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    A Constant Heart
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    A Constant Heart
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    A Constant Heart
    Ebook432 pages6 hours

    A Constant Heart

    By Siri Mitchell

    3/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this ebook

    Born with the face of an angel, Marget Barnardsen is blessed. Her father is a knight, and now she is to be married to the Earl of Lytham. her destiny is guaranteed...at least, it would seem so. But when her introduction to court goes awry and Queen Elizabeth despises her, Marget fears she's lost her husband forever. Desperate to win him back, she'll do whatever it takes to discover how she failed and capture again the love of a man bound to the queen.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBaker Publishing Group
    Release dateOct 1, 2008
    ISBN9781441204301
    Unavailable
    A Constant Heart
    Author

    Siri Mitchell

    Siri Mitchell is the author of 16 novels. She has also written 2 novels under the pseudonym of Iris Anthony. She graduated from the University of Washington with a business degree and has worked in various levels of government. As a military spouse, she lived all over the world, including Paris and Tokyo. Visit her online at sirimitchell.com; Facebook: SiriMitchell; or Twitter: @SiriMitchell.

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    Reviews for A Constant Heart

    3/5

    79 ratings24 reviews

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    • 2/5
      Two suggestions. First, this book could use new cover art because the current cover gives the impression that this book is a romance novel and the brief synopsis provided on the cover "Will Marget risk everything for the man who's captured her heart?" does little to dispel this illusion when in fact this is much more a piece of historical fiction than romance. Second, I would retitle this book something along the lines of "Everyone Hates Queen Elizabeth (Starring two characters who clearly need to learn how to COMMUNICATE)."In all seriousness, the main characters Lytham and Marget seemed like manic depressive school kids. Spoiler alert: I have never encountered characters that vacillated so much about EVERYTHING. One minute they love each other, the next minute they are sure that the other is being unfaithful, and then they ignore each other and then without reason they love each other again and on and on it goes for like 400 pages. In a word: obnoxious. AND neither of them ever talks about their issues with the other. I would think that in the course of a 5+ year marriage a husband and wife would discuss something, anything! and if they had, there would have been a lot less drama. For example: Marget, "So I'm best buds with Lady Winters." Lyntham "Lady Winters? She's a snake! Avoid her." And then all problems would be avoided and this book would be like 5 pages long, instead of 400. Not to mention the fact that the characters are totally unrealistic. So Marget knows Lady Winters is a snake, has betrayed her and wants Lyntham for herself and what is the first thing she does after coming to this realization? She chooses to listen to Lady Winters again instead of trusting what she has with her husband of 5 years. Unrealistic. And to top it off? Everyone (especially the main characters) is incurably selfish. Running over and killing little kids in the street, refusing to help the poor, turning on and insulting their servants without the least provocation, and choosing to rant about their own measly feelings of insecurity when the entire countryside is dying from starvation and plague.... the list goes on.I would recommend avoiding this book, unless you want to read about the effects of lead poisoning or you really hate Queen Elizabeth and want to see her bashed to pieces for hundreds of pages. In the end, the only emotion this book inspired in me was pity for Queen Elizabeth who Mitchell unmercifully shredded throughout this lackluster work.Also, they still put lead in makeup so where does that leave us?
    • 3/5
      I have to agree with what many people have said - I knew that this book was historical fiction and that is what captured my interest, but I didn't realize that it was Christian fiction, which did turn me off a little. It was an interesting read, but it did draw out a little too long. Lost interest somewhat, and got slightly annoyed with the characters to a point.
    • 3/5
      Bor-ing!! The story was interesting, but it was just SO long and drawn-out!! I almost fell asleep.
    • 5/5
      As a history major, historical fiction is a guilty pleasure for me. Many of my fellow classmates who are PhD bound tend to see historical fiction as splurges that are not worth the effort. I disagree because I feel that GOOD historical fiction can help people understand history more and help to garner more interest in the subject. It's interesting because even though I am an American history focus, I really love British history possibly due to my love of all things British. It might also have to do with the fact that American history also has its roots in British history so it's really all tied together. Either way, it's just good stuff and I love reading it.I really have enjoyed Siri Mitchell's chick lit books and I've read one of her other historicals. Even though the books are totally different, they are written wonderfully. They are so full of detail and the story line is fully developed. At first it's a bit confusing at the switching of view points between Marget and Lytham because