A fine-grained and emotionally satisfying medieval adventure.
In this debut historical novel, a young lord is held captive and recalls pivotal moments in his life.
It is a time of peace, and Alfred is the king’s grandson. He’s also the second son of a second son, making him “twice removed from the advantages of inheritance.” And yet, the king adores Alfred for his interest in animals, kind disposition, and potential for greatness. Just over a year ago, he married Lady Gwendolyn from the northern Kingdom of the Lakes. A sharply curious girl, she’s interested in more “than just sewing and dancing,” making theirs a match based on intellectual and emotional compatibility. Her presence in his life makes up for John, Alfred’s loutish older brother, who cares only for drinking and stirring up trouble. Eventually, the king sends Alfred on a mission. He ventures west, toward the unorganized territories, to help his Uncle Harold build a dam. Alfred must also investigate the movements of the disgraced knight Ranulf and his villainous sons. But when the dam builders’ camp is attacked, Alfred is taken prisoner. His captor, a man named Ralf, is determined to earn a ransom by taking the king’s grandson farther and farther west. Even if he escapes, can Alfred traverse hostile country and survive? Taylor crafts a slender but detailed series opener that unfolds mainly through flashbacks. While captive, Alfred remembers the highlights of his teenage years, including sword practice; taming his colt, Star Dancer; and losing his virginity to a barmaid at John’s behest. Valuable lessons come from the king, such as, “Only when survival is assured can a man consider such things as improving his status in life” and “Only when he’s reasonably comfortable can he...consider greater contributions to society.” Perhaps most appealing to modern audiences is the king’s kindness toward Alfred. The monarch tells the young man he can refuse to marry Gwen if he feels no spark for her. Battlefield intrigue and the medical expertise of monks add pleasant intricacies to the narrative. The splendid finale closes the author’s introduction to her medieval world and provides good bones for the sequel.
A fine-grained and emotionally satisfying medieval adventure.Pub Date: July 19, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-68433-063-8
Page Count: 183
Publisher: Black Rose Writing
Review Posted Online: Nov. 19, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2020
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A first novel, this is also a first person account of Scout's (Jean Louise) recall of the years that led to the ending of a mystery, the breaking of her brother Jem's elbow, the death of her father's enemy — and the close of childhood years. A widower, Atticus raises his children with legal dispassion and paternal intelligence, and is ably abetted by Calpurnia, the colored cook, while the Alabama town of Maycomb, in the 1930's, remains aloof to their divergence from its tribal patterns. Scout and Jem, with their summer-time companion, Dill, find their paths free from interference — but not from dangers; their curiosity about the imprisoned Boo, whose miserable past is incorporated in their play, results in a tentative friendliness; their fears of Atticus' lack of distinction is dissipated when he shoots a mad dog; his defense of a Negro accused of raping a white girl, Mayella Ewell, is followed with avid interest and turns the rabble whites against him. Scout is the means of averting an attack on Atticus but when he loses the case it is Boo who saves Jem and Scout by killing Mayella's father when he attempts to murder them. The shadows of a beginning for black-white understanding, the persistent fight that Scout carries on against school, Jem's emergence into adulthood, Calpurnia's quiet power, and all the incidents touching on the children's "growing outward" have an attractive starchiness that keeps this southern picture pert and provocative. There is much advance interest in this book; it has been selected by the Literary Guild and Reader's Digest; it should win many friends.
Pub Date: July 11, 1960
ISBN: 0060935464
Page Count: 323
Publisher: Lippincott
Review Posted Online: Oct. 7, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 1960
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
Soft-focus story moves right along with few surprises. This time around, Hannah avoids the soap-opera complications of her...
Another middle-aged mom in a muddle.
After years of false starts and big hopes, Elizabeth’s ruggedly handsome husband Jack, a former football star, just landed a spot as a sportscaster on national news. He still loves her, even though much younger women are giving him come-hither looks. Heck, he doesn’t want to betray the love of his life after she helped him kick drugs and stuck by him even when he was a struggling has-been. And won’t it seem hypocritical if he fools around with his sexy assistant while he does in-depth reporting on a rape case involving a famous basketball center? Well, he fools around anyway. Elizabeth, nicknamed Birdie, knows nothing of this, but she withdraws from Jack when her hard-drinking, salt-of-the-earth father has a stroke and dies. Now no one will call her “sugar beet” ever again. Time to return home to Tennessee and contend with Anita, the sort-of-evil stepmother so trashy she wears pink puffy slippers all day long. Naturally, it turns out that Anita actually has a heart of gold and knows a few things about Birdie’s dead mother that were hushed up for years. Mom was an artist, just like Birdie, and an old scandal comes to light as Anita unrolls a vibrant canvas that portrays her secret lover. Perhaps, Birdie muses, her mother died of heartbreak, never having followed her true love or developed her talent. Has she, too, compromised everything she holds dear? Hoping to find out, Birdie joins a support group that promises to reconnect confused women with their passion. She and Jack separate, prompting a how-dare-you fit from their grown daughters. Will Birdie fly her empty nest? Will she go back to college for a degree in art? Will her brooding watercolors ever sell?
Soft-focus story moves right along with few surprises. This time around, Hannah avoids the soap-opera complications of her previous tales (Summer Island, 2001, etc.).Pub Date: July 1, 2002
ISBN: 0-345-45071-X
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Ballantine
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2002
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
