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** spoiler alert ** I loved the story of Gwenllian and Gryffud, the hardship they endured to fight for something they believed was just and to die so close to achieving it is heartbreaking. Novels about the Welsh struggle seem hard to come by, which I truly dont understand, since the stories left untold are so grand and speak to the imagination, so for that I appreciate this book for introducing me to this little part of Welsh history. I do however think it had its flaws.

I believe that when you write about people who lived you owe it to them to stay truthful to the historical records. I searched high and low for Gwenllians supposed infidelity, but there is no evidence supporting this whatsoever. I also thought that storyline was excuted poorly to begin with. She was besothed with her husband in one chapter and all is happy and dandy, yet in the next she is talking about the passion and pleasure she had found in the bed of another which she couldnt find with her husband? Weird. I felt like it was added for the extra drama, which the story didnt need at all.

Furthermore the writing never made me feel connected to the characters, I should have been bawling my eyes out when Gwenllian died, but I didn’t. Same with Gryffud’s dead, it was almost glossed over. The book held my interest but that had more to do with the story then with the way it was told. It lacked emotion. All in all it was a decent read, but not great.