The Girl of Many Crowns

The Girl of Many Crowns is the true story of a powerful Knight and a runaway Queen who unite to defy an empire.

The Girl of Many Crowns

The true story of a powerful Knight and a runaway Queen who unite to defy an empire.

The Kingdom of Francia  – 856 

Thrust into the political intrigue surrounding the throne of Francia, young Princess Judith loyally supports her father, King Charles.  She strengthens his kingdom by marrying twice for political alliance.   

But, when Judith refuses to marry a third time at her father’s command, King Charles imprisons her in one of his palaces.

Baldwin “Iron Arm” is a trusted knight and companion to Princess Judith’s brother, Prince Louis. Baldwin helps protect Francia and the king’s family from Vikings, rebel Lords, wars, and assassinations plots. 

When Judith and Baldwin fall in love without the blessing of the king, will they be able to hold on to their faith and each other after unleashing the fury of an empire?

My Thoughts

I loved every moment of this novel. The time period is one of my personal favourites (I love historical fiction). I love learning about the individuals that lived during this time, the historical events that occurred and how these events are influenced by even the smallest of choices that change the future. This novel delivers so much – war, family conflicts, royal honour and duty and above all love and mercy.

Judith was a powerful character in this novel, despite being a female in a time period where females held so little power. She was strong willed and devoted to those that she loved. She knew from a young age (and she was young throughout the whole book!) that her role was to support the royal family and honour her Father’s wishes, even when doing so came at great harm to her own wellbeing. She has this gentle leadership shown through her kindness, compassion and understanding of those around her. She protected those charged to her care despite the repercussions to herself. You could not help but fall in love with her and her role as Queen and a leader. It was her last act of defiance (but done so out of love and faith) that made me fall in love with her character. She knew that her final marriage would be that for love and that any child born, would be born of love and happiness. After all she went through, this was something she deserved.

While Judith’s story unfolds, we are also witness to her siblings, and her Father’s struggles in such a turbulent time where trusting others can come at a great cost to life. While it could be tricky to follow along with the other characters, the author did a great job of explaining who each character was and how they connected to the story. She packed a great amount of history in this novel, without sacrificing the plot or interest in Judith’s story. The Girl of Many Crowns is a definite must read for historical fiction fans!

You can purchase a copy of this book on BookBaby, Amazon and B&N.

You can enter to win a signed copy here (US/CAN).

Rating: 5/5

About the Author

A native of San Diego, California, D. H. Morris has lived on four continents and traveled through many countries. She has four children and eleven grandchildren and currently lives in Kansas City, Missouri. She graduated from Utah State University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Theatre and Choral Music education and pursued graduate work in English at USU and law at the University of Utah. She is also a published playwright.

As a descendant of Judith and Baldwin, the author discovered their intriguing story while doing a genealogical project. This journey inspired her to research everything about the 9th Century – including food, politics, travel, war, education, clothing, jewelry, religion, holidays, marriage customs, and medicine. She loves talking about this remarkable time in history when the European countries we know today were being formed and fighting for their very existence.​

You can connect with her on her website, Pinterest and Goodreads.

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book in order to facilitate this review, all opinions expressed are my own.