O nó do amor foi mais uma das minhas "escolhas cegas" das estantes da biblioteca municipal. Não conhecia a autora, nem nunca tina lido nada sobre o livro. No fundo, era um verdadeiro desconhecido para mim. Agora, no fim da leitura, só me resta um verdadeiro sorriso de satisfação por ter dado uma oportunidade ao livro. Não restam quaisquer tipos de arrependimento por tê-lo trazido para casa. Tudo isto para dizer que gostei muito do livro.Infelizmente não leio muitos romances históricos, mas dentro daqueles que já li, este é um dos meus preferidos. É com mestria que a autora nos apresenta os detalhes históricos que figuram no livro. Entrelaça acontecimentos, mostra-nos como tudo se processa e eu senti como se estivesse dentro do livro.Não sei até que pontos os elementos históricos correspondem ao que verdadeiramente aconteceu. Eu sei muito pouco sobre a história da Inglaterra para saber se tudo aquilo que está presente no livro aconteceu verdadeiramente. Gostei dos detalhes das disputas que aconteceram pelo trono de Inglaterra e das confusões e reviravoltas que iam pautando os combates.Paralelamente a este enredo histórico, desenvolve.se um romance com direito a um triângulo amoroso. Os protagonistas deste triângulo são: Catrin, Oliver e Louis. Gostei de todos os eles! Cada um com as suas diferenças e características de personalidade torna tudo mais envolvente.Catrin é uma personagem feminina que vou guardar por muito tempo na minha memória. Não é uma donzela com características que se enquadram no perfil típico das mulheres desta época. É uma mulher à frente da sua época. É valente, respondona, divertida, curiosa, profissional... Tem uma energia e uma personalidade que me marcaram. Nem sempre concordei com as escolhas que ela fez, mas com um certo distanciamento e e com algum nível de compreensão fazem algum sentido e são importantes para todo o desenvolvimento da narrativa e, acima tudo, para que Catrin possa descobrir o seu lugar e valorizá-lo de uma forma totalmente nova. Catrin está longe de ser uma rapariga fútil e que vive na inércia. Quer fazer algo de útil e é em Ethel que encontra as ferramentas necessárias para canalizar toda a sua energia e curiosidade.À medida que Catrin vai aprendendo com Ethel, vai estabelecendo uma ligação com Oliver. Gostei, particularmente, da franqueza, bondade e correcção de Oliver. É um militar íntegro que aos meus olhos pareceu tão real, onde facilmente acedia ao seu lado bom, como no momento seguinte via o seu lado mais sombrio em acção. Catrin e Oliver brindam o leitor com momentos que apelam as mais variadas emoções. Foi fácil divertir-me com as picardias inicias, ao mesmo tempo que ficava emocionada com a solidez que o amor deles tomou.... Mas o destino é incerto e Catrin vê-se perante a sua escolha. O marido, que ela pensava morto, surge e ela tem de escolher entre Oliver e Louis.Louis é uma espécie de vilão. E digo espécie, porque nem tudo nele é mau. É certo que o seu lado maldoso está mais evidenciado, mas de uma forma fugaz chega a brindar-nos com alguma bondade. É um homem que gosta do luxo e do prazer, acima de tudo. O final desta personagem conseguiu surpreender-me. De acordo com a personalidade dele, não esperava que tal acontecesse daquela forma.Por fim, quero apenas destacar que achei o final desta história ligeiramente apressado. Depois de um início tão detalhado fiquei um pouco desiludida ver que a autora apressou a narração dos acontecimentos, principalmente depois de um acontecimento de extra importância para Catrin e Oliver. Apesar desta minha pequena desilusão com o final fiquei com vontade de ler mais obras da autora.
