Wonderful by Jill Barnett is one of today's Kindle Daily Deals at $1.99. This is a medieval romance originally published in 1997. It has a 3.87 average on Goodreads, and some readers adore this book, and the two books that follow it in the trilogy.
After too many years on the battlefield, Merrick de Beaucourt is looking forward to a simple life of peace and quiet with a docile wife at his side. But when he finally fetches his bride-to-be from a secluded English convent, he finds he needs more than his knight's spurs to bring order to his life.
When she was betrothed at fifteen to the legendary English knight she had never met, Lady Clio of Camrose believed that love was something magical. But her youthful hopes faded as she languished in a convent for six long years, never hearing a word from Merrick.
Weary of war, Lord Merrick finds little peace guarding the wild Welsh borders, and even less with the wife whose trust he destroyed. But as Lady Clio comes to understand the dark knight she so blindly wed, she sees a chance to make her dreams come true.
Amid the enchanted mists that envelop Camrose Castle, they will battle together to discover a place where all things are possible, even a love that is rare and wonderful.
Paris to the Pyrenees: A Skeptic Pilgrim Walks the Way of Saint James is another Kindle Daily Deal today at $1.99. This is a nonfiction account of the author's journey with his wife walking from Paris to the sanctuary of Saint James in Spain – a route more commonly known as El Camino de Santiago de Compostela, a pilgrimage that many people make each year. (I love books about people's journeys and didn't want you to miss this price.)
Driven by curiosity, wanderlust, and health crises David Downie and his wife set out from Paris to walk across France to the Pyrenees. Starting on the Rue Saint-Jacques then trekking 750 miles south to Roncesvalles, Spain, their eccentric route takes 72 days on Roman roads and pilgrimage paths–a 1,100-year-old network of trails leading to the sanctuary of Saint James the Greater.
It is best known as El Camino de Santiago de Compostela–“The Way” for short. The object of any pilgrimage is an inward journey manifested in a long, reflective walk. For Downie, the inward journey met the outer one: a combination of self-discovery and physical regeneration. More than 200,000 pilgrims take the highly commercialized Spanish route annually, but few cross France.
Downie had a goal: to go from Paris to the Pyrenees on age-old trails, making the pilgrimage in his own maverick way.
How to Worship a Goddess is $2.99. This is a paranormal romance that's book 2 in Julian's forgotten goddesses series. This one features a goddess heroine who is obsessed with hockey. Interesting! Have you read this book?
Lucy was once the beloved Goddess of the Moon, and could have any man she wanted. But these days, the goddesses of the Etruscan pantheon are all but forgotten.
The only rituals she enjoys now are the local hockey games, where one ferociously handsome player inflames her divine blood.
Brandon Stevenson is one hundred percent focused on the game, until he looks up and sees a celestial beauty sitting in the third row.
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Hugh and Bess by Susan Higginbotham is $2.99. This is medieval historical fiction about two historical figures from the 1300s.
Forced to marry Hugh le Despenser, the son and grandson of disgraced traitors, Bess de Montacute, just 13 years old, is appalled at his less-than-desirable past. Meanwhile, Hugh must give up the woman he really loves in order to marry the reluctant Bess.
Far apart in age and haunted by the past, can Hugh and Bess somehow make their marriage work?
Just as walls break down and love begins to grow, the merciless plague endangers all whom the couple holds dear, threatening the life and love they have built.
Love the Jill Barnett cover! So pretty.
Isn’t it beautiful – all those jewel tones!
I love Wonderful. Love it love it love it. Its funny and sweet and Clio is perfect. The original cover had the horse rearing in the background, though. Kind of miss that
Yes, all the redesigned covers in that Jill Barnett series are absolutely gorgeous. My favorite is the Wild cover.
Link!
Thank you for posting Paris to the Pyrenees. This is a journey that I would love to make some day – the route through France passes through some amazingly beautiful places.
If anyone else is interested, B&N has matched the Amazon price on the PARIS TO THE PYRENEES title.
Checkword “because63”—because I long to walk the pilgrim way before I’m 63.
The Camino is gorgeous. I know a lot of Spaniards who’ve done various routes, by bike as well as on foot, and if you travel alone through northern Spain at all in the summer people will kindly ask “eres peregrino?” (are you a pilgrim?) Restaurants have special “pilgrim menus” and everyone who’s done it says the most wonderful thing is the people from all over you meet along the way.
I’ll just say for everyone who buys and enjoys the book, pause a moment to remember those killed on the eve of Santiago’s day (July 25), in the fatal train crash outside Santiago last week. Some of them were taking the train to meet loved ones who had just finished the journey.
Sorry, said this before, but the computer ate my comment:
The Camino is wonderful. I know several Spaniards who’ve done various routes by bike as well as on foot, and everyone says the best part is getting to meet people from all over along the way who all have a common goal. If you travel through the north of Spain alone in the summer people ask you kindly “eres peregrino?” (are you a pilgrim?) and restaurants have special “pilgrim menus.”
This year the book may be a little sad though. For those who do read it and enjoy it, pause a moment to remember the victims of the fatal train crash outside Santiago on the eve of Santiago’s day (July 25), which is when most pilgrims try to arrive. Some of them were going to meet loved ones who had just finished doing the Camino.
@Rebecca: the footage of the crash and the aftermath hurt my heart so much. Horrible. I’m so sorry.
I released your comments from the spam filter and gave it a lecture not to stop you from commenting. If you’d like me to delete one or the other, just let me know.
Thanks, Sarah. Sorry to spam everyone. If you can quietly scrub the second comment that would be great. (In fairness, I was working through a weird hotel proxy server because I was traveling, so the computer probably got suspicious.)
Re: the train crash; it’s rotten, because normally Spanish trains are so good. (The story about the local cops believing it was a prank call because it was so unbelievable gives an idea of how much they’re relied on.) Also, if anyone wants more Spain travelogue, I’d recommend Cees Nooteboom’s “Roads to Santiago” which is really more about Spain in general than the camino, but is fun.