Product Description

In this gripping tale of passion, politics and conflict, King Henry II finds himself brutally betrayed by his wife Eleanor and three eldest sons when they enter into a rebellion against him. Aligning themselves with Henry’s most bitter enemy, King Louis of France, their treacherous actions will have devastating consequences as they bring about the downfall of a brilliant man and a powerful empire. In Devil’s Brood, the compelling story of Henry and Eleanor’s once great love affair is explored in an uniquely vivid way. What twists of fate turn love to hatred? What points of principle and ambition cause these two icons to struggle for power, leaving their family tragically divided and their turbulent marriage finished in all but name? Sharon Penman’s glorious trilogy reaches its spellbinding conclusion.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #5305 in Books
• Published on: 2009-08-06
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 848 pages

About the Author
Sharon Penman is one of the world's leading historical novelists. Her debut, The Sunne in Splendour, was an international bestseller. She has written eight further books including When Christ and His Saints Slept and Time and Chance, the first two novels in Penman's unforgettable trilogy of King Henry II and Eleanor of Aquitaine. She lives in New Jersey.

Customer Reviews

A rich taperstry of medieval life - history as it should be told: a monumental struggle with larger than life personalities
Sharoan Kay Penman is an iconic writer and has a huge fan community. I am one of them ever since I read "The Sun in Splendour".

This is the long awaited third volume of Mrs. Penman's series on King Henry II and his Queen Elenor of Aquitaine. It is the last chapter when the family collapses and the family feud starts. Henry II and his consort Eleanor and their sons Young King Henry, Geoffrey of Brittany, Richard the Lion Heart and John Lackland are stuff for legends and endless books. On top the cousin of France poisons the atmosphere further. The struggle for power and crowns, greet, jealousy, hate and sexual lust are a powerful mixture which creates a most explosive atmosphere. It is a monumental struggle with large than life personalities.

Mrs. Penman again presents a masterful picture of the times and the personalities. She writes as if she was there. History and fiction are bound together in historcial novels might cause some upsets but not in a Penman novel. Her command of history is simply too good to cause resentment or commit mistakes. The fiction parts just help to accentuate the messages and the real events. She simply has an unique gift to portrait humans and their feeling that they seem to breath on the page. It is a remarkably detailed - at times maybe even too detailed - look on this long lost time. She opens with her vivid portrait the door to this world and one gets hooked. Pageantry and grandeur, war and peace, conflict and treachery, human fraity and loyalty are brought alive. This is historic novel writing at its finest.

History comes to life..
Sharon Penman has again managed to truly bring the pages of her novel to life. The trials and tribulations of Henry and Eleanor, the scheming of their children, and the brutality of medieval life, are all played out to tremendous effect. Whoever said that fact is more interesting than fiction would be blown away with Penman's novels. I can highly recommend them all. In fact do not start with this book, but with its predecessors, When Christ and His Saints Slept and the brilliant Time and Chance. All Penman novels are five star winners...

"all families have their little ups and downs"
Henry II of England and Eleanor of Aquitaine thought they had it all - the greatest empire since Charlemagne, healthy children including the heir and several to spare - so how did it all go so wrong? The Devil's Brood takes up the story where Time and Chance left off with the murder of Thomas Becket, as Henry returns from his self imposed exile to Ireland. Henry's three eldest sons are chafing at the bit to have lands and power of their own and egged on by Louis of France they join with their mother Eleanor in rebellion against their father. In time Henry quells the rebellion and forgives his sons, but he cannot forgive his wife and queen and he imprisons her. Even though Henry forgave his sons, they are still not happy with his generosity and it eventually leads to more power struggles and back-biting amongst the brothers, particularly young Hal, who suffers the ultimate punishment for his reckless deeds.

This was a fascinating story of a brilliant, powerful king whose blind love and trust in his sons lead him to making mistakes in judgment that eventually lead to his downfall. I also loved seeing a different side of the haughty, queenly Eleanor we saw in Time and Chance, as unlike her sons she does come to recognize the wrongness (well sometimes) of her actions and the cataclysmic effects those actions had on her family. Some readers may find the first part of this book a bit slow paced as Penman does spend time setting up the back history of Henry, Eleanor and the Becket murder, but hang in there as about half way through when the boys start turning on each other the pages literally started flying. Penman's dialogue was exceptional, although I couldn't decide who got the best lines, Henry or Richard - they just smoked off the page!

One of Penman's great strengths is to take the most complex political situations and put them into a story that not only entertains the reader but educates at the same time. Five stars and it appears from the author's notes and a recent blog interview that this will not be a trilogy, she will continue the story of Eleanor, Richard and John in one more book. Hurray!

For those of you coming away from this book wanting to know about William Marshal, I highly recommend Elizabeth Chadwick's The Greatest Knight: The Story of William Marshal and The Scarlet Lion.