Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tour Review: A Phoenix Rising

A Phoenix Rising by Vivienne Brereton

Publication Date: July 7, 2019

Yuletide Press

eBook & Paperback; 339 pages

Series: The House of the Red Duke (Book 1)

Genre: Historical Fiction/Romance

“If I have anything to do with it, we Howards will live forever.”

Thomas Howard Charismatic head of one of the most powerful Houses in Tudor England. An indomitable old man approaching eighty: soldier, courtier, politician, a ‘phoenix’ rising from the ashes. After a calamitous period of disgrace, the Howards, renowned for their good looks and charm, are once more riding high at the court of Henry VIII.

Set against the backdrop of the extraordinary 1520 ‘Field of Cloth of Gold’, it is a tale of ambition, love, and intrigue, with Thomas at the centre of this intricate tapestry

Will Thomas’s bold vow be fulfilled? Danger stalks the corridors of the royal courts of Europe. Uneasy lies the head beneath a crown. Every other ruler - a fickle bedfellow…or sworn enemy.

The action takes place in England, Scotland, and France. On either side of the Narrow Sea, four young lives are interwoven, partly unaware of each other, and certainly oblivious to what Dame Fortune has in store for them.

“Nicolas de La Barre laid his lute to one side, hardly bothering to stifle a yawn of boredom. Nevertheless, he couldn’t escape the fact he’d agreed to take on a new wife….”

Explosive family secrets are concealed behind the ancient walls of castles in three lands. But… “There are no secrets that time does not reveal.”

"From the moment I picked this book up, I was enthralled and the story was so well written that I simply had to keep reading. Brereton weaves a fascinating story of several famous houses which lived during the Tudor age, including the Howards, Stewarts, Boleyns and of course the famous Tudors. If you are looking for a new fiction series that will draw you in and keep you wanting more than this is certainly the book for you!" - Sarah Bryson, author of 'La Reine Blanche'

"I really enjoyed it. I sometimes struggle with books written from the point of view of several characters, as this one is, but this one worked quite well because it had to be told from the points of view of different characters because it is spread across several countries - England, France and Scotland. The addition of Tudor recipes was a nice touch, and demonstrated that the writer had really done her research." - Helene Harrison, Tudorblogger

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Review: The Tudor Era is one of my favorite periods of history. I devour any and all books I can find on this time period. This is the first book in The House of the Red Duke Series

This one started out slowly because I was having a little bit of trouble getting used to the way the points of view were being told to us, but once I got into the story I couldn't put it down.

This is the saga of The Howard Family and all the dramas and intrigues that play out in the courts of Europe. (England, Scotland and France) Oh and there are recipes too. I have to admit some of those really intrigued me.

Thomas Howard was definitely a character, both in real life and in Ms. Brereton's novel. I really enjoyed his view points on other historical figures, like Thomas Wosley. He has a special name for him too.

Its an exciting and interesting read for anyone that loves historical fiction on one man's quest for power!

Rating 5 flowers


About the Author

Born near historic Winchester in the UK, Vivienne Brereton has been passionate about the Tudors for as long as she can remember. This led to a degree in medieval history at university where she met her future husband. Three sons later and six countries she called home, she finally felt ready to write a novel.

Words have always played an important part in Vivienne’s life whether it’s been writing, editing, teaching English to foreigners, or just picking up a good book. In preparation for her novel, she read intensively on the skills needed to write well and did an enormous amount of research which she greatly enjoyed. Having three sons was helpful when she came to write about the characters, Tristan and Nicolas. All those squabbles she had to deal with came in very handy. She also used her husband and sons as guinea pigs for her Tudor cookery attempts with varying degrees of success (abuse).

Seeing ‘A Phoenix Rising’ in print for the first time was a moment of great joy for her and she hopes you enjoy reading it as much as she enjoyed writing it.

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Blog Tour Schedule
Thursday, September 26
Review at Gwendalyn's Books

Friday, September 27
Excerpt at Beady Jans Books
Review & Excerpt at Nursebookie

Saturday, September 28
Review at Reading is My Remedy
Guest Post at Short Book and Scribes

Tuesday, October 1
Review at WTF Are You Reading?
Guest Post at On the Tudor Trail

Wednesday, October 2
Excerpt at The Writing Desk

Thursday, October 3
Review at A Chick Who Reads

Friday, October 4
Review at Jessica Belmont

Monday, October 7
Review at Historical Fiction with Spirit

Tuesday, October 8
Review at Passages to the Past

Wednesday, October 9
Review at Red Headed Book Lady

Thursday, October 10
Excerpt at Myths, Legends, Books & Coffee Pots

Friday, October 11
Review at Donna's Book Blog
Feature at CelticLady's Reviews

Giveaway
During the Blog Tour, we are giving away a paperback copy of A Phoenix Rising! To enter, please use the Gleam form below.

Giveaway Rules

– Giveaway ends at 11:59 pm EST on October 11th. You must be 18 or older to enter.
– Giveaway is open to the US only.
– Only one entry per household.
– All giveaway entrants agree to be honest and not cheat the systems; any suspicion of fraud will be decided upon by blog/site owner and the sponsor, and entrants may be disqualified at our discretion.
– The winner has 48 hours to claim prize or a new winner is chosen.

A Phoenix Rising