When a young boy is found on a Cornish beach in the year 1085, many of the suspicious locals are all for throwing him back into the sea. But he is saved and brought back to the village only to end up enslaved and in the hands of a villager who has brought pain and suffering to others for a long time. The boy has no recollection of his past save his name – Cedric. A day’s hunting results in Cedric’s escape alongside Beohtel, another slave who has been wrongly accused of murder.
They spend many months hiding and living in the woods until they come to the aid of a merchant and his family being attacked by robbers. Coming before the reeve at Wintancaester, they are released and the merchant, Gilbert, undertakes to have them in his care.
When the name Aelfric is mentioned in conversation, it is the jolt that Cedric’s memory needed. He is the grandson of a famous warrior. It is not long before his existence comes to the attention of the young Prince William, who had been rescued once by Aelfric.
From then on, Cedric’s future is set. He too will be a warrior, a friend of kings, and as time will prove, an enemy too. Cedric is an exciting account of eleventh-century life, and of the many battles Cedric fought, ranging throughout England, Scotland and Wales as well as taking us to Spain where Cedric fights alongside El Cid.
Cedric is a man with a destiny, but where will that destiny take him? A real page-turner, Cedric is an exciting story, and a fascinating insight into those unsettled times.
About the author
Born in London, Paul Miller spent his childhood in rural Kent before moving to the Isle of Wight. He trained as a history teacher, taking up his first post in 1976. For twenty-five years he specialised in bringing history to life through vivid storytelling and historical field trips. Paul retired in 2001 to focus on the writing of historical fiction. His particular passion is for early medieval history.
