Review
'The best writer of mediaeval fiction currently around' - HISTORICAL NOVEL REVIEW 'Elizabeth Chadwick knows exactly how to write convincing and compelling historical fiction' - Marina Oliver
Medieval lords and ladies live and love-and launch a lot of rocks and arrows at each other-in 12th-century England. Brunin FitzWarin is the hero of British author Chadwick's (Lords of the White Castle, 2002, etc.) historically based, occasionally ripping tale of life and war at the beginning of Henry II's reign. When young Brunin's father decides that the quiet lad won't amount to anything if he's raised at home, he sends him to squire for his ally, Joscelin de Dinan. Years pass, and under the tutelage of the kind yet exacting de Dinan, the brooding Brunin grows into a well-muscled man, keeping just enough of his dark mysteriousness to attract the attention of de Dinan's red-haired (and therefore feisty, naturally) daughter, Hawise. As childhood games turn to flirtation, Henry II ascends the throne, calling on both the FitzWarins and de Dinans to aid him in his bloody struggle. Brunin finds himself fighting for his king-and his life-soon after marrying Hawise. Amid the chaos, the Welsh capture Brunin's inheritance while de Dinan's rival Gilbert de Lacy (with the help of Brunin's childhood rival Ernalt de Lysle) plots to steal de Dinan's land, meaning our hero must now not only serve his king but regain his family's land and help protect the castle of his in-laws, all while keeping a bevy of similar-sounding names and places straight. Perhaps most daunting of all, he needs to get his red-tressed bride pregnant or face the wrath-and mockery-of his sharp-tongued and mean-spirited grandmother. Like an old sword: mostly dull, but with a few bright spots. (Kirkus Reviews)
Product Description
A Mediaeval tale of pride and strife, of coming of age in a world where chivalry is a luxury seldom afforded, especially by men of power. An awkward misfit, loathed by his powerful and autocratic grandmother, nine-year-old Fulke FitzWarin leaves his family to be fostered in the household of Joscelin de Dinan, Lord of Ludlow. Here Fulke will learn knightly arts, but before he can succeed, he must overcome the deep-seated doubts that hold him back. Hawise FitzWarin is Joscelin's youngest daughter and she befriends Fulke. As they grow up, an implacable enemy threatens Ludlow and as the pressure mounts, their friendship changes until one fateful day they find themselves staring at each other across a divide. Not only does Fulke have to overcome the shadows of his childhood, he faces a Welsh threat to his family's lands, and the way he feels about Hawise endangers all his hard won confidence. As the menace to Ludlow intensifies, he must either confront the future head on, or fail on all counts, not knowing if Hawise stands with or against him.
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