**3.5** I apologize in advance if this review is...uneven. I read the first 60% of the book and then took a 2 month break before picking it up again to finish it, which I had pretty much never done before. Usually when I go that long without picking a book up again I never finish it so this was a novel experience for myself (sorry, couldn't help myself). Anyway, if I remember correctly I was enjoying this, but the angst I hit at the 60% mark was just too much for my poor heart to bear. Basically Oliver comes across Catrin on his way to Bristol, having just returned from the Holy Land. Catrin is one of only two survivors of a raid on their village and he brings them both with him. Once in Bristol Catrin starts learning to become a midwife and herbalist and the two slowly fall in love. Which I loved btw. Oliver was still traumatized by his wife and child dying in childbirth (which is why he made a pilgrimage) and Catrin herself has only been a widow a year, her husband having drowned. So the two of them both have sadness in their past, but they learn to love again with each other and it all unfolds slowly and, IMO, realistically. There is also a bad guy running around who they have to deal with, but the real kicker, and SPOILER ALERT, is when Catrin's husband returns. He had faked his death to escape justice after killing a jealous husband. You see, he was not really the good guy Catrin thought she loved, but a charming and handsome fraud who deceived most people to get him way. Anyway, when he returns (and this is the first thing that made me set this aside for a while), Catrin sleeps with him! Nope nuh-uh. Cheating is not okay. I was so pissed with her after that. And then to make matters worse she goes back to him leaving Oliver brokenhearted! Argh! And this is where I put the book down. I was so mad at Catrin and sad for Oliver. Although i suppose this is what makes a good book? When you are so invested in the characters that you FEEL for them. And so I had to put it down. The ending was good though. Once things turned around I was loving it again, although because it's Chadwick, I was tense the entire time that something else bad would happen. She doesn't pull any punches. Also as usual with a Chadwick book, the history of the time period invades the entire story and it is excellently done. And you can always rest assured that the history is accurate with her! Chadwick writes well, she's done her research and she knows how to transport you to medieval England and I love that about all of her books that I've read. Notable Quotes:"Her heart was too soft and she sought for love in all the wrong places, but if that is a sin, then more than half of us is damned!""Yes, but the real enemy is that neither one trusts the other to keep living against the daily odds."
What do You think about The Love Knot (1999)?
I found The Love Knot to be an easy read. It's a historical romance set during the war of succession between Stephen and Matilda. While the romance hews close to historical facts, it treats the conflict itself and politics in broad strokes. It does not approach the level of detail about the conflict that is covered in Sharon Kay Penman's While Christ and His Saint's Slept. I would say that the level of detail was more similar to Pillars of the Earth, but The Love Knot's portrayal of medieval life seemed more accurate. In The Love Knot, the women wore braids and wimples - no billowing, long hair in women. Also, Chadwick was careful not to use anachronism.The Love Knot centers on the story of the love between Catrin and Oliver. The storyline itself was rather predictable - it certainly did not help that the cover of the book reveals taht Catrin mistakenly believed herself to be a widow. I would have preferred not to have known this from the outset, as it left out any real possibility of a plot twist. Fortunately, for such a character driven plot, the main characters were likeable.Based on other reviews, I expected a lot of detail about childbirth in the middle ages. There really wasn't much detail at all - just some mention of "travail," amniotic fluid, and the placenta. I would say that most births mentioned (Catrin was a midwife) took a page to describe at most. I think some readers might be a little too squeamish, particularly since the historical fiction drama describes battles and gore (much more grotesque than childbirth) with much regularity! Overall, The Love Knot was a pleasant, light read. I've read better historical fiction novels, but The Love Knot kept me interested.
—Lauren
What a fantastic book! I loved this book so much that I can see myself reading it again. It is one of the most beautiful love stories I've ever read set in an amazing time in history. The way in which Chadwick brings this period in history to life is remarkable. I especially loved that the heroin was a midwife and healer. Summer in the year 1140, Oliver and Catrin are drawn together through the horrors of civil war; their love grows but is threatened. Oliver is taken prisoner and Catrin returns to the husband she mistakenly thought had died in battle. Torn between love and loyalty this is a story that will have you turning the pages quickly wanting to find out what happens next.Whilst the love story between Oliver and Catrin is in itself captivating, equally so is the history going on in the background. This is the time just prior to the Plantagenet’s coming to the throne in England. Henry is a boy and as a secondary character we are given insight into his personality.This is a great read that I recommend to all lovers of historical fiction.
—Alaine
While romances are not my reads of choice this one is interesting because it's written in medieval times. I did like it. The story is about Catrin who is deserted by her handsome charming husband. He supposedly drowned and she is taken as a companion to a lady whose home is later raided by mercenaries. Everyone is killed but Catrin and her lady's young son, Richard. The two travel to a kinsman of the boy and Catrin studies to become a wisewomman/healer. She falls in love with Oliver, a man who has lost his heritage, and has become a sword for hire. Oliver is as different from her husband as can be but with the turbulence of war swirling around them one wonders if they will live long enough to begin a life together.
—Rusty
