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A powerful historical novel by the late Ariana Franklin and her daughter Samantha Norman, The Siege Winter is a tour de force mystery and murder, adventure and intrigue, a battle for a crown, told by two courageous young women whose fates are intertwined in twelfth century England's devastating civil war.
1141. England is engulfed in war as King Stephen and his cousin, the Empress Matilda, vie for the crown. In this dangerous world, not even Emma, an eleven-year-old peasant, is safe. A depraved monk obsessed with redheads kidnaps the ginger-haired girl from her village and leaves her for dead. When an archer for hire named Gwyl finds her, she has no memory of her previous life. Unable to abandon her, Gwyl takes the girl with him, dressing her as a boy, giving her a new nameâ??Pendaâ??and teaching her to use a bow. But Gwyn knows that the man who hurt Penda roams free, and that a scrap of evidence she possesses could be very valuable.
Gwyl and Penda make their way to Kenilworth, a small but strategically important fortress that belongs to fifteen-year-old Maud. Newly wedded to a boorish and much older husband after her father's death, the fierce and determined young chatelaine tempts fate and Stephen's murderous wrath when she gives shelter to the empress.
Aided by a garrison of mercenaries, including Gwyl and his odd red-headed apprentice, Maud will stave off Stephen's siege for a long, brutal winter that will bring a host of visitors to Kenilworthâ??kings, soldiers . . . and a sinister monk with deadly business to fin… (mere)
A very well written tale. at times, the modern language and phrasing pull you out of the story, but you do come to care for all of the characters. Not moved to tears, but touched nonetheless. ( )
Set a little earlier than the Mistress of the Art of Death series, this story follows a number of characters through a chapter of the war between Stephen and Matilda. A dying abbot tells the story, and it is not until relatively late in the book when we know who the abbot is. ( )
Really a 3.5 - the book surrounds Penda/Emma and Gwil with the best storyline of the entire novel and then it's wrapped up in less than a sentence. Not satisfying at all. ( )
The real strengths of this book are the depths of the characters and the realism of the setting. The people feel real, the dynamics between them feel real, and the setting, well, Franklin knew her stuff. She brings the towns and castles and forests and realities of medieval life beautifully to life. The plot’s possibly a little thin and needs the frame story to really give it momentum in some places, but I don’t think it needs to be a whole lot more than it is. It’s based on real events, after all. There’s only so much you can do. The caricature villain is a bit unfortunate, and the inciting incident for the girl’s arc is … at least the rape itself isn’t on the page. I was also a little disappointed at the lack of diversity. The Mistress of the Art of Death books had Jews and a Muslim, in England in the 1200s. About a fifty years earlier there’s a group of Chinese acrobats who are name-dropped and whose act is replicated by white people. Sigh.
Do I regret reading this? No. Would I recommend it? No. It was kind of profoundly average, looking back, but enjoyable enough at the time.
When he reaches the door the scribe pauses for a moment, turning back to the room one last time, and as he raises his hand in a final salute, the sun appears from behind a cloud, sending a shaft of light through the abbot's window on to his face, bathing him in a golden benediction.
A powerful historical novel by the late Ariana Franklin and her daughter Samantha Norman, The Siege Winter is a tour de force mystery and murder, adventure and intrigue, a battle for a crown, told by two courageous young women whose fates are intertwined in twelfth century England's devastating civil war.
1141. England is engulfed in war as King Stephen and his cousin, the Empress Matilda, vie for the crown. In this dangerous world, not even Emma, an eleven-year-old peasant, is safe. A depraved monk obsessed with redheads kidnaps the ginger-haired girl from her village and leaves her for dead. When an archer for hire named Gwyl finds her, she has no memory of her previous life. Unable to abandon her, Gwyl takes the girl with him, dressing her as a boy, giving her a new nameâ??Pendaâ??and teaching her to use a bow. But Gwyn knows that the man who hurt Penda roams free, and that a scrap of evidence she possesses could be very valuable.
Gwyl and Penda make their way to Kenilworth, a small but strategically important fortress that belongs to fifteen-year-old Maud. Newly wedded to a boorish and much older husband after her father's death, the fierce and determined young chatelaine tempts fate and Stephen's murderous wrath when she gives shelter to the empress.
Aided by a garrison of mercenaries, including Gwyl and his odd red-headed apprentice, Maud will stave off Stephen's siege for a long, brutal winter that will bring a host of visitors to Kenilworthâ??kings, soldiers . . . and a sinister monk with deadly business to fin
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