Review ~ The Golden Lynx by C P Lesley

Five Directions Press
2nd edition : July 2018
Legends of Five Directions #1

My thanks to the author for my ecopy of
of this book

What's it all about..

Russia, 1534. Elite clans battle for control of the toddler who will become their first tsar, Ivan the Terrible. Amid the chaos and upheaval, a masked man mysteriously appears night after night to aid the desperate people. 

Or is he a man? 

Sixteen-year-old Nasan Kolychev is trapped in a loveless marriage. To escape her misery, she dons boys' clothes and slips away under cover of night to help those in need. She never intends to do more than assist a few souls and give her life purpose. But before long, Nasan finds herself caught up in events that will decide the future of Russia. 

And so, a girl who has become the greatest hero of her time must decide whether to save a baby destined to become the greatest villain of his time.

My thoughts..

My knowledge of this period in world history has been woefully neglected so I came into The Golden Lynch knowing absolutely nothing about the Tatars and the Russians and where they were at this point in their collective history.

The story has a dramatic opening chapter which introduces us to sixteen year old Nasan Kolychev who witnesses a terrible tragedy which, despite her yearning for adventure, will chart the path of her life forever. Terrible consequences arise from this tragedy and Nasan, caught between two worlds has to try and make sense of what is happening around her, especially in light of her loveless marriage to one of her family's enemies. Making sense of the ever changing world around her is important to Nasan and she is something of a feisty heroine especially when her life, by her own choosing starts to become more adventurous. 

The story has a really authentic feel to it and, despite my lack of knowledge about the history of the time, I was very quickly drawn into the whole adventure and, to the author's credit there is a lot of information, but all is easily readable and not at all over complicated.

The Golden Lynx is the start of  a whole series of historical adventures, which I am sure are all  written with this author's enthusiasm and keen eye for historical accuracy.

    

 

About the Author

C. P. Lesley is the author of eight novels, including Legends of the Five Directions (The Golden Lynx, The Winged Horse, The Swan Princess, The Vermilion Bird, and The Shattered Drum), a historical fiction series set in 1530s Russia, during the difficult childhood of Ivan the Terrible. Find out more about her at http://www.cplesley.com.

You can read an interview with the author by clicking here