In his duology, consisting of 'Sherwood' and 'Robin and the King', Parke Godwin gives us a whole new Robin Hood. A man who, in this second book, initiates the charter which would result in Magna Carta some 150 years later. Unlike other Robin Hood novels, these are set in the period just after William the Conqueror's invasion of England. This Edward of Denby, nicknamed Robin Hood, could very well have been the predecessor of the other(s?) by this (nick)name. Self-proclaimed "conscience" to William the Conqueror, Robin finds himself banned to Normandy and fighting in the war between William and his opponent, the French king. A good, solid historical novel. Fascinating and true to life. Looking for fantasy? Look elsewhere. Looking for good historical fiction? This is it! Not just for Robin Hood fans.

Robin and the King tells of life after Sherwood. It's great. Taking place during the early days of Normans, Robin is a political prisoner assigned to Prince William, or Rossel as he is called throughout the book. Robin helps win the war, but life doesn't go the way he would want. A Great Read.

This version of Robin Hood is set at the time of the Norman Conquest rather than in the time of King Richard the Lion-hearted. The Sheriff of Nottingham is transformed into a Norman knight fighting for his own place in the world. The characters are well-drawn and memorable. I enjoyed the domestic portraits of William the Conqueror and his queen Matilda very much. Marian is no longer a ward of the king but a homeless refugee. Another strong female character, Judith was added. She is Robin Hood's cousin and speaks French and was educated on the Continent. Overall, I can recommend this book if you'd like to read another book about Robin Hood

Parke Godwin is one of our finest writers of historical fiction, and "Sherwood" is one of the two books which firmly cements that reputation (the other being the masterful "Firelord"). This retelling of the Robin Hood legend is a smashing success on virtually every level.

Forget Errol Flynn, green tights, and "Good" King Richard. Godwin, with his characteristically thorough knowledge of historical setting, places his story at the advent of the Norman Conquest, almost a hundred years earlier. The wealth of historical detail provides both form and distinctive flavor to the tale; from the contents of a wayfarer's wallet to Saxon battle tactics, you are there! This works to great effect, and raises both the situational and emotional stakes of the book tremendously; indeed, William the Conqueror and Queen Matilda are characters of considerable importance, and by the end the reader will know them as well as any of the heroes. Godwin's Robin is no laughing adventurer; he is a pragmatic man who believes in simple justice, who is driven to become a hero by his need to protect his people and his refusal to accept laws and edicts "that ent right". Marian, far from a fluttering noblewoman, is strong, competent, loyal, and brave. The words 'loyal' and 'brave' also apply to Robin's nemesis Ralf Fitz-Gerald, the Sheriff of Nottingham, and this is one of the book's most fascinating (and satisfying!) aspects. We watch Ralf's story unfold right along with Robin's, and I found myself developing a real sympathy with this good man who does bad things. Not wishing to spoil the story, I will say no more about plot or characters, except to mention that Godwin's slightly unorthodox takes on other familiar names - Little John, Will Scarlet, Much, Friar Tuck, Alan-a-Dale - are no less riveting than his principals.

This is a perfect blend of historical accuracy and high adventure. Godwin's characters are real people, caught up in extraordinary circumstances and set on paths they never dreamed of. Along the way, there's courage, betrayal, blood, pain, romance, and glory. Read this book, and savor it. The Robin Hood legend might have really started this way; and if it didn't, it should have!

I'm a self admitted Robin Hood fan. For some reason I love everything to do with this legend and Delve into every aspect of it when I find a new story.
This is my favorite fictional version of the legend so far. The characters have very distinct personalities, taking the well known characters in new directions, and the background is very believable. You really feel you are there. Despite bad reviews saying it wasn't "accurate" enough, I say: "It's a STORY!", and a good story at that. Accuracy is not a focus point in fiction, and even with the changes Park Godwin has made to the timeline, the world itself is very accurate.
Overall my favorite character in the story has to be Marion though. Far from the sterotype of damsel in distress that she so often gets shoved into, in this version, she's very self reliant and strong. In the sequel, she even gets to chase off some Normans on her own. Have to love that.

I really wanted to enjoy this book because of the subject matter. This critical time period in British history offers many memorable characters. I did enjoy the story being told through the eyes of the different characters but at times I was very confused about exactly who was related to who and how they were related. A genealogical table would have been very helpful. The writing seemed stilted and the relationship between Harold and Edith didn't seem fleshed out enough. Why exactly did he love her? I found the characters of King Edward and his queen Eada must more interesting. Overall, I enjoyed the book but felt more exposition on the characters would have improved the flow of the story.

