A provocative, immersive medieval novel starring one of literatureâs most unforgettable characters in her own wordsâChaucerâs bold and libidinous Wife of Bath.
âSo damned readable and funâŚThis is the story of a woman fighting for her rights; it breaches the walls of history.â--The Australian
In the middle ages, a famous poet told a story that mocked a strong woman. It became a literary classic. But what if the woman in question had a chance to tell her own version?
England, 1364: When married off at aged twelve to an elderly farmer, brazen redheaded Eleanor quickly realizes it wonât matter what she says or does, God is not on her sideâor any poor womanâs for that matter. But then again, Eleanor was born under the joint signs of Venus and Mars, making her both a lover and a fighter.
Aided by a head for business (and a surprisingly kind husband), Eleanor manages to turn her first marriage into success, and she rises through society from a cast-off farm girl to a woman of fortune who becomes a trusted friend of the social-climbing poet Geoffrey Chaucer. But more marriages followâsome happy, some notâseveral pilgrimages, many lovers, murder, mayhem, and many turns of fortuneâs wheel as Eleanor pursues the one thing that all women want: control of their own lives.