I originally picked this up because I was looking for another self-pub/small-pub historical fiction story, and if there’s one thing I love, it’s a fresh adaptation of a long told story, and what better tale than the Prince of Thieves. The folklore tale of Robin Hood is one of those that I could never get tired of hearing, and much like a lot of other folklore tales such as King Arthur, it has changed dramatically over the years, especially in the modern era. McKay does a fantastic job of researching and it shows by how he takes this story back to its early 15th century ballad roots, as a well written fast paced story that’s chock-full of violence, revenge and devotion. What I do like, is that, unlike most of the portrayal’s in film, where Robin is older, McKay sticks with the original tales with Robin as a young 18 year old man, similar to Otto Bathurst’s version, starring Taron Egerton. Though he also sticks to the truer reality of the times of those late Middle Ages, with a grittier story that feels much more like Ridley Scott’s version, starring Russell Crowe.
This is the type of Robin Hood story the world deserves, it’s gritty, emotional & violent but most importantly, it’s true to the original ballads. The brilliance of this story is, not only the depth of the characters, but also more “accurate” information on them to help cultivate a that depth. Unlike the film adaptations, and more consistent with the early ballads, McKay’s version of Robin Hood was never part of the Crusades, nor a person of any kind of wealth or notoriety, never living in a manor or Castle, but of a commoner, known during those times as a yeoman. It’s a story that shows a more realistic life of a young man who becomes an outlaw known as a wolf’s head for defending his friend, who now roams the forest of Yorkshire, we know is Sherwood, with a group of outlaws out for revenge to clear their names from rich men trying to get richer off the back of the innocent, and becomes a legend in the process.
In McKay’s version, Robin Hood is of Wakefield, Yorkshire, not of Locksley, I found this interesting and after some research, I found that this is the actual accepted birthplace of Robin Hood, based on the dialect of the original ballads, though many places of the area lay claim to him. He is still the same lion-hearted and chivalrous Robin that we all grew up knowing, but with a bit of an edge. At first I thought The Lady Marian wasn’t in the story and was replaced with a new character named Matilda, until I found out that Lady Marian is actually based off a real person, Lady Matilda Fitzwalter, the daughter of the Baron of Essex. Another interesting character change that helps give depth to a character is that of the Sheriff of Nottingham, who will always be Alan Rickman thanks to Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, is typically only called by that, but McKay decided to give him the real name of Sheriff Henry de Faucumberg of Nottingham which is deserved with how prevalent he is to the story and to Robin Hood.
Of course, a Robin Hood story would be incomplete without his band of not so Merry Men outlaws, including the infamous Will Scarlet, who I always see as Christian Slater, also thanks to Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves. His character gets much needed depth with a tragic backstory that makes him much more likable, but also human, as well as being a part of the overarching plot of the story. The enigmatic Friar Tuck is also given a prevalent backstory that helps bring his character more to life and makes him much more interesting. John Little is also a big part of this, though we haven’t really heard much of a backstory with him, I do expect to learn more about this behemoth of a man somewhere in the sequels. Another great part of this, is that McKay brings in a few fresh faces that most of us in the states don’t really know too much about. Much the miller’s son, who has been part of the story since the original ballad’s and Robin’s childhood friend as well as Allan-a-Dale, plus a new face, in the mysterious Matt Groves.
For this being a story told in the third person omniscient narrative, which isn’t usually my favorite style, I thought Nick Ellsworth’s narration was exemplary and provided the perfect story-telling tone that reminded me a bit of Liam Neeson. There is an intense scene around the 60% mark that left me in shock, there is no rape, but there is an attempt. What happened was shocking and then hilarious as I kept reading, I want to say more because it’s a scene that will stay with me forever as the perfect way a rapists should be dealt with. With that said, as any Robin Hood tale is, this was such an exciting journey and only gets better with the way it ends with a fantastic lead up, not a cliff-hanger, that makes me excited for the next book in the quadrilogy, as another Robin Hood villain shows his face to hunt him down.
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