Medieval Love and War by Terry Mott-Bellin

King Matthew is kind and generous. However, not everyone loves him: Calibor is King Matthew's enemy and wants to win the Great Sea Kingdom and rule it himself. The Springtide Festival is held annually, and people from miles around come to enjoy a day out. Fifteen-year-old Princess Eden persuades her father to let her participate in The Spring Moon Dance. King Matthew feels his only daughter will be safe with her lady-in-waiting, her tutor, and guards with her. However, when the dance finishes, Eden accepts gifts from the spectators and overlooks Calibor. Calibor is angry that he has been snubbed and commands his sorcerer to put a spell of pox on all the young men! What plans does Calibor have for Princess Eden? What is different about Tomas? Moreover, who do the servants help to seduce Princess Eden? Read Medieval love and War by Terry Mott-Bellin to find the answers.

This book only has one hundred and ninety-seven pages, but by the end of chapter four, more than sixteen main characters have been introduced. I found trying to remember whom everyone was confusing, spoiling the book's flow. There are also many grammar errors. This book needs to be proofread as mistakes like 'beforeheading' would have been picked up if it had.

Despite the errors, I did enjoy this book. It has all the ingredients of an adult fairy tale. King Matthew, adored by his people, has a beautiful daughter who falls in love with a handsome man. And his adversary, the evil Calibor, rules his people with fear and punishments and has a sorcerer to cast horrific spells on anyone in his way. Furthermore, there is a supposed faithful servant working for the other side, a village of little people, and a good witch. I also enjoyed all the pagan references, particularly the handfasting of Maia and Tomas.

I recommend Medieval Love and War by Terry Mott-Bellin to anyone who enjoys romance, good versus evil, or an adult fairy tale. Many medieval words are used, which a historian would also enjoy. Sex is mainly hinted at, but I would not recommend this book to people under sixteen.

I want to give Medieval Love and War 3 out of 5 stars because, although I enjoyed the story, introducing so many characters in the first few chapters confused me. I re-read the first four chapters and made a list of the people, their characteristics, and which of the other characters they knew. Terry Mott-Bellin should add this information at the beginning of the book for readers to refer back to. A map of all the places mentioned in the book would also be helpful. I have reduced the stars because this book has yet to be edited or proofread, and there are errors on most pages. So many mistakes are annoying and spoil the book's flow!

I want to thank Terry Mott-Bellin for a copy of Medieval Love and War in exchange for my honest and impartial review. 

You can see more of my reviews here http://onlinebookclub.org/reviews/by-tara-d-morgan.html