The Cold Light of Dawn by Anna Belfrage
Publication Date: February 16, 2018
Matador & TimeLight Press
eBook & Paperback; 434 Pages
Series: The King’s Greatest Enemy, Book #4
Genre: Historical Fiction
After Henry of Lancaster’s rebellion has been crushed early in 1329, a restless peace settles over England. However, the young Edward III is no longer content with being his regents’ puppet, no matter that neither Queen Isabella nor Roger Mortimer show any inclination to give up their power. Caught in between is Adam de Guirande, torn between his loyalty to the young king and that to his former lord, Roger Mortimer.
Edward III is growing up fast. No longer a boy to be manipulated, he resents the power of his mother, Queen Isabella, and Mortimer. His regents show little inclination of handing over their power to him, the rightful king, and Edward suspects they never will unless he forces their hand.
Adam de Guirande is first and foremost Edward’s man, and he too is of the opinion that the young king is capable of ruling on his own. But for Adam siding with his king causes heartache, as he still loves Roger Mortimer, the man who shaped him into who he is.
Inevitably, Edward and his regents march towards a final confrontation. And there is nothing Adam can do but pray and hope that somehow things will work out. Unfortunately, prayers don’t always help.
The Cold Light of Dawn is the fourth in Anna Belfrage’s series, The King’s Greatest Enemy, the story of a man torn apart by his loyalties to his lord and his king.
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My Review: Okay. Okay, okay, okay. I am going to try my very best to gather my thoughts into some sort of coherent, intelligent, cohesive review that will properly share my ideas regarding this book and author.
I am going to fail utterly.
Because it’s Anna Belfrage!! And this particular series was my first introduction to all things Anna, which is why I tell everyone with a pulse about Adam and Kit. (Plus, I’m going to marry Adam. So, there’s that.)
The Cold Light of Dawn is the fourth book in “The King’s Greatest Enemy” series. The books follow the path of Edward III, combining historical figures with fictional characters. After the rebellion of Henry of Lancaster, Edward III begins to resent the position of his mother, Queen Isabella…and that of Lord Roger Mortimer…over him. Being the rightful king, Edward believes that now is the time for him to step into his role and rule from the throne. Adam de Guirande, while believing that Edward is most likely ready to rule, finds himself caught between his allegiance to the young king and his loyalty to Roger Mortimer. (If you can get any of the previous books in the series, please do. They really set up the history between all of the characters, giving you insight into the emotional grief that this new twist causes amongst everyone.)
As with anything that Ms. Belfrage writes, I was caught up in the story immediately. She possesses the ability to completely immerse her readers in the scene, filling the imagination with the sights, the smells, the noises, the action, the emotion. The ever-deepening relationship between Adam and Kit (Dear Anna, can you please tell Kit ‘hi’ for me? She’s my BFF. Except she doesn’t know I exist, so…please?) is beautifully written, allowing the reader to feel how perfectly they balance each other out. The tension between Edward III, Isabella and Mortimer was enough at times that I found myself holding my breath. (Pretty sure I’ve forgotten to breath through most of Anna Belfrage’s books. Guys, they’re that good.) And the disappointment that I felt with Edward III was a gut-puncher for me. I had such high hopes for him…
Bottom line is this: I truly feel like I know Adam and Kit personally. They have taken up residence in my heart, and go with me everywhere. So to hold this book in my hands, with a continuation of their story, was heaven in every sense of the word for me. (And I really hope that there are more books to come. Maybe the series can match book-for-book with “The Graham Saga,” yes?)
You need this book. You won’t regret it. If you’re an historical fiction lover, you will fall into this book like no other. If you’re not an historical fiction lover?
You’re about to be.
About the Author
Anna was raised abroad, on a pungent mix of Latin American culture, English history and Swedish traditions. As a result she’s multilingual and most of her reading is historical- both non-fiction and fiction. Possessed of a lively imagination, she has drawers full of potential stories, all of them set in the past. She was always going to be a writer – or a historian, preferably both. Ideally, Anna aspired to becoming a pioneer time traveller, but science has as yet not advanced to the point of making that possible. Instead she ended up with a degree in Business and Finance, with very little time to spare for her most favourite pursuit. Still, one does as one must, and in between juggling a challenging career Anna raised her four children on a potent combination of invented stories, historical debates and masses of good food and homemade cakes. They seem to thrive…
For years she combined a challenging career with four children and the odd snatched moment of writing. Nowadays Anna spends most of her spare time at her writing desk. The children are half grown, the house is at times eerily silent and she slips away into her imaginary world, with her imaginary characters. Every now and then the one and only man in her life pops his head in to ensure she’s still there.
Other than on her website, www.annabelfrage.com, Anna can mostly be found on her blog, http://annabelfrage.wordpress.com – unless, of course, she is submerged in writing her next novel. You can also connect with Anna on Facebook, Twitter and Goodreads.
Blog Tour Schedule
Monday, February 26
Review at Historical Fiction Reviews
Tuesday, February 27
Guest Post at Let Them Read Books
Wednesday, February 28
Review at A Holland Reads
Thursday, March 1
Feature at What Is That Book About
Friday, March 2
Review at Book Drunkard
Monday, March 5
Review at A Bookaholic Swede
Tuesday, March 6
Review at Beth’s Book Nook Blog
Wednesday, March 7
Review at Oh, for the Hook of a Book!
Friday, March 9
Review at A Chick Who Reads
Monday, March 12
Review at Pursuing Stacie
Tuesday, March 13
Guest Post at Oh, for the Hook of a Book!
Thursday, March 15
Feature at Passages to the Past
Friday, March 16
Interview at Dianne Ascroft’s Blog
Monday, March 19
Review at So Many Books, So Little Time
Wednesday, March 21
Review at Svetlana’s Reads and Views
Feature at A Literary Vacation
Thursday, March 22
Review at Back Porchervations
Friday, March 23
Feature at Button Eyed Reader
Monday, March 26
Review at Just One More Chapter
Wednesday, March 28
Review at Broken Teepee
Review at Impressions In Ink
Friday, March 30
Review at Bookramblings
Giveaway
During the Blog Tour we will be giving away a complete set of The King’s Greatest Enemy series to one winner & two winners will win a paperback copy of The Cold Light of Dawn! To enter, please enter via the Gleam form below.
Giveaway Rules
– Giveaway ends at 11:59pm EST on March 30th. You must be 18 or older to enter.
– Giveaway is open INTERNATIONALLY.
– Only one entry per household.
– All giveaway entrants agree to be honest and not cheat the systems; any suspect of fraud is decided upon by blog/site owner and the sponsor, and entrants may be disqualified at our discretion.
– Winner has 48 hours to claim prize or new winner is chosen.
Thank you for a lovely review. Kit tells me to tell you that as long as you keep your hands off Adam, she will be delighted to be your medieval BFF
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LOL, it’s a deal!
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Another fabulous review, thank you so much Stacie! I am thrilled that you enjoyed it so much! Thank you for hosting Anna!
Amy
HF Virtual Book Tours
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Thank you for the opportunity, Amy! ❤
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