Monday, August 17, 2015

HFVBT Review: Naked: A Novel of Lady Godiva by Eliza Redgold

Title: Naked: A Novel of Lady Godiva
Author: Eliza Redgold
Format: Paperback
Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
Publish Date: July 14, 2015
Source: HFVBT Book Tours


What's the Story?:

From Goodreads.com: "We all know the legend of Lady Godiva, who famously rode naked through the streets of Coventry, covered only by her long, flowing hair. So the story goes, she begged her husband Lord Leofric of Mercia to lift a high tax on her people, who would starve if forced to pay. Lord Leofric demanded a forfeit: that Godiva ride naked on horseback through the town. There are various endings to Godiva's ride, that all the people of Coventry closed their doors and refused to look upon their liege lady (except for 'peeping Tom') and that her husband, in remorse, lifted the tax. 
Naked is an original version of Godiva's tale with a twist that may be closer to the truth: by the end of his life Leofric had fallen deeply in love with Lady Godiva."

My Two Cents:

"Naked" is the story of Lady Godiva, who is most commonly known for riding through her small town of Coventry naked on a horse with only her hair to cover herself. This lady is truly a legend and one that has fascinated so many people, historical fiction and history lovers alike. I'm always fascinated by this story so I was really interested in the author's take on Lady Godiva. Not many facts are about her but the author is able to take what we know and expound on it and create a really rich and wonderfully detailed story.

When it comes to historical fiction, I think that it can be difficult for authors to have too many facts. I also think it can be difficult for authors to have too few details. In the case of Lady Godiva, a lot is unknown about her and the author was able to create a very realistic character and some memorable secondary characters. I really appreciated the way that the author was able to make the legend come to life. In the beginning of the book, the author includes a historical note which explains what is known and what is unknown about the legend of Lady Godiva. It really set the stage for me as a reader and I love to see the author's thought process about the story.

Lady Godiva is such an interesting character to me. She lives in a world where women do not have much authority at all and she realizes that. However, in a lot of ways she doesn't let that fact constrained her. She feels duty-bound to take care of the people under her. Her husband is the one who dares to ride through the center of town naked in order to prove her mettle and conviction. I really liked how the author was able to make Godiva feel real. The book is told from the first person point of view which pulled me right into the story.

I really enjoyed this take on Lady Godiva. The author definitely had me interested in learning more about the legend. Historical fiction lovers will love this take on this familiar story. The other puts a brand-new spin on an old favorite!


Follow the Rest of the Tour:

Monday, August 10
Review at Bibliophilia, Please
Tuesday, August 11
Spotlight at Passages to the Past
Wednesday, August 12
Guest Post at The Maiden’s Court
Spotlight at A Book Geek
Thursday, August 13
Spotlight at Just One More Chapter
Friday, August 14
Review at 100 Pages a Day
Saturday, August 15
Guest Post at Mina’s Bookshelf
Monday, August 17
Review at A Bookish Affair
Tuesday, August 18
Review at Book Nerd
Guest Post at A Literary Vacation
Wednesday, August 19
Review at Unshelfish
Review at Svetlana’s Reads and Views
Thursday, August 20
Spotlight at Historical Fiction Connection
Guest Post at A Bookish Affair
Friday, August 21
Review at History From a Woman’s Perspective
Review at Let Them Read Books
Monday, August 24
Review at I’m Shelf-ish
Review at Please Pass the Books
Guest Post at Bibliotica
Tuesday, August 25
Review at A Fold in the Spine
Review & Interview at History Undressed
Guest Post at Curling Up By the Fire
Wednesday, August 26
Review at Bookish
Spotlight at The True Book Addict
Thursday, August 27
Review at With Her Nose Stuck in a Book
Review & Guest Post at Romantic Historical Reviews
Guest Post at The Lit Bitch
Friday, August 28
Review at A Book Drunkard
Review at Book Lovers Paradise



1 comment:

  1. Thank you so much for this thoughtful review. I'm glad you enjoyed NAKED!

    ReplyDelete

Hi! Welcome to A Bookish Affair. If you leave a comment, I will try to either reply here or on your site!

As of 6/6/2011, this book is now an awards free zone. While I appreciate the awards, I would rather stick to reviewing more great books for you than trying to fill the requirements.

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