Rebels and Traitors by British historical novelist Lindsey Davis

Lindsey Davis

Lindsey Davis is an English historical novelist, best known as the author of the Falco series of crime stories set in ancient Rome and its empire.-Biography:...

 (best known for her Marcus Didius Falco

Marcus Didius Falco

Marcus Didius Falco is the central character and narrator in a series of novels by Lindsey Davis. Using the concepts of modern detective stories , Davis portrays the world of the Roman Empire under Vespasian...

 series) was published by Random House

Random House

Random House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...

 in September 2009 (ISBN 9781846056321). In contrast to the ancient Roman

Ancient Rome

Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....

 setting of the Falco books and Course of Honour, this book is set in the English Civil War

English Civil War

The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...

 period of the 17th century. At 742 pages it is substantially longer than her previous novels.

The dedication is "For Richard / dearest and closest of friends / your favourite book / in memory", and the author's website tells that "I am still getting used to life without my dear Richard. For those of you who haven't seen this before, he died in October [2008]". The author says in her publisher's newsletter: "The greatest recommendation I can give is that Richard, its first reader, thought it wonderful. He devoured chunks, demanding ‘Bring
more story!’ even when he was in hospital. One of the last things I was ever able to tell him was that Rebels and Traitors was to be published by Random House, so I would be working with dear friends for his favourite book."

The prologue takes place on 30 January 1649 at the execution of King Charles I

Charles I of England

Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...

 at the Palace of Whitehall

Palace of Whitehall

The Palace of Whitehall was the main residence of the English monarchs in London from 1530 until 1698 when all except Inigo Jones's 1622 Banqueting House was destroyed by fire...

, London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

. The main body of the book then begins in 1634, and the endpaper blurb describes the book as being set in Birmingham

Birmingham

Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...

, where the author was born, Oxford

Oxford

The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...

, where she studied, and London, where she now lives.

Davis has said that her interest in this period goes back to when a print of the Laughing Cavalier

Laughing Cavalier

The Laughing Cavalier is a famous portrait by the Dutch Golden Age painter Frans Hals in the Wallace Collection in London, which has been described as "one of the most brilliant of all Baroque portraits"...

 by Frans Hals

Frans Hals

Frans Hals was a Dutch Golden Age painter. He is notable for his loose painterly brushwork, and helped introduce this lively style of painting into Dutch art. Hals was also instrumental in the evolution of 17th century group portraiture.-Biography:Hals was born in 1580 or 1581, in Antwerp...

 hung in her primary school classroom, and was further developed when she read Rosemary Sutcliffe's novels Simon

Simon (novel)

Simon is a children's historical novel written by Rosemary Sutcliff, first published in 1953. It is set during the English Civil War, and shows the effect of the conflict on two friends, who find themselves on opposite sides...

 and The Rider of the White Horse.

Plot summary

The story follows the experiences of two main protagonists: Gideon Jukes, a printer from London who joins the New Model Army, and Juliana Calill, who, as a result of her marriage to the Royalist Orlando Lovell, experiences many vicissitudes. Their stories are linked through the activities of other characters, including the ne'er-do-well Kinchin Tew, the innocent and upright Edmund Treves, and real-life political figures such as Edward Sexby

Edward Sexby

Colonel Edward Sexby or Saxby was an English Puritan soldier and Leveller in the army of Oliver Cromwell. Later he turned against Cromwell and plotted his assassination.-Life:...

 and Thomas Rainborough.

External links

• Publisher's website with link to 71 pages from the book, review, review, review from Oxford local viewpoint, review; note that true to its reputation The Grauniad mis-spells the author's name throughout, review