On tour with The Coffee Pot Book Club, The Year We Lived by Virginia Crow #HistoricalFiction #BookReview #CoffeePotBookClub @DaysDyingGlory @CrowvusLit @maryanneyarde

 I am once again on tour with The Coffee Pot Book Club and today I am welcoming historical fiction author, Virginia Crow, onto the blog!

Are you ready for today's book recommendation? Of course you are. I will shut up and let the book speak for itself - you can then scroll down and read my review.

The Year We Lived

By Virginia Crow

It is 1074, 8 years after the fateful Battle of Hastings. Lord Henry De Bois is determined to find the secret community of Robert, an Anglo-Saxon thane. Despite his fervour, all his attempts are met with failure.

When he captures Robert’s young sister, Edith, events are set in motion, affecting everyone involved. Edith is forced into a terrible world of cruelty and deceit, but finds friendship there too.

Will Robert ever learn why Henry hates him so much? Will Edith’s new-found friendships be enough to save her from De Bois? And who is the mysterious stranger in the reedbed who can disappear at will?

A gripping historical fiction with an astonishing twist!

Oh, my goodness. I don’t usually start reviews by talking about the end of the book, but wow. I didn’t see that coming. My husband thinks I am incredibly silly, but I will get to that later. Let me get to the actual review section before I go on about the ending!

Robert is an Anglo-Saxon thane, a master at hunting, at blending in with the forest. Henry De Bois has been hunting him, trying to find the village that he has hidden so masterfully, for some unfathomable reason. Robert doesn’t know why De Bois is so desperate to kill him, but he does know that De Bois is dangerous, and keeping his village safe is his top priority. 

Enter Edith. Robert’s younger sister. She is carefree, wild, but kind and full of love. She always wants to help, no matter what the cost. The yule log is burning low, and she heads out to collect some reeds to slow down the burning. In the reed bed, she meets a young man and, and being the kind of person she is, she wants to befriend him, help him, make sure he is safe and warm inside. However, when the knowledge comes out that he is a changeling, prejudices come into play and he is clearly not welcome anywhere near the village. 

With Robert out of reach, and Edith so willing to leave the safety of the village to visit Dunstan, her friend by the reeds, De Bois jumps into action. If he cannot find Robert, he could draw him out. Edith’s disappearance leads to horrors untold, for she suffers abuse from De Bois, and it trapped with no chance for escape. Robert blames Dunstan for her disappearance, not knowing the truth and being unable to find Dunstan to question him. What follows is a year-long journey, of Edith’s attempts to stay safe in a precarious situation where she is surrounded by hate, and Robert, and Dunstan’s efforts to find the girl they both care so much about.

Now, serious part over, I need to explain something. There is a massive plot twist at the end of this book. I mean, MASSIVE. The kind of plot twist that has been hinted at throughout the entire book and then is revealed at the end, making you go ‘ohhhhh’. When I reached this point, I was sat on the sofa, while my husband and child were playing on the floor. My husband looked up at me, because I had slapped a hand across my forehead and closed my computer, which I was reading the book on. When he asked what was wrong, I just went ‘I understand now’ and, although he didn’t ask for it, I launched into a massive rant about what the book was about and why this twist was so clever. I went into detail, realising different hints that I hadn’t realised had significance. This is why he said I was silly, because apparently he would have picked up on it ages ago. As if he would make it through the first page, I have never seen him sit down and read a book in the whole time I have known him.

What followed was me randomly realising another point and, maybe a little too loudly, exclaiming my realisation. I walked around the house, picking up the toys that my child had scattered, mumbling every so often ‘Red William, I understand now’ and then laughing at how marvellous the book was and how utterly stupid I was. My husband has not yet stopped making fun of me, he finds it incredibly amusing whenever I get so into a book that I go on and on about it.

If you weren’t convinced by the serious portion of this review, I hope you were convinced by my reaction. Get this book. Read it, all the way to the end, and see if your reaction is any different. If you are cleverer than me, then it very well might be!

I really cannot stress how great this book is. I was given a copy by The Coffee Pot Book Club but you can grab yours from Amazon UK • Amazon US • Amazon CA • Amazon AU • Barnes and Noble • Waterstones • Kobo • Smashwords • Crowvus

Virginia grew up in Orkney, using the breath-taking scenery to fuel her imagination and the writing fire within her. Her favourite genres to write are fantasy and historical fiction, sometimes mixing the two together such as her newly-published book "Caledon". She enjoys swashbuckling stories such as the Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas and is still waiting for a screen adaption that lives up to the book!

When she's not writing, Virginia is usually to be found teaching music, and obtained her MLitt in "History of the Highlands and Islands" last year. She believes wholeheartedly in the power of music, especially as a tool of inspiration. She also helps out with the John O'Groats Book Festival which is celebrating its 3rd year this April.

She now lives in the far flung corner of Scotland, soaking in inspiration from the rugged cliffs and miles of sandy beaches. She loves cheese, music and films, but hates mushrooms.

Social Media Links:

Website • Twitter • Facebook • Instagram • Publisher • BookBub • Amazon Author Page • Goodreads