Dark Angels: A Novel Review

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Dark Angels: A Novel ReviewOf late there seems to be quite a few books being released about Charles II of England and Restoration England. This I don't mind at all, since I'm always on the look-out for a good read, fiction or otherwise. And author Karleen Koen certainly knows how to craft a good story, filled with plenty of details, dark deeds, and romance. Having written two previous novels, Through a Mirror Darkly and Now Face to Face, she takes one of the major characters from the previous works, and gives new depth and understandstanding to Alice Verney in Dark Angels.
Alice Verney is a tough young survivor, serving the King of England's sister, Henriette-Anne, as one of her maids-of-honour. Married at a young age to Louis XIV's brother, Monsieur, Madame is coming to England to visit her beloved brother, Charles II, and Alice is coming with her. Of course, for stubborn Alice, it's also going to be a chance to see her machinating father, Sir Thomas, and the man who jilted her for one of her best friends. It's a rare chance to serve up a dish of cold revenge, and Alice is more than ready to do so with a plan that will not only catapult her into the heights of the king's court, but also enable her to snap her fingers at any future trouble as well.
But that is going to take some patience and skill, as Alice's target is rather unaware of her scheme. The Duke of Balmoral is elderly, and the uncle of Lord Colefax, the man who spurned Alice years earlier. Cole, married to the stuttering Caro, is still hot for Alice, so she is not only dodging her former suitor, but others who are interested in her as well. Finally, there are Alice's fellow maids-of-honour, her friend Barbara, shy and loving a man who has little to recommend him and Renee, a beautiful French girl of good birth and little money.
But Madame, as Princess Henriette is known, isn't just on a homey visit with family, for she is on a mission to bring England and France closer together, forging an alliance between the two kings, and an even bolder plan underneath. But when the princess returns to France, she is taken ill and dies suddenly, quite possibly at the hands of her own husband, the jealous Monsieur. And Alice suddenly finds herself returned to England, up against a poisoner, and a young soldier who is more than she thinks, and the prize of the Duke of Balmoral is hovering just beyond her grasp.
It's quite a tale, moving beyond the typical historical romance, and spinning a tale that blends plenty of plotting and actual history. It's that last touch that made the book very enjoyable for me, with the author able to keep the balance between what really happened and the author's own creations. The characters of the Verneys, Balmoral, and Richard Saylor are all fictional, but they would have easily lived in Restoration England. It may be interesting to other readers that Queen Catherine, Charles II's wife, was pretty much as she is portrayed here, struggling to be Catholic in a very protestant England, and always living under the threat of being divorced and sent away. She was also able to openly tolerate her husband's many mistresses, and the open distrust that the courtiers had for her. So too are the varied mistresses, from actress Nell Gwynn, the greedy Barbara Villiers, and his chase of other women.
But there are a few drawbacks as well. Some might find the use of homosexuality and sex to be a bit disturbing -- Monsieur was well-known for his fondness for handsome young men, and the character of Mistress Neddie is far from an oddity of the times. As for the sinister Henry Angel/Henri Ange, history has always been arguing over what caused Madame's sudden and painful death that so horrified people at the time, and there is the famous 'Affair of the Poisons' that shook the French court a few years after her death. Both Balmoral and Alice are a touch more ruthless than what we usually see in historical novels, but I found them to be a refreshing change. One other aspect that I found a bit tiresome was the character of Jerusalem Saylor, Richard's mother, who is the 'white witch' of the novel -- despite the fondness of modern authors who keep thrusting such folk into their novels, the idea of the modern 'good' witch who uses her powers for healing and magick is a fairly recent idea, and although folk rememdies were certainly well-documented from the time, there is very little to actually be seen in the surviving histories. But it makes for a clever touch, and at least Koen doesn't go overboard with it as say, Philippa Gregory does in her work. So it's a forgiveable sin.
For those who like their novels full of details, and what might have been, this is an enjoyable read. It was enough to make me want to reread both of Koen's previous novels, and rediscover Alice Verney and her family.Dark Angels: A Novel Overview

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