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Boar King's Honor Trilogy #1
The Herald of Day
THE BOAR KING’S HONOR TRILOGY
A wizard’s fatal mistake
A king wrongly blamed for murder
A bloodline cursed until they clear the king’s name
BOOK 1: THE HERALD OF DAY
In 17th-century England, witchcraft is a hanging offense. Tavern maid Miranda Willoughby hides her magical gifts until terrifying visions compel her to seek the aid of a stranger, Richard Mainwaring, to interpret them. A powerful wizard, he sees her summons as a chance for redemption. He bears a curse because an ancestor unwittingly helped murder the two royal children known as the Princes in the Tower, and her message uses symbols related to those murders.
Miranda’s visions reveal that someone has altered history, spreading famine, plague, and tyranny across the land. The quest to restore the timeline takes her and Richard from the glittering court of Charles II to a shadowy realm between life and death, where they must battle the most powerful wizard in generations with the fate of all England at stake.
A wizard’s fatal mistake
A king wrongly blamed for murder
A bloodline cursed until they clear the king’s name
BOOK 1: THE HERALD OF DAY
In 17th-century England, witchcraft is a hanging offense. Tavern maid Miranda Willoughby hides her magical gifts until terrifying visions compel her to seek the aid of a stranger, Richard Mainwaring, to interpret them. A powerful wizard, he sees her summons as a chance for redemption. He bears a curse because an ancestor unwittingly helped murder the two royal children known as the Princes in the Tower, and her message uses symbols related to those murders.
Miranda’s visions reveal that someone has altered history, spreading famine, plague, and tyranny across the land. The quest to restore the timeline takes her and Richard from the glittering court of Charles II to a shadowy realm between life and death, where they must battle the most powerful wizard in generations with the fate of all England at stake.
361 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 27, 2017
About the author
Nancy Northcott
40 books79 followersNancy Northcott’s childhood ambition was to grow up and become Wonder Woman. Around fourth grade, she realized it was too late to acquire Amazon genes, but she still loved comic books, science fiction, fantasy and YA romance. A sucker for fast action and wrenching emotion, Nancy combines the romance and high stakes she loves in the books she writes.
Her debut novel, Renegade, received a starred review from Library Journal. The reviewer called it “genre fiction at its best.” Nancy is a three-time RWA Golden Heart finalist and has won the Maggie, the Molly, the Emerald City Opener, and Put Your Heart in a Book.
Married since 1987, Nancy and her husband have one son, a bossy dog, and a house full of books.
Her debut novel, Renegade, received a starred review from Library Journal. The reviewer called it “genre fiction at its best.” Nancy is a three-time RWA Golden Heart finalist and has won the Maggie, the Molly, the Emerald City Opener, and Put Your Heart in a Book.
Married since 1987, Nancy and her husband have one son, a bossy dog, and a house full of books.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
April 17, 2017
I really like the history and the world building of this book, how it draws heavily on English history, the Stuart era and especially all he controversy surrounding the War of the Roses (there is actually a historical society that protests the treatment of King Richard in the historical record since the Tudors did a killer hit job on the man’s rep to increase their legitimacy). This draws out the whole debate extremely well and makes the world building very rich
It folds in more from both the civil war, the protectorate and the restoration of the monarchy – it’s all fascinating
The main barrier to me enjoying this book is its pacing. We have the beginning which is fascinating and interesting as we’re introduced to Miranda and briefly see her life before she meets up with Richard – it works as we’re reminded of the historical context (and this is definitely well researched) and the difficulties Miranda faces. It really nicely sets the tone, theme and events of the book and the politics at hand.
Then we have the middle which sadly splodges along. Miranda is with Richard. He’s trying to learn how to use magic but not really achieving anything. Richard and his fellow Gifted worry about bad things that are happening that are bad and how it worries them but they’re not really doing a whole lot to stop them. Miranda continues to fail how to learn magic. Richard worries. They have odd meetings where it’s clear they’re into each other while at the same time they can’t be together for Reasons. Miranda has a dream. It’s vague. And we’re introduced to Richard’s friends, there’s a party, bad guy is bad. Splodge splodge splodge. It would have been interesting if we’d had skirmishes, development of Miranda’s magical skill or her character or… well… anything. But splodge splodge splodge.
