Dear Mr Cornwell,

I’m thoroughly enjoying your Saxon stories (I’m starting book 11 now). They are entertaining, fast-paced, informative and thought-provoking. Whilst obviously different, I also enjoyed the tv adaptation. My question is about Uthred and Æthelflaed. In the books, Æthelflaed seems to be Uthred’s prophesied ‘woman of gold’ (according to Iseult) yet when Æthelred dies, Uthred does not even raise the matter of marriage or pursuit of the relationship, rather immediately turning to Eadith. I’m curious as to the reason for this given the prophecy? Was there some prohibitive rule at work that I missed? Or does the narrative follow the fact that historically Æthelflaed did not remarry? In the tv series, their relationship runs into the obstacle of Æthelflaed’s chastity vow and ascension to the Mercian throne. This causes questions as to why she could not marry Uthred given that the witan chose him initially (perhaps because his selection was merely as temporary caretaker rather than to form a new dynasty?) I was just curious about your thoughts on this.

Thank you so much for your consideration and for the entertainment!

Best wishes,

Albert