there's not really an obvious break between the two thoughts. However once you get into the meat of the story, it just begins to flow.I've watched several movies about Queen Elizabeth and it's amazing how she's portrayed in this book as a jealous, conniving old woman who's wants control of everyone around her. I felt so bad for Marget who from the beginning found disfavor from the Queen simply because of the way she looked. Then she had to give in to all the beauty requirements which were really harmful and deadly to the women who were using them. It's interesting how much effort was put to appease vanity. The whole book is just Marget loving her husband even though it can lead to disaster. For some reason, I kept picturing Colin Firth as Lytham. I think it might have to do with him being in the movie Shakespeare in Love which takes place during the same time period but also because Lytham has sort of a Darcy attitude around him. Either way, he was quite a complex character who is afraid to love and is wary of trusting a woman again.The historical research for this book is well done. You really feel as if you have been transported to Elizabethan England. I could picture the court, the costumes, the culture of the times. It's just a sweeping novel. I would not even classify this book as Christian fiction even though it's from a Christian publisher. Honestly, it is just a really wonderful historical fiction book that takes the reader into the story and transports them back to another time and era. And isn't the cover of the book just gorgeous? This book helps to explain why Siri Mitchell is one of my favorite authors. HIGHLY recommended.
    • 2/5
      I requested this book based on my love of historical fiction and didn't realize that it was also Christian fiction (which I don't read). When I received it, I was surprised that it was labeled Christian- the story and characters didn't seem to support that classification. Unfortunately the story also wasn't a good example of historical fiction either. The characters seemed one-dimensional to me and the plot was contrived. I didn't believe any of the characters motivations for their actions. Maybe it just wasn't my cup of tea.
    • 4/5
      I was pleasantly surprised that I liked this book! I love historical fiction, but I didn't realize when I requested it that it was listed as Christian fiction as well (not really my cup of tea). However, this story wasn't any more religious than any other book dealing with this time period might be, and while reading it I never would have referred to it as Christian fiction if I hadn't known it was listed as such. Aside from that, I enjoyed the story itself, particularly with Queen Elizabeth as a secondary character (and not a terribly flattering portrayal of her, either, which was a nice change). Also, the author made court life seem rather boring at times, and it's rare to see this in historical novels. More intrigue, betrayal, passion and love than I would have suspected from a short book -- definitely enjoyed it!
    • 2/5
      I was very excited to get this book (it was my first LTER book- but I misplaced my notes on it for a review- doing it from memory!). I love historical fiction as well as Christian lit, so I thought this book would be perfect for me. I was incorrect. The theme of constancy was all but beat over my head as I read it and the husband was inconsistent with what he wanted. I felt that too much was improbable and some parts felt forced as though the only way some of the events could have happened was by divine (read: author) intervention. The ending also came up fairly abruptly and didn't fit with the character profiles that were developed. That being said, I did like the historical notes that were incorporated and I had a very good sense of the time, just not of a coherent plot and character development.
    • 3/5
      Marget, a daughter of a knight, is a little overwhelmed. She is thrust into the Queen Elizabeth's court spotlight when she is married to the Earl of Lytham. She is naieve in thinking that her dowey and her marriage will make her life easy in the glittery world. She is wrong. The queen hates her because she is beautiful and her husband, the queen's most devoted servant, distrusts her because she is beautiful and is cold to her. It was hard to really get into this book, it's just a bit of light fluff with unexpected moments that really surprise you. Mitchell has done her homework in researching the time period which I really enjoyed but she spends far too many words describing what the main character is wearing.
    • 5/5
      This is one of the best novels I've read this year. It's totally engrossing and for someone who loves historical ficition (like I do) it's a must read. It really gets you thinking about how our culture is still similar to the past, but I am amazed at how truly ignorant society was then, as well. Highly recommended.
    • 5/5
      Lead poisoning sounds terrible. Life in Elizabeth's court is curious. I saw the ending coming, couldn't wait for it and didn't want it to end all at once...the halmark of a good book.
    • 3/5
      Arranged marriages are never easy as Marget, the new countess of Lytham, would agree. After her disastrous introduction at the court of Elizabeth the first, she must find a way to become an asset rather than a hindrance to her courtier husband.As a light read it was okay, the romance and light conflict between the two main characters is the main story line, but I still found the story lacking in depth
    • 3/5
