Cindy Vallar's Blog - Posts Tagged "battle-of-hastings"
Review of The Testament of Leofric the Black, volume 2
For two years, Leofric has lived a quiet life, illuminating manuscripts at a priory. That serenity is forever destroyed with shouts and fighting. On this day, unknown assailants slaughter the monks. Leofric once again takes up the helmet, sword, and shield to become Leofric the Black, Killer of Death. Most might assume the attackers come to pillage the priory, but he believes they seek the young visitor staying with the monks – Prince Edgar, the eight-year-old ætheling, heir apparent and son of King Edward the Exile.
The one safe place Leofric thinks to take the prince is his own estate, but someone else is entrenched within his walls, forcing Leofric to find a way to reclaim his lands. The king can grant that boon, but saving the prince’s life isn’t enough and not everyone with power is keen to help Leofric. Earl Tostig Godwinson distrusts Leofric, but has the ear of the king. His brother, Harold Godwinson, trusts Leofric to speak the truth regardless of how it reflects back on himself. To further complicate matters, the sorceress intrudes into his life, warning Leofric that he must keep one of his friends safe. Otherwise, dire happenings will occur because the lives of herself and his friend are intricately tangled with Leofric’s.
Unrest with neighboring Wales and Scotland bring invaders to Englaland and Leofric, in command of Tostig’s swift and highly-trained cavalry, becomes entrenched in the affairs of the Godwinsons and their defense of the realm. Then a mission to Normandy to bring back long-held hostages related to the Godwinsons stirs up trouble from within and without. One of the captives is an old nemesis of Leofric’s and the Duke of Normandy believes himself to be the anointed heir to Englaland’s throne.
The second installment in the Testament series paints a realistic portrait of a time when intrigue, betrayal, warfare, and machinations for power are the norm and it’s not always easy to distinguish allies from enemies. The majority of the story takes place between 1059 and 1066, culminating with the immediate aftermath of the Battle of Hastings. Interspersed throughout are interludes that take place in 1072, when Leofric is on the run, accused of treachery that allows the Normans to gain the upper hand against the Saxons and the Duke to usurp the throne of Englaland.
Beard adeptly recounts this labyrinthine period in history in a way that makes it easy for readers to understand who’s who and why events unfolded as they do. The characters come to life and each twist of the tale plunges readers deeper into a world that seems to spring to life from the dust of the past. Although readers need not be familiar with volume one to appreciate volume two, reading the first book may provide a more complete understanding of how the past affects the present. To further enhance the reading experience, Beard provides a list of characters, glossary, modern-day place names, and historical observations. He subtly spins a tale that pulls no punches, recreating the brutality and sorcery as if painting a picture. By story’s end, we yearn to know what is to come and yet we are thankful that Leofric’s world exists only in our imaginations.
The one safe place Leofric thinks to take the prince is his own estate, but someone else is entrenched within his walls, forcing Leofric to find a way to reclaim his lands. The king can grant that boon, but saving the prince’s life isn’t enough and not everyone with power is keen to help Leofric. Earl Tostig Godwinson distrusts Leofric, but has the ear of the king. His brother, Harold Godwinson, trusts Leofric to speak the truth regardless of how it reflects back on himself. To further complicate matters, the sorceress intrudes into his life, warning Leofric that he must keep one of his friends safe. Otherwise, dire happenings will occur because the lives of herself and his friend are intricately tangled with Leofric’s.
Unrest with neighboring Wales and Scotland bring invaders to Englaland and Leofric, in command of Tostig’s swift and highly-trained cavalry, becomes entrenched in the affairs of the Godwinsons and their defense of the realm. Then a mission to Normandy to bring back long-held hostages related to the Godwinsons stirs up trouble from within and without. One of the captives is an old nemesis of Leofric’s and the Duke of Normandy believes himself to be the anointed heir to Englaland’s throne.
The second installment in the Testament series paints a realistic portrait of a time when intrigue, betrayal, warfare, and machinations for power are the norm and it’s not always easy to distinguish allies from enemies. The majority of the story takes place between 1059 and 1066, culminating with the immediate aftermath of the Battle of Hastings. Interspersed throughout are interludes that take place in 1072, when Leofric is on the run, accused of treachery that allows the Normans to gain the upper hand against the Saxons and the Duke to usurp the throne of Englaland.
Beard adeptly recounts this labyrinthine period in history in a way that makes it easy for readers to understand who’s who and why events unfolded as they do. The characters come to life and each twist of the tale plunges readers deeper into a world that seems to spring to life from the dust of the past. Although readers need not be familiar with volume one to appreciate volume two, reading the first book may provide a more complete understanding of how the past affects the present. To further enhance the reading experience, Beard provides a list of characters, glossary, modern-day place names, and historical observations. He subtly spins a tale that pulls no punches, recreating the brutality and sorcery as if painting a picture. By story’s end, we yearn to know what is to come and yet we are thankful that Leofric’s world exists only in our imaginations.
