Blood Feud

by Rosemary Sutcliff

After a year of adventure, Thormond Sitricson returns home to Juteland, with his friend and former slave, Jestyn the Englishman, and learns that his father has been killed by two neighboring brothers, against whom he swears the ritual Blood Feud

Genres: Historical Fiction, Young Adult, Fiction, Historical, Adventure, Classics, Childrens

144 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1977

About the author

Rosemary Sutcliff, CBE (1920-1992) was a British novelist, best known as a writer of highly acclaimed historical fiction. Although primarily a children's author, the quality and depth of her writing also appeals to adults. She once commented that she wrote "for children of all ages, from nine to ninety."

Born in West Clandon, Surrey, Sutcliff spent her early youth in Malta and other naval bases where her father was stationed as a naval officer. She contracted Still's Disease when she was very young and was confined to a wheelchair for most of her life. Due to her chronic sickness, she spent the majority of her time with her mother, a tireless storyteller, from whom she learned many of the Celtic and Saxon legends that she would later expand into works of historical fiction. Her early schooling being continually interrupted by moving house and her disabling condition, Sutcliff didn't learn to read until she was nine, and left school at fourteen to enter the Bideford Art School, which she attended for three years, graduating from the General Art Course. She then worked as a painter of miniatures.

Rosemary Sutcliff began her career as a writer in 1950 with The Chronicles of Robin Hood. She found her voice when she wrote The Eagle of the Ninth in 1954. In 1959, she won the Carnegie Medal for The Lantern Bearers and was runner-up in 1972 with Tristan and Iseult. In 1974 she was highly commended for the Hans Christian Andersen Award. Her The Mark of the Horse Lord won the first Phoenix Award in 1985.

Sutcliff lived for many years in Walberton near Arundel, Sussex. In 1975 she was appointed OBE for services to Children's Literature and promoted to CBE in 1992. She wrote incessantly throughout her life, and was still writing on the morning of her death. She never married.

http://us.macmillan.com/author/rosema...

Reviews

[Katie Hanna · Rating 3 out of 5]

short version: my smol gay Viking son deserved better

long version: *cracks knuckles*

This book started out with tremendous potential, but really fell off in the second half. Basically, it's the story of a 10th-century British boy named Jestyn, kidnapped by Viking raiders, who eventually befriends and is freed by his Viking captor, Thormod. Together, Jestyn and Thormod go on an adventure to far-off Constantinople, in search of the guy who killed Thormod's father. (Hence the title, Blood Feud.)

You are, of course, welcome to disagree with my assessment that the attachment between Thormod and Jestyn smacks of a little-more-than-ordinary-brotherly-friendship; but that's how it struck me. I particularly wish to draw my readers' attention to their bond being compared in-canon to that of Achilles and Patroclus; and anyone with a working knowledge of Greek literature knows what that signifies. Sutcliff, for sure, was not blind to the implications of such a reference. In addition--I would be interested in an alternative explanation why Thormod, the allegedly hot-blooded Viking male, evinces ZERO interest in women throughout the ENTIRE narrative. *raises eyebrow*

Be that as it may, whether friends or more than friends, this pairing is built on tropes I can never resist. Jestyn, the over-eager puppy dog who thinks nothing is too good for Thormod, and Thormod, the big, casual, lazy sheepdog who won't let any harm come to his little buddy. And for the first ten chapters or so, I was like, "wOW, I LOVE this." Because it was good!!! After the halfway point, though, the emotional spark between them abruptly died out, their friendship slackened--and then the author randomly killed off Thormod in battle without even giving him a chance to say goodbye. eXcUsE mE wHaT

It was almost like Sutcliff was afraid of where her story was going; so she let it take a nosedive. And I cannot approve of that.