I've read all the books I've been able to find on Harold II, and this one was very different and unique. Godwin's use of different narrators was not only surprising, but quite wonderful! Who would have thought to have ever learned Earl Godwin's opinion or heard Eadgytha's or Tostig's side of the tale? This technique was just marvelous! I loved getting into the heads of King Edward and Duke William. The only problem (though minor) that I had with this book was Godwin's version of Harold's famed relationship with Edith. To be perfectly honest, a man of Harold's reputation and power would not have fallen for a plump Plain Jane as Godwin portrayed Edith. He should've made her the gorgeous mate that earned her the title of "Swan-neck." All in all, though, this book is just great.

This is the first Parke Godwin book I've read, and I must say, he is a MASTER novelist. Certain sentences I read over and over, amazed at his ability to convey meaning. Other reviews said the book plodded along at times, but I didn't see that at all. I couldn't put it down. It was fabulous.

If this book had a flaw, I think it would be that the author didn't really recreate the era. A reviewer of a Sharon Kay Penman book once said, "The characters wear 12th century clothes but think 20th century thoughts". I think that sentiment holds true for this book also. Godwin does a fine job in telling us the story, but he doesn't quite capture the age as well as Zoe Oldenbourg (the world is not enough; the cornerstone) or Dorothy Dunnet (King Hereafter). This novel is arguably a better READ, though.

Speaking of Dorothy Dunnet, if you read Lord of Sunset, you should read King Hereafter next. There is considerable overlap between the two books, and many of the same characters.

All in all, this book was great. I couldn't put it down, and didn't want it to end.

A humanist retelling of the story of Beowulf.

This is a decent novel, though not as good as Godwin's more detailed work. It suffers from sticking too closely to the original text: Grendel, an attractive POV character here, dies early, and we skip from Beowulf as an interesting young man to an old one who has come to terms with all the personal issues that made him interesting. A less close adherence to the manuscript might have served the author well.

I didn't find Godwin's conception of Norse deities appealing; they are comic-book figures, with no numinous qualities at all. Boring.

The recasting of myths and legends in humanist terms is a tradition of speculative fiction, and I certainly think it's a valid one. However, I'm a bit tired of characters who constantly question the values and mentalities of their times -- lamenting the cost of being a hero, and so on. I feel that theme's a bit done with, and it lends itself to anachronism. My interest in the character of Beowulf here was tempered by my weariness with the "I don't wanna be a warrior" theme.

I don't entirely understand Godwin's need to insert Christianity into every historical setting.

Despite my quibbles, I think that overall this is an enjoyable book, lighter entertainment than some of Godwin's others but a reasonably good retelling.

I'm not quite sure what to make of this work. It is an adaptation, in novel form, of the epic of Beowulf. It some ways, this works very well, while in others it doesn't work well at all. Parke Godwin specializes in retelling legends (Robin Hood, Arthur, St. Patrick, Beowulf), in a historical context, or at least a more realistic, lucid form then usual.

This book taught me more about the Viking religion of Odinism than I really wanted to know (at least, I think it did, as I have to take the book's word that it is accurately portraying it). It got into Grendel's head, into the dragon's head, into Beowulf's head. While they were all dynamic characters, at times there just wasn't enough. The story would skip forward twenty years, and fill in the intervening, sometimes relevant, events in just a few paragraphs. By the same token, the book would build up to confrontantions, only to have them be extremely short and abbreviated.

Still, Godwin did a masterful job showing us what {he thought} the values of sixth century northlanders were. He also manages to tie in Christian influences, add more depth to power stuggles, politics, and international relations. And the opening sentence says it all, "Before men reasoned such things could not happen, when all men knew they could."

An interesting, at times slightly boring, but ultimately satisfying book, this is worth reading if you can find it.

after reading the original this provided a very interesting view of the story. It facilitates a deeper understanding of the poem by exploring different interepretations than I would have found myself.

My copy of "A Memory of Lions" shows a strong armed young man holding passionately onto the body of a beautiful young woman - the typical cover you'd see in the book section of any drug store. It looked like a romance novel - not my kind of book. However, being a big fan of Parke Godwin, I had to have it. It was a romance- yes. But it was also a mystery. It was a conflict between two cultures (the Norman conquers vs. the Anglo Saxon natives). It was a suspense. The characters were powerful. The images brilliant. It was a great read. My biggest complaint was (beside the cover) the ending. Although it tied up all the loose ends, it seemed as if the author didn't know how else to explain it all the "why"'s. The ending makes sense at the time, but later as you think about it, you can find small little points that do not add up.

I enjoyed this story. It's well paced and well thought out--until the very end. I was reading it on a plane, and I got to the bottom of a page, turned for the next, and hit the back cover! I looked to make sure I hadn't lost a few pages. Nope. That was the end, all right. And it left me totally unsatisfied. It was as if Parke decided that it was time to punch the clock and go home...