Thank you netgalley for the eARC. I am a lover of history but this story? no clue. I didn't realize it was book 2 of something either but I did enjoy it! A must read for history buffs

This is an imaginative tale of the lives of two ladies in the court of Eleanor of Aquitaine. Alice and her niece, Joanna are now cloistered in a convent for their protection after the arrest of Eleanor of Aquitaine. It details the significant change in their lives that this turn of events has caused and how they will continue to work through these struggles.

Well developed characters, a good story line, well taut plot. Everything about this medieval drama is a winning element. Will get the first book and read it and come back to this again.

Eleanor of Aquitaine has been arrested for rebelling against her husband, King Henry II of England, and her ladies-in-waiting, Alice and Joanna of Agen, have taken refuge at a nunnery where they await news of their queen, while also pining away for the loves they have left behind. This is a quick, easy, lighthearted read. I did not read the first in the series, but I think this stands alone without the necessity of the first. I found the character of Joanna very entitled and so it is difficult to empathize with her ordeal. While she does show some character growth throughout, she detracted from the story for me. That said, the story and details of life in France in 1173 I found interesting and entertaining. Thanks to NetGalley, the author, and publisher for the opportunity to review this eBook.

Many thanks to Coirle Mooney, Sapere Books, and NetGalley for ARC in exchange for my honest review.
I was really expecting more from this book than I received. Maybe a bit more intrigue, a murder mystery, perhaps a kidnapping. I found it to be just a too conventional romance. Another thing that I found to be disappointing is that I found that the main characters were quiet poorly developed characters, very 1/2 dimensional and that the fascinating historical period that they were in was not presented in a way that I had hoped for. I mean this is a period where King Henry locked up his extremely aggressive badass white for trying to get her sons to depose her husband. Again, the problem is probably my own, been reading a lot of historical nonfiction as of late but I was really looking for more interesting intrigue, so unfortunately the fault very well may lay in my own. I wasn't looking for a lady that was having a fling with a musician and who was wanting to fall in love with a gentleman, I really didn't want to read about the day today going on at a monastery /where the nuns live. I really was just looking something for a little more meaty. And said what the author did come up with was fine and for someone looking for just day to day monastic life they will enjoy this book but it was not for me.

*Many thanks to Coirle Mooney, Sapere Books, and NetGalley for arc in exchange for my honest review.*
Not for me alas ... Too conventional romance with poorly developed characters and the period not presented in the way I had hoped for. Probably the fault is mine but I look for something more than relationship problem if I choose to read a historical fiction.

Firstly, thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. I didn’t realize when I requested this title that it was a part of a series, but am not sure that would have made much of a difference, as I just couldn’t feel much affinity for the characters or the author’s writing. While I adore this setting of medieval France for time and place, and am fascinated by Eleanor of Aquitaine, I felt the characters in this book were presented as extremely one-dimensional and could not engage with them at all. I have read some amazingly wonderful historical fiction over the years, with complex characters, interesting engaging dialogue, fascinating plots, detailed descriptions of places and meals and clothes and customs……you get the picture. I admit I have high standards and this book fell far off the mark. The characters struck me as vapid and shallow and generally not too likable. I felt gypped by the scant attention to the accurate time period details that usually fascinate me when reading good historical fiction and the turgid plot development had me wondering “why?”, as in why is the author even bothering with this as it isn’t going anywhere? Perhaps a younger, less experienced reading audience might be the target readers here ? Whatever the case, I gave it a good try, but eventually had to put it down out of boredom and frustration.

An enchanting historical drama set in Medieval France! Everything about this book is captivating. This novel is impossible to put down. I downloaded the arc this morning, and by this afternoon, I had finished.

I liked this book for 2 reasons. It was the perfect length (not to long, not to short!) and it is a great historical subject that is very interesting and I really enjoyed reading about.

Although a little slow to start it built up along the way with feelings of tenseness, sorrow, fright and a whole range of emotions and feelings. I loved reading a book from this era as it makes you think of the way life was, how hard it could be and how so different things are in our time!

Good book, recommend for those who love historical fiction and times long ago.

The second novel in the Medieval Ladies series, ‘The Cloistered Lady’ can be read as a stand-alone novel.
Eleanor of Aquitaine has been arrested for rebelling against her husband, King Henry II. Her ladies-in-waiting Alice and Joanna have left for an abbey and await word on what has happened to their Queen.
Their lives are so different now. Living in the confines of a nunnery, both have left their loves behind. Joanna has left her lover Jean at Eleanor’s court while Alice has been in love with Marie, the queen’s daughter.
In Fontrevault, Joanna has come to accept her surroundings and has adjusted to her new found life amongst the nuns. Life for Alice is a challenge as she fights her way through each day. Unknown as to the length of their cloistered life they wonder when they will be reunited with Eleanor and their loved ones.
Rich in detail, this is a beautifully written novel and a joy to read.
With thanks to NetGalley, Coirle Mooney and Sapere Books for an ARC in exchange for an honest book review.

A delightful & rollicking new installment into the chaotic and highly dysfunctional world of the Plantagenets and their domestic and political shenanigans.
Full of twists and turns, sparkling dialogues and exquisitely drawn characters this very colorful Medieval fictional tapestry is an accomplished and refreshing historical treat that deserves to be enjoyed without any moderation whatsoever

Many thanks to Netgalley and Sapere Books for this terrific ARC
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I found this to be an enjoyable read that was engaging, with good writing, a good storyline and well developed characters, some of which I liked more than others. I think if I had read the first book in the series I would have found this a better read so I will get the first, and then reread this one.

‘Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine has been taken. And I, Lady Joanna of Agen had escaped to a nunnery.’

In 1173, Eleanor of Aquitaine was imprisoned by her husband Henry II of England, after a supporting a revolt against him by their son, Henry the Young King. Against this backdrop, her ladies in waiting, Joanna of Agen and her aunt Alice, fled to the nunnery at Fontrevault. Here, they anxiously await news of Eleanor.

‘There was no need to imagine the worst. The worst had already happened.’

Joanna in particular struggles to fit into the life in the nunnery. She misses her lover Jean, from Eleanor’s court at Poitiers and finds the nunnery restrictive. While Alice is more comfortable in the nunnery, her eyesight is failing, and she worries about Joanna as well as missing Eleanor’s daughter Marie, with whom she is in love.

This is the second novel in Ms Mooney’s Medieval Ladies Series. While it could be read as a standalone, the first book provides important detail of Joanna and Alice’s backstories. Eleanor of Aquitaine is completely offstage in this novel.

When I read the first novel, I did not care much for the character of Joanna. In this novel, while Joanna still annoys me because she is so self-centred, some of her actions are more focussed on others. Joanna manages to improve a difficult situation for one of the other women staying at Fontrevault and, in the end, finds happiness herself. And Alice? Alice is now forty and finds the life at Fontrevault suits her.

I understand that a third book will be published shortly, and I am interested enough in what might happen next to keep reading.

Note: My thanks to NetGalley and Sapere Books for providing me with a free electronic copy of this book for review purposes.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith

The Cloistered Lady by Coirle Mooney

Eleanor of Aquitaine has been arrested for rebelling against her husband, King Henry II of England.
Her loyal ladies-in-waiting, Alice and Joanna of Agen have fled to the nunnery at Fontrevault, where they are anxiously awaiting news of their queen.
I enjoyed reading about Alice & Joanna and what happened to them whilst ensconced under the care of the nuns. Their backstory of love and loss was a good tale.
I didn't know this was the 2nd book in a series so that took a little away from the enjoyment of the book but felt it can be read as a standalone.