It doesn’t help that in an early part of the book we have the villainous antagonist happily describe to us a) what he’s doing, b) his motivations, c) how he’s doing it, d) how someone can stop him, e) why he particularly has a grudge against Richard and f) why Miranda is a threat. Since the rest of the book kind of rests on the protagonists discovering these answers it kind of deflated any tension.
Richard’s only real actions against said bad man was to occasionally go to the council of the Gifted for the following repeated exchange:
Richard: He’s a bad man! Put him on trial
Council: Do you have proof?
Richard: no, but he’s totally bad
Council: errr… that’s not really enough
Richard: We can use magic to force him to confess when he’s on trial!
Council: but we can’t put someone on trial just because you accuse him. Especially since you’re known to hate him…
Richard: But he’s a bad man!
This is kind of all they did to stop the big bad doing his big bad thing. So most of the book is not really doing anything about the big bad interspaced with Miranda trying to use magic and pretty much failing in between ominous dreams. Sploooooodge.
Then we reach the end of the book and suddenly we’re sprinting to the finish line. We have the big quick reveal and mastery of the bad guy’s methods. Miranda suddenly pulls out not just power but 8 levels of confidence from somewhere. Richard and Miranda stop do-si-doing around their relationship and just go for it and we have a dystopian alternate world and fight scenes and magic and time travel and a hundred people who were kind of periphery are suddenly important and it’s suddenly – who what why how and dreams and ghosts and slooooow doooown there.
Miranda feels like an entirely different person. Suddenly all these people who have kind of moped around the edge of the splodge are actually super important and I totally should have remembered their names
Diversitywise we have very little: there are no POC, no LGBT people which is all sadly common when we have any kind of historical fiction. POC and LGBT people existed in the past.
We do have another female character alongside Miranda – Richard’s mother who is a skilled and capable magic user I would love to see more of. She does consider a lot about the vulnerability of women, how much protection they need, how much agency they have – and so low level calling out of men being protective of women for things they’re not actually afraid of (while at the same time being especially indulgent of this idiosyncracy)
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It folds in more from both the civil war, the protectorate and the restoration of the monarchy – it’s all fascinating
The main barrier to me enjoying this book is its pacing. We have the beginning which is fascinating and interesting as we’re introduced to Miranda and briefly see her life before she meets up with Richard – it works as we’re reminded of the historical context (and this is definitely well researched) and the difficulties Miranda faces. It really nicely sets the tone, theme and events of the book and the politics at hand.
Then we have the middle which sadly splodges along. Miranda is with Richard. He’s trying to learn how to use magic but not really achieving anything. Richard and his fellow Gifted worry about bad things that are happening that are bad and how it worries them but they’re not really doing a whole lot to stop them. Miranda continues to fail how to learn magic. Richard worries. They have odd meetings where it’s clear they’re into each other while at the same time they can’t be together for Reasons. Miranda has a dream. It’s vague. And we’re introduced to Richard’s friends, there’s a party, bad guy is bad. Splodge splodge splodge. It would have been interesting if we’d had skirmishes, development of Miranda’s magical skill or her character or… well… anything. But splodge splodge splodge.
It doesn’t help that in an early part of the book we have the villainous antagonist happily describe to us a) what he’s doing, b) his motivations, c) how he’s doing it, d) how someone can stop him, e) why he particularly has a grudge against Richard and f) why Miranda is a threat. Since the rest of the book kind of rests on the protagonists discovering these answers it kind of deflated any tension.
Richard’s only real actions against said bad man was to occasionally go to the council of the Gifted for the following repeated exchange:
Richard: He’s a bad man! Put him on trial
Council: Do you have proof?
Richard: no, but he’s totally bad
Council: errr… that’s not really enough
Richard: We can use magic to force him to confess when he’s on trial!
Council: but we can’t put someone on trial just because you accuse him. Especially since you’re known to hate him…
Richard: But he’s a bad man!
This is kind of all they did to stop the big bad doing his big bad thing. So most of the book is not really doing anything about the big bad interspaced with Miranda trying to use magic and pretty much failing in between ominous dreams. Sploooooodge.
