Eight Pointed Cross

Dear Marthese:

Let's get this out of the way immediately: you must get to work on the sequel!!! You have me inextricably involved in your saga and I must know how it all ends before God comes calling. Although I am healthy, fit ,and feeling immortal, I am seventy-five and can't wait ten years for volume two. So, have pity. Write!
It was even better on the second reading, Marthese. I read it with great pleasure, and with boundless admiration for your historical erudition, for your mastery of plot and character development, for your verbal fluency, for lovely, lyrical descriptive passages ...
such as, on p. 288: "The southern sea cliffs are enormous...as they glide on the warm air." I have seen such cliffs in Greece and Portugal and Australia and Baffin Island. Your prose/poetry brings them flooding back.
Your narration and the speech of your characters, throughout, is eloquent and correct, in terms of grammar and usage. You should be very proud of your accomplishment here, Marthese. Its a wonderful read and, as I think I mentioned to you several years ago, I judge a novel on the basis of several criteria, to wit : is it entertaining; is it well written; is there subtlety, irony, imagery; did I learn something from it. I suppose I was influenced years ago in a Criticism course at U of T Grad School by Sir Phillip Sydney, considered the first English lit. critic, who insisted that " the purpose of poesie (literature, not just poetry) is to teach and to delight." You have done both, here, with great success. I enjoyed. I learned. I thank you. My wife spirited it away when I was not quite finished it and I had to persuade her to give it back so that I could read the last few pages. She will start it today.
In your sequel, please discipline Muharrem with something a bit more painful than a bloody nose. I'm ashamed of my vindictiveness, but he truly deserves some grief. So does his father, AND the Grand Master. Lots of despicable villains and lovable heroes (and heroines).
Wonderful read. I anticipate the sequel.
Be well and happy.
Your fan,
John Heighton

Prosit Marthese!

When your novel “Eight Pointed Cross” first arrived in my mailbox I was itching to get into the meaty tome but I was half way through another opus by Ken Follett “World Without End” so it took several weeks to get started.

Once started though it was a pleasure to read all the way through. Even though we are separated from the story by 500 years, you’ve managed to create characters that are not only unique and complex but very relatable and real. My favorite being Robert whose wit and bravery are only matched by his love for Kat and whom I see a little of myself growing up in our homeland Malta.

Ah Malta, how you’ve made me ache to return there. With your vivid descriptions of the land, people and weather you’ve managed to bring back feelings of homesickness that I thought were long gone. I find myself searching out pictures of Malta on the Internet to help satisfy that longing. Thanks Mar! :)

I’ve never been to Istanbul, well especially one from 500 years ago, but through your potent and expressive prose you brought that city to life in such a way that I now feel I can say I’ve been there standing next to Demir watching Dragut’s magnificent fleet sailing out of the harbor.

All this would be enough to make any book an enjoyable read but then you add all that wonderful history of that era; The Knights of Malta, the ship building, the Siege of 1551 and on and on. All this could have overwhelmed the story but like Ken Follett you manage to incorporate all that research and experience to enhance the story rather than distract.

These are just the backdrops for poignant tales of love, friendship and family. The Montesa, Tabone and Falsone families are the core of the story but you give life to every character, from the high and mighty Juan d'Homedes to the lowly prostitute Lilla. You embody them with emotions and back stories allowing them to develop and change along with our heroes and heroins.

Oh and what tales you tell full of twists, turns, surprises, beauty, horror, love, hate, tears, joy and let's not forget laughter. And I can't wait until book two comes out!!!!

I'll end this the way I started; Prosit Marthese you did an amazing job. You should be very proud because I know we are.

Your fan
Randy Grixti

Finished reading Eight Pointed Cross and it's a WONDERFUL book ! Excellent story, realistic characters and very well researched - I was getting sad when I realised I was almost done with it.

Unlike other novelists, Mar Fenech did not jump on the bandwagon and write about the Great Siege of Malta of 1565. Instead she opted to write about an earlier but also historically important siege, the one which devastated Gozo (Malta's sister island) in 1551.

It is evident that a lot of dedication and effort went in the researching and writing of this book but it was well worth it.

I really hope that Mar is seriously thinking about writing a sequel to this story :)