Like Hardy, she manages, with deceptive charm, to convey a brutal message about women's lot. McGrath's research into the medieval quotidian is superb, and beautifully translated into a pastoral fiction in the tradition of Hardy. Through her vivid and excellent writing she transports the reader back to the tumultuous clash of two very different societies and cultures, Saxon and Norman.' - 5* - Christopher Melby - Amazon Reviewer An assured debut. Carol McGrath has done impeccable research and is so very knowledgeable on these troubled times.' - Kathleen Ingram - Reading the Ages 'Carol McGrath has done a fabulous job of bring this important time in English history to life. 'This is an era and a family that I can't get enough of reading and the author surely did them justice. The Handfasted Wife Paperback Jby Carol McGrath (Author) 3,441 ratings Book 1 of 3: The Daughters of Hastings Trilogy See all formats and editions Kindle Edition 8.99 Read with Our Free App Paperback 13.68 17 Used from 7.69 MP3 CD 40.78 1 Used from 50.48 2 New from 36. This is an adventure story of love, loss, survival and reconciliation. Elditha takes sanctuary in a convent where eventually she is reunited with her hostage son. However, after three horrific weeks they negotiate exile and the removal of their treasure. Initially supported by Exeter's burghers the women withstand William's siege. The girl is at risk, drawing Elditha back to Exeter and resistance. Harold's mother, Gytha, holds up in her city of Exeter with other aristocratic women, including Elditha's eldest daughter. She makes her own choice and sets out through strife-torn England to seek help from her sons in Dublin. Elditha avoids an arranged marriage with a Breton knight by which her son might or might not be given into his care.

She later identifies Harold's body on the battlefield and her youngest son becomes a Norman hostage. Determined to protect her children's destinies and control her economic future, she is taken to William's camp when her estate is sacked on the eve of the Battle of Hastings. She is set aside for a political marriage when Harold becomes king in 1066. The Handfasted Wife is the story of the Norman Conquest from the perspective of Edith (Elditha) Swanneck, Harold's common-law wife.

The Handfasted Wife by Carol McGrath