Then we reach the end of the book and suddenly we’re sprinting to the finish line. We have the big quick reveal and mastery of the bad guy’s methods. Miranda suddenly pulls out not just power but 8 levels of confidence from somewhere. Richard and Miranda stop do-si-doing around their relationship and just go for it and we have a dystopian alternate world and fight scenes and magic and time travel and a hundred people who were kind of periphery are suddenly important and it’s suddenly – who what why how and dreams and ghosts and slooooow doooown there.
Miranda feels like an entirely different person. Suddenly all these people who have kind of moped around the edge of the splodge are actually super important and I totally should have remembered their names
Diversitywise we have very little: there are no POC, no LGBT people which is all sadly common when we have any kind of historical fiction. POC and LGBT people existed in the past.
We do have another female character alongside Miranda – Richard’s mother who is a skilled and capable magic user I would love to see more of. She does consider a lot about the vulnerability of women, how much protection they need, how much agency they have – and so low level calling out of men being protective of women for things they’re not actually afraid of (while at the same time being especially indulgent of this idiosyncracy)
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July 4, 2019
I have read other stories by Nancy Northcott and was eager to read this one. The Herald of Day has so many features I love – mystery, history, romance, magic, and wow, such suspense! It’s the first in a trilogy during which a noble English family, cursed for a fatal mistake at the time of Richard III, seeks to lift the curse by clearing the king’s name. This story takes place at the time of Charles II; the next one will be during the Napoleonic Wars. I can’t wait to read it, and also to see how Ms. Northcott’s characters finally lift the curse – which I assume (and hope) will be at the end of Book 3. Lots of exciting reading ahead!
January 19, 2022
talk about keeping you on the edsge of your seat. i wasn't sure how this would end, or if it would end. it felt like it might be a cliff hanger. spoiler: it ended just right. but who boy, what a ride. I am still not sure of the rules of magic in this world. it seams that there are defined rules, but they aren't totally explained to the reader, so i feel a little lost. Like why was is so hard for maranda to learn some things, but not others? but other than that, this was a perfect book. as a history buff, i like it when authors get it right.
October 15, 2020
“If you would right a wrong, Sir Knight, see the serving maid at the Golden Swan Inn on the Folkestone road, outside Dover. Tell her a dragon called you the herald of day…”
It was hard to have magical powers when those around you executed such people. Miranda Willoughby tried her best to blend in, not to be noticed, to pretend she is something that she is not. To pretend she is ordinary. Always pretending. It might have been different if her mother had lived. Unfortunately, her mother had been accused of witchcraft—her life had been cut cruelly short on the end of a rope.
But then the visions came—frightening in their intensity. Due to her mother’s premature death, Miranda does not possess the skills needed to interpret these visions. She needs help. She needs the knight in her vision—the knight who will fight the red dragon and defend the white boar.
Sir Richard Mainwaring, Earl of Hawkstowe, knew all about keeping secrets. For years his family had hidden their true allegiance—Loyalty binds me. They had fought under the banner of the white rose, not the red. However their family had also been cursed. It was a curse which Richard had long given up hoping would ever be lifted. However, the appearance of the dragon and the incomprehensible wrongness in the air warned of a threat yet known, let alone understood. Richard had no choice but to obey the dragon. He would go to the Golden Swan Inn and present himself to this serving maid, whoever she was. Little did he know that Miranda was more than a witch whose talents had yet to be explored. She also saw the future, a future which cannot be allowed to come to pass.
It soon becomes apparent that someone is going back in time and manipulating events. But who was it, and what did they want? Only together will Richard and Miranda find the answers they are seeking…
There are books, and then there is Herald of Day (The Boar King’s Honor Trilogy, Book 1) by Nancy Northcott. Do you like historical fiction? This book will tick that box. Do you like alternate history? Sorcery? The paranormal? Romance? Good versus evil? I could go on. The Herald of Day ticks every single box. It is a monumental work of scholarship, but above everything else, it is one of the most successful novels that I have ever read.
The narrative is enthralling—this is quite a long book, but time ceased to matter because I was completely captivated by this story. It is immensely readable and, more importantly, very enjoyable. Northcott has a novelist’s intuition for what makes history worth reading. And on top of that, there is enough adrenaline in this book to keep a reader up all night. I cannot even begin to describe how brilliant this novel is.
