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5.0 out of 5 stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 30 July 2025
Once again Rosemary Griggs takes us to Devon in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I as the Spanish Armada prepares to attack.
At last a well-informed author looks at what women were doing to protect their homes, their children, their livelihoods and their men. It wasn't just Drake and Raleigh and a handful of Elizabethan heroes who kept England safe from the invasion.
The characterisation is compelling, albeit a lot of it by necessity fictional. I certainly had empathy for Roberda and her family. Love and loss; grief and hardship frame the narrative, but there's also friendship and loyalty; romance and love.
Few authors manage to bring Tudor England to life with such vivid reality and reading this novel felt almost like taking a step back in time.
Elizabethan Devon is drawn in multi-layered detail and paints a colourful picture which is endlessly fascinating.
I can't wait to read the next book in this series.

Original review: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/customer-reviews/R37NKD9HIQSNTI/ref=cm_cr_dp_d_rvw_ttl?ie=UTF8

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