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When Christ and His Saints Slept: A Novel | 
 enlarge | Author: Sharon Kay Penman
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Category: Book
List Price: $18.00
Buy Used: $2.90
You Save: $15.10 (84%)
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Avg. Customer Rating:  85 reviews
Sales Rank: 12580
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 768
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.1
Dimensions (in): 8.2 x 5.3 x 1.2
ISBN: 0345396685
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
EAN: 9780345396686
ASIN: 0345396685
Publication Date: February 6, 1996
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Spine has a cut. Somewhat worn. Expedited shipping is not available for this item. Items are mailed via USPS media mail within 2 business days and should arrive 4-14 business days later.
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Product Description
"A COMPELLING, WELL-WRITTEN EPIC. . .Penman is an accomplished novelist and certainly has staked a claim to medieval England as her literary fiefdom."
--The Philadelphia Inquirer
A.D. 1135. As church bells tolled for the death of England's King Henry I, his barons faced the unwelcome prospect of being ruled by a woman: Henry's beautiful daughter Maude, Countess of Anjou. But before Maude could claim her throne, her cousin Stephen seized it. In their long and bitter struggle, all of England bled and burned.
Sharon Kay Penman's magnificent fifth novel summons to life a spectacular medieval tragedy whose unfolding breaks the heart even as it prepares the way for splendors to come--the glorious age of Eleanor of Aquitaine and the Plantagenets that would soon illumine the world.
"[A] marvelous medieval pageant of a novel. . .Another jewel in [Penman's] already glittering crown."
--The Orlando Sentinel
"Penman once again tells a tale of kings and queens, singular destinies, and double-crosses. . . .[She] inventively animates a large cast [and] continues to base her narrative on the firm ground of fact."
--Kirkus Reviews
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| Customer Reviews: Read 80 more reviews...
 Focused too much on a fictional character, but still an excellent novel. December 13, 2008
When Christ and His Saints Slept is the story of the violent struggle for the throne of England between Stephen, grandson of William the Conquerer and Maude, daughter of Henry I. Saints was the first novel by Sharon Kay Penman that I read. I can certainly see why authors are often compared to her. She truly knows how to tell a riveting story. The novel begins when Henry I's only legitimate male heir is killed while returning from France. King Henry declares his daughter Maude his successor. However, after Henry's death, Stephen declares himself King resulting in a blood civil war.
Overall, I think Saints lived up to my expectations, however, there were a few things that bothered me about this book. For one, there were too many characters and some of them had very familiar names: Ranulf, Rainald, Randolph, Robert, Rob, two Maudes, Mathilda, and a Mathilde. Not to mention Maude and Mathilda are referred to as the Queen. It was very confusing at times.
I also felt there was too much emphasis on Ranulf, a fictional character Penman created to help the story along. If the author had concentrated on Maude and Stephen, Saints would have been a much more pleasant and quicker read. If seems like half the book was about Ranulf, even the last few lines of the book are about him.
The story of Maude and Stephen could have held it's own without introducing a fictional character for dramatization. If the author had left Ranulf out, I probably would have given this book five stars. Regardless of the flaws, Saints is one of the best historical fiction works that I have ever read. I look forward to reading Penman's other books.
 Drawn out November 22, 2008
0 out of 2 found this review helpful
Seems lots of folks like this novel, but I am not feeling it. Little too drawn out. Takes forever to get to the point and I feel there are way too many characters. There are so many lords and ladies to keep track off, I had to write them down like a family tree. The story is mostly about the war between Maude, the named heir to the crown and Stephen, the late kings nephew who has stolen her throne. In between all the details of their battles, is mundane, unimportant stories that in the long run, have nothing to do with the main plot. I would enjoy it much more if it stuck to the story instead of making the book 500 pages longer than necessary with irrelevant details.
 Simply delightful! September 5, 2008
I am a recent convert to Penman's novels and this is the best I've read yet. No doubt you are already aware of the premise, so I'll won't recap the entire storyline. It is enough to say that this novel centers around Maude, the daughter of the first King Henry of England/Duke of Normandy. When Henry died without a legitimate male heir, he allegedly named Maude as his successor to the crown. Due to the time period, though, few people were ready to see a woman rule and Maude's cousin Stephen swept in and stole the crown out from under her. This novel centers on Maude's heroic, yet ultimately futile, attempt to regain what was rightfully hers and the devastation the wars between her and King Stephen wrought on the English people (hence, the title of the novel).
The sequel to this book is called 'Time and Chance' and I'm willing to bet that you'll want to read that immediately following this fabulous book. If you love learning about history in the form of a novel, you just cannot go wrong with Sharon Kay Penman. Her research is impeccable and her style is addicting.
Happy Reading!
Stephen v. Maude May 5, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I've read all of the Brother Cadfael books, and the background of all of them involved a war between King Stephen and the Empress Maude for the throne of England. These backgrounds were only snippets, and I couldn't get a handle on what was actually happening in this strife. Even though I majored in History in college and have read well over a thousand history books in the 40 years since my graduation, I never came across one that related this story. Luckily I've now read this novel, which thoroughly covers the controversy from beginning to end. It is quite a long book (more than 700 pages), but this is the type of tale that needs to be told in full. The writing is first-rate,the action very exciting, and the characters so well-drawn that only in the author's afterward do you discover who was historical abd who was fictional. In addition to the story of Stephen and Maude, we get the beginning of the marriage of Henry II and Eleanor of Acquitane. That's covered more fuly in the book "Time and Chance", which I purchased, and will be taking with me to the Jersey shore this June to enjoy while I relax. I can't wait!
An engaging and vivid account of the struggle between King Stephen and the Empress Maude. April 5, 2008
What makes Sharon Penman's historical novels set in medieval Britain so amazing is how they combine sticking quite close to historical facts, with making a thrilling read enjoyable to modern readers, together with an engaging cast of characters.
This novel documents the nineteen year civil war between Empress Maud, Countess of Anjou and Lady of the English and King Stephen, a war which ravaged England and caused great suffering to the people.
Penman outlines the complex characters of Maude- proud, imperious and impetuous, named heir to the throne by her father King Henry I, but denied the crown because she was a woman, and Stephen, gallant, compassionate, and indecisive.
Most of the characters are of real historical note, except Ranulf Fitz Roy, a fictional character who could easily have been real as one of King Henry's illegitimate children , but was not.
But the space exists for him, because of the untold story of King Henry's other many illegitimate children.
Penman also touches on her fascination with medieval Wales, introducing Ranulf's Welsh cousins, including his blind bride to be Rhiannon.
It also introduces the saga of Harry (later to be Henry II) and the beautiful and passionate Queen Eleanor.
I never lost interest throughout the novel, filled with intrigue, war, politics, relationships, sex and character analysis.
Memorable scenes include the sinking of the White Ship, and the drowning of Henry I's only legitimate male heir, William, the passionate love between Ranulf and Annora, and their later adulterous union, the escape by Empress Maud at Wallingford, the many shifting allegiances by the leading nobleman, the ravaging of England and cruelty of Geoffrey De Mandeville, and the rescue by King Stephen of John Marshall's young captive son from execution.
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