*solemnly shakes head*

We get a female love interest for Jestyn about two-thirds of the way through; not before. The Lady Alexia. While a unique, strong and spirited character in her own right, she just . . . came too late in the book for me to be fully invested in her. :-/ [Seriously, Rosemary Sutcliff, YOU GOTTA STOP DOING THAT, or I will be forced to conclude you simply don't care as much about the women in your stories as you care about the men.] And from my point of view, Alexia never really 'sparks' with Jestyn. I feel like we're just 'expected' to be happy they're together because Thormod is dead now; which--ugh. *sighs* Alsoooooooooooooooo, the way Jestyn describes her to the audience has a heavy touch of "she's not like other girls" syndrome and this Irks Me.

My other big complaint about this story is the way the blood feud plotline is handled. Thormod swears to kill this guy, Jestyn swears to help him, and then they chase him all the way to Constantinople--only to wait yearsssssssssssssss (literal YEARS) before getting down to the actual business of fighting. 'Obstacles' keep coming up to prevent it, over and over; obstacles that feel iNCREDIBLY CONTRIVED. I simply cannot believe that any normal, healthy, Viking warrior would be content with waiting so very long to get revenge on the guy who killed his father. It came across as ludicrously out of character: and boring to read, too, because the main goal of the plot kept being PUT OFF for another day. It honestly felt like Sutcliff was just snatching at any excuse to postpone the fight until Thormod would be dead and Jestyn . . . would decide to forgive the guy, instead of carrying on the feud in his name.

Which is . . . sweet and all? I guess? But unrealistic?

Also, honestly, if somebody was going to change their mind and choose forgiveness rather than vengeance, shouldn't it have been Thormod?

Thormod is the guy whose decisions drive most of this plot in the first place. He's the one who chooses to free Jestyn, to make him his blood-brother; he's the one who chooses to pursue vengeance for his father; he's the one who chooses to take that long, long journey to Constantinople to fulfill it; so it seems to me, Thormod should be the one who chooses to forgo bloodshed and seek peace. It would've been more compelling, at any rate, to me, watching him change that way. CERTAINLY a lot more compelling than him biting the dust in some random battle with nary a final word to say.

so, in conclusion: my smol gay Viking son deserved better *sniffles*

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Delightful novel of two young men [one English, one Viking] who become blood brothers and travel as part of the crew of a Viking ship down the Dnieper to Kiev in Rus, thence to Byzantium when they become part of the newly-formed Varangian Guard to the Byzantine emperor. A blood feud hangs over all. The very poignant story tells us how the blood feud is finally resolved. Sutcliff's usual gentle, sensitive writing brings this era to life with unforgettable characters and the beautiful themes of loyalty and friendship.

[Nick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cracking story, certainly more suited to adults than children. If you like ancient and medieval fiction, then don’t be put off by this as being classified as Junior or YA. Rosemary Sutcliff is a great writer of these periods.

[Dana Robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Adolescent nostalgia read holds up. They don’t write YA like they used to.

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is one of the first books I remember buying, I was younger than ten and it was a library sale, and incredibly magical place in what seemed like a giant hall and books everywhere. Reading it again it's enjoyable enough, and it's good historical fiction for a kid. There's lots of war and blood and bad things happen but nothing too gory or disturbing (and that's a half truth I don't like so much maybe) and never anything like rape. It certainly evokes a sense of the time and the country, with some nostalgia to be sure, but where else would a kid like me have learned that slavery existed in Europe or that the Vikings travelled from their homelands to Britain and back and then down through Kiev and down to Constantinople when they were called in to help the emperor of Byzantium and formed the Varangian Guard...

[Simina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I haven't read Sutcliff in a long time and I kinda forgot her style. Well, this book was perfect to reacquaint me with her writing. It was evocative and dark at times, without ever being really hopeless. I liked her descriptions, as usual. It's strange, because most of her books are set in Britain. In this one, the characters go from England to the northern lands, to Kiev, Thrace and Constantinople, so I would have thought it was a bit outside Sutcliff's comfort zone. Yet each place is brilliantly described, so much so that you become instantly familiar with it. Very few writers have that much power in their descriptions, making the place they are describing become alive before your eyes. Sutcliff is a master at this.

