A brand new medieval mystery from the author of the Hawkenlye series - England, 1087. On her sister's wedding day, Lassair meets an attractive and enigmatic stranger who brings a breath of the fascinating outside world to her backwater Fenland village. When he asks Lassair to use her unique talents to help locate a mysterious treasure she accepts, despite the dangers. But this is no ordinary treasure hunt; the object of the perilous search is five hundred years old and has a terrifying power of its own . . .
Out of the Dawn Light (An Aelf Fen Mystery)
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Starred Review. Clare's captivating first in a new medieval series dramatizes the clash between the old pagan ways and Christianity in 11th-century England. In 1087, with the death of William the Conqueror, the common people are in a rebellious mood. Meanwhile, Lassair, a 14-year-old girl from a Fenland village with special gifts, is learning to be a healer. When two young men ask her to use her skills to locate a hidden treasure, she can't refuse. Lassair joins the men on an arduous trek across East Anglia to the coast, where they unearth a 500-year-old solid gold relic. This relic, Lassair realizes, has the power to cause immense harm. Clare (The Joys of My Life and 11 other Hawkenlye mysteries) brings the people of the period to vivid life with close attention to such matters as food, clothes and religious belief. Engaging characters, like Lassair's obnoxious sister and her storytelling grandmother, enhance a well-crafted plot that builds to a chilling climax. (Sept.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Review
Historical specialist Clare (The Joys of My Life, 2009, etc.) begins her new series in 1087, when William Rufus has just assumed the throne of England and quelled a rebellion. In a small Fenland village, Lassair, who has the uncanny ability to find lost objects and dowse for water, is thrilled to be learning healing skills from her aunt Edild, who's skilled in the ways of the old Gods. Lassair is celebrating the wedding of her sister Goda when Romain, an attractive stranger, arrives. While she is caring for Goda, Romain returns with Sibert, a friend from Lassair's village, and begs her to join them to search for a valuable object. Happy to get away from Goda, whose pregnancy seems designed specifically to make everyone around her miserable, she agrees. A three-day trip leads them to the sea and the former home of Sibert's ancestors, which the Norman overlords granted to Romain's family. There Lassair discovers a golden crown with hidden powers buried near an underwater tree trunk. Romain plans on using the crown to convince the king to return the land his family lost in the rebellion. But Lassair and Sibert take the crown and leave him behind. When he follows them and is killed, Sibert is accused of the crime, and it takes all Lassair's courage to help prove him innocent. A treat that's full of the mysticism, period detail and mystery Clare's readers have come to expect. --Kirkus Reviews, 1st July 2009
Readers who have enjoyed Clare's popular Hawkenlye books will be delighted with her new mystery series set in medieval England. England is under strict military rule as the tale begins, but 14-year-old Lassair is only concerned with whether a boy named Sibert will dance with her at her sister's wedding. But when a handsome stranger called Romain arrives, Lassair changes course immediately. Although years older than Lassair, he deigns to dance with her and then asks her to meet him secretly. When she does, Sibert is there, too. Puzzled, Lassair soon learns that Romain needs her "dowsing" skills to find a mysterious object at an unidentified location. Intrigued and mystified, Lassair sets off with Sibert and Romain, only to find herself involved in a deadly mission--the search for a 500-year-old crown with magical powers. This cleverly plotted blend of historical mystery and romance provides a charged atmosphere, high-spirited adventure, and a charismatic cast of char! acters. --Booklist, 1st July 2009
Clare's captivating first in a new medieval series dramatizes the clash between the old pagan ways and Christianity in 11th-century England. In 1087, with the death of William the Conqueror, the common people are in a rebellious mood. Meanwhile, Lassair, a 14-year-old girl from a Fenland village with special gifts, is learning to be a healer. When two young men ask her to use her skills to locate a hidden treasure, she can't refuse. Lassair joins the men on an arduous trek across East Anglia to the coast, where they unearth a 500-year-old solid gold relic. This relic, Lassair realizes, has the power to cause immense harm. Clare (The Joys of My Life and 11 other Hawkenlye mysteries) brings the people of the period to vivid life with close attention to such matters as food, clothes and religious belief. Engaging characters, like Lassair's obnoxious sister and her storytelling grandmother, enhance a well-crafted plot that builds to a chilling climax. --***Publishers Weekly, 6th July 2009
