Tanzanite's Castle Full of Books

A few years ago I read Sharon Kay Penman’s Welsh Trilogy (Here Be Dragons, Falls the Shadow and The Reckoning) and was mesmerized by two men named Llewelyn as well as the descriptions of the Welsh countryside (and after visiting southern Wales last year I was happy to see that it is indeed as beautiful as I imagined!). In looking for other books about this time period (of which there appear to be few) I found a series of four books written by Edith Pargeter and bought The Brothers of Gwynedd - an 800+ page book that included all four volumes. Feeling that the book lacked the magic of Penman, I quit after 75 pages.


Earlier this year Sourcebooks announced that they would be reissuing The Brothers of Gwynedd and I was contacted about participating in an online summer reading club that would break the book up over 4 months (May through August). Remembering my previous attempt at reading this, I hesitated at accepting. But since about three years had passed, I decided to give it another go. I have mixed feelings about my decision.

The Brothers of Gwynedd is the story of four brothers – grandsons of Llewelyn the Great (from Here Be Dragons) – as they try to hold their country together against efforts by Henry II and his son to subdue them. The Welsh’s greatest problem seems to be themselves – laws that divide land among a man’s heirs have left a large number of small landowners who are more interested in fighting amongst themselves than in forming a united front. It was the dream of Llewelyn the Great to unite them into one Wales and it is a dream that was carried on by his grandson and namesake.

The first book of the quartet, Sunrise in the West, introduces us to the main characters of the conflict and to its background. Narrated by Samson, a clerk in the service of the younger Llewelyn, the story suffers from its limited first person narration and rather sluggish writing style. Although drier than dirt most of the time, I was periodically surprised at sections that were beautifully poetic and lyrical, so I kept going. By the end though, the main thing I found lacking in the story was a sense of passion and purpose on the part of Llewelyn. Samson talks about it, but I never felt it.

This is a story about family loyalty and betrayal. At a time when the bond of brotherhood should have assured Wales of a great future, it instead finds itself headed down a path of jealousy and petty rivalries for which Wales would pay the ultimate price. Although only 185 pages (but with a rather small font and small margins) this is not a book to be read in a couple of days – the political and family situations are complicated and the lengthy sentences are packed with details that require concentration. I found it hard to read more than 10 or 15 pages at a time. But I did finish (at least the first book) this time.

Favorite line:  "And surely Wales is also a woman, being in all things both capricious and durable, tyrannous and lovely, harsh and gentle, wayward and faithful."

For other Summer Reading Club reviews, please see below:

May 17 Reviews


The Burton Review http://www.theburtonreview.com/
The Bibliophilic Book Blog http://www.bibliophilicbookblog.com/
Rundpinne http://www.rundpinne.com/
A Reader's Respite http://readersrespite.blogspot.com/
History Undressed http://www.historyundressed.blogspot.com/
Linda Banche Romance Author http://lindabanche.blogspot.com/
A Hoyden's Look at Literature http://caramellunacy.blogspot.com/
Royal Reviews http://theroyalreviews.blogspot.com/

May 18 Reviews

Between the Pages http://www.betweenthelinesandmore.blogspot.com/
The Broken Teepee http://www.brokenteepee.blogspot.com/
Books and Coffee http://bookswithcoffee.wordpress.com/
Book Girl of Mur-y-Castell http://books-forlife.blogspot.com/
Passages to the Past http://www.passagestothepast.com/
The Book Faery http://tbfreviews.net/
A Girl Walks Into a Bookstore http://agirlwalksintoabookstore.blogspot.com/
Martha's Bookshelf http://marthasbookshelf.blogspot.com/

May 19 Reviews

Beth Fish http://bfishreads.blogspot.com/
Deb's Book Bag http://debsbookbag.blogspot.com/
Book Tumbling http://booktumbling.com/
A Work in Progress http://danitorres.typepad.com/workinprogress/
Stiletto Storytime http://www.stilettostorytime.wordpress.com/
Queen of Happy Endings http://alainereading.blogspot.com/

May 20 Reviews

The Literate Housewife http://literatehousewife.com/
Reading Adventures http://readingadventures.blogspot.com/
Books Like Breathing http://bibliophile23.wordpress.com/
Kailana's Written World http://myreadingbooks.blogspot.com/
Confessions of a Muse in the Fog http://muse-in-the-fog.blogspot.com/
Wendy's Minding Spot http://mindingspot.blogspot.com/
Mrs. Q Book Addict http://web.me.com/quirion
The Life and Lies of a Flying Inanimate Object http://www.haleymathiot.blogspot.com/
Starting Fresh http://startingfresh-gaby317.blogspot.com/

May 21 Reviews

Loving Heart Mommy http://www.lovingheartmommy.com/
Peeking Between the Pages http://peekingbetweenthepages.blogspot.com/
Celtic Lady's Ramblings http://celticladysreviews.blogspot.com/
Bookfoolery http://bookfoolery.blogspot.com/
One Literature Nut http://mjmbecky.blogspot.com/
The Book Tree http://thebooktree.blogspot.com/
My Reading Room http://myreadingroom-crystal.blogspot.com/

May 23 Reviews

Carla Nayland's Blog http://www.carlanayland.org/index.shtml

 
Please note: This review was supposed to be posted yesterday but due to a family situation I’ve been dealing with the last few weeks my reading time has been severely limited. I appreciate Sourcebooks understanding. I also will not be rating this book until the Summer Reading Club is completed.

In case the FTC asks: I now own two copies of this book – the one I bought a few years ago and the ARC Sourcebooks sent to me.  Which one did I read for this review?  I'm not telling.