Bright Sword of Ireland [Hardcover]

Juilene Osborne-McKnight (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2004

Bright Sword of Ireland is the third in Juilene Osborne-McKnight's wonderful retelling of cherished Irish folktales. A dedicated researcher into the origins of Celtic myth and legend, Osborne-McKnight infuses her stories with passion, romance and magic.
Her focus this time is the great warrior queen Medb of Connaught. Beautiful. Bold in battle . . . and in bed. A legend among her people, she lusts for the Brown Cow of Cuailnge for the power and the glory that it would bring to her. And she will use anyone, do anything, to reach her goal. Who should stand in her way? None other than the fabled hero Cuchulainn, thought to be not quite of this world and who is said to able to use the spirits of the forest and glen to conquer his enemies. Noble tales, ignoble deeds.
But sometimes the biggest part of an epic tale comes not from the biggest players on the stage. What happens to those who have grown up in the shadow of greatness? And who pays when the game of power calls for sacrifice?
Young Finnabair is the daughter of mighty queen Medb. Not a beauty. Not a warrior. And one who is seen as a pawn for her mother to use as she will. But Finnabair rebels when she sees that her part in her mother's schemes for power has caused pain and shame to her people.
In doing so, Finnabair will embark on a journey that will change two kingdoms . . . and bring her love and loss so great as to break the hearts of the gods.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Gentle, peace-loving Finnabair, daughter of the ambitious warrior queen Medb of Connacht, makes a beguiling narrator in Osborne-McKnight's third engaging historical to recast Celtic myth (after 2002's Daughter of Ireland). For years, Medb has used Finnabair as a pawn in her perpetual war games. Determined to win the prized brown bull of Ulster, the ruthless queen promises her daughter's hand to any man who kills boy warrior Cuchulainn, Ulster's legendary hero. Among the many who die in the attempt is Froech, Finnabair's beloved, one of the Others, or fairy folk. The irresistibly charming Cuchulainn himself is half Other and he is sorry to kill Froech, as he confesses to Finnabair several years later. They meet when Finnabair tries to kill herself, overwhelmed by the deaths of so many in her name and by her forced marriage to Ulster warrior Rochad. But her marriage and her meeting with Cuchulainn mark a turning point in her life. Learning to love Rochad and to forgive her mother, she brings peace to both sides, though Medb's insatiable quest for power soon causes war to break out again. In its emphasis on traditional "feminine" values, the novel diverges most obviously from the author's primary source, the epic Tain, "Ireland's Iliad and Odyssey." Warm, playful and eloquent, this is a welcome addition to the genre.
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From Booklist

Osborne-McKnight continues to retell mystical Irish folktales in spellbinding fashion. As in Daughter of Ireland (2002) and I Am of Irelaunde (2000), she interweaves documented history with Celtic myths and legends, creating an enchanting tapestry of honor, courage, and love. Forever in the shadow of her beautiful, dangerous mother, Medb, the warrior queen of Connacht, mousy Finnabair strikes back when she realizes that she has become nothing more than a pawn in her mother's costly and seemingly foolish quest to acquire the Brown Bull of Ulster. Sold in marriage to an enemy warrior, she forges an unusually strong platonic relationship with the Cuchulainn, the fabled Hound of Ulster. As Finnabair struggles to reclaim her own destiny, the fates of two powerful kingdoms hang in the balance. Never allowing her magical saga to become inexcusably quaint, the author displays, at all times, an abiding respect and love for the richly textured mythology of ancient Ireland. Margaret Flanagan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Forge Books; 1st edition (March 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0765306980
• ISBN-13: 978-0765306982
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,405,336 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a special atmosphere, March 2, 2004

By 

A Reader "zitawhit" (PA, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bright Sword of Ireland (Hardcover)

This third book shows once again this author's skill in creating a special atmosphere with an enchanting mix of the otherworldly and the everyday in an ancient setting. I particularly like her light touch with the fledgeling Christian faith as it appears alongside the myths and magic of the Irish people. In contrast to some reviewers here, and especially to the person who appears to be abusing Amazon's site by posting multiple negative reviews and thus adversely affecting the rating, I liked Finnabhair very much. She grows in strength and confidence through the book; her relationship with her husband becomes one of equals in which he needs her as much as she needs him; and she is by the end a powerful and influential character. Besides, it takes the most strength of all to put aside one's pride, and forgive.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Go out and buy this book!, February 20, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Bright Sword of Ireland (Hardcover)

In every chapter a new story wove several characters together which kept me reading to find out how all the characters' lives would eventually connect. Be prepared for the surprising and wonderful ending to this book.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing, June 13, 2006

By 

N. Becker (Rochester, NY) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Bright Sword of Ireland (Paperback)

This is a wonderfully written book (as are all of the books I have read by this author). In addition to putting her own spin on old irish tales, she puts so much emotion into her characters that they come alive. Each one grows and evolves in such a natural way that you are sucked into their lives and feel joy inside when they are joyful and sometimes even weep when they weep. I have to say, this is one of my new all time favorite books that I could read over and over again, which I cannot say for most.