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The Queen＇s Man A Medieval Mystery |
SHARON KAY
PENMAN |
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一一九三年主顯節。阿奎丹的埃蓮諾端坐在英格蘭王座上，然而此刻她摯愛的長子獅心王李察的船隊卻在東征途中失蹤，人們推論李察可能已經戰死他鄉。此時滿朝文武百官耳語相傳另一則小道消息，說是埃蓮諾的次子約翰正試圖發動一場政變以篡奪王位…… Epiphany, 1193. Eleanor of Aquitaine sits upon England＇s throne. Her beloved son Richard Lionheart is missing, presumed dead－－－and the court whispers that her younger son John is plotting to seize the crown. Meanwhile, on the snowy highroad from Winchester, a destitute young man falls heir to a blood-stained letter, pressed into his hand by a dying man. The missive becomes Justin de Quincy＇s passport into the queen＇s confidence－－－and into the heart of danger, as he pursues a cunning murderer and jousts with secret traitors in Eleanor＇s court of intrigue and mystery.... －－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－- Excerpt
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THE BISHOP＇S PALACE CHESTER, ENGLAND December 1192 ＂Do you think the king is dead?＂ Aubrey de Quincy was caught off balance and furious with himself for his negligence; he ought to have expected this. Throughout their meal, the sole topic had been King Richard＇s disappearance. All of England－－－and indeed, most of Christendom－－－talked of little else this Chrismastide, for more than two months had passed since the Lionheart had sailed from Acre. By December, other crusaders had begun to reach English ports. But none had word of the king. Had the query been posed by one of his other guests, Aubrey would have taken it for natural curiosity. Coming from Hugh de Nonant, it was neither random nor innocent. Coventry＇s worldly bishop had few peers when it came to conversational ambushes, laying his verbal snares so deftly that his quarry rarely sensed danger until it was too late. Aubrey had no intention, though, of falling heedlessly into the other bishop＇s trap. Stalling for time, he signaled for more wine; he prided himself upon his hospitality, so much so that men said none in the Marches set a finer table than His Grace, the Bishop of Chester. The servers were bringing in the next course, a large peacock afloat in a sea of gravy, bones strutted and skin and feathers painstakingly refitted, a sight impressive enough to elicit admiring murmurs from the guests. Aubrey＇s cooks had labored for hours to create this culinary masterpiece. Now he gazed at it with indifferent eyes, for the shadow of treason had fallen across the hall. Was King Richard dead? Many men thought so, for certes. In alehouses and taverns, they argued whether his ship had been sunk in a gale or attacked by pirates. The credulous speculated about sea monsters. But as the weeks went by, more and more of the missing king＇s subjects suspected that he was dead, must be dead. And none willed it more passionately than the man Hugh de Nonant served. The Crusade had been a failure; not even so fine a soldier-king as Richard had been able to reclaim Jerusalem from the infidels. But to Aubrey, the Lionheart＇s greatest failure was that he＇d not sired a son. He＇d named his young nephew Arthur as his heir, but Arthur was a child, dwelling with his mother in Brittany. There was another royal rival, one much closer at hand, Richard＇s younger brother, John, Count of Mortain. No one doubted that John would seek to deny Arthur the crown. What none could be sure of, however, was what the queen mother would do. All knew that Queen Eleanor and John were estranged. Yet he was still her son. If it came to war, whom would she back: John or Arthur? －－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－－- Excerpt
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| ■雪倫．凱．潘曼／Sharon Kay Penman Nicola Griffith is the award winning author of five novels and a memoir. A native of Yorkshire, England-now a dual U.S./U.K. citizen-she is a onetime self-defense instructor who turned to writing full-time upon being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1993. She lives with her wife, the writer Kelley Eskridge, in Seattle. |
作者：雪倫．凱．潘曼／Sharon Kay Penman 規格：平裝／Paperback，14.2 x 20.9 x 2.1 cm，312頁 出版商：Ballantine Books 出版日期：1998年04月14日 語言：英文 ISBN-10：0-345-41718-6 非新品書頁泛黃，附保護書套，不介意物品狀況再行購買。 Condition: Good. Pre-owned title with no missing pages or anything that would compromise the legibility or understanding of the text. All pages are intact, with dust jacket. 又萌又好記！輕鬆建立國際觀 國家擬人化事典 造事務所 坦尚尼亞 塞爾維亞 伊朗 伊拉克 科威特 塞內加爾 世界地理 超乎想像的世界 World Beyond Your Head 馬修．柯勞佛 Matthew B. Crawford 注意力經濟 摩托車修理店的未來工作哲學作者 ★消費滿額可享免運優惠★
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