Elena Maria Vidal
Auteur de Trianon: A Novel of Royal France
A propos de l'auteur
Crédit image: Elena Maria Vidal
Œuvres de Elena Maria Vidal
My Queen, My Love: A Novel of Henrietta Maria (The Henrietta of France Trilogy) (2021) 2 exemplaires
Étiqueté
Partage des connaissances
- Nom canonique
- Vidal, Elena Maria
- Sexe
- female
- Nationalité
- USA
- Lieux de résidence
- Frederick, Maryland and State College, PA
- Études
- State University of New York, Albany (MA|Modern European History)
- Professions
- blogger
author - Organisations
- OCDS, Catholic Writers Guild
- Courte biographie
- Born in Florence, Oregon and grew up in Frederick, Maryland. BA in Psychology from Hood College and MA in History from Albany State. In 1986, she joined the Secular Order of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel. Elena taught at the Frederick Visitation Academy and worked as a private tutor as well as teaching children's etiquette classes. During a trip to Austria in 1995 she visited the tomb of Empress Maria Theresa in the Capuchin crypt in Vienna. Afterwords she decided to finish a novel about Marie-Antoinette she had started writing ten years before but had put aside. In 1997 her first historical novel TRIANON was published by St. Michaels Press. In 2000, the sequel MADAME ROYALE was published, as well as the second edition of TRIANON, by The Neumann Press. Both books quickly found an international following which continues to this day.
In November 2009, THE NIGHT'S DARK SHADE: A NOVEL OF THE CATHARS was published by Mayapple Books. The new historical novel deals with the controversial Albigensian Crusade in thirteenth century France. Elena has been a contributor to Canticle Magazine. In April 2009 she was a speaker at the Eucharistic Convention in Auckland, New Zealand. She currently lives in Pennsylvania with her family and is working on a historical novel about her Irish ancestors. Elena blogs at http://teaattrianon.blogspot.com/.
Membres
Critiques
This book is complete and total, biased drivel! It is a work of garbage that is not worth the paper it is printed on (or the digital space it takes up). It is pure, uneducated tripe attempting to pass as something of substance. But the stench it gives off quickly reveals it to be the outlandish pile of trash that it is!
https:/teaattrianon.blogspot.com/2017/12/trolls-on-internet-and-negative-reviews.html
https:/teaattrianon.blogspot.com/2017/12/trolls-on-internet-and-negative-reviews.html
Beautifully and sympathetically told, covering the viewpoints of multiple characters. Highly recommended.
1 
nellista | 2 autres critiques | Jan 5, 2011 |
nellista | 2 autres critiques | Jan 5, 2011 | 
After having read the exquisite book, Trianon- A Novel of Royal France, by Elena Maria Vidal (see my review of that maginificent book here), I couldn’t wait to read The Night’s Dark Shade by this excellent author. Although different from the days of Marie Antoinette, in this 13th c novel, Raphaëlle, our heroine also lives turbulent and trying times that require a strong faith to carry on at all cost.
A noble by birth, Raphaëlle had been appointed in the court of Queen Blanche, when all was well under the rule of Louis VIII- The Lion. After Louis was killed in the crusade against the Albigensians, along with Raphaëlle’s father and her betrothed, the country underwent the rule of the King's young son, Louis IX. It was a trying time, with the masses rebelling and poor Queen Blanche barely holding what was left of the kingdom, together.
Raphaëlle, now practically an orphan, was given permission by the Queen to leave and live under the guardianship of her uncle- and to marry her first cousin, Raymond. A new life was promised to her, and despite the sorrow of having lost her closest loved ones, Raphaëlle bravely took on the journey towards her new life.
What was unbeknownst to her was that her uncle’s castle would be dreadfully macabre…under the rule of not so much her uncle, but especially so of her aunt, Lady Esclarmonde. She was the highest priestess of the Cathars, a group of fanatically religious people who had a skewed sense of that which was moral or good. On a mission of ridding the world of children, marriage, and all essence of Christianity, the Cathars believed in adulterous relationships, strict fasting of meat, the facilitation of killing babies (born or unborn) all for the good of the planet…hmmm. The Cathars attended morbid rituals in the deep of the night, in a hollow cave where the secret gem that held all powers was kept.
Although the Cathars were sought after and tried for their heresy, the tribe thrived in living incognito amongst the people of the villages. The castle where Raphaëlle lived was home to their highest Queen- and all villagers feared her. Also despised and suffering cruelty at the hands of her husband to be, a great Cathar leader in the making, Raphaëlle planned her escape.
Throughout the book, there are many good soldiers and monks who help fight the cause, helping the innocent and the travelers along their way. One such grand man was Sir Martin, a Knight Hospitaller of Saint John. He was almost a constant presence in this book- a savior as often as he was maligned.
