Merciless: A Medieval Romance

Age of Conquest, Book 1

By: Tamara Leigh

Narrated by: Mary Sarah Agliotta

Length: 12 hrs and 31 mins

Publisher's summary

The Wulfriths. It all began with a woman.

A battle. A crown. The conqueror. The conquered. Medieval England - forever changed by the Battle of Hastings. And the rise of the formidable Wulfriths.

An honorable Norman

Chevalier Cyr D’Argent convinced himself he joined Duke William’s invasion of England to reform its church and place its rightful king on the throne. But after a decisive Norman victory, the truth of his quest is revealed when his search for fallen kin leads to a Saxon grieving a boy slain by one of his own. Certain the defiant young woman will become the pick of the plunder, he forces her off the battlefield. Following a pilgrimage of penance, Cyr returns to England to seek his missing brother and claim the barony awarded by King William who stipulates he end the rebellion on his lands. He agrees, only to discover the woman he cannot forget is among those he must vanquish - and may even be their leader.

A rebellious Saxon

On a fateful autumn day in 1066, Aelfled of Wulfen’s mistake leads to the death of her lady’s son. Unforgivable - as is the silver-haired warrior who tempts her to put a blade in his back then does the unthinkable in protecting her from his fellow Normans. Now under the usurper’s rule, faith crippled by her people’s suffering, she finds her sanctuary threatened when she becomes a pawn of the rebel leader - and destroyed when betrayal delivers her into the hands of the man who haunts her dreams. As the fires of unrest scorch lives and lands, Aelfled struggles to shield her heart as well as her people. But perhaps love can unite Normans and Saxons. Perhaps she is meant to be here...with him...for such a time as this.

Thus begins the Age of Conquest series revealing the origins of the Wulfriths of the best-selling Age of Faith series. Look out for Fearless: Book 2 in 2019.

©2018 Tammy Schmanski (P)2018 Tammy Schmanski

Strange and lack of character development

I usually love tamera Leigh books but this story was hard for me to listen to. It started out interesting on the battlefield but if you are expecting the degree of depth of story and character development the Age of Faith stories had this is not it. I was extremely disappointed.

Exceptional

As with her previous books I was captivated beginning to end. Love of the Lord.

Love this author and narrator!!

I just love Tamara’s medieval books and this one is no exception!! The characters of Cyr and Aelfled were compelling, honorable, and very likable! The narrator was incredible!! Mary Sarah Agliotta did an amazing job with all of the voices and her accent put me in the middle of the action!

Not what was expected, nor liked.

I was chomping at the bit to get background on the mighty Wulfrith family, whom I've followed throughout the first eight audiobooks ("Age of Faith"). But instead of a tightly woven story with great character development and notable conversation between characters, I got a history lesson. I felt like I was back in elementary school. And, although the history was intriguing, it completely over ran everything else. It was tough to finish it and I actually skipped sections, because I was bored to tears. What happened? This writer is incredible, but this book is not one I will listen to over and over, like previous books. Absolute drudgery, but it didn't have to be that way. By the by, I must give the narrator five stars, because she was "par excellente."

Excellent

However this being the first book of this prequel series it was very confusing the first time I read and even audio it.
But if you read or listen to lady of conquest first and or fearless first, then come back to this book Merciless, then it all makes sense.

Love this story and the wulfrith series!

You feel like you could walk around the characters & see everything that’s happening.

I love history, and although this is a work of fiction. It fits perfectly into the time. Every part of the story was so well thought out, down to every detail, you can see it clearly in your mind. Really great read!

Merciless - great book

Enjoyed Merciless. I enjoy following book in kindle with audible. I have the faith series which I read/listen to every year. I enjoy the voice of Mary Sarah Agliotta. It's like being transported back k in time. Tamara Leigh is one of my favorite authors. On to book 2.

Wonderfully written

I have to admit I’m partial to Tamara Leigh but I loved this story. At times you want to cry with the characters and definitely had me laughing out loud at some of the wit but loved this book. The narrator is as usual one of my favorites. I love how they compliment each other.

Horrible narration

I’ve never heard anything like it. It was like listening to a fairytale told to a two year old. The storyline was decent enough and I’d love to hear the rest of the series , but with a different narrator.

Perfect

The narrator was perfect as always; perfect with differentiating characters, perfect with tones and emotions and perfect for this author and storyteller. I have read, re-read and enjoyed every book Tamara Leigh has written. I would not spoil any reader's journey by telling any of the story but know that the adventure is worth it.

Great book

Big fan of Tamara Leigh here. I recommend to read the Age of faith before since this series tackles the origins of the Wulfriths. Such well written details! also Lady of Conquest is happening in parallel and those characters are hinted here and appear in Fearless too. of course, it can be read as a standalone book, but it would be such a pity to miss all the connections. Also I loved the French accent of the narrator!

Distractingly bad accent

The story itself is probably quite good but the English accent is so bad it is very distracting.
Some words are pronounced in such a ridiculous way it’s almost difficult to understand.