Written on Silk by Linda Lee Chaikin ~ review

My review: Lush with rich historical details, brimming with action, and romance, Written on Silk will not easily disappoint. Fans of Linda Lee Chaikin will welcome her second novel in The Silk House Series.
I would recommend reading the first book in the series, first. This series is written sequentially, and some important things happen in  the first book and the full result is shown in the the second book, without a full explanation of what happened first.

I really enjoyed this book, but I might not have if I had not read the first book before devouring this one. I love how Ms. Chaikin brings the tumultuous historical setting of Catherine de Medici's court to life, vividly depicting characters, fictional and real alike. The pages of this book turned steadily for me, but not with a fierce urgency. I wasn't exactly staying up late past 2 a.m. for this book, but that's totally okay, I need my sleep ;)

I really like the way Ms. Chaikin combines the fictional characters with the non-fictional ones so flawlessly. I felt no difference in the depth of the characters and how I responded to them, which is something that happens occasionally with Historical Fiction. Sometimes the fictional characters are more real than the real-life historical figures, but not in this book. Ms. Chaikin does a fabulous job of perfectly finding that balance, which is one of the many things that make this story great!

This book made me think about how thankful I am to have a Bible in my own language. We have often heard stories of Tyndale and his translation of Greek and Hebrew into English, but this is a tale of the Huguenots and their fight for the French Bible. I learned alot.

I would recommend this book to people who enjoy historical intrigue. Also, I should warn you that this book has some elements to be aware of as it deals with a mass massacre of many Huguenots, the violation of a young lady, and the immorality if the French court at that period of time. All handled very well by Ms. Chaikin, in a non-graphic way that made it easier to read without too much detail. But overall a satisfying read.

ISBN: 978-0-310-26301-2

Buy it HERE

Thanks so much to Bridgette Brooks and Zondervan Publishing for furnishing me with a review copy of this book free of charge in return for an honest review.