We meet many intricate characters in The Night’s Dark Shade; each contributing to the riveting events that ensue in this well written book. I enjoyed learning about the religious differences and strongholds that this heretic religion had on those almost barbaric times. Surprisingly, I often felt that there were many similarities to some of the pejorative notions still held today by certain groups, in terms of marriage, children and morality, for the most part. The opinion of saving a world at the sake of its inhabitants and the over-indulgence at the expense of others resonated strongly in my mind as controversial topics that still make waves today, as they try to pass themselves for the norm.
It was indeed quite thought provoking to read this book- which is about not only an absorbing love story-but also about the tribulations in the name of religion, the horror in the beliefs of the times and the suffering for cause.
Will Raphaëlle’s soul find peace through love and her true calling? Friendship, loyalty, deception and betrayal along with a strong religious vein are all found in this book that truly stands out on its own.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in learning more about the time of the Albigensian Crusade and the heretics- specifically the Cathars in Southern France. But best of all, you’ll also find a beautiful love story with a surprising twist. A must for those who love to read about religion in history with a touch of pure romance.… (plus d'informations)
A noble by birth, Raphaëlle had been appointed in the court of Queen Blanche, when all was well under the rule of Louis VIII- The Lion. After Louis was killed in the crusade against the Albigensians, along with Raphaëlle’s father and her betrothed, the country underwent the rule of the King's young son, Louis IX. It was a trying time, with the masses rebelling and poor Queen Blanche barely holding what was left of the kingdom, together.
Raphaëlle, now practically an orphan, was given permission by the Queen to leave and live under the guardianship of her uncle- and to marry her first cousin, Raymond. A new life was promised to her, and despite the sorrow of having lost her closest loved ones, Raphaëlle bravely took on the journey towards her new life.
What was unbeknownst to her was that her uncle’s castle would be dreadfully macabre…under the rule of not so much her uncle, but especially so of her aunt, Lady Esclarmonde. She was the highest priestess of the Cathars, a group of fanatically religious people who had a skewed sense of that which was moral or good. On a mission of ridding the world of children, marriage, and all essence of Christianity, the Cathars believed in adulterous relationships, strict fasting of meat, the facilitation of killing babies (born or unborn) all for the good of the planet…hmmm. The Cathars attended morbid rituals in the deep of the night, in a hollow cave where the secret gem that held all powers was kept.
Although the Cathars were sought after and tried for their heresy, the tribe thrived in living incognito amongst the people of the villages. The castle where Raphaëlle lived was home to their highest Queen- and all villagers feared her. Also despised and suffering cruelty at the hands of her husband to be, a great Cathar leader in the making, Raphaëlle planned her escape.
Throughout the book, there are many good soldiers and monks who help fight the cause, helping the innocent and the travelers along their way. One such grand man was Sir Martin, a Knight Hospitaller of Saint John. He was almost a constant presence in this book- a savior as often as he was maligned.
We meet many intricate characters in The Night’s Dark Shade; each contributing to the riveting events that ensue in this well written book. I enjoyed learning about the religious differences and strongholds that this heretic religion had on those almost barbaric times. Surprisingly, I often felt that there were many similarities to some of the pejorative notions still held today by certain groups, in terms of marriage, children and morality, for the most part. The opinion of saving a world at the sake of its inhabitants and the over-indulgence at the expense of others resonated strongly in my mind as controversial topics that still make waves today, as they try to pass themselves for the norm.
It was indeed quite thought provoking to read this book- which is about not only an absorbing love story-but also about the tribulations in the name of religion, the horror in the beliefs of the times and the suffering for cause.
Will Raphaëlle’s soul find peace through love and her true calling? Friendship, loyalty, deception and betrayal along with a strong religious vein are all found in this book that truly stands out on its own.
I highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in learning more about the time of the Albigensian Crusade and the heretics- specifically the Cathars in Southern France. But best of all, you’ll also find a beautiful love story with a surprising twist. A must for those who love to read about religion in history with a touch of pure romance.… (plus d'informations)
1 LucyB. | 1 autre critique | Feb 4, 2010 |
LucyB. | 1 autre critique | Feb 4, 2010 | Statistiques
- Œuvres
- 6
- Membres
- 63
- Popularité
- #268,028
- Évaluation
- 4.5
- Critiques
- 8
- ISBN
- 9
My Queen, My Love is the first book in a trilogy about the life of Henrietta of France. This book focuses on Henrietta's early marriage to Charles Stuart. The writing incorporated intricate historical detail and I love that Henriette was the focus of the story. Henriette is very innocent yet determined and much smarter than most people probably realized. I was intrigued by Charles and Henriette's tumultuous marriage. It seemed that they truly loved one another, but were greatly affected by religious differences, and meddling by the Duke of Buckingham. I would have loved to have some insights into the Duke of Buckingham's actions, maybe a chapter of two from his point of view. WIth a surprising ending leading into a turbulent time in England's history, I am excited to see where Henreitte's story leads next.
This book was received for free in return for an honest review.… (plus d'informations)