The King's Shadow

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Alder's clunky debut charts the rise and fall of King Harold, as seen by the fictional Evyn, the king's loyal Welsh servant and foster son. A regular Horatio Alger hero of Saxon England, Evyn finds his promising career as a storiawr (wandering storyteller) stopped short when his tongue is cut out by the high-born ruffians who killed his father. A few days later, Evyn's uncle sells the mute boy into slavery on the vast estates of Lady Ealdgyth Swan Neck, who, for some reason, arranges for the boy to be taught to read and write. Later, Evyn leaves Ealdgyth's household to serve her lover, Harold, Earl of Wessex. At this point the narrative really bogs down, becoming essentially a star-struck account of Harold's ascent (``It seemed to Evyn that all the power of the Saxon people was concentrated behind the muscle and bones of the Earl of Wessex'') and his defeat at the hands of William the Conqueror. Characterizations are wooden and oddly distant: it's hard to get a sense of Harold's repeatedly emphasized charisma from Alder's cliched phrases. A wealth of potentially fascinating historical details indicates thorough research; unfortunately, these snippets are poorly integrated into the story. Ages 12-up. (May)

Children's Literature - Alexandria LaFaye

This rich historical novel tells the tale of Evyn, a young Welsh serf who is left mute by a brutal attack by the enemies of his uncle and sold into slavery. As a slave to Lady Ealdgyth, the common-law wife of Harold Godwinson, Evyn is taught to read and write. Because of his knowledge of Wales, Evyn is taken on a military expedition as Godwinson's scout. When Godwinson becomes the king of England, Evyn is made his squire. He stands by the king's side at the Battle of Hastings and lives to write Harold's life story.

The ALAN Review - Anne Shaughnessy

Evyn, a young Welsh serf, dreams of becoming a traveling storyteller and freeing himself and his father from the land. On the very day Evyn is about to realize his dream, tragedy strikes. Evyn's father is murdered, Evyn's tongue is cut out, and he is sold into slavery. Although all seems lost, Evyn quickly gains the good will of his new mistress, Lady Ealdgyth, who provides for his education in a nearby monastery and introduces him to Harold of Wessex, soon to become the last Saxon King of England. Set during the last years of Anglo-Saxon rule and climaxing with the Battle of Hastings in 1066, Alder's first novel is an engaging narrative, rich in the history and life of the time. Real and fictional characters are convincingly brought to life. Only William the Conqueror is over the top as a villain. This novel has it all - adventure, suspense, mystery, and romance - and can be enjoyed for itself or would work well as part of an interdisciplinary study.

School Library Journal

Gr 6-9A Welsh orphan is mutilated and sold into slavery before finding a place for himself beside England's last Saxon king. Fully fleshed out characterizations and nonstop action. (July 1995)

Chris Sherman

Eleventh-century Britain is the background for Alder's finely written account of a slave who becomes the chronicler of Harold, last of the Saxon kings. When Evyn is brutally attacked and rendered mute, his hopes of becoming a storyteller and escaping his life as a serf are shattered. Sold into slavery, he joins the household of Lady Ealdgyth, the common-law wife of Earl Harold of Wessex. Illiterate, mutilated, and feared by the thralls, Evyn becomes known as Shadow. When he is sent to a monastery to be educated, his future is altered forever. After his return, he saves the life of Earl Harold and follows Harold, as his squire and later as his foster son, from Wessex to London and eventually to the Battle of Hastings, where he witnesses Harold's death. On the journey, Evyn learns about loyalty, honor, and bravery, and he comes to realize that by chronicling the fate of his king, he has actually become a storyteller. Alder's vivid descriptions of the harsh conditions and customs of medieval life make the story come alive, and her brisk pacing never wavers. Evyn is an observant, sympathetic narrator, an apt recorder of the perilous times.