I'm going to simply start off by saying this was incredible! This refreshing and unique take on the tale of Robin Hood had me gripped to every single page. I love when an author can take a time-honored tale and truly make it her own, telling it in a way that hearkens enough to the original legend but has enough new layers to tell a new story. The layers that J. Tullos Hennig has added here are indeed many, but they also feel very natural to the story. There's almost an air of realism to this fantasy and even an element of historical fiction through the portrayal of religion and the quest of zealous Christians to stamp out anything they view as "pagan" or "evil". It's also a true coming-of-age tale for both Robyn and Gamelyn (and, of course, Marion, too, though we don't quite see as much of her here). The only disappointments I have are that I let this sit on my shelf for so long before reading it and the fact that I don't have the sequel at hand to pick it up and start in on it immediately. Definitely one of the best fantasy novels I've read in some time and certainly one of the better books I've read recently overall. Very highly recommended! ( )

The author is very talented. She created a very believable earthy-druidic-idealistic tale of the life before the legend of Robin Hood.

It would be an easy 5-star, but at times I felt like it dipped into Harlequin Romance novel territory. ( )