In the year 1240 AD, the land of Gwynedd Wales found themselves without a leader when their king, Llywelyn the Great, died at a ripe old age.
Welcome to one of the January 12th stops on the blog tour for Princes and Kings by Sydney Williams with Goddess Fish Promotions. Be sure to follow the rest of the tour for spotlights, reviews, author guest posts, and a giveaway! More on that at the end of this post.
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Character Interview with Llywelyn
Q. Tell us something about where you live:
A. I live in Gwynedd Wales in Great Britain in the 13th century. It is cold, and wet. Wales has the most rain for all of Britain. I live in a castle with servants, where the source of heat is a fireplace in every room which the servants keep going all the time to make sure none of us freeze. Beyond the castle there is a small town and beyond that a village that supplies everyone with food. To keep the castle safe from people breaking in there are a number of guards that patrol the grounds dressed in armour and carrying pikes and swords.
Q. Is there anything special about your name? Why do you think you were given that name?
A. I don’t know if there is anything particularly special about my name. I was named after my grandfather, Llywelyn the Great who was ruler here until he died at a ripe old age. Maybe my parents named me after him because they thought I shared some similar characteristics with the old man. I have never asked my parents about it though so I don’t know for sure.
Q. Do you have an occupation? What do you like or dislike about your work?
A. I am a warrior and I am the ruler of Gwynedd Wales. My job is to help keep the people of the land safe from invaders. I love being able to help my people, but having to deal with the small day to day problems of the people can feel a little tedious sometimes.
Q. Who are the special people in your life?
A. I am very close to my family. I always looked up to my grandfather and my father is very like him. My mother is kind and noble and she has always taught me to trust my instincts. I love my younger brothers, Dafydd and Rhodri. Dafydd is very witty and is very mature for his age and Rhodri is sweet. My older brother, Owain, is an interesting person. He is very hot headed and often speaks when it would be better to keep quiet. It is probably because he is so passionate. He has never had any trouble making himself heard. Now my uncle on the other hand, well I wouldn’t say I am close to him. My uncle, Dafydd, is a strange man. I never really know where I stand with him and so I have never been able to trust him. Oh, and I can’t forget my man-servant, Olan. My father found him at an orphanage when he was a child and brought him back to the castle to be my servant and companion. He is my only true friend and I can talk to him about anything and everything. Even things I can’t talk to my family about.
Q. What is your heart’s deepest desire?
A. My heart’s deepest desire is to do the best I can for my family and my people.
Q. What are you most afraid of?
A. I think what I am most afraid of is letting people down.
Q. Do you have a cherished possession?
A. The one possession I cherish above all is my horse, Arling. I found her wondering in the woods when she was no more than a few months old and I took her back to the castle and trained her myself. She has carried me through many battles over the years and is my closest companion next to Olan.
Q. What do you expect the future will hold for you?
A. I don’t know if that is a question I can answer. I am sure i will still be a warrior. I never expected to become the ruler of Gwynedd. Being a warrior has its elements of danger, but being a ruler has even more. The future of any ruler is unknowable. All I can do is do my best to keep from falling into trouble so I can continue to take care of my people to the best of my abilities.
About the Book
Princes and Kings
A Rose in a Thorn Bush Book One
by Sydney Williams
Published 13 August 2021
Tellwell Talent
Genre: Historical Fantasy
Page Count: 180
Add it to your Goodreads TBR!
In the year 1240 AD, the land of Gwynedd Wales found themselves without a leader when their king, Llywelyn the Great, died at a ripe old age. The natural successor to the king was his son Dafydd, who took on the job of ruler after his death. Soon after taking on the job he was forced to sign a treaty with the king of England and send his brother Gruffudd and his nephew Owain to England to be imprisoned in the Tower of London in exchange for keeping his land and title. His other nephew, Llywelyn, became the new head warrior after his father’s imprisonment, travelling the country and patrolling the borders to the north and the south. After four years imprisonment in the Tower of London, Gruffudd died while attempting to escape from his tower cell, and his son Owain was released by the king himself. He wanted Owain to help him start a civil war in Gwynedd. Meanwhile, after finding out about his brother’s death from a letter sent by his nephew Owain, Dafydd declared war on England, prompting Owain to escape Winchester Castle, where he had been recovering from his time in prison to find his brother Llywelyn and help him in the war between England and Gwynedd. During the course of the war, Dafydd was killed in battle, leaving the Welsh army without a leader. Being the brave and noble man that he was, Llywelyn called the men to him and, with his leadership, they managed to send the English packing. With the new weight of responsibility thrust upon his shoulders, Llywelyn rode home at the head of the army to find that his world had changed. Now not only was his father gone but his mother as well, and the land of Gwynedd was once again without a leader. It became clear that the best man for the job was Llywelyn himself, and he decided that there was nothing else to do but become the new ruler. He would do anything to keep his people safe, even if that meant taking on a responsibility that he felt he was too young for. He would never abandon his people for anything and let the English take everything from him.
