Psychotherapist Barbara Alleyne’s debut novel: ‘True Love Waits’
Barbara Alleyne’s love affair with English literature began at the University of York, where the medieval allure of the city and the atmospheric Tudor rooms at King’s Manor set the stage for her literature studies. Immersed in the intricate tales of “The Romance of the Rose” and “The Allegory of Love”, Alleyne developed a fascination with medieval literature that would shape her future writing career.
After graduating, Alleyne shifted her focus to psychotherapy, training in London, and working in bustling general practices across south and east London. Over three decades ago, Alleyne moved to Trinidad with her Trinidadian husband and their two sons. Here, she established her psychotherapy practice and contributed to mental health-related community projects, including with neurodivergent children and initiatives at a women’s centre, demonstrating her commitment to fostering mental health and well-being in her adopted homeland.
Alleyne wrote her self-published debut novel, “True Love Waits”, during the COVID lockdown, drawing on the story of the “wealthiest and most powerful woman of the Middle Ages who headed the Second Crusade but had to struggle for leadership.” The novel ventures into the tumultuous and influential world of Eleanor of Aquitaine. At just 14, Eleanor became Duchess of Aquitaine, Poitiers, and Gascony, inheriting one of medieval Europe’s most opulent regions. Her subsequent marriages to Louis VII of France and Henry II of England positioned her at the heart of European politics.
The genesis of “True Love Waits” was Alleyne’s reading of Eleanor’s biography, which inspired her to explore medieval marriage counselling. “What resonated most for me was those personal issues from so long ago —900 years—were quite recognizable, and states of mind, often now labelled, were just as real in those times. I began to understand why the king and queen of France were on the verge of divorce, to imagine in detail what that journey must have been like and how many relevancies to the present still existed. This connection to the present day is what makes ‘True Love Waits’ a compelling read for anyone interested in the human condition.”
Through years of meticulous research and writing, this concept evolved into a book that intricately weaves historical narratives with therapeutic insights. It’s a journey that reflects Alleyne’s profound connection to Eleanor and the timeless universality of human relationships, inviting readers to empathise with and connect with the characters’ emotional struggles. Alleyne’s journey as a writer has been deeply influenced by her personal experiences and professional background. This belief in the therapeutic power of storytelling permeates her work, inspiring others to write their own narratives as a transformative journey towards mental health and personal fulfilment.
Barbara Alleyne’s “True Love Waits” is more than a historical exploration. It is a testament to the enduring relevance of personal narratives and the profound impact historical figures have on our understanding of love, power, and resilience.
Tripoli
“The Queen stood before Sir Galan, defying him and demanding he quit immediately, and for the King to be awoken and brought. He gave no reply to this, saying that neither she nor any of her court would be harmed, but the plans were altered: the Queen was required to join the royal companies ready to leave at dawn. The Templars would escort her in a closed litter to her place in the column of the army and stay very close for the duration of the march to Tripoli, where now we wait on the King’s pleasure, says the Queen. We are under arrest and prisoners.
In Antioch, the Queen asked the knight what he intended if she refused to leave. He had his reply ready, saying he would regretfully instruct members of his company to wrap her in a wide and strong cloak and carry her to the litter, restraining if necessary attempts to raise alarms. “And my ladies too?” said the Queen. “We must submit to armed bullies? I must comply or be raped by a eunuch? Or perhaps Sir Galan means to murder me for the sake of the King’s honour?” Such questions she asked.
He did not answer but watched her with his cold eyes. After a time he said to prepare herself for she had no choice and must join the King. Still Eleanor resisted and asked if the King knew of this wickedness, if he had ordered her abduction. Which surely he had, for Sir Galan would not risk what was left of his puissance without superior authority. Thus the Queen saw that she was without aid, for no message could be sent to Prince Raymond, and truly she feared the violence of the Templars against her ladies and against the prince.
She became silent, pulling her cloak around her, and we gathered close together like shameful prisoners. We were bundled through narrow passageways to the waiting litter, out of Antioch through Saint Paul’s Gate to the Frankish camp and were on the road as the sun rose hot and bright behind the shutters of our wagons. Some of the ladies have been permitted to join their husbands or countrymen, so we are fewer in number and kept in utmost seclusion. Few know that it was the Queen’s intention to remain in Antioch, and the news is given out that she is tired from the rigours of the journey and rests in retreat for this Lenten season.
So I make this account in the sudden leisure of captivity, one more reversal of expectations and fortunes in a long sequence of events only constant in their unpredictability. We are surprised and shocked each time, unable to foresee which way outrageous fate will turn, taught yet again the lesson of God’s inscrutable and mighty will. The Queen swears she will have her divorce. She cannot be locked up forever. She can never forgive Louis for inflicting such ignominy on her, stealing her away, a dark deed of the night. She grieves that no leave-taking of any kind was made, no blessings nor fanfares, no adieux to her dear uncle the prince.
Finally, the King has come to visit the Queen and though he would speak with her privately, she refuses to let me leave her side, so I witness how their mutual anger grows, how they wound each other with words. The Queen accuses Louis of holding her hostage and pretending with accustomed cowardice no knowledge of Templar doings. He gives them too much power and at what cost? How much has he promised them, what does he owe them, do they have his crown already? And now he meekly comes and asks her how she does, whether quiet rest has suited her and calmed her? Louis wished she would not set herself against the brave knights, who have been true and loyal brothers, who have not betrayed him. To which the Queen says that nothing betrays him but his own lack of ability.
In anger the King accuses Eleanor of betrayal. She had been watched walking with Prince Raymond; they were seen playing a guilty game. He pretended to be the King of England and she his Queen. “Your spies saw what was not there,” says the Queen. The prince talked to her of his youth as King Henry’s foster-son, when he had dreamed, impossibly, of the English crown; there is no harm in imagination. The King says he heard she imagined herself Queen of England, as if France was not enough. He fears she pretended so in secret chambers. The Queen recalls that they walked like innocents in the garden, except that they talked of war and what battles must be fought. The King insists on the truth, that she confess she has betrayed their marriage. She refuses to be interrogated and bids him think what he will.”
–End of Excerpt
More information on True Love Waits can be found on Alleyne’s website: https://truelovewaitsbook.com/
Ira Mathur is a Guardian journalist and the winner of the 2023 Bocas Prize for Non-Fiction for her memoir, Love The Dark Days.