Some of my favorite historical novels are retellings of famous literary works, or stories surrounding supporting characters from those works. So Heir to a Prophecy was a book that intrigued me from my first reading of the synopsis. Centering around the (short) life of Banquo, his son, Fleance, and the three witches, and mainly their prophecy concerning Banquo and his descendants, from Shakespeare's MacBeth, the book is an exciting incite into what Shakespeare intended...that Banquo was the founder of the royal Stewart (Stuart) line.

This is an interesting and engaging story surrounding the history of Scotland, England and Wales in the 11th century. There is a lot of war and battles, but not overwhelmingly so. The character of Walter, his complexity, balances out the big action parts. As the grandson of Banquo, and son of Fleance, Walter has a lot of revenge on his plate. As the story progresses, we get to see what moves Walter and what makes him the man he becomes.

This being her first book of fiction, I am very impressed. It's obvious that Rochelle is passionate about history and knows her stuff to boot. The historical accuracy and detail in this book is amazing. Her next book is titled, Godwine Kingmaker, and I can't wait to read it! ( )

I have not read MacBeth but that did not cause any problems with my enjoyment of Heir to a Prophecy. I had in fact, minimal knowledge about the story; I knew the main characters and the basics of the story but that was it. What I’m trying to impart is to not let a lack of knowing that story stop you from reading this one. If you do you will miss out on a really good book.

What you are getting in this story is a little bit of fantasy, a lot of war (blood and guts and all but it was a brutal time.) a little bit of romance and a ripping good tale of how the Stuart line came to be. It’s a period in history that I have not read much about so it was fascinating to me. Ms. Rochelle really knows how to bring a period to life and this was one of those books where I didn’t want to put it down and I truly felt as if I was living the story.

It starts with the murder of Banquo and moves through his son, Fleance’s life but really focuses on Banquo’s grandson, Walter, for it is through Walter that the witches prophecy will come true. Walter is at times a reluctant participant in his own life but he is a smart man who learns to control his temper and ultimately follows his path. I loved this character. Of course it’s all a mash up of fiction and fact but it is done so well that i was lost in the story and didn’t care. I followed up afterward to sort what was what as I always do.

The book is a page turner, well researched and just a fascinating look at a lost time in the history of Scotland and Wales. The record that is left is woven together with the bits from MacBeth and the author’s imagination to take the reader on a trip through time that won’t be forgotten. ( )