This is a truly amazing piece of fiction that I absolutely could not put down until I was finished. I read and analyzed this book for one chapter of my master's thesis on Appalachian literature and ecofeminist theory. I found it to contain very powerful messages about the human connection to the earth. The conflicts in the book between the human characters are reflected and echoed in nature. In this book and its sequel, Giardina paints such an accurate picture of how oppression of any sort spreads and touches all corners of life.

Hailing from the coal regions of Northeastern Pennsylvania, when I learned of this title, I quickly ordered a copy and read it within a day and a half. I could not put it down, and, in fact, kept returning to passages because Giardina's prose is brilliant. The characters are so alive that I was actually upset to end the book and lose Carrie Bishop as a friend. Being a writer, I am in awe of Giardina. In fact, off I go to read the other Giardina book I ordered, "The Unquiet Earth." Anyone from coal country, be it NE PA's anthracite field or coal country in other locations, will readily identify with this story for its historical worth. Reading it is like listening to tales as told by our great-grandparents who worked in the damp,dark underground and their families, who toiled above.

And I've read a LOT of books. This is one of the few books I'veread that will have me laughing until my sides ache in one chapter,crying until I can't see the pages in another, and ready to go on aprotest march in the next.

Storming Heaven is an exhaustively researched, historically accurate, and utterly compelling story of the Battle of Blair Mountain, WV in 1921. It's the story of an armed conflict between coal miners and the hired gunhands who represented the coal operators. It's a story of how the United States government turned on its own people, looking away when women and children were murdered in cold blood, sending troops into the valleys and dropping bombs on the mountains.

And if the story itself isn't stirring enough, Giardina writes some of the most beautiful prose I have ever read. The mountains are *alive* in her books.

My copy of Storming Heaven is so dog-eared and highlighted that I'll soon need to replace it. I am astounded that a couple of others have rated this book a 'hard read'. Compared to what? Danielle Steele?

"Saints and Villians" is a beautifully written historical fiction set in Germany during the years immediately prior to and including the Nazi period. It is the story of Deitrich Bonhoeffer, a German theologian who was one of the few who spoke out against Hitler and the Nazis. The story was as exciting as any adventure novel. As the Nazis came to power, the author details the gradual loss of freedoms and increasing oppression of the Jews, immersing the reader in a story made that more devastating because it actually happened. Detrich is pictured as a very believable hero, with plenty of human weaknesses, having doubts and making mistakes along the way. In my opinion, that makes him even more admirable. A love story, plenty of bad guys, a few good guys struggling to prevail against unspeakable evil....all combines to make this novel into one of the best books I've read in a long time.

This is without a doubt one of the best books I have ever read. The story is rich and complex, with a cast of characters, both real and fictional, that are interwoven througout the story. This book will really make you think, and put a lot of everyday problems we all have into perspective. Dietrich Bonhoeffer was an incredibly courageous man--physically and spiritually.

I highly recommend this book--it's moral fiber will stay with you for years to come.

I bought this book because I had some knowledge of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, and because I've read several Ballantine's Readers Circle novels and found them all to be interesting, challenging, and worth my time. Saints and Villains has made me think again about Jews and their place in European history. I have known of the Holocaust since I was a small child, but this novel made me think about day-to-day life as Hitler grew from being a fringe leader (like Pat Buchanan), frightening no one, to the leader of a warring empire, sometimes seeming unstoppable. It's hard to imagine a time in which Hitler seemed unstoppable, but I think we all must, if we can, in order to understand how fear made average people do uncommonly evil things--and, like Pastor Bonhoeffer, uncommonly good.

After the wonderful Storming Heaven I was so excited to read this book, and then so disappointed. The plot is melodramatic, the characterizations cardboard.

I loved The Unquiet Earth... I loved the relationships and determination of the characters.... After I read this book, I wanted to read it again and again.... There is one thing I suggest you do before you read this one... I suggest you read Storming Heaven.... Storming Heaven is about Dillon's mother and father, and about Tony Angelelli's mother.... If you read this one first you can get their background.... But, Unquiet Earth is hands down my favorite book!! I highly recommend reading this book! The way it is written is really good to understand what each person is thinking during each situation.... You should definitely buy this book! I hope this persuaded you to buy this book...