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Excerpt
Chapter 2: Sanctuary in Flight
The town of Aberfraw Castle in the Valley of Clwyd Snowdonia, Gwynedd, Wales in the year 1240 AD
Feeling the need for a hot bath, and a good meal, he started walking down the hallway towards his room. It had been a hard day, but he didn’t plan to stay at home for long. In the morning, he decided he would head into the Welsh countryside to get away and clear his head. Whenever he was troubled, he would take his horse, Arling, and ride off, he didn’t care where, sometimes for weeks at a time until he felt clear enough in both body and mind to return home once more. He had always found the fresh air a balm to his nerves when he was upset over something that had been said or done that he had no control over. He had learned a long time ago that when he was feeling like blowing up it was better just to leave and go away for a while until he felt like himself again. Owain talked about him being reasonable and diplomatic, but in reality he was just as angry and confused as his brother most of the time. He just chose to take himself away and work through his feelings rather than let them burst out of him in anger at random.
He smiled at the thought of his horse. Arling was his pride and joy. He had raised her from a small filly and had trained her himself. Now she was one of the best warhorses in the land, never shying away from danger, and Llywelyn trusted her to carry him through any battle. She was always a brave companion wherever he went, and he always grateful to have her by his side.
Reaching his bedroom door, Llywelyn opened it and went inside. Sitting by the fire was his man-servant Olan, busy cleaning one of his many surcoats. A smallish man, Olan made up for his lack of height with a muscular body. His short black hair, and deep-set lake blue eyes, seemed to see everything, giving him an-other-worldly appearance. This ability to see through any situation had come in handy more than once over the years. He looked up when the door opened and saw Llywelyn standing there dripping wet from the rain. Upon seeing him, Olan put down the surcoat and stood up, giving him a small bow. Llywelyn smiled at him.“Very funny Olan,” he said. Olan smiled back.
About the Author
Sydney has a big imagination and has been writing and performing from a young age. After going blind from Leukemia at the age of three, she found release from the medical part of her life through her music and her writing. In high school she excelled in English and history and after she left school she continued to write and to create her music. She formed her band, The Undercurrents with her best friend and drummer, Alex Nacci at the age of 22 and has been playing music with the band ever since.
Her book, Princes and Kings, is her first professional novel and it is book one of the historical fiction series she is writing titled, A Rose in A Thorn Bush about the last king of Wales. She was introduced to her main character in high school and with the encouragement of her Business Abilities coach she finely decided to write his story. Splitting the story into three books. Sydney has always enjoyed reading historical fiction and has found it an interesting genre to write in. After her series is finished she plans to continue writing about different historical British characters for as long as she can. Being Welsh on her father’s side and Scottish and English on her mother’s Britain is a place that interests her greatly and she has enjoyed writing about one of its characters. Giving her a chance to explore her heritage in a fun and exciting way and she looks forward to sharing her passion for the genre and the history of the British Isles with the world.
Giveaway Alert!
Sydney Williams will be awarding $15 Amazon or B&N gift card to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.
a Rafflecopter giveaway| Nov 10 | Aubrey Wynne Timeless Love | Nov 17 | Rogue’s Angels |
| Nov 17 | Sadie’s Spotlight | Nov 24 | Literary Gold |
| Dec 1 | Sybrina’s Book Blog | Dec 8 | Gina Rae Mitchell |
| Dec 15 | All the Ups and Downs | Dec 29 | Hope. Dreams. Life… Love |
| Jan 5 | Fabulous and Brunette | Jan 12 | The Avid Reader |
| Jan 12 | Westveil Publishing | Jan 19 | Kit ‘N Kabookle |
| Jan 26 | The Key Of Love | Jan 26 | The Obsessed Reader |
| Feb 2 | Lisa Haselton’s Reviews and Interviews |
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Thanks for hosting!
I like the cover. Looks great. I enjoyed the interview in the post.
I love everything historical, and this sounds like a winner!!
Do you have any favorite musical instruments that you enjoy listening to or playing?
I enjoyed the interview and the excerpt and Princes and Kings sounds like a great book to read! Thanks for sharing it with me and have an awesome weekend!
What is your favorite childhood book?