The Candlemass Roadby George MacDonald Fraser | |
| Category: |
"Fiction - Historical" |
|---|---|
| Pages: | 180 |
| Year of Publication: | 1993 |
| Date Added: | 08/24/2020 |
| Date Read: | 09/10/2025 |
| Notes: | Lord Dacre reigns over his estate on the Scottish/English border with a firm hand, keeping the border reivers, who raid and terrorize the inhabitants, at bay. When he's killed, his daughter Margaret inherits the land. She arrives to find her serfs already in peril. A down-on-his-luck wanderer named Noble is imprisoned in her castle waiting trial for petty theft. Margaret gives Noble a choice—hanging or organizing her serfs to fight the reivers. Noble takes charge of the defense and kills four of the attackers. Margaret offers him a position as her officer, but he turns her down, believing there will be retaliation against him and that Margaret will be better off if he's gone. Forces gather to track him down, but Margaret, stung by Noble's rejection of her offer (which, it is inferred, included her), makes no effort to help him and goes about securing her lands. All is told by a priest who observes what happens and is shocked—by Noble's violence and by Margaret's refusal to help. |
| My Rating: | 5 |
Reviewed by Roger on 2025-09-10 07:58:11
