Tales of Romance

In Short

This volume gathers six enduring chivalric and heroic narratives drawn from English folklore, Norse sagas, and French chansons de geste. Within its pages, Robin Hood defends the oppressed in Sherwood Forest, Wayland the Smith plots a grim revenge against a tyrannical Swedish king, William Short Nose battles Saracen armies across southern France, King Arthur receives his fateful blade from the Lady of the Lake, and Grettir the Strong faces outlawry and death in Iceland. It endures because it distills complex medieval epics into direct, vivid accounts of loyalty, vengeance, combat, and fate.

The Story

The collection spans several distinct legendary cycles, opening in medieval England when vast forests stretched from the Severn to the Humber. Here, Robin Hood and his yeomen offer refuge to an impoverished knight whose lands are pledged to the Abbot of St. Mary's for four hundred pounds. Robin clears the debt from his own chest and clothes the knight in rich green and scarlet cloth. Later, Little John enters the service of the Sheriff of Nottingham under an assumed name after winning an archery contest, while Robin tests his strength against a sturdy friar in a stream and trades buffets with a disguised King who has come into the forest to sample the outlaw's venison and archers' skill. Robin's life reaches its conclusion at Kirkley Priory, where, weakened by betrayal, he refuses to let Little John burn the nunnery, choosing instead to shoot one final arrow into the forest to mark his burial place.

The scene then shifts to the frigid northern lands of Finmark, where three brothers—Slagfid, Eigil, and Wayland—discover gold in the stony mountains. After their aerial wives leave them, Slagfid and Eigil wander off in search, while Wayland remains at his forge crafting golden rings. Nidud the Little, the greedy king of Sweden, captures Wayland, strips him of his treasures, and imprisons him on an island. Wayland waits patiently, forging magical armour while executing a severe vengeance upon the king's household before escaping through the air into the presence of the goddess Freya.

In the southern battlefields of France, William Short Nose leads Christian knights against overwhelming Saracen forces. Wounded and isolated after the battle of Aliscans, William returns to his city of Orange, only for his wife, Lady Gibourc, to test his resolve by sending him back out to free Christian prisoners before she will lower the drawbridge. William travels to the court at Laon to demand aid from King Louis and his own sister Queen Blanchefleur, threatening the court until his mother Ermengarde finances an army. Joined by the kitchen servant Rainouart—a giant of royal blood wielding a heavy wooden staff—William marches back to Orange, where Rainouart turns retreating cowards into a fierce front line.

Briefly touching Arthurian legend, the narrative records how King Arthur, having lost his weapon in single combat, travels with Merlin to a quiet lake. An arm rises from the water holding the sword Excalibur, which the Lady of the Lake bestows upon Arthur alongside its protective scabbard.

The book closes with the Icelandic saga of Grettir the Strong. Banished and hunted, Grettir takes refuge on the steep island of Drangey with his brother Illugi and a thrall named Noise. Sorcery sends a cursed log to the island, which wounds Grettir's leg when he hews it with his axe. As Grettir lies incapacitated in their hut, their enemy Angle scales the unguarded ladders and overwhelms the brothers in a desperate final stand.

How It Unfolds

The forest sanctuary opens Robin Hood meets a ruined knight in Sherwood Forest and lends him four hundred pounds from his treasure chest to redeem his ancestral lands from a wealthy abbot.

The outlaw band expands Little John outshoots all rivals at Nottingham to enter the Sheriff's service under a false name, while Robin encounters a stout friar by a river, leading to a ducking in the water and a wild clash of hounds and yeomen.

A royal reconciliation occurs The King disguises himself as an abbot to infiltrate the forest, where Robin receives him with venison and archery displays before recognizing his liege and offering his allegiance.

The archer shoots his last Tricked and bled to death at a priory, Robin forbids Little John from seeking violent revenge on the holy house, discharging a single final arrow to mark where his greenwood grave will lie.

A northern forge is trapped In Finmark, the smith Wayland is ambushed by King Nidud's soldiers, who strip him of his golden rings and force him to hammer weapons in an island prison.

Revenge takes flight Wayland turns upon his captors, outwitting the king's household and using his magical craft to win his freedom under the gaze of heavenly deities.

