An Unsuitable Knight: A novel of Norman Italy

Poets dream of absolute love, but real people almost always settle for security when the price of passion runs too high.This is the true story of Roger de Hauteville and Judith d'Evreux, who refused to settle.Normandy, 1058. Judith is a wealthy noblewoman born to privilege and luxury and a cousin of William the Conqueror. She's heard kinswomen swear they'll never be parted from their true loves only to marry men old enough to be their grandsires mere weeks later. She insists she'll never make such foolish promises-until she meets a knight whose worth is as great as his prospects are poor.Roger is a knight whose piety and talent for cunning nearly outweigh his fighting prowess. But he's the twelfth son of a poor knight and can never hope to marry a noblewoman. He's contented himself with casual affairs until he falls in love with Judith, whose intelligence and sensible nature far outshine the empty finery of the court.Forbidden to be together in Normandy, they gamble on a dangerous path in a kingdom in the sun, where the battles fought with swords are the least of their concerns. Challenged by a resentful populace, duplicitous relatives, and scheming prelates at two noble courts, Roger and Judith must sacrifice more than they ever dreamed to spend their lives together. But if their world refuses to condone their union, they'll create one that will from the chaos of a ruined empire.