White Nun's Telling (Daughter of Tintagel, Book 2) [Paperback]

Fay Sampson (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Trafalgar Square (July 1992)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0747232970
• ISBN-13: 978-0747232971
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,082,248 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars 'Telling' Tragedy with Well-Meaning Heroine, September 11, 2001

By 

Diana F. Von Behren "reneofc" (Kenner, LA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: White Nun's Telling (Daughter of Tintagel, Book 2) (Paperback)

This is the second of the Daughter of Tintagel series that I am reviewing. The last "telling" brought the reader to the episode where nine year old Morgan, Gorlais's daughter, has attempted to kill her infant brother, Arthur, and Uther, Arthur's father has imprisoned her in a nunnery on Tintagel island for life. This next installment is told in the voice of Luned, whom we first encounter as a young farm girl who thirsts for more than just the typical life of a country female. When she encounters a traveling Christian priest, she is tantilized by the life of learning she could have as a Christian nun, and dreaming of great libraries of books, she follows him to the convent on Tintagel island. The reader is intrigued by Luned's intrepid quest for learning, and we share her disappointment as her first assignment at the convent stronghold is the manual labor of feeding the convent farm animals . As in all such stories, her tenacity reaps its reward for eventually she rises in the convent hierarchy. We applaud her acumen for business and nod at her shrewdness as it shines most noticeably in her dealings with the convent's commercial traders. Happily we watch as the Mother Superior takes Luned under her wing and we become aware that most likely our intense narrator may very well be the convent leader's heir apparent.

However, this is a story with no happy ending. Rather, it is a morality tale where Luned's great ambition and pride are punished. When Morgan is installed at the convent and put in Luned's charge, we hold our breath each and every time Luned's feeble attempts at controlling the girl's actions and affections backfire. Little by little, we realize that it is Morgan who is supervising Luned and we watch in horror as what we know is about to happen, does indeed occur.

This second "Telling" is a masterpiece of understatement. Although the outcome, after all is said and done, is fairly predictable, as the story does unfold, its events do remain unexpected and maintain a freshness that was a joy to read. The reader cannot help but pity Luned as one would pity Oedipus and be more than afraid of Morgan and the power she will wield as an adult.