Hawksmaid
The Untold Story of Robin Hood and Maid Marian
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5.0 • 1 Rating
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- $4.99
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- $4.99
Publisher Description
Before she was Maid Marian, she was Matty. . . .
Matty has been raised to dance well, embroider exquisitely, and marry nobly. But when Matty's mother is murdered before her very eyes and her father, a nobleman, is reduced to poverty, Matty's life changes.
As the daughter of Nottingham's most famous falconer, she finds a new destiny in the hawks her father keeps. She begins to understand their thoughts and even speak their language. The beautiful merlin Marigold becomes Matty's closest winged companion and her fiercest ally.
It is a treacherous time in England. The sheriff of Nottingham is rising to power, and a true king has been kidnapped. Determined to fight, Matty's friend Fynn becomes Robin Hood. As Maid Marian, Matty joins Fynn and his Merry Men, famously robbing from the rich to give to the poor.
You thought that you knew the legend, but this is the untold story. Bestselling author Kathryn Lasky soars to magnificent new heights here, giving us a bold tale of bravery and romance.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this lively Robin Hood and Maid Marian origin story, tragedy strikes the family of young Matty Fitzwalter when her mother is murdered and her father refuses to ally with the corrupt Prince John. In the wake of this loss, Matty's father trains her as a master falconer, an art for which she demonstrates a natural talent. As political corruption in the region worsens, Matty goes to live with her rebellious friends in the forest to enact civil disobedience and takes a new name, Maid Marian, as does her friend Fynn, who becomes Robin Hood. In the forest, Matty struggles with being a girl in a boys' world, even as she develops romantic feelings for Fynn. But personal transcendence comes through her mystical ability to experience her hawks' senses of sight and sound, as well as communicate with them in their own language. Written in lovely, fluid prose, Lasky (the Guardians of Ga'hoole series) offers an action-filled adventure that has both brains and heart. Ages 10 up.
