(That there's the lady right there!)
Name: Alice Borchardt
Genre: historical fiction, fantasy
Books: Devoted, Beguiled, The Silver Wolf, Night of the Wolf, Wolf King, Dragon Queen, Raven Warrior
Warnings: her books tend to have a lot of [straight] sex scenes, though it's not like those are the focal points of them...still, she was a naughty old lady! There also tends to be violence due to war scenes.
Before beginning to write this author spotlight, I decided to look her up on wikipedia...see what they said, why on earth there hasn't been another book in one of the series she was writing. Well, I got my answer. My sad, sad answer. It turns out that she passed away in 2007. :( May Alice Borchardt rest in peace; her books will be her legacy. This totally took me aback...because I had no idea! I don't go searching for my favorite authors that go missing on Wiki that often, and so now I do, and I find out she passed away 3 years ago. Three! No wonder her Guinevere series never continued. It's such a sad shame. She was such a talented author, yet overlooked by her sister, Anne Rice. She passed away at age 67.
So yes, as I mentioned, her sister is Anne Rice. More people are familiar with her and her vampire novels (as Oli-chan already reviewed on the world!), and most probably haven't heard of Borchardt. But I'm writing about her because she is (was...) one of my favorite authors. The first book I read by her was The Silver Wolf (1998); I came across it in the library, on the shelves where you can buy books for 25 cents. That was probably 5-6 years ago. I got it, read it, and loved it. I continued that series (Night of the Wolf, The Wolf King) and really enjoyed it. They're a mix between fantasy and historical fiction--combining romance, a man that is really a wolf, a fine young lady, and such historical figures as Cesar (yes, of Roman history fame lol!) and Charlemagne all in one series. This series is full of action, romance (sexy time!!), and somewhat accurate history lessons. Very entertaining; it kept me on the edge of my seat! And it was one time where I didn't mind writing my book report (I did it in 11th grade on the Wolf King).
Her other series, which is now discontinued...was also an abstract version of history, filled with fantasy and smex. The Dragon Queen and The Raven Warrior. Both very good books, although it's been a while since I read them, so I can't tell you much about them! But I did like them a lot, and I SO wanted to have the third book. But now that Borchardt has gone up to the great book store in Heaven, I suppose that won't happen. It's a shame because the second book ended...well...it didn't really end. It was just waiting for that third book. Still, I recommend these.
She wrote few other books. I read another one, I want to say it was Devoted, but I'm not near my bookcase right now to check. Again, very good. I highly recommend all of this fine lady's novels! Especially if you don't mind smexy scenes because like I said, she was a dirty old lady. ^_~ Haha. Each book is filled with great storylines and characters, and her personality shines through in each. So go out there and read them! May she rest her sweet soul in peace.
