But what really makes this novel shine is the characterisation. The cruelty of both Wallachian society and the Ottoman world are seen through the eyes of our protagonists – Lada, Radu and Mehmet, but so is the splendor of the era especially when the action moves to the Ottoman court. She also avoids the temptation of getting bogged down in the horrific legend of Vlad the Impaler and instead focuses on a little known aspect of the count’s life – his family, specifically his children. The backdrop of Romania/Hungary and the Ottoman Empire during the late medieval period and the house of Vlad Tepes provides fascinating material for the plot and White does an excellent job of bringing the period to life with her vivid descriptions of both Wallachian and Turkish medieval life. There’s a lot to like about And I Darken. What follows is full of adventure, blood and war as the kids struggle to achieve their ambitions!
Young Mehmet seeks to be a strong and capable sultan like his father Murad. Lada wants Wallachia to be free of the Ottoman yoke while Radu, who has fallen in love with Mehmet, wants to remain with him and devote himself to Islam and Ottoman culture. Though prisoners, they are given a comprehensive education and Radu starts to lean towards Ottoman culture and Islam, while Lada is free to pursue her love of combat and war by training with the Ottoman Janissaries – Turkey’s elite soldiers.īoth children befriend Mehmet II, Murad’s youngest son, and then the adventures really take off as our heroes and heroine juggle their political loyalties to their homelands with their tempestuous friendships. As they grow up, it falls to Lada to stand up for her weaker, younger sibling.Īs their thirteenth birthday looms the children are taken to the court of the Ottoman sultan Murad II and left as hostages to ensure the loyalty of their father, Vlad, and continued vassalage of Wallachia. Her younger brother, Radu, is more sensitive, a schemer and scholar rather than his Xena-like older sister. Lada grows up a wild, tough and headstrong girl with balls of solid steel, a defiant and stubborn attitude and a love of fighting. He has three children: Mircea, the eldest, Lada (Ladislav Dragwlya), his eldest daughter and Radu, his youngest son. Vlad Tepes is vovoide (military governor) of Wallachia, a vassal state of the Ottoman Empire. If you’re an Arya Stark junky yearning for a feisty heroine to fill the gaps between the next Martin novel and the Game of Thrones TV show, then look no further because And I Darken is the answer to your prayers!
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