Galloglass

Effie, Wolf, Raven, and Max are faced with their most challenging adventure yet in the third installment of the magical Worldquake series, which Kirkus Reviews calls “tailor-made for Harry Potter’s fans.” Effie Truelove and her school friends Lexy, Wolf, Maximilian, and Raven must put their magical skills to the test. The Diberi, a corrupt organization intent on destroying the world, has returned and has something sinister planned at Midwinter. But during a visit to the Otherworld, Effie is mistaken and imprisoned for being a galloglass—a dangerous, selfish islander. Meanwhile, Lexy is threatened by the vile professor Jupiter Peacock and Wolf embarks on a perilous journey to find his missing sister. And back at school, Neptune the cat is bored. He’s used to lording over the other stray cats, but they’ve all mysteriously vanished. Where could they be—and how will he find them? Can Effie and her friends reunite before their universe ceases to exist?

Effie, Wolf, Raven, and Max are faced with their most challenging adventure yet in the third installment of the magical Worldquake series, which Kirkus Reviews calls “tailor-made for Harry Potter’s fans.” Effie Truelove and her school friends Lexy, Wolf, Maximilian, and Raven must put their magical skills to the test. The Diberi, a corrupt organization intent on destroying the world, has returned and has something sinister planned at Midwinter. But during a visit to the Otherworld, Effie is mistaken and imprisoned for being a galloglass—a dangerous, selfish islander. Meanwhile, Lexy is threatened by the vile professor Jupiter Peacock and Wolf embarks on a perilous journey to find his missing sister. And back at school, Neptune the cat is bored. He’s used to lording over the other stray cats, but they’ve all mysteriously vanished. Where could they be—and how will he find them? Can Effie and her friends reunite before their universe ceases to exist?

Galloglass, from the Gaelic gall_glaigh for 'young foreign warriors', were mercenaries from the Western Isles of Scotland who fought in the retinues of Irish magnates from the mid-13th century until the early 17th century. Without question, galloglass are among the most visually impressive warriors of all time: they were sketched by Albrecht D_rer, were mentioned by Shakespeare, and were discussed with awe and amazement in the correspondence of all the leading Elizabethan soldiers who served in Ireland. Thousands fought in Ireland, and yet so far there has been only one detailed account of the galloglass, and this work concentrates on the clan and family structures of the galloglass, and not their experience as warriors. This book provides the first detailed military history of these fearsome warriors.

This volume contains the proceedings of a recent Edinburgh conference at which scholars discussed the intersection of Scottish and Irish politics and culture in the later Middle Ages. It was a world epitomized by the neglected figure of the galloglass and several of the papers explore the role of these West Highland dynasties and their rapid proliferation throughout Ireland from the late thirteenth century onwards, but the volume also examines the high politics of Scottish royal involvement in Ireland, and the common culture of Gaeldom, particularly as manifested in the corpus of surviving bardic verse. Contributors include: Steve Boardman, David Caldwell, Alison Cathcart, Seán Duffy, David Edwards, Wilson McLeod, Kenneth Nicholls, Alasdair Ross, Katharine Simms, and Alex Woolf.

“This middle grade series starter is tailor-made for Harry Potter’s fans.” —Kirkus Reviews For fans of the Land of Stories and the Wings of Fire Series, this first enchanting adventure from acclaimed novelist Scarlett Thomas is set in a wondrous realm where magic most decidedly exists, a growing evil lurks, and a group of children is destined to save the world. Effie Truelove believes in magic, as does her grandfather Griffin (although he refuses to do any magic, let alone teach Effie how to use it). After a mysterious incident leaves Griffin close to death, Effie is given an unusual silver ring and told she must look after her grandfather’s library of rare and powerful books. But then the books fall into the hands of shady scholar Leonard Levar, and Effie is propelled into the most dangerous adventure of her life. Now, Effie and her friends—nerdy Maximilian, rugby-mad Wolf, helpful Lexy, and eccentric Raven—must discover their true powers if they are to get the books back. And Effie alone will have to travel to the Otherworld, where she will uncover the true meaning of the strange old book called Dragon’s Green…

The brief mention of the galloglas in Shakespeare's Macbeth typifies the attention that this warrior-class has recieved from historians and playwrights alike. This class of mercenary warrior originated in the Hebrides and western isles of Scotland but went on to play an important role in Irish history from the late 13th to 15th century.

Exiles is an epic Irish historical fiction Exiles series. It is set against the backdrop of the Elizabethan wars in Ireland in the 1590s. A world of Irish clans, their politics and the fight for supremacy, where spies and intrigue prosper, where the embers burn for a rebellion against the English crown. If you love fast-paced action and adventure orientated historical fiction, then you will love these books. Buy Exiles box set 1-3 to discover this exciting new series today. This digital box set contains the first, second and third books in the Exiles series. Bad blood ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ "Bad Blood is a fantastic historical fiction novel that does not shy away from the dark complications of the world," - Reedsy Discovery Uprising: two kingdoms, one wedding and the hangman’s noose ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ “a real page-turner that leaves readers wanting more,” “The conflict between the Crown and natives is brilliantly and elaborately written, the characters are rock-solid and relatable, and the plot is twisty as it can get,” – The Book Commentary ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ “This is the second book in the series and like the first one it has a lot of historical events. I enjoy reading stories like this, it is fast paced and adventurous and it holds your attention to the end. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys reading historical fiction,” – Reader review Traitor Maguire ★★★★ “A must read addition to the Exiles series that leaves you wanting more,” "has to be the most exciting of the books so far." - Reedsy Discovery