The amount of planning that has gone into this story has to be commended. I have read my fair share of alternative historical fiction, but this novel is in a league of its own, and I don’t say that lightly. Northcott begins by presenting her readers with a very realistic 17th Century setting with all the key players in the English court in place, and then her antagonist goes back in time and changes history and only those who are gifted notice the devastating consequences of the antagonist’s actions. By changing time, there are historical people as well as fictitious ones who are alive who should be dead and vice versa. Events that should have happened no longer have, and events that should not have happened, do. This story is a complicated web of what-ifs and maybes, running alongside actual historical fact. Northcott takes 191 years of English history, the reign of nine monarchs, as well as the Commonwealth, into account as she penned this remarkable book. The attention to the historical fact, and not forgetting the attention to the alternative historical detail, is staggering. This book isn’t some romantic dream of a different historical reality where the hero lives and the villain dies, which is so often the case with such books. The delivery of this story is somehow plausible. This alternative history has credibility. It comes across as authentic in the telling. The what-if becomes why not? I cannot think of another author who has written an alternative history novel with such skill and diligence. Bravo, Ms Northcott, for your time and attentiveness has undoubtedly paid off.
Miranda is a character that I instantly connected with. She is a very humble young woman who has been dealt a cruel hand and, to top it all, she is all alone in the world. Miranda is gifted, but she lacks the training. The controversial and terrifying realities of the witch hunts that stain the Stuart's reign is played out in all of its darkness and misunderstanding in this tale and Miranda is at the very centre of it. At the very beginning of this book, Miranda watches a woman executed for witchcraft—a woman who Miranda knows is not a witch. She desperately wants to help, but by doing so, she would expose herself for who she really is, and that is someone who is incredibly gifted with magic. To stand there and not be able to do anything is torture for someone who is overflowing with empathy. This opening scene sets the tone for this character. Her compassion is perhaps a greater gift than her magic.
Miranda goes on quite a journey in this novel, and she faces many dangerous situations. But it is her relationship with Richard that fascinated me the most. Richard shows her a world that she could never have imagined in her wildest dreams. He also challenges her, and Miranda rises to that challenge every time. She is an inspirational character who I adored.
Richard, oh my goodness, he is the epitome of a very heroic, courageous person. His self-sacrifice and his desperate desire to right any wrongs make him extremely likeable. But he is no caricature. He is no fairy-tale knight. He is fallible—he makes mistakes, which I thought made his character all the more appealing. I thought his depiction was absolutely fabulous, and he really drove this story on.
The magical composition of the prose makes this a book that is not only utterly compelling but also wholly unforgettable. This is a novel that keeps on giving. Add to that the paranormal and you suddenly find yourself reading a story that is next to impossible to put down. This is a book that I could not wait to get back to. I loved everything about it.
The Herald of Day (The Boar King’s Honor Trilogy, Book 1) by Nancy Northcott is one of the top five books that I have read this year. I could have happily read another thousand pages of this book, and I would not have grown weary of it. It is absolutely brilliant from beginning to end—a priceless masterpiece that deserves a place on your bookshelf and in your heart.
I Highly Recommend
Review by Mary Anne Yarde
The Coffee Pot Book Club.
August 15, 2017
I can't express how much I loved this book. Herald of Day was described to me as "what if someone wrote Richard III fanfiction with magic" and I literally squeaked with glee. There's action, intrigue, love... all the biggies. This was not my first Nancy Northcott book (she's one of my favorites) and as usual she didn't disappoint. The story is fast-paced and engrossing. Be careful, you might lose a couple of hours reading it. Highly recommended!
July 10, 2020
This starts well with protagonist Miranda, a witch in Restoration England, watching as an innocent woman hangs for witchcraft, then later summons Richard, protag #2, in response to a mystic vision. Then it bogs down on long chapters of Miranda struggling to master her magic, feeling inadequate and learning about the subculture of witchcraft. This part of the story felt generic, as did the magic.
