In the much anticipated sequel to Hild, Nicola Griffith's Menewood
transports readers back to seventh-century Britain, a land of rival
kings and religions poised for epochal change.
Hild is no longer the bright child who made a place in Edwin Overking's
court with her seemingly supernatural insight. She is eighteen, honed
and tested, the formidable Lady of Elmet, now building her personal
stronghold in the valley of Menewood.
But Edwin needs his most trusted advisor. Old alliances are fraying.
Younger rivals are snapping at his heels. War is brewing--bitter war,
winter war. Not knowing who to trust, he becomes volatile and
unpredictable. Hild begins to understand the true extent of the chaos
ahead, and now she must navigate the turbulence and fight to protect
both the kingdom and her own people.
Hild will face the losses and devastation of total war, and then she
must find a new strength, the implacable determination to forge a
radically different path for herself and her people. In the valley, her
last redoubt, her community slowly takes root. She trains herself and
her unexpected allies in new ways of thinking as she prepares for one
last wager: risking all on a single throw for a better future...
In the last decade, Hild has become a beloved classic of epic
storytelling. Menewood picks up where that journey left off, and
exceeds it in every way.
