Well, this was a lot of bloody, gory, emotional fun. Maybe I don’t mean fun. But despite this not being what I normally read, I really enjoyed Winter Pilgrims, a historical adventure about two ordinary people surviving in England during the War of the Roses, a civil war that raged from 1455 – 1487.
The book starts in 1460 when our main characters, a nun and a monk, are run out of their respective cloisters for angering a blood thirsty lord. This two pair have to make their way in a violent world filled with death, disease, and destruction. The book doesn’t skimp on the dirt and grime in this time period, or the lack of sanitation. Urine is used to clean wounds, and despite urine not actually being sterile, was probably better than most wanter at the time.
Despite the gore and well, Medieval England (plague still regularly makes the rounds, and leprosy, too) there is also a lot of love and friendship explored in the books, which is really what I need to keep reading. I also enjoyed learning about a time period that I know little about. (British readers don’t judge! I know a lot about Medieval China and Japan. Yes, I guess British history might be more relevant to my life today, based on my country’s origins, but there only so many hours in a day. And only so many college credits I wanted to purchase.)
If you like adventure, history, and a cracking good story, I highly recommend Winter Pilgrims. Available on Amazon US, UK, and AU for Kindle, and Canada as Paperback. Also available at GooglePlay and Kobo.