      I give this book three out of five stars, but in a split manner. If I were to rate the book solely upon my enjoyment and escape into it's historical aspects, it would be two stars; yet if I were to rate this book on the detail and descriptions of this historical journey at hand it would four stars. Thus, I settle at three. Starting out reading this book, I was quite distraught and not at all drawn in. The cover is gorgeous and the summary sounds interesting, but in the reading I was just not there. I searched the internet for some reviews to find what others might have thought and was shocked to find all but poor reviews, minus one that only praised the author and said nothing about the book.It is my understanding that this is the first historical from this author and although I hear her chick-lit is to die for her historical is lacking. That is not all together necessarily a full fact. The entire novel is full to the brim of historical details and facts that are painted in an array of images that could show any reader what the years of the mid-sixteenth century would appear to be. The descriptions of the clothes, the places, the people all are fascinating and plenty enough true to fact. I would highly suggest this book as a supplemental reading to be added to someone studying the Elizabethan age and wanting to find a further glance in the era.Where I do not find my joy is in the personalities and partially the writing. The story is two from two different characters' POV and switches back and forth quite drastically without any warning and sometimes it is difficult to interpret who speaks. Other than that it is the personalities of the characters that are quite drab. I kept thinking to myself of the grey skies of London, and that is quite how I felt about this story. The idea is good and could be a fabulous book if made longer with more depth to the persons involved. But reading this story was quite painful. There was no joy only sadness and I felt it with every turn of the page. I could not interpret or assume how things would turn out and in that way they were quite a mystery. Yet in the context of day by day happens I felt quite like screaming at the insolence and blindness by how these characters lived.Some have said that this was a very thinly veiled attempt at criticizing and lecturing people of today's society with beauty attempts, and although I can see that opinion in a manner, I would not call this a poor attempt. The story can relate and does bring to light some great value on the harsh truths that are known of women living in such a stage devoted to such a cause that is beyond their owns well-being. Yet it does it in an elegant and educational manner.With all that said. I would not suggest this book as a light heart-ed Christian Historical Fiction to escape into the lives of those in a courtier of Elizabeth I. It is just not quite in that category. By most standards it is not a Christian Fiction as God is not mentioned in much reverence or detail nor is his role at all hinted to more than any secular novel. However, as a book for historical and educational value, I could easily suggest and see this being read and used for vast discussions and open minds and curiosity to know more about British history. So as confusing as this must sound, it solely depends upon why you wish to read this story as to whether or not you would enjoy it. That is up to you.
    • 2/5
      A thinly veiled criticism of consumer culture dressed up as a period piece. The prose is good, but the preachiness overrides the book's assets.
    • 3/5
      I was intrigued by the story line of this book. I am a big historical fiction fan and was happy to learn about the extremes these women went to with makeup and how deadly it was. I really liked the way the book was written and it was an easy read. I just never seemed to get too excited about Marget and the Earl of Lytham and their relationship. Something was missing. Not a bad read. Just not great.
    • 3/5
      I found this book to be an interesting and enjoyable historical romance. Marget, the daughter of a country knight comes to court to marry the Earl of Lytham, who is only marrying her to gain the Queens favor. In addition to that slight, he distrusts Marget because of her beauty. This distrust stems from his broken first marriage. There are many misunderstandings, drama and court intrigue, but they eventually fall in love. I found the details of the fashions and the beauty regimens that the women put themselves through quite fascinating. The novel is narrated by both Marget and the Earl, which was confusing for me in a few places, but I liked the characters and would like to have had more of their story. I would read a sequel
    • 3/5
      I enjoyed that the narrative follows the two main character's p.o.v. There were times, though, that I was unsure which character was narrating and had to back track a few lines to read it over to make more sense. I was annoyed with the husband going back and forth about loving his wife and then not being able to be near her. Once, ok, twice, sure, but more than that...I'm glad the use of paints was covered, a subject glossed over in most other books, making this one unique to the others I have read. Overall, I enjoyed it and look forward to reading more from this author.
    • 3/5
      I was very excited to receive this book for review. It is classified as historical fiction, which is one of my favorite genres. I really I wanted to fall in love with it. The concept of the story was a good one. My issue with the book is that there is not a lot of depth to the characters or the story. It started off slowly and I almost put it down a couple of times, but it did pick up half way through and hooked me until the end. The best way I can describe is it is a chick lit book with a dash of historical fiction thrown in. It's not a great book, but it is good. It is entertaining if you are looking for a quick, interesting read.
