Longbow

Book 1 of The Saga of Roland Inness series

Roland Inness is a peasant boy with an unusual talent—and a secret. He has learned the art of making a longbow and the skill to use it with deadly accuracy. Why must this be kept secret? The Normans rule England with their armored knights and a well-aimed longbow can pierce that armor. Possession of the weapon is a hanging offense and when Roland takes the wrong deer on the wrong Lord's land he has to flee for his life.

His flight will take him from the high hills of the English midlands to the wild frontier with Wales and on to the court of Richard the Lionheart. Along the way he is hunted by a paid killer, aided by a strange monk named Tuck, and taken in by a gruff Norman knight, who values his skill with the bow. That skill and his courage will be sorely tested as he fights to earn the trust of his new master.

Read more

As King Richard celebrates his coronation, Roland faces old enemies he thought he had left behind and must test his skill at a royal archery tournament against the greatest bowmen in England, to include the favorite, Sir Robin of Loxley.

A mix of history, myth and high adventure, LONGBOW follows the journey of Roland Inness as he seeks to find a place for himself in a restive kingdom and become a man in a brutal age.

Genre
historical fictionfantasyadventurecoming of agehistorical fantasy
Audience
young adult
Length
medium · 251 pages

Click a tag to see books like this one that share it.

Read it? Sign in to help tag it.

Liked Longbow? Here’s where I’d start.

These suit anyone who liked Longbow. Sign in and mark a few books for picks shaped around your own taste.

  1. Hunter of Sherwood: Knight of Shadows Shares historical fiction, robin hood, fantasy
  2. Rise of the Wolf Shares historical fiction, robin hood
  3. The Wolf and the Raven Shares historical fiction, robin hood, adventure
  4. Outlaw Shares historical fiction, robin hood, fantasy

“People who read Longbow tend to reach for these next.”

  1. Hereward
  2. The Furies of Rome
  3. The Devil's Assassin
  4. Beloved Pilgrim

“If you want more of the same (historical fiction), start with these.”

  1. The Fires of Spring
  2. The Emperor's Agent
  3. Street Fighter
  4. The Q

“If it was the robin hood that hooked you, try one of these.”

  1. The Forestwife Trilogy
  2. King's Man
  3. Holy Warrior
  4. The Iron Castle

“These start from a similar idea, even if they go somewhere else with it.”

  1. The Longbow
  2. To Win a Lady's Heart
  3. Medieval Life
  4. Arms and Armor