Then there is the plot itself, and the characters, and I like how Sutcliff tackles the traditions of the Vikings, especially since they are told from the point of view of someone who doesn't completely understand them, even though he accepts them. As usual, the road the characters take is not clear, there are many unexpected turns that change their paths, and the clever bit is that they are not overdone or unrealistic. I also liked the ending - I must admit I was beginning to suspect something of the kind, but that does not mean I did not enjoy it.

All in all this was a brilliant and touching story, and it reminded me why I like Sutcliff so much in the first place.

[Allison Tebo · Rating 3 out of 5]

RTC

[Jo · Rating 4 out of 5]

I finished Blood Feud in one big rush whilst in a waiting room (and discovered that my 'holding back tears in public' noise is... weird).

This book is short, and written for children, and marketed as a sort of bromance (though I don't think the term had been coined when it was written), but in actual fact it is a beautiful love story for all ages. The protagonist is Jestyn Englishman, and his best friend love of his life, Thormod Sitricson, a Viking. Now, I know there will be people rolling their eyes at that, and grumbling under their breath about the misappropriation of nautical terms to refer to imagined gay relationships, but this isn't shipping. These two are in real love.

The copy I have has them gazing fondly at each other on the cover. But that's only my very first piece of evidence. This is the first time they meet:

"...I looked round quickly, and saw him, real among all the rest who were only shadows." (p15)

It's basically love at first sight for Jestyn, who promptly goes about risking his life for, getting into fights alongside and generally doting on his Viking like a rescued puppy:

"I had thought that he looked at me as a man looks at a man, [but] he had whistled me to heel like a hound; and like a hound, I had followed...I knew that I could live as a thrall so long as I was Thormod's, but to be anybody else's would be beyond bearing." (p20)

In case the more generalised gooning didn't make it clear enough, Jestyn regales the reader regularly with his work-in-progress, 'The Ballad of Thormod's Shoulders'.

"I felt Thormod's shoulder where mine pressed against it..."(p22)
"...it was not the thrall-ring that mattered to me most, but suddenly and warmly, the remembered feel of Thormod's shoulder against mine, mine against Thormod's, in the dark wynd." (p24)
"...on the way down again, we walked side by side, shoulder brushing shoulder in the narrow ways..." (p27)

I could go on. Even the blurb for the book states that Jestyn becomes Thormod's 'shoulder to shoulder man'. Indeed. Now, it's possible that I love this book so much because I can relate to it, a little. I, too, have a Viking that I adore (though he's a bit more into musicals than carousing and he didn't so much... buy me as a slave as acquiesce to being swooned over) and I do daydream about being pressed against him quite a lot. I did wonder, therefore, if I was just getting carried away; and then came the line that made me think Sutcliff was totally on my side.

"And so, [she said] for you too, there was a Patroclus." (p132)

Aside from the sweeping romance, the two of them go to war, sort out the feud of the title, and have some other, smaller, adventures, which are simple but engaging, and the supporting characters that turn up are likeable, if not hugely fleshed out. The setting is deftly realised, too; none of that awful info-dumping that I hate so much. I'll definitely be seeking out Sutcliff's other works.

In conclusion: they loved each other, and I loved this book. Thanks Dan!

I recommend it to all of you, now! It's short, and easy to read, but still moving and evocative and lovely. And not as harrowing as Vikings.

[Meredith · Rating 2 out of 5]

Upon the death of his mother, 12 year-old Jestyn is cast out by his step-father. He wanders to a coastal Saxon community where he is taken on as a cattle-herd by the local chieftain. He spends the next five years fairly comfortably until he is abducted by a group of raiding Vikings who sell him at the Dublin slave market. Thormod, a Viking stationed at the local garrison, buys Jestyn on a whim for six gold pieces and a wolfskin cloak.

