Lise Arin
Matilda Empress
Release Date March 20, 2017
Blurb
A novel of the medieval queen who lost her empire and her heart versus woman who almost conquered England
Matilda, a twelfth-century Empress of the Holy Roman Empire and daughter of Henry I, is twenty-four years old and a widow. She returns to inherit her father's double realm of England and Normandy, but is promptly married against her will to Geoffrey, a minor continental nobleman. Absent from England at the time of her father's death, Matilda loses her throne to her cousin, Stephen, despite their ongoing and secret love affair.
For almost twenty years, anarchy reigns throughout the empire, and their illicit passion fluctuates between hatred and obsession. The only hope is the Empress' growing faith and their illegitimate son, whose rightful claim to the English throne could finally halt the bloody, endless war.
In the vein of Philippa Gregory's The Other Boleyn Girl, Matilda Empress illuminates the real history of the early English monarchs, while exploring what is at stake when a strong woman at the center of great upheaval refuses to play by the rules laid out for her.
Matilda, a twelfth-century Empress of the Holy Roman Empire and daughter of Henry I, is twenty-four years old and a widow. She returns to inherit her father's double realm of England and Normandy, but is promptly married against her will to Geoffrey, a minor continental nobleman. Absent from England at the time of her father's death, Matilda loses her throne to her cousin, Stephen, despite their ongoing and secret love affair.
For almost twenty years, anarchy reigns throughout the empire, and their illicit passion fluctuates between hatred and obsession. The only hope is the Empress' growing faith and their illegitimate son, whose rightful claim to the English throne could finally halt the bloody, endless war.
In the vein of Philippa Gregory's The Other Boleyn Girl, Matilda Empress illuminates the real history of the early English monarchs, while exploring what is at stake when a strong woman at the center of great upheaval refuses to play by the rules laid out for her.
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Guest Post-A Day in Author Lise Arin's Life
A typical day in my life is a study in contrast – from hours of physical movement to hours of sitting still. I get up at 5:15, and drink two large containers of coffee while reading a gossipy local newspaper. At 5:45, I start to get dressed and organized for my day, leaving post-it notes and petty cash for my adolescent son, still asleep. By 6:23, I need to be out the door, in order to get a “good spot,” by which I mean “my usual spot,” at my 6:45 barre class. I stay in that spot until 9:05, before heading home. There, I pick up the pieces, literally, so that everything I left lying about my room, and everything my son left lying about his room is restored to its proper place. I take a shower. I prepare and eat one of the two lunches that I have settled on as perfectly filling and not likely to induce a food coma. And then, more coffee in hand, I sit down to my desk – and sit and sit and sit. I read and write and surf the internet and pay bills and call my husband to sync our calendars. I read and write some more. When my arse hurts from sitting, I think about some sort of cardio exercise to clear my brain fog and stretch my legs. Right now, I’m into spinning, so a 5 PM class usually does the trick. By the time I am home, my son has drifted in and we touch base about his homework and activities and what sort of dinner he may be able to fit into his night. Usually, he has already stopped for something on his way home from school, the better to eat what he likes, so my husband and I sit down alone together at 7 or 7:30. We drink lots of wine, and often crash afterwards, falling asleep before 9. On the weekends, we always make a point to have lunch and dinner with our son, but otherwise those days resemble weekdays in every other particular.
About the Author
Lise Arin has a BA from Harvard and a PhD from Columbia. She is thrilled to be publishing her first novel of historical fiction, MATILDA EMPRESS, on March 14, 2017. She lives in New York City with her husband and children.
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