The Knight by the Pool

Lay Lines #1

by Sophie Masson

Marie de France's destiny was forever changed by a meeting with a mysterious knight. Now, newly widowed and on her way to her ancestral home, Marie comes face to face with another aspect of her destiny in a passionate encounter with the famous Richard the Lionheart.

Genres: Fantasy

Paperback

First published November 14, 1998

About the author

Born in Indonesia of French parents, Sophie Masson was sent to live with her paternal grandmother in Toulouse, France, when she was just a baby and lived there till she was nearly five, when her parents came back from Indonesia and took her to Australia. All the rest of her childhood, the family stayed in Australia, with frequent trips back to France, and this dual heritage underpins a good deal of Sophie's work.
Sophie's first book appeared in 1990 and since then she has published more than seventy books, for children, young adults and adults. Her books have been published in Australia, the USA, UK, France, Germany, Italy, and many other countries. She has also had many short stories and articles published in newspapers, magazines, and online journals.
Sophie holds a BA and M.Litt in French and English literature, and a PhD in Creative Practice. A former Chair of the Australian Society of Authors, she is the current Chair (2021) of the New England Writers' Centre and of the Small Press Network. She is also the President committee of the New England and North West sub-branch of the Children's Book Council of Australia, NSW branch.
Sophie has received several awards for her creative work, including the Patricia Wrightson Prize in the NSW Premier's Literary Awards, and the YA category of the Aurealis Awards. In 2019 she received an AM in the Order of Australia for her significant service to literature as an author, a publisher, and through service to literary organisations.
Sophie's website is at www.sophiemassonauthor.com
She has a writing blog at www.firebirdfeathers.com
Her You Tube channel, with trailers to many of her books, is at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWLa...
She is also a regular contributor to the popular authorship blog Writer Unboxed, www.writerunboxed.com

Reviews

[Sophie Wolf · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although I have never before reviewed a book, after seeing that this book had yet to receive any reviews, I felt it was my duty to rectify the situation.

In short this book is a well written and entertaining piece of literature, following the story of Marie de France as she discovers the mysteries of the world around her, and the realm of dark magic and fabled creatures hidden within its shadows. Set within twelfth century Europe this story is peppered with historical figures, accentuated by snippets of folklore and poetry, lightly perfumed by the blossoming of romance, and shadowed by the mists of intrigue and mystery.

I was pleasantly surprised by my like for this book, considering my usual reading material leans mostly towards romance or YA fiction, but from the very first page there was just something that drew me in.

So I implore you all that see this, give this book a go!

I mean come on people! This lonely little book is in need of some serious loving! This poor thing is far too under loved at the moment and not because people don’t like it, but rather because they haven’t given it ago. Which is a real shame because this book is far better than some of the other more read books out there. So come on people! Have some compassion and show this lonely book your love! Or even your hate if you must, either is better than being ignored.