Unfortunately this wasn’t the genre for me but I wanted to try something new. Despite that this book was well written and was an interesting story. It kept me captivated despite it not being my typical genre. I learned a lot through this book and love that it gave me an education while also being enjoyable.

This was well-researched, with a fiery FMC, and descriptions that draw you right into the center of the story. O'Bryan did an excellent job of bringing the historical setting to life, and I felt like I'd stepped back in time and traveled across the world at the same time. I adore Synne's inner fire and determination to find and rescue her sisters, although I know in reality it might've gotten her into much more trouble than it actually did. She makes some missteps along the way, but it just makes her feel more real. There's plenty of danger, intrigue, allies, backstabbing, and a little romance woven throughout the whole story, and more than just a few secrets. That said, I can't wait to dive into book two!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers (BooksGoSocial) for accepting me for this ARC!

I was immediately drawn into the story, and intrigued by the character Synne. The story is written beautifully (in a way that easily evoked pictures in my head) and it kept my interest throughout.

While I know that it is historical fiction I have to admit that I read it as a Fantasy novel (I am a Fantasy nerd so I cannot turn it off I guess) and I really enjoyed it! However, this means that I am not sure about the historical correctness. So, if that is something you’re looking for I am not the reviewer to enlighten you.

I’m excited to read more!

The story was interesting and moved along well. Synne was a character who was easy to like. I do understand that during this timer period life was rough, however sometimes this seemed a bit grim. I should note that I am not a huge historical fiction reader, but decided to give this a try, so this may have been unique to me.

Thank you Net Galley

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for permitting this book to be a Read Now to help members develop their Feedback Ratio in exchange for an honest review.

Review Summary:
Set directly following the events of the 1066 Battle of Hastings in England this story follows the healer Synne, a recent convert to Christianity from Norse paganism, as she tries to survive the war between the Anglo-Saxons and the Normans. We follow her as she navigates between the different allegiances within the Anglo-Saxon forces who must become allied to face the Norman threat, while also trying to find her missing sisters. A mysterious threat from the Danes also pursues her, a threat she cannot yet explain. All the while she battles with an inappropriate attraction to King Harold's son Magnus. Synne must also avoid being mistaken as a Seer, a talent that many healers including her mother are blessed with but she has not been able to wield herself. If this power does linger within her she must protect herself from exploitation of this ability.
Positives are that I really enjoyed the writing style of this book. It is different to a lot of books I've read recently and I found it refreshing. The world-building captured the time period well and was obviously well researched. There was a captivating story with action from the start and it felt well paced.
The negatives are that the characterisation was a little underdeveloped and the insta-love romance unconvincing.

3 stars for being an engaging start to a planned trilogy with an intriguing story with a well-researched and developed world, but lacking in some characterisation and suffering with a flat romance plot.

FULL REVIEW BELOW. AVAILABLE WITH THE ADDITION OF HIDDEN SPOILERS ON GOODREADS.

World-building:
The world is set in Anglo-Saxon England, a few years after the dissolution of the Danelaw and directly following the death of Harold Godwinson in the Battle of Hastings. His sons, Magnus and Edmund are now faced up against the invading Normans to fight for the throne of England. I have a personal love for this particular time period in History so this was right up my alley. I was really able to envision Anglo-Saxon England through the author's writing, down to the little details such as the floors made of rushes, the tents made of leather, the celebrations of Yule and All Hallows and doors framed with animal skulls. The interactions between the opposing warbands and the politics surrounding the crown felt realistic and the depictions of battle and particularly Synne's role as a healer were really immersive. Synne's treatment as a woman played into this too, particularly in how the men she encountered spoke to her or physically intimidated her.

Characterisation:
This is where I felt the book was let down. The vast majority of the characters felt very one-dimensional and as a result the relationships formed between the characters felt quite stale. Synne is depicted as bolder and braver than the other 'typical' women in her world with a brazen acid tongue. She never allows herself to show fear or weakness and is fiercely loyal. She is a clever tactician and able to analyse situations well or escape tricky situations. However she does not come across as a particularly relatable or likeable character. Her audaciousness rarely gives her a sense of humour or makes her admirable, but instead makes her feel a bit bland. You're also left wondering how she gets away with talking to these powerful, threatening people when she speaks to them so out of turn, or why she pushes her luck so much as a clever person. Her love interest is Magnus, and unfortunately he is very flat. There is maybe one conversation where he shows a sense of humour and the author tries to depict him as more respectful and sensitive towards women than the other men in his proxy, but he ends up just being very boring. So boring in fact their insta-love feels pretty unjustified because they barely interact. The only character that it feels she has a genuine connection with is Ulf, although it is never really explained why he feels as fiercely protective of her as he is. They at least seem to have a somewhat playful relationship while Ulf simultaneously tries to reign in her impulsivity. Villains include Earl Morcam, Earl Edwin's concubine Catheryn and the Norman Duke William's brother Odo. While these characters did create a sense of peril, with scenes involving them genuinely leaving me holding my breath at points, their scenes are quite short and I found myself more curious about the background characters such as Duke William (William the Conqueror), Magnus' brother Edmund or his concubine Elva.