Readers who have enjoyed Clare's popular Hawkenlye books will be delighted with her new mystery series set in medieval England. England is under strict military rule as the tale begins, but 14-year-old Lassair is only concerned with whether a boy named Sibert will dance with her at her sister's wedding. But when a handsome stranger called Romain arrives, Lassair changes course immediately. Although years older than Lassair, he deigns to dance with her and then asks her to meet him secretly. When she does, Sibert is there, too. Puzzled, Lassair soon learns that Romain needs her "dowsing" skills to find a mysterious object at an unidentified location. Intrigued and mystified, Lassair sets off with Sibert and Romain, only to find herself involved in a deadly mission--the search for a 500-year-old crown with magical powers. This cleverly plotted blend of historical mystery and romance provides a charged atmosphere, high-spirited adventure, and a charismatic cast of char! acters. --Booklist, 1st July 2009
Clare's captivating first in a new medieval series dramatizes the clash between the old pagan ways and Christianity in 11th-century England. In 1087, with the death of William the Conqueror, the common people are in a rebellious mood. Meanwhile, Lassair, a 14-year-old girl from a Fenland village with special gifts, is learning to be a healer. When two young men ask her to use her skills to locate a hidden treasure, she can't refuse. Lassair joins the men on an arduous trek across East Anglia to the coast, where they unearth a 500-year-old solid gold relic. This relic, Lassair realizes, has the power to cause immense harm. Clare (The Joys of My Life and 11 other Hawkenlye mysteries) brings the people of the period to vivid life with close attention to such matters as food, clothes and religious belief. Engaging characters, like Lassair's obnoxious sister and her storytelling grandmother, enhance a well-crafted plot that builds to a chilling climax. --***Publishers Weekly, 6th July 2009
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Very different from Hawkenlye series,
By
This review is from: Out of the Dawn Light (An Aelf Fen Mystery) (Hardcover)
OUT OF THE DAWN OF LIGHT (Hist Mys-Lassair-England-1087) - G
Clare, Alys - Standalone Severn House, 2009, UK Hardcover - ISBN: 9780727867636 First Sentence: The news of William the Conqueror's death reached us when we were celebrating my sister's wedding. Lassair, at 13 years' old, is happy to see her very difficult sister, Goda, getting married and leaving the house. At the wedding, Lassair meets a handsome young man, Romain, to whom she is attracted. Some time later, she is approached by her friend Sibert, to help him and Romain find a treasure. Lassair has a talent they need; she is able to find things. However, the treasure is one which should not be found and the result is death to one of the three young people. This was very different from Clare's Hawkenlye books. The book does include some wonderful history of the time in a very readable manner. I particularly liked the point it made about the impact on non-nobility of the struggles for power and the throne. Religiously, this was an interesting time as the country was Catholic but the stories and beliefs of the old religion still played a critical role. The paranormal, or magical, aspects were well done and handled in a believable fashion. I enjoyed the book, but prefer the Hawkenlye series. I felt this really read more as a young adult novel and would, in fact, recommend it as such.
4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Medieval Adventure Quest,
This review is from: Out of the Dawn Light (An Aelf Fen Mystery) (Hardcover)
Alys Clare has written a number of books that are classified as medieval mysteries, and they're now on my To-Read list. This is the first in a new series for her, set in England in the 11th century, around the time of William the Conqueror. Not so much a mystery as an adventure-quest story, this one features Lassair, a girl from the Fens, with the ability to find hidden obects, and her friend Sibert. They are recruited by a mysterious lord, Romaine, to travel across the country to the sea and locate a missing treasure. The object turns out to be a magical crown of immense power, made by Sibert's ancestors approximately 500 years earlier. The mysterious lord wants the crown for himself, to buy back his lands and manor from the king (his family was stripped by the new king in retaliation for supporting a rebellion) and has no intention of sharing the treasure with Lassair and Sibert. Lassair and Sibert realize the dangerous power the crown possesses, and know that no matter what, Romaine and his family cannot be permitted to keep it.
3 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
NOT "Hawkenlye".,
By
This review is from: Out of the Dawn Light (An Aelf Fen Mystery) (Hardcover)
Have loved all of the Hawkenlye series. Didn't quite see the point of this book, didn't feel for the characters and it was a little far-fetched for such young people. Will buy the next in the series, as she is a great author and I hope it will develop.
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