This true story takes place in the area where I grew up; I was familiar with its happening. My father was involved in these events. Although I cannot say I enjoyed the book, ( because it was so realistic and tragic), I found it very ,very well written and so moving I lived with it for weeks. It is written entirely from the miners view, and is therefore one sided, but is nevertheless accurate in content. It is obvious that the author knew these people. I would recommend it to anyone interested in the history of this area. katydid

If you are only just becoming acquainted with the work of Denise Giardina, you should know that this fictionalized autobiography of Henry V is one of her earlier works (originally published in 1984). Like most of Giardina's work, it deals with human attempts to live and deal honorably with others within the structures and restraints of institutionalized power.

Henry sees his role as king as a sacred trust yet his role as king requires that he sometimes commit acts which result in death or harm to others. The conflict of his story arises as he struggles to come to terms with the ambiguity. Giardina creates a character living with enormous pain. Emotionally abandoned by his father, Harry desperately fights to be loved by those whom he must rule. This need causes him to be at odds with all around him, those who would seek to reform his kingdom as well as those who would maintain the status quo.

An absorbing read, although not a difficult one, this novel could be an interesting read for high school students in this election year.

Good King Harry was Giardina's debut novel but I didn't read it until after I had finished, and fallen in love with, her outstanding second historical novel, Storming Heaven and its sequel, The Unquiet Earth. I'd read that she'd made Henry V the subject of her first novel because she didn't think anyone wanted to read about hillbilly coal miners. I could understand that, but what really puzzled me is what a daughter of the Appalachian coalfields would find so interesting about British royalty.

I borrowed Good King Harry from the public library mainly out of curiousity and by the end of the first page, realized that this too was one I needed to acquire for my collection.

The answer to my question was of course, that Henry V was the beloved King of the commoners - Good King Harry. As with Giardina's other works, her talent for bringing history to life and her ear for language are flawless.

I have just completed this book. If not for a rigorous work schedule I would have completed this book in only a few sittings. Giardina does a phenomenal job of capturing the feeling of the language Henry would have spoken without making it unreadable to modern readers. I studied the history of English monarchs and Shakespeare in college and found Henry V to be my favorite. Giardina actually creates a persona for Harry which is unlike most other authors, biographers and historians. Truly a great read and highly recommendable. I would have my English classes read this.

I was uplifted and very satisfied to be exposed to the range of women who have fought for basic humanitarian rights in the southern coal regions. These are normal people making their small difference in a world they seem to love. I would have loved to hear more about the assumed women listed such as Mother Jones, Sara Ogen Gunning, Alice Lloyd, Bessie Smith (all of whom can be looked up). Most especially, I would love to know more about Granny Hager, and Widow Combs. They are mentioned in this book briefly and there seems to be no other record of them.

Overall, the book is a wonderful taste of the differences that women make today and have made in the past. I would love to hear more detail from the authors on the infamous women of the region who never made it into the Seneca Falls Women's Hall of Fame or any Encyclopedia.

In my opinion (and what is a review but an opinion?), this book is not the greatest. It seemed to me simply to be a rehashed telling of Outlander by Diana Gabaldon. Girl goes back in time, girl falls in love with a somewhat rebellous character, girl stays in the past. This book lacked the detail of Outlander and seemed to gloss over historical details as well. It is more of a romance in a historical setting, with little to no details as to food, dress, customs, etc. It doesn't give much detail as to how a person from present times would have trouble adjusting to the past. Indeed, it seems to slide right past all that.
Also, this book leaves you hanging at the end, feeling unfufilled as the story does not come to a conclusion. The book was long enough, but by ending as it does the reader almost feels cheated. If I were you, I'd try Outlander instead. If you've read that, you may want to read this one, just for kicks. The similarities will either amuse or frustrate you, as they did me.

Then I started reading this book, I was sceptical. Can this author really write a good time travel? Yes she can, this book is wonderful and it has the right combination of history, adventure, time travel and of course romance and the ending promises (hopefully!) that there might be another book!! This book goes directly to my keeper shelf! Thanks to the author for this terrific reading experience!