From Publishers Weekly
Screenwriter Galland debuts impressively with a steamy historical romance about a medieval Welsh queen's love affair with the king's best friend—his profane, hyperactive royal fool. The year is 1198, and King Maelgwyn (mercifully nicknamed Noble) of Maelienydd has wed the young Englishwoman Isabel Mortimer in hopes of neutralizing her uncle Roger, a powerful baron with designs on Noble's small kingdom. But almost from their wedding night, the political marriage of Isabel and Noble is a disaster: she is headstrong and tomboyish, "far from his ideal"; he is temperamental, tyrannical and unwilling to give up "nonconjugal fornication." Even worse for Isabel is his unfathomable relationship with the fool Gwirion, whose outrageous pranks and lewd public performances humiliate her. But when Noble goes off to fight Roger Mortimer, a siege on the castle by an opportunistic Welsh prince forces Isabel and Gwirion to confront each other, and to finally acknowledge their traitorous passion. Galland creates memorable characters—particularly Gwirion—who sound authentically regal yet earthy. She strikingly captures the murky Welsh setting and even murkier politics. The novel is occasionally short on plot, but readers will relish the energetic emotional back-and-forth of the protagonists' ceaseless trysting.
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From Booklist
It is Wales, in the year 1198, and King Maelgwyn ap Cadwallon, better known to his people as Noble, is fighting to keep his kingdom from falling to the English. To create an alliance, Noble weds Isabel Mortimer, the niece of the English baron Roger Mortimer, who years earlier killed Noble's father. Isabel has no easy time of it as Noble flaunts his mistresses in her face and allows Gwirion, Noble's oldest friend, to ridicule her without reproach. Gwirion, of unknown birth, holds the highest honor in Noble's court but has no real power. His sole purpose is to amuse the king, who gives him the affectionate title of "fool." But as threats of war from the English consume Noble, Gwirion and Isabel come to a truce, and their new relationship may also threaten Noble's crown. Galland's first novel is an entertaining saga adeptly weaving together political intrigue and deceit, love that both unifies and divides, loyalty that teeters on treason, and the desire for freedom, which comes with a hefty price.
Carolyn KubiszCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
