The Wild Irish: A Novel of Elizabeth I and the Pirate O'Malley

Front Cover
Harper Collins, Oct 13, 2009 - Fiction - 402 pages

Two female titans -- perfectly matched in guts, guile, and political genius.

Elizabeth, queen of England, has taken on the mighty Spanish Armada and, in a stunning sea battle, vanquished it. But her troubles are far from over. Just across the western channel, her colony Ireland is embroiled in seething rebellion, with the island's fierce, untamed clan chieftains and their "wild Irish" followers refusing to bow to their English oppressors.

Grace O'Malley -- notorious pirate, gunrunner, and "Mother of the Irish Rebellion" -- is at the heart of the conflict. For years, she has fought against the English stranglehold on her beloved country. At the height of the uprising Grace takes an outrageous risk, sailing up the Thames to London for a face-to-face showdown with her nemesis, the queen of England.

In this "enthralling historical fiction" (Publishers Weekly), Robin Maxwell masterfully brings to life these strong and pugnacious women in order to tell the little-known but crucial saga of Elizabeth's Irish war.

From inside the book

Contents

Section 1
3
Section 2
5
Section 3
30
Section 4
33
Section 5
115
Section 6
159
Section 7
187
Section 8
199
Section 15
276
Section 16
285
Section 17
291
Section 18
305
Section 19
307
Section 20
312
Section 21
323
Section 22
329

Section 9
207
Section 10
216
Section 11
227
Section 12
246
Section 13
249
Section 14
252
Section 23
351
Section 24
356
Section 25
371
Section 26
377
Copyright

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Popular passages

Page 328 - ... reason, why was not the action undertaken when the army was in better state ? if winter's approach, why were the summer months of July and August lost? if the spring were too soon, and the summer that followed otherwise spent ? if the harvest that succeeded were so neglected as nothing hath been done, then surely we must conclude that none of the four quarters of the year will be in season for you and that Council to agree of Tyrone's prosecution, for which all our charge is intended.
Page 258 - Nay more; when the vilest of all indignities are done unto me, doth religion enforce me to sue ? or doth God require it ? Is it impiety not to do it? What, cannot princes err? cannot subjects receive wrong ? Is an earthly power or authority infinite ? Pardon me, pardon me, my good lord, I can never subscribe to these principles.
Page 328 - If sickness of the army be the reason, why was not the action undertaken when the army was in better state ? if winter's approach, why were the summer months of July and August lost ? if the spring were too soon, and the summer that followed otherwise spent ? if the harvest that succeeded were so neglected, as nothing hath been done, then surely we must conclude that none of the four quarters of the year will be in season for you...
Page 279 - I see, let me plead in any form, it is in vain. I must save myself by protestation that it is not Tyrone and the Irish rebellion that amazeth me, but to see myself...
Page 191 - Thus as he spoke, lo ! with outrageous cry, A thousand villains round about them swarmed Out of the rocks and caves adjoining nigh ; Vile caitiff wretches, ragged, rude, deformed, All threatening death, all in strange manner armed ; Some with unwieldy clubs, some with long spears, Some rusty knives, some staves in fire warmed : Stem was their look ; like wild amazed steera, Staring with hollow eyes and stiff upstanding hairs.
Page 241 - Bloodthirsty and deceitful men shall not live out half their days.
Page 240 - And there was not a thing in the world he could do to prevent the coming disaster.
Page 6 - He was Master of the Horse, a Knight of the Garter, and Elizabeth's undisputed favorite.
Page 113 - He pushed his spectacles back up on the bridge of his nose and skewered a passage in the law book with his finger. "If one or more — " "Francis, I need to discuss the Farm of Sweet Wines with you.

About the author (2009)

Robin Maxwell is the acclaimed author of The Wild Irish, The Secret Diary of Anne Boleyn, The Queen's Bastard, and Virgin: Prelude to the Throne. She lives in Pioneertown, California.

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