Set in the time of the English Civil War, a man, a soldier in the Parliamentary forces, returns home to find his son a mute and his wife dead, killed as a witch. As he attempts to put his life back together and find out what lead to such tragic events, an old comrade arrives in search of a missing lad.
As the two men (and the mute son) set out, they get caught up with the imprisoned King's army at Bantry and the siege of Colchester (1648), where aAmid the besieging army lurks pure evil in human form.
The novel, whilst not overly long, manages to depict the savagery of civil war and the consequences for non-combatants. The events did actually take place, the massacre of women after the battle of Naseby did occur though the reasons still remain a mystery, Sir Thomas Fairfax was in charge of the Parliamentarians, and only after defeat at Preston did the Royalists surrender - the terms were real. The Sealed Knot was a secret society dedicated to the restoration of the Monarchy (active after the death of Charles I in 1649) and they made eight attempts to bring about the restoration of Charles II (1652 - 1659), though the group was ultimately betrayed by Sir Richard Willis to John Thurloe.
This is definitely well researched - the violence of the times depicted within these pages will not be to everyone's liking - but this is based on true events - so take it, warts and all. I have been reading a bit more from this period in history, and have added a few tomes to my library - this will be another one.
No comments:
Post a Comment