NOTE: The Kindle Book Review received a free copy of this book for an independent, fair, and honest review. We are not associated with the author or Amazon.
This book reminded me of the Kristin Lavransdatter trilogy in its constant examination of faith as the cornerstone of daily medieval life. It does not examine faith as deeply and bitterly as those books, however. Rahere is almost too good of a protagonist, but he was very much a real person, and it is amazing what he achieved in the days before people had careers, or could choose very much how they governed their lives after they began.
I wish we had seen more of how difficult it was to master early medieval instruments, how rudimentary and difficult they were, the callouses on the fingertips, etc. But overall I was impressed with the firm grasp of contemporary history. The reign of William Rufus and the following years must have been rough on the peasantry, and Delorme depicts that unflinchingly, especially in the case of William Rufus. I am definitely interested in checking out more of the works of Mary Delorme.
L.T. Patridge 