Jestyn and Thormod form a bond, cemented by an act of loyalty exceeding that of a thrall, and when Thormod sails for Scandinavia in the spring, he frees Jestyn who accompanies him. Their relationship is a mixture of bromance and sibling. There may or may not be some sexual undertones to Jestyn's feelings for Thormod, but I interpreted them as being that Thormod was the only person since his mother whom Jestyn had found to love or to whom felt any connection. As someone who was very aloof, and often an outsider, Jestyn formed very few attachments. His only friendship during his time in the Saxon community with one of the herding dogs. His relationship with Thormod fulfilled a deep need for human contact.

Thormod arrives home only to discover his father had been recently murdered by the sons of a neighboring family. He swears vengeance, vowing to follow his father's killers all the way to Constantinople if need be. Jestyn cannot bear to be parted from Thormod and takes up the blood feud on his behalf. Together they sail to Kiev and then Constantinople where the feud is finally ended and where Jestyn gets an extremely unlikely happily ever after.

The writing is excellent as Sutcliff's writing always is. She also does a good job of explaining the rationale for a blood feud that makes it seem perfectly reasonable for the parties involved instead of ignorant and barbaric. The beginning of the book really draws the reader in. However, once the story reached Constantinople, I found the plot to be far-fetched and particularly weak.

The story fell flat for me when Jestyn remained in Constantinople and trained to be a doctor. I like there to be a happy ending but not one beyond all reason. In The Witch's Brat by Rosemary Sutcliff, Lovel becoming a doctor made sense within the story. He was raised by a grandmother who was a practicing herbalist. When he entered the monastery, his first obedience was to assist the brother who tended the medicinal herb garden. He then served in the monastery's infirmary in an increasingly greater capacity. But Jestyn's progression from cattle-herd to oarsman to mercenary soldier to assistant wound dresser to physician is illogical.

I would have preferred a more probable ending such as Jestyn going back Thormod's family's compound in Scandinavia -- or Kievan Rus' -- and returning animal husbandry or entering a different but more likely trade. Even if he'd stayed in Byzantium and worked as a laborer at Demetriades' farm, the ending would have been more satisfying. It made no sense that Demetriades the Physician would be so willing to take Jestyn into his household let alone train him in medicine. Then within a year, Jestyn is reading Homer in the original Greek as well as scholarly books on medicine. Since Jestyn was raised bilingual in English and Saxon, I accepted that he could pick up Norse and then solider's Greek, but having an illiterate man being able to read Greek in just over a year's part-time is too much even for me.

I was delighted by the cameo by Vladimir the Great. As an ethnic Slav and Orthodox Christian, I found his portrayal to be spot on. He was a man who was both terrible and magnificent, of the old gods and the new. He was a man who makes his own rules as well as a brutal, shrewd, and charismatic military leader. I loved that the author held true to the traditional story behind Vladimir's conversation to Christianity, explaining that he abandoned paganism as backward and embraced one of the up-and-coming monotheistic religions to elevate his kingdom. The reason Prince Vladimir chose Orthodoxy over Islam was as simple as "... a faith which forbids a man his drink is clearly no faith for the Northmen." The author does, however, overplay the Scandinavian portion in the population and downplay the native tribal peoples living around Kievan Rus in my estimation, but that's with sticking to the Slavs' own story of their bloodline, which may not be historical accurate.

[Isis · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book about a man and the slave he becomes BFF with and frees so they can go on a quest to an unfamiliar land to resolve the unfinished business due to the man's father; also, there is a leg injury, and a girl who is pretty much peripheral to the story but ends up marrying the protagonist. Sound familiar?

Okay, this is set roughly 800 years after The Eagle Of The Ninth, and it's the story of 'Esca' rather than of 'Marcus', but wow, the similarities really bopped me in the nose. And yeah, I enjoyed both books quite a lot.

[The Idle Woman · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a review, please see my blog:
https://theidlewoman.net/2016/07/27/b...

[Madeline W. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Blood Feud is a story that centers around two men, Jestyn the Englishman and Thormond the Viking, who, after taking a blood pact, are locked in a feud with two brothers. Jestyn is a former slave to Thormond who became free after saving Thormond’s life. Thormond is a Viking who loves to wander with no real purpose in life until his father is murdered. This event starts the blood feud. We follow Jestyn and Thormond as they travel the seas, fight in wars, and attempt to settle the feud together, all in the backdrop of Kiev and surrounding areas in the first century A.D.

