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I am trying to find any Historical novels that retell the
story of the Moors in Spain - particularly the Alhambra or fall of Granada
(bit way out I know) - Any ideas ? - Bob
If a story set in an invented parallel world counts, then I can highly recommend The Lions of Al-Rassan by Guy Gavriel Kay. Review here. It's clearly based on the fall of Moorish Spain, and I thought it was excellent. Well worth a try if you haven't already come across it.
By the way, did I miss something, or was Gyrdan's mother's brooch never returned to him? It seemed so important to him. What happened to it and did your author's brain leave this as an opening to elaborate on Gyrdan's past? - Haley
Rosie took the brooch with her and Irinya returned it to Gyrdan during the campaign in the Black Hills. Yes, it may very well be a link to Gyrdan's past - well spotted! - and that is another story.
Will you be expanding on Ingelds daughter in another book. There were a couple of loos ends well not loos ends really. Will the thread of the fairy blood in Kerian and Gyrdan come loose at sometime and what lies beyond the mountains. May be I am just Curios. Kind regards, Mari
My next book is set in 7th-century Britain (see the Coming
Soon section for more details). I may go back to the world of Ingeld's
Daughter in a later book, because I'm curious about it too! To some extent,
it depends on what readers tell me they want.
In the battle in the Black Hills, Fastred's men are riding mountain ponies, what size are these, are they like a Shetland pony? Neil
The mountain pony of the Black Hills is based on the Fell Pony, a native British breed of wild hill pony. These ponies live in the hilly areas of Cumbria in north-west England, and are believed to be derived from small wild ponies that were cross-bred with Roman horses. They are bigger than a Shetland pony but smaller than a full-sized horse, about 13 hands high (a hand = 4 inches = 10 cm). They are sturdy, sure-footed on rough terrain and well capable of carrying the weight of an adult man. They were used for centuries for farm work, shepherding and carrying ore down from mines in the hills. You can find out more about them on the Fell Pony Society website, and listen to a half-hour Radio 4 programme about the Fell Pony and the related Dales Pony on the BBC Listen Again website (programme 3 in the series Rare Steeds).
