Born of the Sun by Joan Wolf

About the book:

"This compelling saga about a beautiful Celtic princess who gives her heart to a Saxon prince explodes with the passions of love and war. When the Saxon army, in its bloody charge against the Celts, captures the child-princess Niniane, they bring her to Cynric, King of the West Saxons. Enchanted by her innocence and beauty, he makes Niniane a favored prisoner. But she soon discovers that the King's court abounds with tempestuous intrigues and tormented rivalries. And when the adulterous and envious Queen arranges for a duel between the King's beloved illegitimate son and her own son. heir to the throne, intrigue turns to deadly peril.

With this epic novel of the star-crossed passion that swept the Celts and Saxons to the brink of war--and two lovers to the edge of oblivion--Joan Wolf brilliantly brings alive a little-know but fascinating age."

My thoughts:

Born of the Sun has everything I hope to find in historical fiction -- a rich tapestry of history, daily life, a compelling love story, and political intrigue. An interesting twist was the opposing religious beliefs of Niniane, the Christian Celtic princess, and her husband, Ceawlin, the pagan Saxon prince. Forced into marriage for political convenience, their relationship evolves over time with struggles and successes you would expect to find in any relationship trying to "meet in the middle" and "give and take" to find a common ground. The plot was rich in love, history, treachery, and war and I'm looking forward to reading more in this series.

This is the second novel in the Dark Ages of Britain trilogy, but it was a stand alone novel and it appears that they are chronologically arranged but can be read in any order.

The series includes The Road to Avalon (Book 1):

The Edge of Light (Book 3)

4.5/5 stars     Highly recommended for historical fiction fans -- a gem from the past.

Title: Born of the Sun
Author: Joan Wolf
Publisher: Onyx
1991
genre: historical fiction
508 pages