And anyone who has never read The Sunne in Splendour should remedy that right now and pick up a copy. I might have my favorites and enjoy some a bit more than others but that has to do with historical preferences more than anything. 'The Reckoning' is the last novel in Sharon Kay Penmans medieval trilogy of 13th century England, Wales and their larger than life leaders. And most importantly, the stories themselves are so enjoyable. Penman's books are some of the most beautiful books I own - the first editions of The Reckoning, When Christ and His Saints Slept and her mystery series are absolutely gorgeous! Her titles are some of the most memorable - this past year I have found myself looking over to my copy of When Christ and His Saints Slept and thinking I had never 'felt' that title as much as I have this year. Justin de Quincy Mysteries - The Queen's Man, Cruel as the Grave, Dragon's Lair, Prince of Darkness Plantagenet Series - When Christ and His Saints Slept, Time and Chance, Devil's Brood, Lionheart, A King's Ransom Welsh Princes Trilogy - Here Be Dragons, Falls the Shadow, The Reckoning She leaves behind her quite a wonderful list of titles: But she had seemed to be better in recent years and I guess we were lucky to get the books from her that we did.

I knew she had health issues and that for a long time she had chronic fatigue syndrome which prevented her from writing for a number of years.

Her family grieves, and now those who loved her well along with you, her fans, join with them. She passed away quietly, in her sleep, this morning. On Monday of this week, she was rushed to the hospital and diagnosed with pneumonia. It was only recently she was diagnosed with a very rare form of cancer that had already reached stage 4.

In the past 18 months, things escalated, and she began to experience more symptoms and extreme fatigue. As many of you know, Sharon has been having various health issues for some time.

The Reckoning by Sharon Kay Penman