Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Giveaway: The Countess by Rebecca Johns

 

 
In January 1611, one of the highest-born members of the Hungarian nobility, Countess Erzsébet Báthory, was walled inside her castle tower and imprisoned for the rest of her life. Her crime—the brutal torture and murder of at least thirty-five women and girls, mostly servants in the countess’s employ. Nicknamed the “Blood Countess,”Báthory is the first and one of the most prolific female serial killers in history. While her story is horrific, her legend has nevertheless persisted in the popular imagination—inspiring a well-established cult following intrigued by her strange gothic legacy.

Rebecca Johns re-creates Báthory’s story in her own words, detailing how this daughter of a noble family is betrothed at age ten but rebels against her mother-in-law by bearing an illegitimate child. She is forced to marry Count Nádasdy, a man she barely knows, and resorts to spells and potions to give him a child. While the Count toils on the battlefield, the Countess wages a constant war in her household, relying on strict discipline and severe punishments to keep her servants in line. After the count’s death she conducts an ardent love affair with the man who would eventually imprison her. After he spurns her, she turns to the vicious torture and murder of her servants. The Countess offers an intimate, strangely sympathetic, and ultimately disturbing account of one of the most reviled women in history - a woman who was capable of gruesome acts of torture but also intensely passionate love.

2011-10-06_165309About the Author:
Rebecca Johns is an assistant professor of English at DePaul University and a graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. Her first novel, Icebergs, was a finalist for the 2007 PEN/Hemingway Award.

To find out more about Rebecca Johns & her work visit her website or blog.


GIVEAWAY:1 paperback copy of THE COUNTESS by Rebecca Johns

US/Canada Only

Leave a comment with your email address.

Extra Entries:

+2 tweet about giveaway & leave a link

Giveaway ends 26th October and winner will be announced on my blog ~ good luck everyone!

Thanks to Jonathon @ Random House for giveaway.


21 comments:

  1. Sounds like a great read :)

    Vivien
    deadtossedwaves at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  2. I've heard of, but never read about the Blood Countess. Sounds like a great novel. Thanks for the giveaway.
    lcbrower40(at)gmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thanks for the giveaway. I would love win this.

    Lizzi0915 at aol dot com

    ReplyDelete
  4. I find this to be a fascinating tale.
    Thank you.
    kaiminani at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  5. tweet
    http://twitter.com/#!/BrokenTeepee/status/124141324843753472
    thank you
    kaiminani at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  6. I love anything to do with the Countess Bathory.

    Would love to win this one. Thanks for the opportunity.

    fforgnayr@yahoo.com

    ReplyDelete
  7. Sounds good, count me in! tWarner419@aol.com

    ReplyDelete
  8. Ohhh! I just finished a book called Quiver that was based on a serial killer obsessed with Bathory.

    fantasticalsharing@yahoo.com

    ReplyDelete
  9. This book looks great!

    aliciahall0605(AT)yahoo(DOT)Com

    ReplyDelete
  10. This sounds fascinating. Thanks for the review. I actually had never heard of this lady.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I think THE COUNTESS sounds fascinating and I'd love to read more about her. Thanks for the chance to win a copy!

    geebee.reads AT gmail DOT com

    ReplyDelete
  12. +2 Here's my Tweet: http://twitter.com/#!/ASeaOfBooks/status/124538833902637056

    geebee.reads AT gmail DOT com

    ReplyDelete
  13. I totally want to read this! Thanks for the giveaway!

    Margaret
    singitm@hotmail.com

    ReplyDelete
  14. Ooohhhh, this book sounds SO good!! I would love to win a copy :)

    jwitt33 at live dot com

    ReplyDelete
  15. I tweeted: http://twitter.com/#!/jwitt33/status/124631160549675010

    jwitt33 at live dot com

    ReplyDelete
  16. I would love to win this!

    muse_in_the_fog@hotmail.com

    Thank you!

    ReplyDelete
  17. I think the Countess of Bathory would be a fascinating subject - I'm surprised there aren't more novels using her as a character
    rlawrence110 at yahoo dot com

    ReplyDelete
  18. I tweeted
    http://twitter.com/#!/rlawrence110/status/127410533849763840
    rlawrence110 at yahoo dot com

    ReplyDelete
  19. Would love to read this one.
    fmlj94 at yahoo dot com

    ReplyDelete
  20. Count me in :) This one looks awesome!

    rachie2004 AT yah00 d8t c-m

    Tweet - http://twitter.com/#!/BrunetteLib/status/128536916063813632

    ReplyDelete

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