Part Five: Chapter 22 - 29

[Marie]

Year 1381.

[Marie]

Waiting for the shoe to drop in regards to Blanchette.. On page 339

[C.P.]

No spoilers. I will just note that you be waiting for a while. ;-)

[Marie]

I keep thinking it's going to be ANY SECOND, LOL...
Like when she looked out a window, I was wondering if she was plotting an escape...

[C.P.]

Ah, that shoe. Well, I'm still not telling, but that's not the one I thought you had in mind. ;-)

[Marie]

Lol.. And there are others that come to mind - Robin!

[Marie]

But wow...it's not turning out like I've expected. I've gotten to Julian.

[Marie]

Absolutely loved the last chapter- I could totally envision a Scarlett of Tara scene at the end.
Onwards to Part Six!

[C.P.]

Marie wrote: "But wow...it's not turning out like I've expected. I've gotten to Julian."

Loved Julian. What a character!

If you want to see a lovely picture of her (not sure if it is real or imagined), see my post at http://blog.cplesley.com/2013/07/taki....

[Marie]

Thanks for the linkage! Very intriguing she is!

[Kathleen]

I'm in the middle of this section, but since I read it in my teen years so often I almost had it memorized, I kind of know what's coming up. I just read (view spoiler)[ the section about the burning of the Savoy and Katherine's letter to John. You can tell this was written in the 1950's because there's no way an author writing today would be able to escape the reality of rape for both Katherine and Blanchette. And honestly, I was a little disturbed by Katherine's thought that Blanchette might go down to the cellars to find the marauders and have sex with them, since she'd announced she was the daughter of a whore.It was more than a little creepy, and out of character. At least to me. (hide spoiler)]

As a teen I found Katherine's self sacrificing obsession and John's almost condescending love to be highly romantic. Probably because I first read it in the mid 1970's when the women's movement was still denigrated by a good portion of society. As an adult, it's irritating me. It's got a very Don Draper kind of vibe to it, at least to me. But don't get me wrong, Jon Hamm as Don Draper....mrawr! But that's a whole other story. :)

[C.P.]

I, too, found John's take-charge attitude and "protect the little woman" stance much more appealing as a teen. The whole story seemed very romantic then, whereas this time I often longed to prick Katherine with a pin and tell her to buck up, stop whining, and either enjoy her position at court or leave it.

But that approach was characteristic of the period when Seton wrote, I agree. I find it much more tolerable than modern books that portray women and love in disturbingly similar ways.

[Kathleen]

I think the upcoming section is the part I most enjoyed and which is truly most romantic. (view spoiler)[ With her independence, Katherine becomes a more fully realized character, and with his hopes for rule of Castile thoroughly crushed, Seton finally allows John of Gaunt to be more of a man and less of a stereotype. (hide spoiler)]
I, too, loved Julian of Norwich, and that Seton portrayed her as both a sensible woman and exalted mystic. It's the little details in her descriptions that make me fall in love with Seton's writing. It's like a tapestry, so rich with color and life. I never tire of it.

[MaryKatherine]

I LOVE Julian of Norwich. And I agree with you Kathleen, Seton made her both sensible and a great mystic. I read the Showings of Julian of Norwich for a class about two years ago and seeing her in a novel is just so exciting for me. (view spoiler)[ That has been my favorite part of the novel--Katherine finally becomes herself and allows herself to grow; she meets the kind and loving Father Clement who is so good that he takes Katherine to Julian of Norwich; and she receives council and comfort from the wise Julian. Such wonderful characters. (hide spoiler)]

[Christina]

I didn't really know that part of English history before reading the book, and now that I read into some historical facts I'm (foolishly) a little disappointed that some real parts weren't like in the books. For example, in these chapters John and Katherine are so happy with each other and still in love, and I just read that 7 years before John ordered a double tomb for himself and Blanche and later asked that he be buried next to her. I know that the book is a history-inspired novel and not 100% history, I just hoped that they'd be buried together since John expressed how he loved Katherine more than Blanche.