A Land Divided (The Blood of Kings Book 1)

I loved reading this novel. I come from a Welsh background, so the subject matter immediately appealed to me. I have read novels about the period of history prior to the domination of Wales under Edward 1 but I didn't know anything about the era immediately following the Norman Conquest. There are similarities between the two periods in that there is constant fighting between the Welsh Princes fighting for supremacy, hence the title of the novel! It is very well written and the author really brings this period of Welsh history alive. However, it is not a novel for sensitive readers! There are vivid descriptions of battles and the consequences for the participants!

Although I have read several books set in this period, 1081AD, shortly after the Norman Conquest, both K M Ashman and a tale set mainly in Wales are both new experiences for me and I resisted the temptation to research the historical facts before reading this book.The main protagonist, Gruffydd ap Cynan, initially exiled in Ireland, attempts to regain the throne of Gwynedd from Trahern ap Caradog. Forming an alliance with Rhys ap Tewdwr of Deheubarth, recently ousted from his castle by Caradog ap Gruffydd, King of Gwent, Gruffydd returns to Wales with a mercenary force and Irish cavalry.In the meantime, Huw D'Avranches, the Norman Earl of Chester and one of the controllers of the Marches, meets with the aforementioned Trahern, where he offers the backing of William the Conqueror for Trahern to unite Wales, if he agrees to pay homage to the English King. Trahern forms an alliance with Caradog and Meilyr ap Rhiwallon of Powys. All three men are intent on eventually becoming the sole ruler of Wales.The opposing forces do battle at Mynydd Carn.This is the factual premise to a relentlessly action packed and plausible tale where the good guys are very good and the bad guys are very, very bad. All the characters are well developed, the secondary plots are very interesting giving well needed relief at times and much of the despicable behaviour is quite shocking. The battle at Mynydd Carn is very graphic, exciting, gory and convincing and the action doesn't stop there. In the aftermath, we are gifted with a brilliant climax, a George R R Martin style 'Red Wedding', admittedly without a bride!I will certainly be buying 'A Wounded Realm', the next book in the series and may well give his 'Medieval Series' a try.

As a Welsh lady I can't begin to tell you how much I enjoyed this read. I love Welsh history and whilst there is obviously some artistic licence (there were no Kings in Wales there were principalities), on the whole I found it well researched and an easy way to get an understanding of the Welsh infra-structure of the time. Wales was brutal throughout the medieval ages and sadly usually towards each other instead of their common foe, a bit of a gruesome read in parts but probably accurate! The battle scenes were awesome - and I usually skip these bits. Well worth the read and looking forward to the next one!! Thank you K.M.A!

I was about three-quarters of the way through this before I found much to like and I can understand why some readers might give up without finishing this. Fortunately, it is a short novel so I persevered. There are flashes of good writing but some of the dialogue is decidedly wooden and with my history nerd hat on, there were one or two details that I felt belonged to a later time period. I did enjoy the battle scene where Edward Axe Hand emerged from his macabre hiding place but that was a bright moment in an otherwise rather dull narrative. I am as yet undecided as to whether or not I will read the next book in the series.

I certainly enjoyed the book,once I got used to the Welsh places and names,quite a struggle through the centuries with the English.The book flowed And brought the feel of the times Norman conquest- doomsday book times of William the conqueror .☺After reading book1 there was a 👍great deal on Amazon for all three of the books in the series at 99p each,so that was a bonus.I look forward to reading the other two at sometime in the near future,the samples for both storylines of the other books seem to continue in the flow.I find the download samples are well worth having gets one in the swing and pattern and style of the author.☺well worth the buy,good story lines.

It was a good historical tale which I didn't realise until I read the author's note that these events did actually happen, apart from a bit of artistic licence here and there. I found the Welsh names a bit difficult and it took a while to get to know the different characters and get into the story. However, it did gallop along at quite a fast pace and got quite exciting in parts. I think I will have a go at book 2 and see how I get on before recommending to other readers.