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ "Bad Blood is a fantastic historical fiction novel that does not shy away from the dark complications of the world," - Reedsy Discovery ★ ★ ★ ★ ⋆ (4.5 stars) “Bad Blood is a riveting page turner with well-developed characters and vivid descriptions, transporting the reader back to a more violent, unsettled time in history,” – The Historical Fiction Company A gripping, fast-paced historical fiction adventure set in rebellious Ireland in the 1590s. Eunan Maguire lives in a small village in Fermanagh. He is mistreated by his parents and then taken to Enniskillen as a hostage to ensure his father’s loyalty. He returns after being trained as a Galloglass warrior to confront his parents and to ensure his father pledges to the prospective new Maguire. But before he can do that the English raid his village, his parents are killed, he flees to save himself, and he blames himself for their death. When he flees he meets Seamus MacSheehy, the head of a wandering band of Galloglass warriors. Seamus listens to his story and encourages him to take his father’s title of the head of the village. Eunan goes to the election of the new leader of the Maguire clan to claim his father’s voting rights. With Seamus’s guidance, he sets out to ingratiate himself with the new Maguire. But all is not well for Eunan is wracked with guilt because of the death of his parents and Seamus is not all he appears. Fermanagh is torn apart by faction fighting and the English invade. He is called to fight for the new Maguire. Will Eunan find out why his parents hated him so much and was it connected to the mysterious circumstances around their death? Will Eunan discover who Seamus MacSheehy really is and why he has taken such an interest in him? Or will the clan fall and perish under the English onslaught? Bad Blood is the first book in the epic Irish historical fiction Exiles series. It is set against the backdrop of the Elizabethan wars in Ireland in the 1590s. A world of Irish clans, their politics and the fight for supremacy, where spies and intrigue prosper, where the embers burn for a rebellion against the English crown. If you love fast-paced action and adventure orientated historical fiction, then you will love this book. Buy Bad Blood to discover this exciting new series today.

In his first work of nonfiction, bestselling novelist James Webb tells the epic story of the Scots-Irish, a people whose lives and worldview were dictated by resistance, conflict, and struggle, and who, in turn, profoundly influenced the social, political, and cultural landscape of America from its beginnings through the present day. More than 27 million Americans today can trace their lineage to the Scots, whose bloodline was stained by centuries of continuous warfare along the border between England and Scotland, and later in the bitter settlements of England’s Ulster Plantation in Northern Ireland. Between 250,000 and 400,000 Scots-Irish migrated to America in the eighteenth century, traveling in groups of families and bringing with them not only long experience as rebels and outcasts but also unparalleled skills as frontiersmen and guerrilla fighters. Their cultural identity reflected acute individualism, dislike of aristocracy and a military tradition, and, over time, the Scots-Irish defined the attitudes and values of the military, of working class America, and even of the peculiarly populist form of American democracy itself. Born Fighting is the first book to chronicle the full journey of this remarkable cultural group, and the profound, but unrecognized, role it has played in the shaping of America. Written with the storytelling verve that has earned his works such acclaim as “captivating . . . unforgettable” (the Wall Street Journal on Lost Soliders), Scots-Irishman James Webb, Vietnam combat veteran and former Naval Secretary, traces the history of his people, beginning nearly two thousand years ago at Hadrian’s Wall, when the nation of Scotland was formed north of the Wall through armed conflict in contrast to England’s formation to the south through commerce and trade. Webb recounts the Scots’ odyssey—their clashes with the English in Scotland and then in Ulster, their retreat from one war-ravaged land to another. Through engrossing chronicles of the challenges the Scots-Irish faced, Webb vividly portrays how they developed the qualities that helped settle the American frontier and define the American character. Born Fighting shows that the Scots-Irish were 40 percent of the Revolutionary War army; they included the pioneers Daniel Boone, Lewis and Clark, Davy Crockett, and Sam Houston; they were the writers Edgar Allan Poe and Mark Twain; and they have given America numerous great military leaders, including Stonewall Jackson, Ulysses S. Grant, Audie Murphy, and George S. Patton, as well as most of the soldiers of the Confederacy (only 5 percent of whom owned slaves, and who fought against what they viewed as an invading army). It illustrates how the Scots-Irish redefined American politics, creating the populist movement and giving the country a dozen presidents, including Andrew Jackson, Teddy Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Ronald Reagan, and Bill Clinton. And it explores how the Scots-Irish culture of isolation, hard luck, stubbornness, and mistrust of the nation’s elite formed and still dominates blue-collar America, the military services, the Bible Belt, and country music. Both a distinguished work of cultural history and a human drama that speaks straight to the heart of contemporary America, Born Fighting reintroduces America to its most powerful, patriotic, and individualistic cultural group—one too often ignored or taken for granted.

A New History of Ireland is the largest scholarly project in modern Irish history. In 9 volumes, it provides a comprehensive new synthesis of modern scholarship on every aspect of Irish history and prehistory, from the earliest geological and archaeological evidence, through the Middle Ages, down to the present day. The third volume opens with a character study of early modern Ireland and a panoramic survey of Ireland in 1534, followed by twelve chapters of narrative history. There are further chapters on the economy, the coinage, languages and literature, and the Irish abroad. Two surveys, `Land and People', c.1600 and c.1685, are included.