    • 3/5
      This is supposed to be Christian Historical Romance? I have shelves of Christian Historical Romance and I would never categorize it as such. The sex scenes might have been breezed over but considering all of Signet's Historical Romance collection would never make one blush- that doesn't make it Christian. I can't recall reference to God more than any other novel from this time period. In fact, the main characters say it's silly to not change religions to suit the queen - very un-Christian.I read quite a bit of Historical Romance/Fiction from this time period and was elated when I received my advance copy to review. I too was disappointed by the lack of depth. It was a nice story and it included details of Elizabethan life that most authors ignore - lead paint, red dye, the jealous queen, but I never really got into it. It was a girl doing anything she was told to help her husband regardless of the consequences, and a man who thought beautiful women were untrustworthy based on a single experience. Also, the curve ball thrown at the end when Margret visits Elinor was never dealt with. I would have loved Lytham to have been told what she said and seen his reaction. How can Margret live not telling him something like that? So of course, even though I wasn't into the original story much I'd read the sequel to see if they deal with that aspect. All in all, lovely story but don't read it for a Christian read - as Historical Romance it's nice brain candy.
    • 3/5
      The story opens with the main character, Marget, talking to her best friend, Joan, about her upcoming marriage to the Earl of Lytham. It's an arranged marriage, and they haven't met each other. It's during the last decade of the sixteenth century during the reign of Queen Elizabeth.Unfortunately for Marget, the Earl was betrayed by his beautiful wife and only wants Marget for her dowry. Her beautiful visage repels the Earl.The Earl is a courtier in the royal court and only wishes to gain the queen's favor to get out of his current financial situation brought on by the gambling of his now-deceased-brother. Marget, never having been to court, must learn all the intricacies of a courtier, from dying her hair to painting her face with a lead-based concoction. She thinks she has a friend in a Lady de Winter, but is too dense to see past the "help" the Lady de Winter is offering.Despite the Earl's misgivings, he falls in love with Marget, but the first few years of their marriage is frought with misunderstandings, an insecurity in their tender love, and a belief that his wife would betray him on the part of the Earl.The author must have done an amazing amount of research on speech, clothes, and the royal court. The dialogue seems true to the time period, giving it a Shakesperean feel (though admittedly easier to read). One thing the author did that was interesting was she alternated narrators. Marget would narrate and then the Earl, giving the reader almost full knowledge of what was going on, what the misunderstandings were, really leaving the reader with nothing to guess at.While this is categorized as Christian fiction, the religious/spiritual references were only a blip. The sexual scenes were not graphic, and I didn't have to skip over anything. ;-)I'll admit to being enthralled while I was reading. I've slurped up all of Philippa Gregory's books and have done a fair amount of research on this time period. Unfortunately, though, this book doesn't give the reader much to chew on. Most conflict is resolved fairly quickly, and it's a fairly short book to begin with.To sum it all up, let me just say this: It was good but not great.
    • 3/5
      It was difficult to get into the book at first, especially because I read a lot of historical fiction novels and have high expectations. I had trouble relating to the characters and was bored by their lack of depth. However, the book became considerably better as the pages turned. Towards the end, I enjoyed the read and appreciated the author's note about painting. I would recommend it to other historical fiction readers as a quick and easy story.
    • 3/5
      Well, this book was a quick read. I did spend most of it wanting to shake both the hero and the heroine. I hated the head hopping. I think it might have been more effective if we hadn't known the hero's point of view, that if we doubted his love. However, since we knew what both of them were thinking, there was no real tension. I wouldn't recommend this book. I had no attachment to either of the characters. There was no plot other than the relationship between the two mains, but I suppose that's what romance is supposed to be about. Nothing really made me believe in the world or either of the characters. And I really didn't feel sorry for the heroine when there were women in worse shape at the same time period.
    • 3/5
