Longbow Girl

Merry loves her home, Nanteos Farm, in the middle of Wales. It has been in her family for centuries and she is steeped in its history and traditions. Above all there is the tradition that the Owens of Nanteos would always provide an archer skilled in the longbow for the king – or lose their land. Now there is no son, only Merry; she is the Longbow Girl. Nanteos is under threat and attracting the greedy gaze of the de Courcys, their landowning neighbours. Can Merry find a way to save her home?

Though Linda Davies has already made a reputation as a writer of adult thrillers, she is a new talent in writing for a younger audience. She makes the transition with ease. In this time-slip story she marries the past and the present through the character of the lively, headstrong, likeable Merry and the very attractive young James de Courcy. The action is fast paced, though a time-slip will always require a certain level of disbelief to be suspended. The prose throughout is contemporary without being too jarring; the historical background is conveyed through atmosphere and description. While there is an element of romance, the climax is centred on the archery contest in front of Henry VIII, the contest through which Merry’s skill will secure Nanteos in the future – or not.

This is very much in the tradition of the romantic thriller but directed at a younger audience. Competently written and confident, it will certainly attract young readers who will then look forward to Davies’s next book.