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Queen Emma and the Vikings
Queen Emma and the Vikings: A History of Power, Love, and Greed in 11th-Century England | Harriet O'Brien
2 posts | 4 read | 26 to read
Emma, one of England's most remarkable queens, made her mark on a nation beset by Viking raiders at the end of the Dark Ages, a period often neglected by conventional history. At the center of a triangle of Anglo-Saxons, Vikings, and Normans all jostling for control of England, Emma was a political pawn who became a power broker and an unscrupulous manipulator. By birth a Norman, Emma spent the majority of her life on English soil. She was married to two kings of England and outlived both; she was twice driven into exile; while mourning the untimely loss of one son, she was devastated by the murder of another; she saw two of her sons crowned; she was stripped of her powers when her eldest son became king; and she eventually retired from public life as a dowager queen whose land and wealth had been restored. Regarded by her contemporaries as a generous Christian patron, a regent admired by her subjects, and a Machiavellian mother, Emma was, above all, a survivor: hers was a life marked by dramatic reversals of fortune. Harriet O'Brien is a journalist based in London. She has written for the Independent and Cond Nast Traveler, among other publications. This is her second book.
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Foxyfictionista
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👸👸👸👸👸I loved this book. It looks like some people didn't like this book because it wasn't scholarly enough and I can see that. It was dramatised somewhat but I liked that about it. It probably wouldn't have been as great if I was using it for research but it was a fun way to learn about an era that I'm not very familiar with.

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LeahBergen
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Emma of Normandy was queen to two of England's kings, mother to two others and great-aunt of William the Conqueror. She arrived in England as the pawn of a political marriage and her machinations altered the course of Anglo Saxon/Viking Britain. #HistoricalHeroines #FeistyFeb

OSChamberlain Oooooh that sounds great! 8y
I-read-and-eat This sounds great! 😀 8y
Texreader Great review! 8y
See All 9 Comments
TrishB Added to the ever growing, toppling tbr 😀 8y
Melissa_J Great pick! Have you read any fiction about her? Helen Hollick's The Forever Queen is a good one. 8y
drokka I found this one to be an informative book about that time period too, beyond Emma. 8y
LeahBergen @Melissa_J I actually read The Forever Queen right before I read this. 👍🏼 8y
shawnmooney Stacked! 8y
MrBook Nice review! 8y
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