Story:
I loved the story, and I loved that it tried to stay largely historically accurate. Synne's motivations are established very early on, and we watch her navigating trauma and adversity within the first few chapters. We then have The Infiltration trope, one of my guilty pleasures. Lots happens here. We see Synne making some risky choices and agreements and trusting the wrong people, with disastrous consequences. We have the classic forbidden love trope, with some really great angst scenes that would have been fabulous had their relationship been developed better. We have battle scenes, ransoms, fake-outs. But it was all still so well paced despite there being so much action. We also had introductions to the storylines that will be in book two, which I will definitely be reading.

Prose:
The writing style of this book is very different to things I have read recently by trying to capture the medieval, Old English feel while still using modern English. There were a couple of moments that felt a little jarring, namely characters suddenly taking on a more 'common' dialogue reminiscent of modern-day colloquialisms, such as saying 'proper careful' which is reminiscent of Northern accents or 'I guess' which we use a lot in modern language. It just felt out of place when these particular characters had largely spoken in a more archaic style and we hadn't learnt which region the characters were from which could have justified it a little more. This only happened a handful of times so I could see past it pretty easily. There was a few too many mentions of the floor being made of rushes, it started to make me giggle a little. There were also times where characters laughed when I hadn't realised something funny had been said, or when characters would stick their tongues out when I hadn't realised they were having a light-hearted silly interaction. This led into the characterisation issues where I felt some of the personalities of the characters didn't translate very well through their dialogue. Other than that I found it very readable.

This was an interesting and very entertaining read! I loved reading this period of time and I found the mixture of superstitions and Christianity fascinating. It gave a good atmospheric touch to the novel. Synne's character is convincing and I can't wait for the sequel to learn more about her, her hopes and her relationship with Magnus .

The story was interesting enough. Moved along quite well. There were numerous typos. Synne was a character who was easy to like. I realize this is a series but I felt there were questions left regarding Magnus' brother. Thank you Net Galley.

Initially, I found the language a bit stilted and awkward at the start, which made it difficult to fully concentrate. However, O'Bryan discovers their voice as the story goes on, and it becomes a fast-paced, historical adventure with a strong and likeable heroine.

O'Bryan captures the medieval world well, and helps create a vivid picture of the turmoil England was left in after the Battle of Hastings. I recently read a book set in the same period told from one of the male survivors, so it was refreshing and empowering to see it from the point of view of a female with a burning agenda and resolve to get revenge.

The novel was bingeable, had a great plot and set the scene for more to come.

The Rise of Synne by LP O'Bryan was an interesting interpretation of the events surrounding the Battle of Hastings in 1066. The storyline has great potential to develop further as the premise is interesting in itself. The writing style is not my usual taste but I can see how it is more stilted to match the narrative of the times perhaps

Full disclosure, I read this purely as a work of fiction and enjoyed the dynamics between Synne and those she encountered. Synne is a character that is easy to get behind. The writing style is challenging but notsomuch as to detract from the storyline itself

Thank you very much to Netgalley and BooksGoSocial for this interesting ARC. My review is left voluntarily and all opinions are my own

The overall tale of Synne, a healer at the time of William the Conqueror who invaded England in 1066, told of Synne’s quest to find her sisters who had been taken as slaves after their mother had been killed. On her journey, she was acknowledged as a healer and asked to help others around her. She becomes increasingly involved with the politics of the old and new courts and becomes an enemy spy.
The story itself was fine; what I did have a hard time with, however, was the sentence structure-many sentences were short and choppy or relied on cliches and tired words. A strong editor would make this a really good book.

The Rise Of Synne by LP O'bryan is a difficult read. This time period is one of my favorites, so I understand that life can be really harsh. But this book is pretty bleak and really hard to get through.
Thank you to netgalley for the ARC.

This is an interesting story, but it has some glaring historical errors.
First the name Stefan, while Germanic in origin, wasn’t used in England in this period. The Saxons had been Germanic, but they probably would have used the Latin Stephan.
Next, I wonder what the two main characters would be doing, leaving their homes before the Battle of Hastings? I understand the boy would have been called up to the Fyrd, but the girl? If she was there, she would have been in the camp attached to the Fyrd. But refugees leaving their village after the battle? News wouldn’t have traveled so far so fast, and it wasn’t a good idea to leave the protection of your village with armies on the loose.
Then, the chronicles don’t say that the sons of Harold Godwinson were formally married, but they would have had to be available for a dynastic marriage, even in exile. And the chronicles do say the sons of Harold Godwinson went to Ireland after it was clear the battle was lost in England. Not exactly far from Norman dominance.