The Tudor Secret by C.W. Gortner Review & Giveaway!

Did you read the great guest post from C.W. Gortner, the author of The Tudor Secret? I hope it piqued your interest.

I am so happy that this novel is the first in a series. I love series novels... knowing that I will be able to follow characters who intrigue me is one of my favorite things about reading! And Brendan is definitely intriguing!

Speaking of Brendan... I was interested to read how Mr. Gortner would write a male protagonist. The other books that I've read, The Confessions of Catherine de Medici (please read my review here... http://bagsbooksandbonjovi.blogspot.com/2010/06/confessions-of-catherine-demedici-by-cw.html) and The Last Queen were both told from a female perspective. You know how some authors are "one trick ponies" and when they venture out of their comfort zone, can have disappointing results. No worries here!! Brendan is a fully thought-out and well-written character... as are all who populate this book... both the truly historical characters as well as the ones written from the author's imagination.

Mr. Gortner's writing style just flows. He has made his novels effortless to read. I can focus on the plot and not get lost or bogged down in details. Yes, I appreciate details in my reading but when they overwhelm the plot, I tend to lose interest. The Tudor Secret is the perfect balance. I'm transported to a time and place that I don't know as much about as I probably should but I'm not so bombarded with details that my imagination is not engaged.

The Tudor Secret, while at its heart, is a great mystery... it is also an adventure story. I felt there was more "action" in this book as opposed to his previous novels. Don't misunderstand, though! Confessions and The Last Queen are not "staid" novels, by any stretch... but, they are more character driven. The Tudor Secret is about intrigue, espionage(such a great word!) and secrets of the English Court.

This novel is a a fast read... I read in very quickly... sometimes over my husband's suggestions to "please turn out the light". It's one of those books that I thought I could turn out the light at the end of the chapter but I'd, inevitably, sneak a peek at the first line (well, you know me and first lines...lol) of the next chapter. That, of course, turned into just a few more pages... okay, sometimes, it was just a few more chapters :D

Now... THE GIVEAWAY!!! MY FIRST GIVEAWAY!!!
I know you'd love to win a copy of The Tudor Secret by C.W. Gortner. He has graciously offered to personalize it, too.

To enter... just leave a comment with your name, email address and blog URL (if you have one. I love to read your blogs!)... But wait... there's more! I sound like an infomercial, don't I :D

It's a giveaway for The Tudor Secret... so, in your comment... tell me a secret! It doesn't have to earth-shattering or life-changing but something fun or maybe not quite so secret. Hmmmm... what could I mean... I could tell you that I finished what was left of a pint of Häagen-Dazs Coffee ice cream while watching Mike & Molly... but that would be a secret!

The contest begins when this post is published and will end on 2-22-11 at 11:59pm. A winner will be randomly chosen on 2-23-11 and notified by email.

~~Thanks to C.W. Gortner, Cheryl at http://www.pumpupyourbook.com/ and the publisher for providing a copy of The Tudor Secret in exchange for my honest & thoughtful review as well as a copy to give away.~~