There's a lot of stuff I did like. The weird effects and disruptions as the bad guy rewrites time. Richard's personal dilemma involving an ancestral curse. Some of the historical detail is great. But the villain's a standard Magneto/Voldemort type (homo superior/wizards shall rule!) and getting inside his head for several chapters was a bad strategy (he ain't that interesting).
There's a lot of stuff I did like. The weird effects and disruptions as the bad guy rewrites time. Richard's personal dilemma involving an ancestral curse. Some of the historical detail is great. But the villain's a standard Magneto/Voldemort type (homo superior/wizards shall rule!) and getting inside his head for several chapters was a bad strategy (he ain't that interesting).
February 3, 2024
Paranormal romance. Historical Urban Fantasy. Illuminati level behind the scenes magic. Political intrigue. Class discussion. Courtly love. Ghosts. Curses. Illusions.
Nancy Northcott has created a magical world in England about a cursed noble family summoned by a scullery maid to defeat a time-traveling wizard who hides in the death world on one hand and the class-divide overcome-by-love slow-burn between the head of the noble house and the magic-wielding servant.
Come for the magic, stay for the love. Come for the historical romance, stay for the vivid wizard duel in the ghost realm. The Herald of Day is the best of both worlds. (Fully - I got chocolate with my peanut butter, and maybe a bit of hazelnut too - type of vibe.)
Nancy Northcott has created a magical world in England about a cursed noble family summoned by a scullery maid to defeat a time-traveling wizard who hides in the death world on one hand and the class-divide overcome-by-love slow-burn between the head of the noble house and the magic-wielding servant.
Come for the magic, stay for the love. Come for the historical romance, stay for the vivid wizard duel in the ghost realm. The Herald of Day is the best of both worlds. (Fully - I got chocolate with my peanut butter, and maybe a bit of hazelnut too - type of vibe.)
March 24, 2021
I loved this book. It's not a period of history that I'm familiar with, but that didn't matter in the least. The characters draw you in and pull you along on their journey. This book has about everything one could want. Magic, mystery, intrigue, bad guys we love to hate, good men and women to pull for, a family curse, and SO much more.
This was my first purchase of Northcott's books, but it won't be my last. I'm looking forward to the sequel!
This was my first purchase of Northcott's books, but it won't be my last. I'm looking forward to the sequel!
April 5, 2019
Interesting world building. The plot seemed to drag for me, though. There is a romantic arc, but it really isn't the focus of the story. Reminded me of Fraternitas Aureae Crucis Series or The Inferno Club Series by Gaelen Foley. Maybe a little historical paranormal Krentz.
May 27, 2019
That was a beating. The world building is slow and there's way too much of a romance novel feel. (Authors really should be cautious about trying to emulate Outlander. There's only one Gabaldon.)
March 7, 2017
I received this book from net galley for an honest review. Thank you!!
This book was a good read. The author is detailed in her descriptions. The plot was good. The story contains romance, adventure, and magic.
Miranda Willoughby is a tavern maid with the gift of foresight. She can also use glamours but was not taught much since her mother died when she was young. During this time, anyone accused of witchcraft is tried and killed, so Miranda must hide her identity. She sees a vision and sends out a call.
Richard Mainwaring, the earl of Hawkstowe, responds to Miranda's call. His family is cursed due to his ancestor helping a traitor murder two people in the tower. He does not want to marry due to what his parents went through.
He finds Miranda at the tavern and sees through her glamour. She explains to him her visions and he takes her back to London. Richard and his grandmother try to let Miranda with her abilities, but Miranda is having difficulty with her magic. She cannot control her visions.
While Richard and Miranda are trying to understand her visions, the timeline is changing. They begin to see people disappearing and those that are supposed be dead alive. They know that Wyndon is behind these time changing events but cannot prove it. Wyndon wants to find out what Miranda knows and tries to get her to his side or kill her to prevent her from using her visions to stop him. Richard and Miranda realize they need to go back in time and stop Wyndon from finding the scroll. As they get closer to each other, they realize they are both falling in love with the other. They both will make sacrifices for the other. However, there are those who would betray them and magic is frowned upon during this time. Can Richard and Miranda restore the timeline and if they do, what will the repercussions be and will they remember the love they have for each other?
