I put off reading this for ages. Only because the first few pages didn't grab me. Then, I finally told myself, as a author of medieval books, I must read this. So I did. And it hooked me further in than I would have liked, but I started really enjoying it. And couldn't put it down! So, if that has happened to you, keep going over those first few pages and you'll see it does grab you and hold onto you! I now have his next one to read, Dark Fire.