Title: |
The Wild Huntress |
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Author: |
Emily Lloyd-Jones |
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Category: |
Science Fiction / Fantasy |
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Rating: |
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Date Reviewed: |
July 29, 2025 |
The protagonist of the story is Branwen. She is the daughter of a midwife. The midwife once came to the aid of one of the faerie inhabitants of Annwvyn (the story seems to be set in an alternate world of Wales, which explains the Welsh names. It felt similar to the Chronicles of Prydain by Lloyd Alexander for that reason). An inadvertent result of the midwife's mission of mercy is that her baby girl, Branwen, got a bit of magic faerie oil rubbed into her eye. Mortals normally cannot perceive the faerie folk unless they wish to be seen, but her magic eye allows Branwen to see their traps and monsters and threats. Now grown to a young woman, Branwen makes a meager living hunting the edge of the dangerous forest of Annwvyn - she can survive in the enchanted woods where mortals typically perish. Gwydion is the nephew of King Math in the kingdom of Gwynedd. King Math has no direct heirs, and so he must announce his successor. Gwydion fears that Math will select his older brother, the cruel Amaethon. Gwydion would much rather see his kind sister, Ariarnhod, inherit the throne. He decides to use his network of spies and clever intrigue to ensure that Math makes the right choice. Gwydion has a special magical power - he can control plants. This ability turns out to be more powerful and useful than anyone first suspected. Every fifth year, the faerie king of Annwvyn, king Arawn, calls a Wild Hunt. Whomever collects the most rings in the hunt is granted a boon, which can be any powerful wish that their
heart desires. But the Wild Hunt is a bloody and dangerous event, for it means that mortals must venture into the dangerous enchanted woods of Annwvyn to collect the rings. Gwydion decides that if he can win the Wild
Hunt, his boon will be to make his sister Ariarhod the next ruler of ruler of Dyfed. To aid him, Gwydion hires Branwen, correctly realizing that her hunting skills and magic eye would be an enormous aid in the dangerous wood.
Joining Gwydion and Branwen on the Wild Hunt is Pryderi, a prince of Dyfed with an unusual history. As a babe, an afanc swiped Pryderi and carried him into the enchanted lands, where he was
raised by the monstrous afanc to be cruel and selfish. But a farmer rescues Pryderi and brings him into his mortal household, raising him like his own son. Eventually, King Pwyll discovers that his missing son has been found,
and Pryderi is restored to his rightful place as a prince of Dyfed. But the years spent under the afanc mean that Pryderi is always regarded with suspicion by other members of the court. Pryderi would prefer to return to his
simple life with the farmer and his family.
The Wild Hunt begins. Gwydion, Branwen and Pryderi venture into the woods, searching for the rings. Naturally there are perils and plot twists. Branwen has a pet cat named Palug. The implication is that the cat is in fact a powerful magic-wielding creature, but nothing ever comes of these hints. It felt as if Lloyd-Jones originally anticipated a larger role for Palug in the plot, but his part got edited out in the later drafts. Palug pretty
much remains just a cat throughout. Although The Wild Huntress did not impress me, I am still interested in the other books by Lloyd-Jones. I should read The Bone Houses |