Having not enjoyed my first Rosemary Sutcliff read (The Eagle of the Ninth), I was surprised that I enjoyed this one. I especially liked how unpredictable and engaging the plotline was. For example, I was not expecting Jestyn to eat the meat off of his beloved dog, but he did, only to throw it all up. The amount of violence and action was not off-putting, but could be considered a little excessive for a children’s book. I also appreciated the character development, especially in Jestyn. We are able to see him go from cattleman, to slave, to soldier, and finally to healer. The plot wrapped up nicely in the end and I was satisfied as I read the last of the story. Solid 4.5/5 stars.

To access this book fully, it would be helpful for a student to have some knowledge of the Vikings, their culture, and the historical events happening in the late first century. While this is not necessary for the enjoyment of the book, it would allow the reader to understand the more politically driven scenes and plot points near the middle of the story. For example, it would be helpful for a student to know who Khan Vladimir and Vanguard were so they knew how important and honorable this experience was for Thormond and Jestyn. Not well-versed in this history myself, I was still able to understand and enjoy the story without the background knowledge but knowing these things would grant the reader more understanding and appreciation for the entire plot.

This book would add great value to a Humane Letters/ELA classroom as it would allow students to discuss themes such as the importance of promises, the moral dilemma of keeping a promise or doing what is right, and the struggle to find purpose in life. Should Jestyn have killed Anders to keep his blood promise to Thormond, or was he right to try to save his life when he was already dying? How far would you go to uphold a promise to someone? How was Jestyn able to find his purpose in life and why did it take him so long? Students would be able to discuss these topics through the lens of this Viking story and see the timeless themes presented in their own lives.

[Helena George · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is probably my second favorite Rosemary Sutcliff book (The Eagle of the Ninth will always be the BEST), though, because of the small size of my paperback copy, it is the one I take with my everywhere. It's the one I read because I have little favorite parts, because I love the characters, because I love the story itself.

I don't even know exactly what it is about this book that I like, quite frankly. Just something, when I'm done reading it, makes me go "Yeah....that was good."

It's fairly clean, though maybe a touch gruesome in a few descriptions. But those were darker times, and also, when you're a healer, sometimes you have to deal with nasty stuff. But if you love stories of friendship, of adventure, of Vikings, of revenge, this...this is a good one. :)

[Barbara Lennox · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yet another excellent Rosemary Sutcliff book with an interesting setting.

[Joan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is far from the best of Sutcliff's books. However, her worst would be better than many people's best and this is not her worst either. Jestyn Englishman as he became known, wandered from England to Constantinople via the Norsemen. I'm not sure why she started her character in England other than that being her country so it seemed like a good starting place. Sutcliff always has more than merely a good story going. This one explores the changing times and customs from one religion to a newer religion. Jestyn pledges loyalty to his Viking friend Thurmond, as a blood brother. Yet, ultimately, he had to be true to the standards of the "White Kristi", his childhood religion. He did keep faith until it came to the final decision, the final avengement. Sutcliff manages to draw a basic sketch of three different civilizations in this thin book. I cannot really think of a true successor to Sutcliff for children. We have writers who have done a very good job, but none quite as special as Sutcliff. Patricia Beatty came close but she concentrated mostly on Californian history. Sutcliff wrote a much greater variety of historical fiction I believe. One of the choices that made this book unusual was Sutcliff's decision to place a story of Vikings when they went east, not west to England and down western Europe. Instead we go through Kiev and end up in Constantinople. We badly need more books like this in today's multicultural world. It is interesting that the need is met by a writer dead now for several decades. Recommended, if only to keep a talented writer from being lost among the onslaught of today's writers.

[Sineala · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wasn't expecting to like this one as much as I did -- after all, it isn't about Romans, and clearly I like the ones about Romans best -- but it is, surprisingly, really really good, and I will happily recommend it to anyone who wants a YA book about vikings.

