River God

Life in an Irish village during the turbulent early 11th century is not easy for anyone. It is even harder for a boy that is branded a fool. Balor, the son of a blacksmith is one such fool. His father is ashamed of him and despises him for being a weakling. His mother is too busy caring for and spoiling his frail younger sister to see to his needs. His cosseted sister grows into a nasty malicious girl who fuels the perception that he is worthy of his unwarranted title.Without parental...
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Life in an Irish village during the turbulent early 11th century is not easy for anyone. It is even harder for a boy that is branded a fool. Balor, the son of a blacksmith is one such fool. His father is ashamed of him and despises him for being a weakling. His mother is too busy caring for and spoiling his frail younger sister to see to his needs. His cosseted sister grows into a nasty malicious girl who fuels the perception that he is worthy of his unwarranted title.Without parental or sibling support, Balor finds solace swimming in the river. Little does he realise that it will become be his salvation from a lonely and unhappy life.From a distance, the boy Balor falls in love with Fee, the daughter of a woodcutter and a healer. Fee notices him in the river. In her childish games, she thinks of him as a river god but she makes no connection with the enamoured boy.For ten painful adolescent years, Balor's love of Fee is unrequited. He muddles along through life pretending to be the village idiot. However, his ruse does not fool at least one village gossip. She uses him as a source of information and he learns a lot in the process.A jealous evil woman exploits a tragic accident. Her rabble-rousing tactics lead the villagers to accuse Fee of witchcraft and murder. Balor plans a daring and desperate bid to thwart her executioners. Will he succeed and overcome misunderstandings and win her heart too?