Rosemary Sutcliff was born in December 1920 in West Clanden, Surrey. With over 40 books to her credit, Rosemary Sutcliff is now universally considered one of the finest writers of historical novels for children. Her first novel, The Queen Elizabeth Story, was published in 1950. In 1972 her book Tristan and Iseult was runner-up for the Carnegie Medal. In 1974 she was highly commended for the Hans Christian Andersen Award and in 1978 Song for a Dark Queen was commended for the Other Award. Rosemary lived for a long time in Arundel, Sussex, with her dogs, and in 1975 she was awarded the OBE for services to Children's Literature.
Whether Sutcliff is calling up the ale houses of Dublin or the battle-torn moors of Scotland, her descriptive language and dialogue transport readers back to a time and place not usually visited in young people's fiction Booklist The late Sutcliffe's take on the legend will appeal to both children and adults ... This is great swashbuckling stuff, full of adventure and romance but with a darker edge than one would expect -- Paul McGarvey South Wales Argus 20070217 Told in magnificent, rolling prose The Times 20070331