THE COUNT WITHOUT CASTLES

by Jeanne Humphreys ‧ RELEASE DATE: N/A

A soft-toned romance, this is also a somewhat indulgent flirtation with history (two of the four central characters here -- King Pedro I of Spain, and Maria, the beggar girl he loved have their authenticity). 14th century Spain, torn by civil war as well as the fight against the Moslems, and its extremes of splendor and poverty background the saintly life of sin led by Maria, the adopted daughter of Constancia, queen of the beggars, who became the mistress of Pedro but could never love him as she loved Jeronimo, penniless and renamed the Count without Castles. Maria, through the years, is able to buy happiness for the poor by ""serving the king in a way which God forbids""; she bears him children, but never forgets the insecurity of her status or her wish to marry Jeronimo-finally achieved at Pedro's death.... A definitely sentimental stress -- almost a dedication- less to history than to the purity of Maria, the gallantry of Jeronimo.

Pub Date: N/A

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Duell, Sloan & Pearce

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1956

Categories: FICTION