Alicia A. Willis

This book gave me a lot to think about through its themes of friendship and forgiveness told through the story of a British slave and his Roman master. Both of them are changed through their acceptance of the message of Christ. They then act as shining examples of His love. The Christian message was a bit heavy-handed, but I felt the characters' earnestness in accepting it and the author's sincere belief. The author didn't always follow the Roman naming conventions; that annoyed me. A Roman father named Rowland, for instance? Philip, the name of the Briton? One anachronism: at one place the author mentions the Coliseum; the story takes place during Nero's reign, long before it was built and upon completion, it was called the Flavian Amphitheatre. This story and its message will stay with you long after you read it.… (plus d'informations)

Though the title may sound a little on the cheesy side to some, this book is anything but. Those looking for a good, old-fashioned adventure/coming of age story with knights and ladies will likely be well pleased with this one.
Written in the style of classical authors, such as Henty and Pyle, it could also appeal to thier readers, and is free of some of the issues that sometimes plague more modern works (political correctness, excessive sexual content etc.....).

In a sense, its just smashing good fun- and family friendly fun at that. With the last book I found the archaic style langauge to be something of an issue- but this time around I actually found it rather endearing.
It was intersting to see some of the characters from the last book develop and come into thier own- especially those like Nathaniel whom I found a little flat last time around.
The theme of loyalty and courage was also well-delivered (as well as the messages about not judging by appearances, or failures which could be derived from the story).

Historically- it seemed fairly accurate in the broad sense- though having French characters referring to Shires in France seemed a little dubious. Also, I'm not sure if the idea of bands of knights being able to travel across countries to attack and kidnap one another, without intervention from any kind of centralized legal system seemed plausible.
The King was supposed to be able to control things like that, or local enforcement officers- but we don't really see anything like that here.

The above were really my only complaints though. Overall I enjoyed this, and would certainly like to read the next one.… (plus d'informations)

One could almost call To Birmingham Castle a ‘coming of age’ tale recounting the exploits, challenges and adventures of Robert Fitzhassaltine and the young men who come to be his squires on their journey to manhood, and eventually knighthood (for the latter anyway)learning about courage, honour, loyalty and even finding love along the way.
There were some interesting historical details, especially regarding weapons, armour and fighting techniques, and occasional French or Latin phrase demonstrates the author’s research in these areas.
That said, there were some inaccuracies and errors which may have been due to deficiencies in the secondary sources themselves, rather then anything else.

That said there were a few references which I stood out for me as an English person and history graduate, such as the reference to the ‘shire of Birmingham’. Now I understand that Birmingham Castle is fictional, and some artistic licence has to be used in every story, but the reference above just seems like a historical and geographical misnomer, as there is not and never has been a ‘shire’ of Birmingham and the implication of the name ‘Birminghamshire’ just doesn’t sound right at all.

The one major issue I had was the writing style, which I could really not get in with. Essentially it was written in the style of the Victorian novels of Howard Pyle and G Henty with much of the dialogue pseudo- Middle English in style. So the characters will say things like ‘verily, methinks thou art right, beausire’.

It’s not just the archaic language that I had the problem with, (I have read actual Middle English- though not for a prolonged period). There was the way in which the book was written, which seemed a very narrative style telling rather than showing. I personally found it hard-going and slow some of the time, or perhaps rather simplistic or repetitive in style.
I perhaps prefer my characters more complex than some of the ones here were, some of whom seemed altogether too perfect, and some of the scenarios just seemed rather implausible. Like the way in which a miscreant was able to get into the castle apparently easily and kidnap the Lord’s daughters (who could do nothing but scream) and make off with them by the hand into the forest, or the characters seeming to recover from even relatively serious injures incredibly quickly.

When the author did ‘show’ the character’s emotions it was almost always in some descriptive passage such as ‘fear and concern mingling in his eyes’ or ‘his whole mien portrayed his feelings of combined expectation and anxiety’. Without meaning to be personal or over-critical, could the author not have used some other way to describe the characters feelings or body language, and is it even possible for people to portray such a range of emotions with only their eyes?

Altogether, To Birmingham Castle is generally a satisfying ‘old style’ adventure tale, with a sound (and not theologically dubious) Christian theme. I think I was genuinely able to engage with it in parts. I could I think have given in a higher rating had the writing style been different, especially considering the book was pushing 460 pages.
I would be interested in reading the second book in the series, and might be interesting to see how the character of Nathanial the page of Sir Robert who seemed to do little but cry in this book, develops.
… (plus d'informations)

If you want a sweet, clean, wholesome Medieval adventure series, Alicia Willis' trilogy is a great choice. Emulating the style of the Victorian and early 20th century writers such as Howard Pyle and G.A.Henty, the 'Comrades of Honor' trilogy is full of adventure, courage and heroism- but despite the emphasis on knights and thier escapades, is not entirely 'masculine' in tone or emphasis.
There are usually romantic elements involved, and some female leads who can be strong and fiesty without being overly militant or epousing modern feminist ideals that would be at odds with the setting (no griping about 'repression' or 'sexism' when they can't do what they want here).

'Rising the to the Challenge' was the last book in the series, and although it pays to read the first two books, each title is a self-contained story that can be read and appreciated by itself. Those who have read the previous titles will be re-united with some beloved characters from the other stories (Sir Kenneth, Sir Brandon and others), as well as some alluring and endearing new ones, with challenges and problems to face, and another dangerous foe to grapple with.

The author is a self-professed historian, and these books are usually rich in authentic details of the age, especially those relating to the ceremonies, expectations and lifestyle of Medieval Knights and knighthood. I only had few problems with the period details- one being the mention of a torture chamber, the other to a knight saying he could force a Lady to marry him without her consent. Seeing as Medieval canon law stated marriage without free consent was illegal, it struck me as a bit inaccurate, as did the former.
Also, I did seem implausible that nobles could go around comitting acts like the villains sometimes do in this series, without some kind of intervention from the King or Parliament, who were meant to keep the nobility in check.

However, these did not really detract from the story, or the reader's enjoyment of it, and balancing it out is some solid research and an otherwise good sense of the time.
Overall, 'Rising to the Challenge' is wonderfully pleasurable and satisfying read, with some solid Christian themes that do not come across as preachy or contrived, but fit in well with the period setting.
Suitable for teen-adult (younger children might find the langauge and writing style a bit obscure, and there is some violence, but nothing graphic).
… (plus d'informations)