This is a beautifully written story about Æthelflæd and how she became a beloved leader of the Mercians. When you start with a prologue like this you are instantly drawn into the story.



‘Do not read on if you prefer living quietly by the rules and staying out of trouble. Our lords do not want you to hear this story. It tells of a woman who brought the Angles and Saxons together to create England. Yes, it was a woman. Not a king, nor a warlord, nor a magician. A woman.

There are men who want her story to remain untold so they can take the glory. Have courage. Turn the page. Read the truth.’



This book was written almost like journal entries format which helped with the flow of the story and kept you turning pages. It was really well researched and the battles were written extremely well. We follow Æthelflæd as she has to step up as leader after her husband falls ill to her becoming the queen of Merica bringing up Æthelstan who would go on to become the first king of England.



It tells a story that so many times has tried to be re-written in history to involve men instead of showing the true strength of Æthelflæd and everything she did and how pivotal her decisions were to making England become a reality.



I loved reading this book and will definitely be reading more books by David Stokes.

Brilliantly plotted and hugely entertaining King Alfred's daughter is historical fiction at its best. The author gives us a superbly embroidered medieval fictional tapestry of a period in English history that I personally didn't really know too much about.

The vast ensemble cast is exquisitely drawn and the storyline is magnificently choreographed. It was a little tough at the beginning to get used to the Saxon and early Celtic personal names but I managed to come up with a solution in order to avoid becoming too overwhelmed with the Æthelflæd and other strange looking first names. Then it was smooth sailing all the way through the end!

A really captivating novel that deserves to be discovered and enjoyed without any moderation whatsoever!

Many thanks to The Book Guild and Netgalley for this terrific ARC!

Thanks to Netgalley and The Book Guild for an advance copy of this novel.

Thoroughly enjoyed this one, it was interesting to read kind-of-familiar history and characters with a new energy and focus.

Recommended.

This is a really beautifully written book about the Lady of Mercia, Æthelflæd. I had a vague idea of who she was and got a better sense of her through The Last Kingdom, where I find her character to be fascinating so I was intrigued to read this book.
As expected from the era, Æthelflæd's life is a complicated and cautious one. Very often the chess piece to be moved at others will, she treads a fine line between family and loyalty.
The book is easy to read, almost snippets of journal entries, however if you are brand new to this era of history and are not prepared for the amount of Æthel's you are about to face, then the information lists at the start of the book of invaluable!

This is a brilliant book, highlighting the life of a wonderfully brave woman, who has been largely lost to history until very recently. Thank you to the author for writing her story.

Thank you also to Netgalley for the chance to read and review this ARC.

A phenomenal historical read where the girl finally gets the recognition she deserves. The love my students have mythology is about to get a new addition.

Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC. Im a lover of all history and this was no different! I loved this story. It’s about time a woman got her recognition. And I’m glad her story was told!

I liked this and thought it was very entertaining. I liked the characters and the story line was different and that grabbed my attention. This was very good.
I just reviewed King Alfred's Daughter by David Stokes. #KingAlfredsDaughter #NetGalley
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From her bittersweet relationship with her brother king Edward to raising his shunned oldest son Elthwin, Ethelfut Lady of Mercia definitely paved the path that would bring all of England under one kingdom I truly enjoyed this book and I am definitely going to read another book by David Stokes he has a great readable writing style and definitely seems to have a great grasp on the era and one I would love to explore more. I have read many things about King Alfred and his jerk of a sun king Edward but new next to nothing about ethelfut. The only thing I knew about her was that she married the Danish king who was much older than her so I was so excited to read this book and I’m so glad I did. I love biking in English history and so totally enjoyed this book and highly recommend it. I received this book from NetGalley in the publisher but I am leaving this review voluntarily please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

I was hooked on this novel from the prologue alone, which provided the necessary introductions to the story, while creating a sense of both historical context and immersion.
Aethelflaed was an enjoyable protagonist to share the story with, she is observant, but to the point. The writing style was authentic and the story had great flow and the pacing was perfect, sometimes I find in historical fiction the pacing can be a bit slow, or we spend a lot of time in the characters youth and I get frustrated and bored, this didn’t happen here. Furthermore, Aethelflaeds thoughts and memories were so well described, that at times I thought this would make a really good film or mini-series, as these scenes felt like they were playing out in my head as I read them.
My only (and incredibly minor) issue, is as it is written as a reflection, there was very little opportunity for a twist or surprise in the story, with Aethlflead musing “I would come to regret it in the end” throughout. It was great foreshadowing, but it made the story feel a bit predictable at times.
This book is great for fans of The Last Kingdom and Vikings, an engaging trip through time, told from a feminine perspective. Aethelflaed is so often a footnote in tales from this period, is was satisfying to read about her being the power player that she was. It is clear that this book has been incredibly well researched and it puts forward events of the past in an entertaining and accessible manner.
Thank you NetGalley and The Book Guild Publishing for giving me the opportunity to read and share my thoughts about this book in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this book. I love historical fiction and I am a huge fan of The Last Kingdom. The research was very well done, it was nice to see Æthelflæd's side of things. I am also so glad to have seen the The tv series based around Utrid and her father which allowed the reading to go smoothly for me. It helped me develop better accents to the names in the story as well as being able to pronounce the names without a struggle.

Æthelflæd as a woman her story was overshadowed by the males in her life so it was nice to bring forth the story of a Queen who is often forgotten. Well Done. Unfortunately in history such as these men get away with a lot of things and immediately we see that. Her brother taking away her right to be at her father's funeral by rushing it so he can claim king rights faster and treating her and everyone else as lowly. You can't help but be so angry for the woman in these stories even if they are strong and make history. The fact they went through what they do is terrible.

I thought this was a very well done book and well researched. Having been a big fan of The Last Kingdom it was interesting to read these characters in such a new light. They were mostly very different. I really enjoyed how it was written as it felt like a diary being read aloud so it felt very real. A winner for me I thoroughly enjoyed it and read it very quickly!

An amazing and wonderful story of a woman too often forgotten in the history of her famous father, and the nephew she raised to be the first king of a United England. This isn’t the story of a young woman learning to be a Queen, but a Queen at the heart of an emerging kingdom.