John, perhaps Theo can find his own path to happiness and true love.
When I wrote The Lady of the Tower, the story revealed itself in the narrative of my ancestress, Lucy St.John. But, as with all novels, other characters appeared, and their voices grew strong and insistent, demanding their own story be told. This is Theo's counterpoint to chapter six in the novel, in which Theo falls in love.
A counterpoint is a melody played in conjunction with another, or an opposing viewpoint in an argument. Our lives are complex, and each one of us carries within us a counterpoint to another's story. Here is one to Lucy St.John, the lady of the Tower.
29 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 1, 2017
57 people are currently reading
79 people want to read
About the author
Elizabeth St. John
13 books272 followersElizabeth St.John’s critically acclaimed historical fiction novels tell the stories of her ancestors: extraordinary women whose intriguing kinship with England's kings and queens brings an intimately unique perspective to Medieval, Tudor, and Stuart times.
Inspired by family archives and residences from Lydiard Park to the Tower of London, Elizabeth spends much of her time exploring ancestral portraits, diaries, and lost gardens. And encountering the occasional ghost. But that’s another story.
Follow me on bookbub at https://www.bookbub.com/authors/eliza...
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Inspired by family archives and residences from Lydiard Park to the Tower of London, Elizabeth spends much of her time exploring ancestral portraits, diaries, and lost gardens. And encountering the occasional ghost. But that’s another story.
Follow me on bookbub at https://www.bookbub.com/authors/eliza...
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
November 8, 2017
Short and sweet novella to accompany The Lady of the Tower and By Love Divided!
August 4, 2018
What a wonderful taste into this authors work, as this is the first I have read by Elizabeth St. John and I will definitely be reading more from her. I hadn’t read her full-length story; The Lady in the Tower but, I didn’t find that to be a hindrance or feel that I had missed out on something as this is very cleverly written. In fact, I found I was intrigued even more by the character’s and the story want to learn more about them and their antic’s.
This is a short story which basically follows Theo; Earl of Suffolk as he meets and falls in love with lovely Lucy the Lavender seller. This is written in first person and we see the events through Theo’s eyes. To please his family, he is betrothed to a woman whom his family deem worthy of the Earls of Suffolk dynasty. But Theo is feeling suffocated by it all, he just wants one moment where he can do what he wants and for a few moments be who he wants to be. Which is when he meets beautiful and spirited lavender seller; Lucy St John at a party at his families newly refurbished home. He is instantly drawn towards her, but with his tenacious sister Frances set to cause a scandal, will Theo have the future he wants with Lucy?
What a wonderful little peek into another’s world, that is how I saw this when I read it. I have never read a ‘counterpoint story’ before and I thoroughly enjoyed the sneaky dip into Theo and Lucy’s world. What I particularly like about this is that it is loosely based on the author’s ancestry, something which I can relate to completely as this is something I am doing myself. It is quite the inspiration seeing an author who has taken her ancestry and created a book out of it. I really like that!
I found Ms St. John’s writing to be clever and vivid to the senses plus brilliantly detailed that the era has come to life as you read, even though this is a short story you get a real sense of the author’s love for the story and the era.
A very enjoyable read, one that gets the taste-buds watering for more.
This is a short story which basically follows Theo; Earl of Suffolk as he meets and falls in love with lovely Lucy the Lavender seller. This is written in first person and we see the events through Theo’s eyes. To please his family, he is betrothed to a woman whom his family deem worthy of the Earls of Suffolk dynasty. But Theo is feeling suffocated by it all, he just wants one moment where he can do what he wants and for a few moments be who he wants to be. Which is when he meets beautiful and spirited lavender seller; Lucy St John at a party at his families newly refurbished home. He is instantly drawn towards her, but with his tenacious sister Frances set to cause a scandal, will Theo have the future he wants with Lucy?
What a wonderful little peek into another’s world, that is how I saw this when I read it. I have never read a ‘counterpoint story’ before and I thoroughly enjoyed the sneaky dip into Theo and Lucy’s world. What I particularly like about this is that it is loosely based on the author’s ancestry, something which I can relate to completely as this is something I am doing myself. It is quite the inspiration seeing an author who has taken her ancestry and created a book out of it. I really like that!
I found Ms St. John’s writing to be clever and vivid to the senses plus brilliantly detailed that the era has come to life as you read, even though this is a short story you get a real sense of the author’s love for the story and the era.
A very enjoyable read, one that gets the taste-buds watering for more.
