The Founding (1980 original; edició 1982)

This series had an interesting concept: follow one family through the generations. The series has over thirty books. Unfortunately, there was a family tree at the start of this book, and you have to get a good 200 pages into the book before it starts being about anything other than the family tree. Even then it’s basically family tree plus some history thrown it. The family tree also let you cheat on what was going to happen; I think it should have been placed at the back of the book instead of the front.

Having been originally published in 1980, The Founding seems to show its age with some anachronisms and a very rosy view of factories and such modernization and how it just doesn’t distinguish itself. I generally find it annoying when historical fiction or fantasy in historical-fiction-like settings show their protagonists as being super progressive. I could be wrong, but I thought the “factory” was going a little too far. The windows in the house were probably also a bit early.

This book takes an extremely fluffy view of Richard III. It was more a view of him through his loyalists’ eyes (which the Morlands were) and how they might have interpreted his actions and the events surrounding them.

All in all it was an ok read. I found it interesting at first, but then it just seemed to drag on as the book focused more and more on historical events and the links with the characters grew shallower.
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Who knew history could be so fascinating? It could have been just another dry piece of historical fiction; instead the characters leapt off the page and the storyline was so engaging! I thoroughly enjoyed reading about the Morland family and their beginnings. I'm excited to continue on with this series! ( )

My blog post about this book is at this link.

My review on reread is at this link. ( )

There are not many books that make me want to do nothing but sit and read from start to finish, but the story of the Morland family, and their place in the troubled times of England during the 15th century, had me totally absorbed. This is book one of the huge Morland Dynasty series, and I only hope that they continue to be as good as the first! ( )

My mother started reading Cynthia Harrod Eagles' Dynasty series when I was a baby, and owned nearly the full set of novels (but gave them away before I developed an interest). So personal history encourages me to take a deep breath and dive in, but the length and bredth of the full set - over thirty very large novels, covering the fifteenth to the twentieth centuries - is somewhat daunting!

The first instalment is Eleanor's story, and begins with her marriage into the Morland family. Offloaded to the highest bidder by her guardian, Edmund Beaufort, eighteen year old Eleanor is forced to leave the Isle of Purbeck in Dorset and migrate to deepest, darkest Yorkshire. Her intended, Robert Morland, is clumsy and awkward, but falls in love with Eleanor at first sight. She takes a little more persuading. The Morland farm outside York is neglected and lacking the feminine touch, but Eleanor soon sets the house, her husband and his grouchy father to rights, and makes the land her own. The novel follows the lives of Eleanor and Robert, their 9 children, 7 grandchildren and 6 great-grandchildren through fifty years of tumultuous history, and all the personal upheavals in between!

I really grew to love Eleanor, who is a strong matriarch as well as a beautiful woman. She runs rings around her devoted husband, though does eventually come to appreciate him, raises her family with a rod of iron (locking up one daughter until she agrees to marry a man she hates), and even has a hand in the political machinations of the country. Cynthia Harrod Eagles seamlessly combines story with history, explaining the tangled background to Richard, Duke of York and the War of the Roses with a personal touch - she managed to bring all those dusty dates and names to life for me! Two of Eleanor's sons die in battle with Richard of York, and a grandson meets his fate on the Battle of Bosworth Field with Richard the Third.

The family names can sometimes get a little confusing - there are 3 Edwards, 2 Eleanors, 2 Cecilies, and 2 Thomases - but a family tree is helpfully supplied at the front of the book (I only wish there was a similar guide to the Royal families of the time!)

A truly fascinating and engrossing read, for all the size of the book, and I cannot wait to read on - especially now that the later Morland Dynasty novels are available on Kindle! ( )