Book Review Time...

I've just finished reading 'Flodden Field: A Novel', by Elisabeth MacNeill, so I thought I'd put up a post about it.  It's set in the period leading up to the Battle of Flodden (9th September, 1513.  A terrible day for Scotland) and it chronicles the demise of King James IV and his immediate circle.  The narrative follows many viewpoints, from that of James himself down to the most humble of his subjects, and focuses in particular on the fortunes of one particular Borders family who fought with Lord Home, a lord whose loyalties, it is said, lay not with his king, but with himself. 

I'm probably not the best person to comment on this work.  I've spent eleven years researching the reign of James IV so I've worked with these characters a lot, and I've developed my own thoughts on how they might have viewed the build-up to Flodden.  The book moved along at a very fast pace, and was very easy to read.  It was well-researched, sticking closely to the established interpretations and making creative use of local lore and legend.  Nonetheless, I had a few quibbles.  I didn't really see the point of creating a feisty female character (a respectable girl at that) and having her run away from home to join up with the Scots army for the sheer hell of it.  To me, the Abbess of Coldstream, who viewed the forthcoming conflict with grim, stoical distance, was a strong female character infinitely more believeable in a medieval context.  I found the juxtaposition of occasional Scots dialogue with a predominantly English narrative discomforting, but that's a common trend in historical fiction of any period set in Scotland.  

For fans of short, succinct historical novels written by the likes of Tracy Chevalier, this should prove an entertaining read.  It's refreshing to see a book set in the British Isles in the early 16th century which doesn't have Henry VIII or one of his wives as the central character, and it's a nice introduction to a topic which doesn't really get much attention in literature either side of the border.  To show how much it's been neglected in recent years, I'd just like to point out that Flodden didn't even get a passing mention in 'The Tudors!'

Book Review Time...

I've just finished reading 'Flodden Field: A Novel', by Elisabeth MacNeill, so I thought I'd put up a post about it.  It's set in the period leading up to the Battle of Flodden (9th September, 1513.  A terrible day for Scotland) and it chronicles the demise of King James IV and his immediate circle.  The narrative follows many viewpoints, from that of James himself down to the most humble of his subjects, and focuses in particular on the fortunes of one particular Borders family who fought with Lord Home, a lord whose loyalties, it is said, lay not with his king, but with himself. 

I'm probably not the best person to comment on this work.  I've spent eleven years researching the reign of James IV so I've worked with these characters a lot, and I've developed my own thoughts on how they might have viewed the build-up to Flodden.  The book moved along at a very fast pace, and was very easy to read.  It was well-researched, sticking closely to the established interpretations and making creative use of local lore and legend.  Nonetheless, I had a few quibbles.  I didn't really see the point of creating a feisty female character (a respectable girl at that) and having her run away from home to join up with the Scots army for the sheer hell of it.  To me, the Abbess of Coldstream, who viewed the forthcoming conflict with grim, stoical distance, was a strong female character infinitely more believeable in a medieval context.  I found the juxtaposition of occasional Scots dialogue with a predominantly English narrative discomforting, but that's a common trend in historical fiction of any period set in Scotland.  

For fans of short, succinct historical novels written by the likes of Tracy Chevalier, this should prove an entertaining read.  It's refreshing to see a book set in the British Isles in the early 16th century which doesn't have Henry VIII or one of his wives as the central character, and it's a nice introduction to a topic which doesn't really get much attention in literature either side of the border.  To show how much it's been neglected in recent years, I'd just like to point out that Flodden didn't even get a passing mention in 'The Tudors!'