Friday, January 22, 2021

"Court of Swans" by Melanie Dickerson

About this book:

  “Where there is wealth and power, there's always someone willing to do anything to take it.
   England, 1381: Delia's idyllic life as daughter of an earl is shattered when her father dies and his wife accuses Delia's seven brothers of treason and murder. The youngest is only ten years old, but this doesn't stop the guards from hauling them off to the Tower of London. There they await a grim fate, as child-king Richard II is executing anyone who poses a threat to his throne. Delia is their only hope for pardon and freedom.
   Sir Geoffrey did not expect his first assignment as captain of the guard to be the arrest of boys so young. He dutifully imprisons the brothers, but he can't ignore the sense, rooted in personal experience, that injustice and treachery are at work.
   Determined to rescue her brothers, Delia secures a position as a seamstress for the queen. Her quest is all but impossible as the executions continue. Sir Geoffrey offers to be her ally, but should she trust him in a court where everyone has an agenda?
   From New York Times bestselling author Melanie Dickerson comes a tender retelling of "The Wild Swans," where the virtues of loyalty and love face a harrowing showdown with power and fear.”


Series: Book #1 in “The Dericott Tales”.


Spiritual Content- Scriptures are mentioned, remembered, & quoted; Prayers; Talks about God, miracles, & why bad things happen; ‘H’s are capitalized when referring to God; Mentions of God & miracles; Mentions of praying, prayers, & thanking God; Mentions of the Holy Writ, reading it, & those in the Bible; Mentions of priests, nuns, churches/chapels, services, & sins. 
 
 
Negative Content- A couple mentions of curses (said, not written); Fighting, Weapons, Injuries, Pain, & Blood/Bleeding (up to semi-detailed); Being choked, threaten, & harming (possibly killing) a bad person (semi-detailed); All about many mentions of murders/deaths, treason, executions (beheadings), arrests, & jail/prison; Mentions of violence, fighting, killing, & murders; Mentions of threats, a fire, mobs, saying you want to kill someone (and how) & hiring someone to kill another (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of injuries, blood/bleeding, & pain (up to semi-detailed); Mentions of torture and beatings; Mentions of hatred; A few mentions of crimes; A few mentions of stealing & thieves; A few mentions of lies & lying; A few mentions of wine/alcohol, drinking, social drinking, & drunks; A few mentions of hunting; A couple mentions of gossip; A couple mentions of jealousy.
 
 
Sexual Content- An almost kiss, a forehead kiss, a semi-detailed kiss, and a detailed kiss; Wanting to kiss & embrace/touch; Wondering about being kissed/kissing & Staring at someone’s lips; Touches, Embraces, Hand Holding, Shivers, & Wanting to hold; An unwanted embrace & a man trying to get close to Delia (often unwanted nearness); Blushes, Nearness, & Noticing; A man tries to take advantage of Delia (force himself upon her) after taking her to a room (his intention is clear, but she is able to get away before anything happens); Delia mentions that her new stepmother is closer in age to her own than her father’s; Mentions of men only wanting one thing & women who were violated by awful men; Mentions of kisses & kissing; A few mentions of recalling a guard that tried to force a kiss on a servant girl; A few mentions of men jeering and leering at Delia; A couple mentions of affairs; A couple mentions of jealousy; A couple mentions of blushes; A mention of illegitimate children; A mention of an out-of-wedlock pregnancy); Love, falling in love, & the emotions.
 
-Delia Raynsford, age 18
-Geoffrey, age 22
                                P.O.V. switches between them
                                               Set in 1381 (Part of the first chapter is set in 1378)
                                                        320 pages

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Pre Teens-
New Teens-
Early High School Teens-
Older High School Teens-
My personal Rating-
Hmm. I wasn’t sure what to expect with this brand new start to a Melanie Dickerson series. While I do think some things were very convenient for the plot and I’m little disappointed with the plot line of a cad bothering Delia, I did like other parts of this story. Delia and her brothers cared for each other very much, I would have liked seeing more of their protectiveness towards her. 

As far as the romance portion, it wasn’t my favorite from this author. I think that’s because of how we’re introduced to Geoffrey, but regardless, I wasn’t able to squee and be fully excited for their relationship to build. I liked both him and Delia, but I didn’t feel any special connection to them, personally. The faith content was lovely to see and I enjoying seeing Delia’s faith grow especially.

So while this wasn’t my favorite book by the author, I’m looking forward to the next book with Edwin’s story. 

 
 
See y’all on Friday with a new review!


*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.

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