The Lost Queen
1191 and the Third Crusade is underway . . .It is 1191 and King Richard the Lionheart is on a crusade to pitch battle against Saladin and liberate the city of Jerusalem and her lands. His mother, the formidable Eleanor of Aquitaine, and his promised bride, Princess Berengaria of Navarre, make a perilous journey over the Alps in midwinter.
They are to rendezvous with Richard in the Sicilian port of Messina. There are hazards along the way - vicious assassins, marauding pirates, violent storms, and a shipwreck. Berengaria is as feisty as her foes and, surviving it all, she and Richard marry in Cyprus. England needs an heir.
But first, Richard and his Queen must return home . . .
The Lost Queen is a thrilling medieval story of high adventure, survival, friendship, and the enduring love of a Queen for her King.
Acclaim for Carol McGrath's ROSE trilogy:'Powerful, gripping and beautifully told' KATE FURNIVALL on The Silken Rose'A tour de force of gripping writing, rich historical detail, and complex, fascinating characters
NICOLA CORNICK on The Stone Rose'A beautifully narrated novel' K J MAITLAND on The Damask Rose
Purchase Link -https://tinyurl.com/5n8ab2xv
Danger in the Alps. Berengaria travels through the Alps in Winter with Eleanor of Aquitaine. Clearly, her journey presents dangers.
A crowd had gathered where a bridge crossed the water. The grooms had hobbled their mounts by a beech tree beside the river’s edge so the animals were able to drink. All along the bank, their guard and the household knights began tending to other horses, bringing water in wooden buckets to the thirsty beasts pulling the carts and carriages.
Dogs barked and the kennel master attached long leads to their collars and led them down to the river. Hawks complained loudly from their wicker cages. Children and women emerged from doorways to observe the invasion of their village.
Berengaria pushed open the church door and entered. Once her eyes had adjusted to the dim interior, she made out brightly painted walls as well as two rows of pillars along the nave. They were decorated with wooden carvings of animals and human faces, those of various saints.
There were chapels in alcoves to the left and right of the nave. She approached a side chapel where a tall statue of the Madonna stood, wearing a flowing painted gown, blue as sapphires, a baby Jesus with an exceptionally large head nestling in her arms.
Berengaria drew in a breath and fell to her knees. Lifting a string of amber prayer beads from her belt, she recited a Pater Noster, praying for her mother’s soul. From the corner of her eye she noted Sister Barbara wandering further along the nave and entering another alcove. A further clicking of her beads, another Pater Noster, and the nun had passed right out of her vision.
She closed her eyes. Touching her beads, she became lost within her prayer, so it was a shock when she felt a presence move close behind her. Even more frightening was the feel of the cold dagger placed against her throat, and strong hands pulling her to her feet.
She did not dare twist around, nor could she scream, because a hand had been placed over her mouth. Her rosary dropped to the floor with a loud clatter. A heartbeat later, a shout came from the direction of the church door, followed by the sound of an arrow whistling by her assailant’s head, all too close to her own.
‘Mon Dieu,’ uttered a male voice behind her, then, ‘Pour Alis.’ She was released and shoved towards the Madonna, the dagger falling from her attacker’s hand as he turned and flew along the Nave…
Following a first degree in English and History, Carol McGrath completed an MA in Creative Writing from The Seamus Heaney Centre, Queens University Belfast, followed by an MPhil in English from the University of London.
The Handfasted Wife, first in a trilogy about the royal women of 1066 was shortlisted for the RoNAS in 2014. The Swan-Daughter and The Betrothed Sister complete this highly acclaimed trilogy.
Mistress Cromwell, a best-selling historical novel about Elizabeth Cromwell, wife of Henry VIII’s statesman, Thomas Cromwell, was republished by Headline in 2020.
The Silken Rose, the first in a medieval She-Wolf Queens Trilogy, featuring Ailenor of Provence, saw publication in April 2020.
This was followed by The Damask Rose . The Stone Rose was published in April 2022.
Carol is writing Historical non-fiction as well as fiction. Sex and Sexuality in Tudor England was published in February 2022.
The Stolen Crown 2023 and The Lost Queen will be published on 18th July 2024.
Carol lives in Oxfordshire, England, and in Greece.
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