Product Description

'The Sunne in Splendour' is a magnificent historical novel about Richard III. Set against a vast, colourful canvas it covers the whole period of The War of the Roses opening with Richard as a child of seven and following him through a turbulent youth and manhood to his betrayal and death at The Battle of Bosworth Field. The historical detail is brilliantly depicted and brings to life the atmosphere of the time with extraordinary immediacy and excitement.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #7883 in Books
• Published on: 2000-11-30
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 896 pages

About the Author
Sharon Penman is one of the most popular historical novelists writing today. Her bestselling story of Richard III, The Sunne in Splendour, was published in 1982 and her acclaimed Welsh trilogy, Here Be Dragons, Falls the Shadow and The Reckoning, was similarly successful. Time and Chance is the second in a trilogy that opened with When Christ and His Saints Slept (1994). Sharon Penman has travelled widely on both sides of the Atlantic researching her work. She lives in New Jersey.

Customer Reviews

Compelling, Factual, and yet Human Drama
The Sunne in Splendour is an incredible book. I have read all of Sharon Penman's novels, and thoroughly enjoyed all of them, but this is far and away my favourite. I think that Richard III has
had a terrible and undeserved reputation, and this book goes a long way to rectifying this. It is never trivial, or patronising, it just tells a completely different story to the one we have all been brought up to believe. Richard is not portrayed as a hunch-backed, uncaring monster, more as a man faced with unspeakable dilemmas, and no way out. I admit to having a soft spot for Richard Plantagenet, and I do feel that he has been treated very unfairly by history. However, this book enables him to have his say, and to try to put the record staright. He was betrayed, and the battle scene description at Bosworth Field, when he knew that treason had been committed, moved me to tears. This book doesn't just deal in facts, it also
gives the story from a more personal view, and that made it more appealing to me. I loved it. Read it, so will you.

Spellbinding. A brilliant read.
Having read all of Sharon Penman,s books I consider this to be the best. Although described as a novel about Richard III much of the book deals with his brother, Edward IV, and their close relationship. Ms Penman chronicles the War of the Roses in an easy to read style that allows you to understand the relationship between the various characters and the political intrigue of the day. At the same time the book reads as an exciting adventure novel that is very difficult to put down. A superb way to find out about this period of history, the book also leaves you feeling that more needs to be done in researching the life of Richard III and the mystery of the Murder of the Princes in the Tower. A DNA test on the supposed skeletons of the princes would be a good start. If you only ever read one historical novel then this should be it.

A true revelation
UNFAIR, that's how I felt finishing reading this book. UNFAIR that we don't know the truth about Richard III and his rule, that we must rely on the inspiration and imagination of this brilliant author, describing those bloody and tumultous times.

UNFAIR is how Richard III has been treated posthumously. Although he is described in the book as almost a faultless person, his consciousness and devotion being his drawbecks in those times when people were so treacherous, blood-thirsty, avaricious, striving for power and driven by their wildest ambitions (probably also that's why almost they all found their way to the block eventually, taking a few innocent along too), we must acknowledge that if a monarch can't punish those who threatenhis personal safety or interests of the state, he's condemned to be deposed In general, I've tried before to understand the conflict between Y&L and read a couple of non-fictional book about it, but was lost in a whirpool of names, dates, titles and battles. Only after this book I have quite clear idea who was who in this war, how events developed and why this period is truly called one of the bloodes in the history of England. It's a long book, covering about 25 years of the period, but it can be our share of returning Richard III his good name. It would also be UNFAIR if you don't discover this book for yourself!