The Allure of Knights – Rue Allyn
Today Rue Allyn takes over the blog talking about one of my favorite subjects, Knights. 
I’m a big fan of the Knights Templar series and now, I have another knightly hero to swoon over. Take it away Rue!
Thank you very much, Lynn for the opportunity to share my thoughts with you and your readers.
Do you love a novel with a knightly hero (either in or out of ‘shining armour)? I do. I’ve love the knightly character since I was old enough to sit on my grandfather’s knee and listen to stories about mailed men and daring do. For me the allure of a knight is partly personal experience, but I’m not the only one with this fascination. So where does this allure come from? Why are we interested in the men of the middle ages?
I went looking for answers on the web and found this. “Like most periods in history, the era of knights evolved gradually. The term “knight” originates from the Anglo-Saxon name for a boy: “cniht”. Indeed, most early knights were not much more than hired “boys” who performed military service and took oaths of loyalty to any well-to-do nobleman or warlord offering the most promise of money or war booty.” http://www.knightsandarmor.com/history.htm What this history site doesn’t say is that the the evolution of knights started with a horse and a sword. The man (or woman—but that was rare) who owned a horse or a sword (or better yet both) was rich by comparison with the average citizen, especially since that average citizen would pay (either in coin or barter) the sword bearing rider to defend the citizen’s farm, town, you name it. As the social structure of feudal Europe became more stable knights either settled becoming local lords or hired on with an existing power broker (read lord) as described in the quote above.
I think the allure of medival knights (like the American cowboy of the 19th century and the soldier/spy of the 20th/21st centuries) rests in how different a knight’s life was from the average citizens he was hired to protect. Us average folks can’t help but believe that any life different from ours must be exciting, especially if that life involves feats of daring do and self-sacrifice.
Please leave a comment and let me know if you share the allure or what you think of knights.
My own fascination with medieval knights lead me to study and subsequently fall in love with medieval literature. When I decided to write romance fiction, writing knightly characters felt very natural to me. My first effort resulted in A True and Perfect Knight, re-released yesterday by Samhain Publishing and written under an old pen name. Here’s a short sample and a blurb.
A True and Perfect Knight ~ Genvieve Dreyford as first seen by Sir Haven de Sessions (Order A True and Perfect Knight here.)
Sweet Jesu, she’s hideous.
Purple-black splotches ringed her eyes. Her skin paled to chalk against dark, colorless clothing. Deformity stamped her features. Her face pushed out on one side. Odd streaks hollowed the opposite cheek. A lump decorated her forehead over one eye. As much as her appearance gratified, something about it bothered him. It was that lump, he decided. “Come closer.”
She hesitated but evidently felt that compliance was the better part of valor.
When she stood by his mount’s shoulder, Haven removed one glove and grasped her chin between his thumb and forefinger. The softness of her skin shocked him. The impulse to stroke her twitched in his hand. Instead, he turned her face up to his. Astonished, he felt his eyes widen.
She was far from ugly. He had seen lumps and bruises like those that adorned her face on battle weary men. Beneath the swelling and discoloration lay a bone structure that Aphrodite would envy. Eyes that blazed green lightning glared out at him from beneath delicately arched brows. God created wide, bow-shaped lips like hers for only one purpose.
A True and Perfect Knight ~ Book Summary
Baron Haven De Sessions knows a hundred reasons despise the widow Dreyford. The widow is entirely too independent, and a suspected traitor. Worst of all, she had been married to his best friend—a man Haven arrested for plotting against the king. Haven believes the treacherous widow should have given up her head, not his childhood friend. Now an oath to that same friend forces him to protect a woman he does not want and cannot trust.
Genvieve Dreyford has her own reasons to detest De Sessions. The man is far too handsome, and his reputation as Edward I’s most ‘true and perfect’ knight has swelled the baron’s head. Worst of all, Gennie believes he betrayed his friendship with her husband to curry favor with the English king. Now, because of Haven De Sessions, Gennie has lost her home, her title and nearly everything she held dear. Only for the sake of her family, will Gennie place herself in the power of a man she fears and mistrusts.
About Rue Allyn
Author of historical, contemporary, and erotic romances, Rue Allyn fell in love with happily ever after the day she heard her first story. She is deliriously married to her sweetheart of many years and loves to hear from readers about their favorite books and real life adventures. Learn more about Rue at http://RueAllyn.com
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