      I'm somewhat of a Tudor-aficionado, so I was sadly surprised that I was rather indifferent to this tale of love and duty set in the Late-Elizabethan period.Marget, the daughter of a country knight, is newly come to court as a countess. She is very uncertain when it comes to navigating the waters of court and noble marriage. Her new husband, the Earl of Lytham, has no desire to make things smoother for Marget -- he married the beauty only for her money, as a past marriage has drained him of all feeling when it comes to love.What transpires is a rather predictable yarn -- Marget and Lytham fall in love! But it isn't easy -- there are complications! I do not mean to be trite here, but I must say that I was wishing for more creative conflict.... I wanted to see these characters struggle, have direction. Instead, the novel is mostly series after series of miscommunication between lovers who quickly forgive. Admirable, yes, but not very interesting.What was particularly interesting were the hints at Elinor, Lytham's previous wife.... I felt like she was shaping up to be a madwoman in the attic type character. I wish the author would have gone further here, or further with her obvious interests in the beauty rituals of Tudor England (these were by far my favorite sections).... that would have been a nice twist!After I bought this book I learned that the author wrote Christian novels and I was worried I would be unable to fairly review the piece. This novel had very little direct Christianity -- only in little asides such as a narration that Lytham was going to put his future in God's hands -- but I often found myself wishing the novel was more like a traditional Christian novel, because those novels often thrive on conflict.... man struggling and struggling against God, and changing himself in the process.
    • 2/5
      I found this book frustrating. Presenting the story in first person for both the hero and the heroine left the reader at the mercy of their curiousity and initiative--and both of them lacked these qualities. If the character didn't think or say or hear some aspect of the plot, then it simply disappeared--only to reappear at the very end of the book simply to tie up all the loose plotlines: Lady de Winter's motivations, the real Elinor story, Joan's life in King's Lynn, the real author of Marget's sonnet, etc. Yet the reader suffers though Marget and Lytham's constant alternation between denial and acceptance of their growing love. The pace is so slow for three-fourths of the book, and then it picks up at the end, but the resolution was too easy, too predictable. The dual-first person presentation also eliminated the ability to develop the secondary characters, and they seemed--at least as I filled them out in my imagination--much more interesting than Lytham and Marget.While I found the insights into fashion and make-up on the female side of the court interesting, the lack of depth in the political machinations and liaisons made it difficult for me to understand the motivations of the behaviors of the main characters. I could not believe that no one told Marget anything about the physical side of the marriage--if her training was supposed to ready her to live for the happiness and success of her husband, surely at least a little talk about the bedroom (and all the things that lead one there) would have occurred. She couldn't have really been that naive, right? I never figured out why Lytham fell in love with Marget when he did. And, just to top it off, Lytham's playing of the English horn was an anachronism, although the tenor viol was appropriate to the time period.I don't recommend this book--it seemed more like a sketch than a finished novel to me.
    • 3/5
      A fast read, this book is mostly fiction with a little bit of history mixed in. I read it in the span of a weekend and found myself sucked in, feeling as though I was a part of the story. I could see the gowns and all the splendor of court life, yet feel the disappointment that accompanies it all at the same time.In this novel, a knights daughter Margret is to wed the Earl of Lytham. The story starts just before their first meeting and goes through the ups and downs of their marriage. Margret is very beautiful and this troubles Lytham greatly - we learn over time that his previous (annulled) marriage was to a beautiful woman who betrayed him and he no longer trusts women who possess beauty. Over time, however, Margret is able to convince him through her loyalties that she is emphatically not his previous wife and does in fact possess a constant heart as he desires.This is the sort of book that makes me question our general fascination and love affair with Tudor England. We don’t often get a glimpse into what life was like for people not in the favor of Elizabeth I, and it can be heartbreaking to see what goes into those lives. I think with the current Tudor craze, we’ve all fictionalized that time period to an extent and are loathe to let in the realization that both Henry VIII and Elizabeth I were a bit on the crazy side and really required a lot of their people.I really felt badly for Margret through much of this book. Her realization that she was misled through much of her life at court is very difficult to see because really, you want to see the heroine of the book succeed and not fall prey to schemes.It’s also interesting to see the effect of the white paint the women used during this time to make themselves as pale as possible. It amazes me to see the affect the queen could have on fashion, that everyone was willing to fore go their health and happiness to simply be accepted. Things like this make me feel so much for the women of history, to see the sacrifices they were all forced to make for their husbands, fathers, etc. It’s hard to believe that they were simply pawns in a big game.I did find myself, at the end, questioning Margret’s sense for a bit, and also wondering “what happens next” for her and Lytham. I’d be interested to see a sequel to see how things go for them. Even though they are completely fictional characters, I can still get caught up in their lives and wonder how things turn out.