This book was a good read. The author is detailed in her descriptions. The plot was good. The story contains romance, adventure, and magic.
Miranda Willoughby is a tavern maid with the gift of foresight. She can also use glamours but was not taught much since her mother died when she was young. During this time, anyone accused of witchcraft is tried and killed, so Miranda must hide her identity. She sees a vision and sends out a call.
Richard Mainwaring, the earl of Hawkstowe, responds to Miranda's call. His family is cursed due to his ancestor helping a traitor murder two people in the tower. He does not want to marry due to what his parents went through.
He finds Miranda at the tavern and sees through her glamour. She explains to him her visions and he takes her back to London. Richard and his grandmother try to let Miranda with her abilities, but Miranda is having difficulty with her magic. She cannot control her visions.
While Richard and Miranda are trying to understand her visions, the timeline is changing. They begin to see people disappearing and those that are supposed be dead alive. They know that Wyndon is behind these time changing events but cannot prove it. Wyndon wants to find out what Miranda knows and tries to get her to his side or kill her to prevent her from using her visions to stop him. Richard and Miranda realize they need to go back in time and stop Wyndon from finding the scroll. As they get closer to each other, they realize they are both falling in love with the other. They both will make sacrifices for the other. However, there are those who would betray them and magic is frowned upon during this time. Can Richard and Miranda restore the timeline and if they do, what will the repercussions be and will they remember the love they have for each other?
March 27, 2017
I've got an issue with historical fiction. It's not that I don't like them, because I do. I just have a hard time getting my head wrapped around books set in a historical setting, at least until I've spent a little bit of time in the world. That doesn't stop me from picking one up from time to time, especially when it's written by an author I already know and love. I've read several of Nancy Northcott's paranormal books and I've been a fan for a while, so when I saw that she was offering something new in a new genre I didn't hesitate. Although I had the same slow start issues (totally my issue, not the writing), I ended up totally intrigued by her first book in The Boar King's Honor trilogy.
I loved both Richard and Miranda from the time they were introduced. One of the issues that I had in the beginning was that there were a lot of characters to keep track of. Again, my issue, not the writing. It's worth mentioning though because this isn't a book that you can skim through. You have to pay attention. There are varying POV as well, but I enjoy that in a book. Especially when you're not seeing things strictly from the main characters' POV. It's always kind of fun when you get a glimpse into what's going on in the heads of the 'bad guys' and Nancy Northcott gives readers just enough to keep things interesting.
There's plenty of romance, magic, suspense and mystery between the pages of The Herald of Day along with some interesting history that made me want to learn more when I was done. The next two books in the Trilogy are from different time periods. The Steel Rose takes place during Napoleon's time and The King's Champion is set in 1940. Although the characters obviously change, the books are all centered around the cursed Mainwaring bloodline. I can't wait to learn more about this family and the mystery of the Princes in the Tower.
I received The Herald of Day in exchange for a fair and honest review.
I loved both Richard and Miranda from the time they were introduced. One of the issues that I had in the beginning was that there were a lot of characters to keep track of. Again, my issue, not the writing. It's worth mentioning though because this isn't a book that you can skim through. You have to pay attention. There are varying POV as well, but I enjoy that in a book. Especially when you're not seeing things strictly from the main characters' POV. It's always kind of fun when you get a glimpse into what's going on in the heads of the 'bad guys' and Nancy Northcott gives readers just enough to keep things interesting.
There's plenty of romance, magic, suspense and mystery between the pages of The Herald of Day along with some interesting history that made me want to learn more when I was done. The next two books in the Trilogy are from different time periods. The Steel Rose takes place during Napoleon's time and The King's Champion is set in 1940. Although the characters obviously change, the books are all centered around the cursed Mainwaring bloodline. I can't wait to learn more about this family and the mystery of the Princes in the Tower.
I received The Herald of Day in exchange for a fair and honest review.
April 5, 2017
I tried, I really tried, but I couldn't finish this book. It is well written, and has an interesting premise, but it just wasn't for me I guess. I don't really know what else to say, if you really love fantasy you might like this, if you're a casual fan maybe, maybe not.
I won this from a goodreads giveaway
I won this from a goodreads giveaway
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews