The Bastard Son Who Overpowered a Kingdom and the Woman Who Melted His Heart

Tthis could have been called Joshua as easily as Beauvallet. I fell in love with his character. It was a grand swords and horses with a little swashbuckling. The love story was central to the plot but definitely not overriding. There was grand passion and heroic escapades. There was much in the was of overtones of Shakespeare. Read it an enjoy. I will warn you though, it takes a little bit to become comfortable with the archaics speach of the 1500s, but once you do you won't be able to put the book down.

I thought I read all of Georgette Heyers books with the exception of a few of her mysteries but I was wrong. Somehow I missed this one. It is a gem that is not to be missed.

My mom turned me onto Georgette Heyer when I was a teenager and I gobbled up all of the books at the library and used-books stores. I'm delighted to see so many of them reissued with forewards by popular authors. Although I'm offended my some of the authors chosen to write the forewards because their writing in no way can be compared to the deft and light touch of Georgette Heyer, I think it's wonderful that they are being republished and brought to the attention of a new generation of readers.

Beauvallet is set in Elizabethan times. I'm not aware of any other Georgette Heyer book that is set in this time, so that makes it a treasure in itself. Nick Beauvallet is a rugged charmer with an eye for a pretty lady--so different from the other Heyer books where the heros are more intellectual and less down to earth. He's a self-made entrepeneur who also happens to be a pirate for England. It's wonderful how Drake and other famous historical characters are mentioned casually as contempories of Nick. Secondary characters steal the show very much like Heyer novels set in Georgian and Regency times. Joshua, Nick's sidekick is delightful. Nick's lady love is a feisty Spanish beauty who is worth the risk that Nick takes to rescue her from an arranged marriage in Spain during the time of the Inquistion. King Philip is a baddie as are his minions who are determined to impose their un-Christian version of Christianity on the general populace (or else!) The outrageous Nick Beauvallet outwits King Philip and his posse in an exciting narrative. You'll enjoy every minute of this old-fashioned but fun book.

It's a rowdy and earthy book, very different than her Georgian/Regency books, which is not a bad thing. If I were to compare it with her other books, I would say it is most like The Talisman Ring in down-to-earth tone. I was surprised and delighted to discover it.

Sir Nicholas Beauvallet is my hero! A dashing pirate who saves the life of his heroine Donna Dominica and her father to return them to their homeland- how could I possibly resist such gallantry, courage, strenth and charm?
Heyer outdid herself once again with this fantastic novel filled with history, intrigue, excitement...and yes, this one too is filled with incomparable wittiness. And- the dialogue is superb!

Surprisingly, being more used to her regency novels, I was thrilled that this one takes place during the reign of Elizabeth I and the Spanish Armada. I absolutely loved the history and detail, let alone that the characters completely came to life. The story captivated me from the very beginning with that first scene involving Don Juan himself.

This book is reminiscent of a time when heroes were heroes and damsels were breathtaking not only physically but even more so due to their clever and gustsy ways. I reveled in the times, and the historical accuracy for me was more than a treat. Delightful from beginning to end, BEAUVALLET has become my number one Heyer read- so much so, that I plan on re-eading this one for sure. It's truly a classic.

Fantastic!

Georgette Heyer is one of my favorite authors. Her usual theme is the Regency Romance, but The Conqueror is very different. It is the story of William the Conqueror and the issues leading up to the battle of Hastings. Ms. Heyer's description and her feel for the time is excellent. Her portrayal of the characters makes you feel as if you are right there. Now that her books are available electronically, I plan to read those that I have not been able to find. The Conqueror is just the first.

This story is a refreshing change to the usual Heyer formula; if you are tired of buckskin breeches and oriental neckcloths, dive into The Conqueror for an entertaining glimpse of the Norman Conquest seen through the eyes of a fictional knight in William of Normandy's retinue.

Written in 1931, the narrative takes William, the title character, from his birth and cradle, through his constant struggles to retain hold on the Duchy of Normandy against rival dukes and the French King himself (her depiction of the defeat of King Henry at the ford of Varaville is particularly well written) to the infamous wrangle over the English crown between himself, Harold Godwineson and Edgar Aetheling and the eventual battle of Hastings.

Like her narrative of the events at Waterloo in An Infamous Army, Heyer is masterly in her battle descriptions; she never shies away from the brutality of war which is quite graphically depicted, and can switch easily from broad sweeping action scenes to intimate close-ups of battle from a individual viewpoint.

William comes across as ruthless and single-minded, which he must have been, but his motivations are understandable due to the circumstances of his illegitimate birth (a sore point with him, evidently) - even though you may despise his cruelty you cannot help but admire his courage and generalship.

The romance between him and Matilda of Flanders shows two equally fierce lovers, and according to historical accounts their devotion and fidelity is accurately written by Heyer, which would have been unusual at a time when heroic love, not courtly love, prevailed. Marriages were arranged to unite kingdoms and cement political alliances. It is an interesting romance of equals which could have been further developed, but unlike most of Heyer's other books, it takes up only a small portion of the story.

The fictitious Raoul de Harcourt, who takes allegiance with William when both are nineteen, is the Conqueror's most devoted knight and becomes his closest friend. Heyer seems to be ambivalent about her title character, as if unsure how the Duke's occasionally unpalatable character will be received: Raoul's observations and feelings are distinctly modern, and he becomes the mediator between the Duke and us, the modern audience. Heyer endows Raoul with a lot of modern sensitivities as a result, to the point where Raoul becomes almost an anachronism in the brutal times in which he lived. Unfortunately Raoul as a device does not let us see more deeply into the mind or heart of the Duke: we end up knowing more about Raoul than his lord, who remains a mystery up to his coronation at the end of the book.

Raoul may be tied to William by both loyalty and true friendship, but he is not slavish - some of William's cruelties sorely try his devotion, and one wonders what he would have made of the Harrying of the North which followed the Conquest a few years later. This is a compliment to Heyer's skill, though; if characters can inspire speculation over fates NOT in the book, then they are well-written.

My other criticism of Raoul is his somewhat formulaic romance with a Saxon lady Elfrida, sister of his friend Edgar, a follower of Harold. It never comes across as convincing, and some of the plot devices to bring them together are too forced to make me care much about their fates.

The problem is that Heyer has made a much warmer and engaging tale of love (in the heroic sense) between her hero and his boss; but then felt it necessary to balance this with a female love interest to woo Raoul away from William's side. Unfortunately Elfrida is so shallowly-drawn you end up wondering if she would have been able to keep him for long anyway.

Her brother Edgar, who is sent as hostage to Normandy and becomes a member of the Norman court, is a far more likeable character, and he brings the necessary Saxon perspective to the tale without being purely a plot device. His inevitable meeting with Raoul on the battlefield at Hastings is sad and quite poignant.

I think Heyer enjoyed writing this book - the pace is excellent and her paintings of the main characters assured. She balances her historical narrative with individual stories and romances, weaving them in and out of each other, so you get a good feel for not only the events surrounding the Norman conquest, but how it affected the lives of both Normans and Saxons and their families.

Occasionally the language comes across as stilted: one can only take so many "by the Rood of God!"s but this is a difficult problem to overcome in any true historical novel and it doesn't threaten the enjoyment of the story. The religious aspect of Norman and Saxon society is handled very well in general, it's there but it doesn't overwhelm.

Overall, an excellent read if you are interested in this part of English history, and want a reasonably true depiction of the Conqueror's life and the times in which he lived, and the events leading up to the Norman Conquest. If you are after a pure romance, though, you may be disappointed. The story is far more biography than romance.

Note: this story has so much of the flavour of Mary Stewart's Arthurian saga of Merlin that I wonder if Stewart read it and became a fan.

Georgette Heyer, best known for her formulaic Regency and Georgian romances, strayed from her usual path long enough to turn out this excellent, entertaining novel. The narrative follows the life and achievements of William, duke of Normandy--better known as William the Conqueror--through the eyes of one of his young knights, the fictional Raoul de Harcourt. Major events of William's life, from his illegitimate birth to his coronation as king of England in 1066, are described with fine period detail. Heyer's rousing treatment of the Battle of Hastings is particularly good, and for the most part, she sticks to the facts. Of course there are a few inaccuracies--credit for the creation of the Bayeux Tapestry, for example, is given to William's wife Matilda of Flanders, although it is known to have been made by the English not long after the Conquest. And did William really beat Matilda in her father's house?! That legendary event probably never took place, but here it makes for a lively episode in the account of William's courtship.

All things considered, lovers of medieval history should find this book, with its colorful descriptions of eleventh-century France and its well-drawn characters, a pleasure to read.

Georgette Heyer is a great historical fiction writer. She uses language of the age, and writes what seems to be culturally relevant making one feel that able to see into that period of time. I do suspect that she makes William the Conqueror much more mild that he actually was, and imposes morality on him that he may not have had but I have no concrete evidence for that. Enjoyed and benefited from this novel.

Georgette Heyer is one of my favorite authors but I find that I do not care as much for Beauvallet -- high adventure that starts out with capturing a Spanish ship and a fiery damsel, then goes on to intrigue in Spain to win her hand. Even though set in the 16th century, there seems to simply be a change of costume and Ms Heyer has her characters behaving just as they would during the Regency period. Also, one has to infer the meaning of words from their context and a glossary would be very helpful.

A very lively tale of Norman, French and Saxon history. Although the Norman history of the time and the legend of William the conqueror is the primary focus the conditions that led to the Norman invasion and the character and drive off the Conqueror are capably described.

Beauvallet is a historical romance set in 1586 on the sea, in England, and in Spain. Actually, it's more of an action/adventure novel. It's serious rather than funny, and I missed the humor that I so enjoy in Heyer's Regency novels.

Nicholas is extremely reckless (even he knows it) and enjoys a challenge. I have no idea why he decided to marry Dominica except that it'd be a grand challenge--both to get her out of Spain and to stay happily married to someone as opinionated as he is. Dominica likes the way he doesn't take no for an answer and the risk he's willing to take to claim her.

Honestly, I'm not really seeing a peaceful marriage here, though I will say that he is more desirable than her other suitors. I had a hard time rooting for his reckless, prideful scheme to succeed especially since I considered them a poor romantic match. But it's quite a show to see how he pulls off his scheme, and the "on the run" action at the end was exciting.

There was no sex. There was a fair amount of using "God" as a swear word. Overall, if you like action/adventure and don't mind the tenuous romance, you might enjoy this book.

The product description already covers the plot: Set in the Elizabethan era, English Privateer Mad Nick captures Spanish ship with lovely Spanish lady and, while he returns her and her father safely to Spain, he later goes into the heart of Spain to retrieve her.

I have to agree with others that a good indicator of whether you may like this book is probably if you enjoyed some of the classic pirate movies (yes, Captain Blood is one of my favorites) since it very much has that overall romantic adventure feel to it.

One of my favorite books growing up and that I still enjoy reading to this day.

This is a great adventure tale. The author researched so well how people spoke, with the wore, what they fought with, learn about ship fighting… it's much more than just a romance. It really is an adventure tale and would make a fantastic movie! As it says in the description, in this pirate tale the hero El Beauvallet, is tempted by the fair Dominica to venture into Spain for her hand. But Spain is gripped in the claws of the Inquisition. Can this Englishman do it?

Georgette Heyer's research is prodigious! William in this novel is a man whose goal is never far from his mind. When he finally overmatched English forces in 1066 he realized his goal ,fulfilling a prophecy made at his birth. Fascinating reading..

1066 William, the Duke of Normandy and bastard son defeated Harold to become the first Norman king of England. William entered the pages of history and myths. Georgette Heyer explores both with the historical novel THE CONQUEROR.
Heyer's style brings the savagery and glory of the early medieval period to the printed page with a well constructed novel of William's life, rise to power, and victory at Hastings.
Nash Black author of Indie finalists WRITING AS A SMALL BUSINESS and HAINTS.

This books is basically a bio about William the Conqueror. If I recall correctly, I believe that a lot of research went into this so there is also a lot of fact mixed in with the fiction.

While I love European history, the bulk of this was just a little too much factual illustration of the life and times to keep my interest as a novel, let alone a romance.

I will say, however, that there is one unforgettable point in this story where William answers Matilda's (Williams's wife) rejection of his suit. I'm not sure exactly of the historical accuracy but it surely made this story memorable for me.

William the Conqueror is an extremely interesting character, and Heyer succeeds in bringing him to life: along with all of his complexities. Her book is a fascinating account of the life of William and I especially found it interesting to learn about his military stratergies. He seemed to be very ahead of his time in military tactics. Heyer's account of the Battle of Hastings, 1066, is very good.
However, I gave this book 3 stars as opposed for 4 because I am reviewing it as a novel, and not as a textbook. The narrative structure is a little bit non-sensical and the plot has sometimes not been developed properly as Heyer no doubt was concerned instead with the accuracy and broad spectrum of historical fact.
Nevertheless, this is a good book to pick up if you care to be whisked off to the time of Saxons vs. Normams.

This is not the typical Heyer romance although there is a lot of it. More typical of the writing style of Sabatini with Captain Blood adventures. Thoroughly enjoyable with lots of action and adventure. Highly recommended.

Starts out like one of the old swashbuckling movies of the 30's but it does develop into more. With some interesting history of the times, it made me want to find out more about the buccaneers. A great swashbuckling time.

this is a novel containing war and adventure and danger and love. accuratly historical, and a personal favourite, its love story is one of the most fierce in heyer's books.
a fearless but also very tender and protective hero, a beautiful, brave heroine and a love with the most impossible dangers to overcome. what a wonderful, wonderful book!

The Conqueror is a novel depicting the life of William "The Conqueror," Duke of Normandy, from birth until his coronation as King of England in 1066. While I normally love historical fiction (unable to put a book down), this novel had a hard time keeping me interested. There were sections that did have me wanting to shut out the world and keep reading, but there were just as many boring storylines that had me looking at my bookshelf longingly.

Well-researched and portrayed for the time period, I have no complaints in that department. Heyer used great descriptive detail to portray the culture and history. The war-torn battlefields especially were very in-depth.

However, Heyer's writing style thoroughly annoyed me. As an editor, I wanted to go through the book and correct the punctuation with a big, red pen. Written in 1931, perhaps this is just a style of the times, or the style of some genre I've never read before, but I found the break in my reading flow quite distracting.

Another letdown for me was that the book was told from the viewpoint of Raoul, William's right-hand man. Not quite biography, not quite historical fiction, I was disappointed that the novel didn't let me inside William's head. Personally, if I can't be inside the historical character's head, then I'd rather read a biography of the person than fiction.

Lastly, William's relationship with Matilda was so talked up on the book cover and everywhere else, but in truth, it was just a small piece of the novel and seemed to be missing too much of the real storyline to make sense. In contrast, the relationship between Raoul and his friend, Edgar, had much more romance and love portrayed. I kept wondering when the two of them would become more than friends, but then Raoul fell in love with Edgar's sister, Elfrida, putting that pondering to rest.

In closing, it wasn't an altogether bad book. It just wasn't for me, and I'm doubtful I'll read anymore of Heyer's books

This is an entertaining, colorful historical novel based on the life of William the Conqueror, as seen from the vantage point of one of his knights. Lively, with plenty of detail, much of it accurate. There are inaccuracies, of course. (William's wife, Matilda, did not create the Bayeux Tapestry.) But all in all, a very good read that gives a good sense of 11th century Normandy and England.

Georgette Heyer is famous for her regency romances but she wrote wonderful historical fiction too and The Conqueror was probably the best of the bunch. It's a thrilling tale of Duke William's climb from an ignoble birth to the king of England. You get paegentry, romance, violence, death and fine writing. I read this book when I was in high school and it remains a favorite of mine.

Forsooth! Once more an exciting, romantic tale. Again I say, what an stupendous way to learn about 17th century....this time, Spain, France, and England. What a slick hero! His antics had me laughing out loud. Georgette Jeter just won't quit.

History textbooks should all be like this! Heyer's lovely potrayal of William the Conqueror is breathtaking, full of magnificence and romance. It is a story of war, a story of friendship and of love and sorrow. A tale set in a time when chivalry was not dead and the sound of the bugle signalled the start of galloping destriers charging to battle. A fine read and I would recommend it to all out there who have ever believed in knights and damsels in distress.

This book has all the classic elements of a great read: adventure, mystery, heroism, romance and the qualities of generosity and forgiveness. I loved it because of all that and the very human character studies. Georgette has a flair for the grande but without losing sight of humanity.