It's the tale of Jestyn Englishman, a shepherd who ends up sold as a slave in Dublin to Thormod Sitricson; they become friends, they fight at each other's side, and Jestyn becomes caught up in the blood feud for Thormod's father, a quest that takes them to Kiev and Constantinople. (Yep, it's a story about the Varangian Guard! When you think "vikings" this is probably not the viking story you are expecting.)

The characters are nicely drawn, and Jestyn in particular makes a great narrator. I am also very fond of his relationship with Thormod -- although later his relationships with Anders and Alexia become very interesting as well.

There's a lot of character death, but for all that, it's not actually a depressing novel, and I'm really glad I read it. Yay vikings! Yay Constantinople!

[Katy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although often thought of as a children's writer, Rosemary Sutcliff is a talented author of historical novels that have engendered a love of history in many students and adults. She writes of Roman Britain, of the Norsemen who raided the British Isles, of the Celtic people and tribes, and although her characters are fictional the facts of history are real. Her vocabulary and her story telling give the reader a sense of place, of people, and the conflicts that evolved into the culture of Anglo Saxon Britain. As an elementary school librarian, I read half a dozen of her novels. I enthusiastically recommended them to all my students who were interested in history. Blood Feud is another of her excellent stories, this one dealing with the Vikings.

[Maggie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb fiction. Exciting, fascinating, and thought-provoking. Rosemary Sutcliff's work stands the test of time. She set the bar high for all the writers of children's historical fiction who followed her. Note: this is written at a higher reading level than many children's/young adult novels, and in addition, because it is older, the style is different than what many kids today are used to. However, the "right" child reader will love it.

[Emily Boegheim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Blood Feud was the first Rosemary Sutcliff book I read, back in my teens, and since then it's become overshadowed in my mind by her other, more famous works. Rereading it as adult, I was a little surprised to find the story stronger than I recalled. Short, bloody, ambivalent, with a bittersweet tang.

[Doodles McC · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good history book for young girls. I loved Sutcliff's historical novels as a child and young teenager, she was one of my favourite authors. I am not going review them all individually because all her books are good. If your looking for children's historical novels, just start at the beginning of her books and read them all. This is how I learned British history.

[Gloria · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another piece of great historical fiction from Rosemary Sutcliff, and a great period of time.

My only other comment, which is more personal: when I finished the book, I thought, had I read this before? the ending scenario seems very very familiar.....

Ah to be at the point in life....

[Maureen E · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my favorite Sutcliff books. The story of Jestyn the Englishman, who seemed destined to be a cowherd all his life, but who winds up in the first Varangian guard of the Byzantine Emperor’s. It’s also a story about friendship and loyalty.

[Ray Doraisamy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I forgot how formative this book was until I stumbled across a reference, recently. I don't think I would have the preferences I have without it. It was what most young adult books scarcely ever are: honest.

[Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story of a Viking’s slave whose loyalty to his master leads him on many dangerous adventures and leaves him a blood feud.
As usual, Sutcliffe is so good you can practically feel the spray from the sea.

[Nicky · Rating 4 out of 5]

I barely remember the plot, but I remember loving it. Rosemary Sutcliff's books are always rich with detail.

[Rob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great story. Geared for young adult, but very enjoyable nonetheless. Great ending (won't spoil it :-)).

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

The other of my top 2 favorite books as a child between the ages of 7 & 10. It will always have a special place in my heart.

[Wayne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Solid viking novel from Rosemary,once again about one of her strongest themes friendship.

[Roswitha · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was definitely sub-par for Sutcliff. The beautiful language was still there, the vivid descriptions and immersion into a historical time and place, but she didn't quite manage to pull together the whole package. The primary plot of the story hinged upon the relationship built between two characters, but the author couldn't quite "sell" it. The characters all through the book remained rather flat. Still better than most 21st century YA literature, but much below the best work of this gifted lady.

[Sarah]

Interesting historical fiction book, but not a stand out favourite of Sutcliff’s works.