Book Review: After Flodden by Rosemary Goring

Louise Brenier seeks news of her brother, Benoit, who is missing after the horrific defeat of the Scots at Flodden. She appeals for aid from Patrick Paniter, James IV’s Secretary,  who also survived the battle. He agrees to assist Louise due to the ties the Brenier family had to the King and to assuage his own guilt at his part in the defeat. The news is that Benoit may be a prisoner of the English or dead.  Clinging to the belief that her brother is still alive, Louise sets off to find him. She meets  Hob, a young boy who carried his mortally wounded father from the battlefield, and Gabriel Torrance, a courtier she has met before in the company of Paniter. While crossing the dangerous borderlands the trio encounter the Crozier clan, who are involved in a feud of their own against the English. They also become involved in Louise’s search for Benoit.

Interspersed through the story is the revelation of what happened prior to and during the battle of Flodden. This is told in flashbacks through the eyes of various characters and has the effect of slowing down the narrative and confusing the reader as it jumps backwards and forwards in time, particularly if the dates heading each chapter are overlooked. However, I felt this background was necessary for me to understand why James IV instigated this battle and the utter devastation it caused the population of Scotland. The deaths of their King and many Scottish nobles left an infant king on the throne, which history tells us never bodes well for any country. This background information also helps to put into perspective Paniter's state of mind and the need to appoint blame for the defeat.

As Louise continues her search, rumours circulate that a spy is responsible for the defeat at Flodden. Suspicion falls on Benoit and the need to find him becomes more desperate as she realises someone else is looking for Benoit.

Though this novel has a scattering of historical figures, the story belongs to the fictional characters. Louise is a very likeable heroine: honest, loyal and courageous. The ambitious Gabriel Torrance is also likeable, but not quite what he seems. Benoit, despite his dislike of the King, is still prepared to do his duty for Scotland. Madam Brenier was my least favourite character: cold and selfish. And the plucky little dog,“the vixen”, was a great addition to the cast.

I enjoyed this debut novel from Rosemary Goring. A little slow to start After Flodden went on to be a great adventure story and gave me a glimpse into a period of history I knew very little about.

I'm looking forward to Louise's story continuing in Rosemary Goring's next novel, Dacre's War, which is out this month.

Dacre's War is a story of personal and political vengeance. Ten years after the battle of Flodden, Adam Crozier, head of his clan and of an increasingly powerful alliance of Borderers, learns for sure that it was Lord Thomas Dacre - now the most powerful man in the north of England - who ordered his father's murder. He determines to take his revenge. As a fighting man, Crozier would like nothing better than to bring Dacre down face to face but his wife Louise advises him that he must use more subtle methods. So he sets out to engineer Dacre's downfall by turning the machinery of the English court against him. A vivid and fast-moving tale of political intrigue and heartache, Dacre's War is set against the backdrop of the Scottish and English borders, a land where there is never any chance of peace.