The French march to war William Short Nose survives the disastrous defeat at Aliscans, fighting his way back to Orange where Lady Gibourc demands he rescue bound captives before entering his own city gates.

A kitchen giant joins the line William storms the royal court at Laon for reinforcements, bringing back an army led by the giant servant Rainouart, who uses a massive wooden club to force fleeing soldiers back into battle.

A magic blade is claimed King Arthur rides with Merlin to a silent lake, where a mysterious arm holds forth the sword Excalibur, gifted by the Lady of the Lake along with a blood-sparing scabbard.

The saga ends on Drangey The outlaw Grettir lies crippled by a magic-cursed wood cut on a remote island, where Angle and his men storm the hut, killing Grettir and his brother Illugi after a fierce defense.

The People

• Robin Hood wants to live freely in the forest, protect his men, and aid the poor and mistreated; stood against by the Sheriff of Nottingham and greedy prelates, he ends his life peacefully refusing vengeance, directing his own burial by the flight of an arrow.
• Little John seeks to serve Robin with absolute loyalty and matchless marksmanship; hindered by treacherous enemies and high-risk encounters, he remains at Robin's side until his master's quiet death.
• Wayland the Smith desires to preserve his legendary craft and avenge his cruel imprisonment; obstructed by the greedy King Nidud, he turns his smithing skills into a instrument of retribution before achieving freedom.
• William Short Nose wants to clear southern France of invading Saracen hosts and protect his stronghold of Orange; hindered by weak royals, cowardice among his ranks, and overwhelming enemy numbers, he secures victory through sheer tenacity and the aid of his bold wife and Rainouart.
• Rainouart seeks to prove his noble lineage despite his humble place in the royal kitchen; mocked by the court, he uses his physical strength and giant wooden staff to transform fleeing recruits into a victorious army.
• Grettir the Strong wants to endure his outlawry with honor alongside his brother; thwarted by sorcery, severe wounds, and a sluggish thrall, he dies fighting from his knee on the lonely cliffs of Drangey.

In Its Own Voice

"Pilgrims going to some holy shrine passed along, merchants taking their wares to Court, Abbots and Bishops ambling by on palfreys to bear their part in the King's Council, and, more frequently still, a solitary Knight, seeking adventures." — The narrative sets the backdrop of medieval England's forest paths.

"By the faith that I swore to my dear Lady Gibourc, I had better die than never strike a blow." — William Short Nose turns his horse around to face an advancing body of Saracens.

"Layout of the end: Lay a green sod under my head and another at my feet, and put beside me my bow, which ever made sweetest music to my ears, and see that green and gravel make my grave." — Robin Hood instructs Little John on how to prepare his final resting place.

What It's Really About

The collection explores the nature of northern and medieval heroism across contrasting codes of conduct. In the English tales, righteousness is tied to charity, social justice, and fair play, where outlaws prove more honorable than wealthy churchmen or corrupt sheriffs. In the Norse sagas of Wayland and Grettir, heroism becomes darker and more fatalistic, defined by endurance against inevitable doom, the harshness of exile, and the unyielding obligation of revenge. The French epics bridge these worlds through duty, martial honor, and domestic resolve, showing that courage requires both physical bravery on the field and the refusal to compromise when facing domestic or political cowardice.

Why Read It Today

This volume offers readers an authentic window into European storytelling traditions before modern adaptations smoothed away their eccentricities. Readers who enjoy classic folklore, medieval romance, and heroic sagas will appreciate the direct, swift movement of the prose, which retains the oral rhythm of early heroic poetry.

The reading experience feels unpretentious and atmospheric. It moves effortlessly from the dappled shade of Sherwood Forest to the icy, dark caverns of Finmark and the sun-baked battlefields of France. While modern readers must adjust to period conventions—such as swift turns toward severe vengeance, archaic social structures, and stark depictions of religious warfare between Christians and Saracens—the stories possess a vivid clarity. What remains with the reader is the persistent vitality of these figures: Robin Hood's generosity, Wayland's fierce ingenuity, William's stubborn bravery, and Grettir's tragic, uncompromising stand on his lonely island rock.