Fresh, vivid and full of surprises. This is the Dark Ages as you've never seen them

ALICE LOXTON, author of Eleanor and Eighteen

Twelve women, twelve half-centuries and twelve places ranging from Cordoba to Iceland and the Volga. Along the way, we will meet a princess widowed twice by the age of sixteen, a revenant nun, gender-bending concubines, bride shows, and a future female saint burying her enemies alive. Alice Rio illuminates the Dark Ages like no other, rescuing its six centuries from their drab and monochrome reputation

MARTYN RADY, author of Middle Kingdoms and The Habsburgs

Alice Rio has written a remarkable book. Through her analyses of the experiences of women as they move around Europe, she puts the entire early middle ages into a new light. This is a must-read

CHRIS WICKHAM, Chichele Professor of Medieval History emeritus, author of Medieval Europe