Summon the Queen by Jodi McIsaac

Author:Jodi McIsaac [McIsaac, Jodi]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Literature & Fiction, Mythology & Folk Tales, Romance, Fantasy, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Historical, Romantic, Mythology, Fairy Tales
ISBN: 1503942252
Amazon: B01J12TATE
Goodreads: 31548446
Publisher: 47North
Published: 2017-01-16T13:00:00+00:00

The next evening they took a tentative walk through the castle grounds to test Fionn’s strength. He moved gingerly, his upper body swathed in fresh bandages under his léine. But a long rest and a hearty breakfast had restored much of his strength. The story of his remarkable survival had obviously spread, and everywhere they went the O’Donnell men and Granuaile’s sailors gave them dark looks, muttering curses under their breath. Nora tried not to notice, but the skin on the back of her neck prickled.

They sat on an outcropping of rock on the eastern side of the castle, away from the sailors’ frantic activity and frightened glares. The woods near Donegal Castle were still intact, unlike many forests in the rest of Ireland, which had fallen under the English axe. The fields surrounding the castle brimmed with activity as men felled trees and shaped them into planks and masts, mended canvas, and wove thick ropes from hemp strands. Another crew hunted and cooked for the sailors, so as to not deprive the O’Donnells of all their stores. A small brewery had even been set up, though Nora declined to sample its wares, preferring to stick to the tried-and-tested burgundies and clarets the O’Donnells kept stocked in their cellar.

Nora gave Fionn a recap of the conversation at supper the night before.

“Hugh O’Neill is on his way here?” Fionn asked. “That’s very interesting.”

“What do you think it means?”

“I’ve been trying to remember the order of things. The Nine Years’ War starts in 1594. That’s when Red Hugh O’Donnell and Maguire of Fermanagh declare open rebellion against the English. Hugh O’Neill eventually joins them. But the chiefs of Munster would rather die than support O’Neill after what he did to their province. And Red Hugh raids Connacht—he gets the English out, but he’s just as ruthless. So the rebels lose the support of Connacht as well. Most of their men come from Ulster, though some hail from the middle clans like your ancestors in Cavan. But it’s not enough. They need Spain because they don’t have the support of their own people. And when Spain balls up the Battle of Kinsale, we lose.”

“So if O’Neill and O’Donnell weren’t such arseholes, we might stand a better chance,” Nora observed.

“Aye, but it’s too late to do anything about O’Neill. He’s already done his damage. O’Donnell, however, is still just a lad. He might be the one we could influence.” He broke off, looking thoughtful. “He spends several years as a prisoner in Dublin Castle. I sometimes wondered if it was his treatment there that made him such a heartless bastard, or if he was just born that way.”

“When does he go there?”

“I can’t remember,” Fionn said, frowning. “Obviously it hasn’t happened yet.”

“I’d give my right arm for Google right now,” Nora said.

“For what?”

“Google. It’s part of the Internet. We could type in ‘When does Red Hugh O’Donnell get arrested?’ and it would tell us the answer.”

“Sounds like magic.”

“It is.” But there was no Internet here, no library, no historians to consult.

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