February 13, 2018
This book has received a Discovering Diamonds Review:
Helen Hollick
founder #DDRevs
"...a stunning writer, she puts in the right amount of detail to bring a story alive, but not so much that you feel you have inadvertently wandered into a history lecture"
Helen Hollick
founder #DDRevs
"...a stunning writer, she puts in the right amount of detail to bring a story alive, but not so much that you feel you have inadvertently wandered into a history lecture"
March 27, 2022
Fun short read
A very quick read of a short story series. Well written that allows the reader to quickly connect with the characters and eagerly want to continue on.
A very quick read of a short story series. Well written that allows the reader to quickly connect with the characters and eagerly want to continue on.
October 27, 2017
I did not want a slippery, silver-tongued lady of court. I wanted my lavender-seller, the girl who read Plato and cultivated her medicinal herbs.
This is a quick, fun read which tells how Theo, Earl of Suffolk, met and fell in love with Lucy St. John. It's set at a house party which readers of The Lady of the Tower will remember, but in Lady the story was told from Lucy's point of view. In this version we hear Theo's side of it, and come to understand how he fell for Lucy even as he was attracted almost against his will to her bolder, sexier sister, Barbara.
Having read Counterpoint, I understand Theo and his torn loyalties so much better. He's a realistically flawed character who has the right instincts but is bound by circumstance and his own weakness. While Counterpoint provides a rewarding new slant for fans of The Lady of the Tower and its sequel, By Love Divided, it's also an introduction to Elizabeth St. John's excellent writing and her beloved seventeenth century. She knows exactly which details will bring the past to life - a marzipan castle as a table centrepiece, old ladies at a dance "roosting like starlings on a bare winter's branch", the way Barbara slaps playing cards down on a table inlaid with mother-of-pearl.
Recommended for historical fiction fans. I'd love more of these, maybe a Barbara story next time?
April 6, 2018
Duty. A word Theo Howard, Earl of Suffolk, understands all too well. It is a good match. It is good for the family. But Theo is less than enthusiastic about being betrothed to a child that is only six years of age.
As he tries not to dwell too much on his future, he meets a young lady whose innocent is alluring, but whose quick wit hints at an intelligent mind. He cannot help but fall for her. If only....
COUNTERPOINT: Theo, Earl of Suffolk: The Lydiard Chronicles 1603-1630 by Elizabeth St. John is a short and sweet story that swept me away to another time.
With elegant prose and characters that will linger in the memory, this is a story not to be missed!
As he tries not to dwell too much on his future, he meets a young lady whose innocent is alluring, but whose quick wit hints at an intelligent mind. He cannot help but fall for her. If only....
COUNTERPOINT: Theo, Earl of Suffolk: The Lydiard Chronicles 1603-1630 by Elizabeth St. John is a short and sweet story that swept me away to another time.
With elegant prose and characters that will linger in the memory, this is a story not to be missed!
August 4, 2025
3 green stars.
Nothing really to see here. A teaser. One scene from The Lady of the Tower told from another character's point of view.
Description: A Short Story. Theo Howard, Earl of Suffolk is torn. Betrothed to a child to satisfy his family dynasty, he longs for the freedom to make his own choice. And when he attends a lavish party at his family's newly-restored palace, he is immediately attracted to Lucy, a beautiful young lavender-seller. But in this enchanted world of Shakespeare's Midsummer's Night Dream, all is not as it appears. Theo's headstrong sister Frances is determined to sabotage her own arranged marriage, and aided by the cunning of Frances and her friend Barbara St.John, perhaps Theo can find his own path to happiness and true love.
Nothing really to see here. A teaser. One scene from The Lady of the Tower told from another character's point of view.
Description: A Short Story. Theo Howard, Earl of Suffolk is torn. Betrothed to a child to satisfy his family dynasty, he longs for the freedom to make his own choice. And when he attends a lavish party at his family's newly-restored palace, he is immediately attracted to Lucy, a beautiful young lavender-seller. But in this enchanted world of Shakespeare's Midsummer's Night Dream, all is not as it appears. Theo's headstrong sister Frances is determined to sabotage her own arranged marriage, and aided by the cunning of Frances and her friend Barbara St.John, perhaps Theo can find his own path to happiness and true love.
March 29, 2020
Really well written; an interesting perspective.
I really enjoyed this novella; I’d recommend giving it a read if you like the historical genre. There is some interesting subtext, and a few surprises I wasn’t expecting to find in a work like this. The author has done a great job!
I really enjoyed this novella; I’d recommend giving it a read if you like the historical genre. There is some interesting subtext, and a few surprises I wasn’t expecting to find in a work like this. The author has done a great job!
August 8, 2018
Not even worth the 0.99 cents. It was a very short chapter, and did not add anything to the story in the other two excellent books.
July 11, 2021
Great series of books
July 22, 2020
basically the smae information as in the Lady of the Tower. I was expecting more so I was a bit disappointd.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews