The Kings in Winter

Feud-torn Ireland in 1014 provides the background for this brilliant new novel by Cecelia Holland. At Cathair-by-Tara the aged High King of Ireland has called together his kings and chiefs. In nearby Dublin, Maelmordha, King of Leinster, has allied himself with Sygtrygg, King of Dublin — to him come not only the Danes of Ireland but Vikings and fighting men from all over the Northern seas. It was a time of legend, a time of strugle, a time when the Kingship of the hero Brain Boru is being contested by men of other clans, and by the Danish invader who had come in their longships to take hold of Ireland and make it their own. All through a long winter of strife, Muirtagh struggles to balance his own honor and that of his clan, against his divided loyalties to the three would-be Kings of Ireland. First published in 1968, The Kings in Winter is considered by Cecelia Holland's fans to be her finest work. The book is set in Ireland during the Danish invasion around 800 A.D.. Set against this background is a clan feud that consumes the majority of the plot. It was a time of legend, a time of struggle, a time when the Kingship of the hero Brain Boru is being contested by men of other clans, and by the Danish invader who had come in their long-ships to take hold of Ireland and make it their own. All through a long winter of strife, Muirtagh struggles to balance his own honor and that of his clan, against his divided loyalties to the three would-be Kings of Ireland. Tells the tale of Brian Boru's fierce attempts to hold the high crown of Ireland while defending against Danish invaders through the eyes of his subject Muirtagh, a man struggling to balance personal and clan honor