The French Executioner - Hardcover

Humphreys, C.C.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0752846388 ISBN 13: 9780752846385

Publisher: Orion, 2002

Synopsis

Jean Rombaud was the real-life executioner who beheaded Anne Boleyn - kindly brought over from France by Henry VIII to spare his wife unnecessary pain. In this irresistible historical adventure he is given the fictional treatment as he swears a vow to the ill-fated queen to bury her six-fingered hand - symbol of her rumoured witchery - at a sacred crossroads in France. But Europe is ravaged by religious war, and the hand of this feared, fabled, Protestant queen is so powerful a relic that another man will kill for it...

About this title

Review

This unusual tale conjures visions of an Errol Flynn-type Hollywood swashbuckler...the tale's well-told, engagingly written, and includes a colorful immersion into a time when life was cheap and danger or death literally waited around every corner. A gory but fascinating...look at the world in the early 16th century.

I still wasn't expecting such a far fetched, rich, magical adventure that I discovered. This isn't a negative remark in any sense as many love the art of fantasy fiction and it is brilliant to take such a well known chunk of history (Queen Anne and her beheading) and then not just focus on that, but focus on another one of her body parts and the man that removed it (as well as her head).

An amusing Three Muskateers-esque historical fiction mashup by C.C. Humphreys, who makes the story work using his graceful prose.

The menagerie of characters are truly wonderful and astonishing... a very wild ride indeed!!

Humphreys does write in a way that draws you into the story.I did appreciate the twist on Tudor history I do love looking at the old and turning it upside down."

It's a somewhat of a tamer Game of Thrones meets Robin Hood's Merry Men with a touch of musketeers and Cyrano de Bergerac.

C. C. Humphreys never disappoints. His tales are always full of great characters and tons of action. He is a storyteller who sweeps the reader up and takes them on a magical ride...This is absolutely one of my favorite books of 2014. This book is recommended for readers of fantasy and those who enjoy historical action literature.

If you like your history spiked with a dash of derring do, this may be the book for you. Nearly 400 pages and covering several locations, it's sure to keep you entertained. The author is an accomplished actor, writer, swordsman, and fight choreographer, so you can expect quality action.

"This unusual tale conjures visions of an Errol Flynn-type Hollywood swashbuckler...the tale's well-told, engagingly written, and includes a colorful immersion into a time when life was cheap and danger or death literally waited around every corner. A gory but fascinating...look at the world in the early 16th century. " - Kirkus

"Set against the backdrop of the Protestant Reformation, his superbloody Princess Bride-like adventure is, at its heart, a tale of redemption, well earned and hard-won." - Library Journal

Book Description

Irresistible adventure story based on the real-life figure of Jean Rombaud, who beheaded Anne Boleyn.

Edition details

• Publisher: Orion
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0752846388
• ISBN 13: 9780752846385
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 384