History Literature / TheWeirdstoneOfBrisingamen

Weirdstone starts out with a retelling of a local tale of the Wizard Under The Hill, who needed a white mare to complete his set of horses for the Sleepers. He buys one from a local farmer at market, and in the process, the farmer is taken to Fundindelve, the Cave of The Sleepers. Being an avaricious man, he steals away the Weirdstone from the cave, compromising the spells that keep the Sleepers from aging and dying.\\

<<|{{Literature}}|>>

* EvilSmellsBad: The svart-alfar and Nastrond himself are both described as accompanied by a foul stench.

** Redesmere is a genuine lake in Cheshire. Lindow Moss exists at Wilmslow, but has since been swallowed up into Greater Manchester. A prehistoric "Bog Man" was discovered at Lindow, believed to be a human sacrifice from three thousand years ago; the bog naturally preserved and mummified the corpse. Hundreds of similar bodies have been wholly or partially recovered in Northern Europe. The dark magician Grimmnir is explicitly based, in looks and smell, on the Lindow Bog Man: the Aesop being that the price paid for eternal life was to look and smell like a zombified drowned corpse.

** Redesmere is a genuine lake in Cheshire. Lindow Moss exists at Wilmslow, but has since been swallowed up into Greater Manchester. A prehistoric "Bog Man" was discovered at Lindow, believed to be a human sacrifice from three thousand years ago. The bog naturally preserved and mummified the corpse. Over a thousand similar bodies have been wholly or partially recovered in Northern Europe. The dark magician Grimmnir is explicitly based, in looks and smell, on the Lindow Bog Man: the Aesop being that the price paid for eternal life was to look and smell like a zombified drowned corpse.

Centuries later, Susan and Colin, the child-protagonists, are sent to stay with grumpy farmer Gowther Mossock and during their explorations of nearby Alderly Edge, come to encounter the wizard, Cadellin Silverbrow, who is the guardian of the Cave of The Sleepers. Unbeknownst to either the children or the wizard, Susan is related to the farmer whom Cadellin purchased the horse from; the stolen Weirdstone became a family heirloom which Susan wears around her wrist in a bracelet. Cadellin fails to notice the bracelet, but its significance is not lost on the malevolent Selina Place and her Morthbrood, who seek to bring about the return of Nastrond, the Spirit of Darkness whom the Sleepers banished centuries ago and whose return they were enchanted to wait for. Continued in ''Literature/TheMoonOfGomrath'' (1963), with a long-delayed conclusion, of sorts, to the trilogy in ''Literature/{{Boneyard}}'' (2013).

Centuries later, Susan and Colin, the child-protagonists, are sent to stay with grumpy farmer Gowther Mossock and during their explorations of nearby Alderly Edge, come to encounter the wizard, Cadellin Silverbrow, who is the guardian of the Cave of The Sleepers. Unbeknownst to either the children or the wizard, Susan is related to the farmer whom Cadellin purchased the horse from; the stolen Weirdstone became a family heirloom which Susan wears around her wrist in a bracelet. Cadellin fails to notice the bracelet, but its significance is not lost on the malevolent Selina Place and her Morthbrood, who seek to bring about the return of Nastrond, the Spirit of Darkness whom the Sleepers banished centuries ago and whose return they were enchanted to wait for. Continued in ''The Moon Of Gomrath'' (1963), with a long-delayed conclusion, of sorts, to the trilogy in ''Boneyard'' (2013).

Centuries later, Susan and Colin, the child-protagonists, are sent to stay with grumpy farmer Gowther Mossock and during their explorations of nearby Alderly Edge, come to encounter the wizard, Cadellin Silverbrow, who is the guardian of the Cave of The Sleepers. Unbeknownst to either the children or the wizard, Susan is related to the farmer whom Cadellin purchased the horse from; the stolen Weirdstone became a family heirloom which Susan wears around her wrist in a bracelet. Cadellin fails to notice the bracelet, but its significance is not lost on the malevolent Selina Place and her Morthbrood, who seek to bring about the return of Nastrond, the Spirit of Darkness whom the Sleepers banished centuries ago and whose return they were enchanted to wait for.

* TheFairFolk

* NoCommunitiesWereHarmed: Alderly Edge, Macclesfield, Mobberly are all real places in Cheshire. Most of the places mentioned in the book along the Edge; The Wizard's Well, Golden Stone, the Beacon and so on are also real. See [[http://www.alderleyedge.org/index.htm here]] for more information.

''The Weirdstone of Brisingamen'' is a 1960 fantasy novel by Creator/AlanGarner. Published originally by Collins, whose head at the time was looking for more fantasy novels in order to cash in on the success of ''TheLordOfTheRings'', ''The Weirdstone'' went on to critical and commercial success at the time and has remained popular ever since (though not so much with its author). There's even a musical adaptation made in the 70s, which was recently re-arranged by goth band Music/InkubusSukkubus, though for copyright reasons their version is unlikely to ever see the light of day.

* RavensAndCrows: Serve as spies to Selina Place, appropriately enough, since she is an {{Expy}} of the Morrigan. In Irish mythology, the Morrigan is an aspect of the Goddess Babd, specifically goddess of war, strife and sovereignty who generally appears in the form of a crow.

''The Weirdstone of Brisingamen'' is a 1960 fantasy novel by English Alan Garner. Published originally by Collins, whose head at the time was looking for more fantasy novels in order to cash in on the success of ''TheLordOfTheRings'', ''The Weirdstone'' went on to critical and commercial success at the time and has remained popular ever since (though not so much with its author). There's even a musical adaptation made in the 70s, which was recently re-arranged by goth band Music/InkubusSukkubus, though for copyright reasons their version is unlikely to ever see the light of day.

Contains examples of:

''The Weirdstone of Brisingamen'' is a 1960 fantasy novel by English Alan Garner. Published originally by Collins, whose head at the time was looking for more fantasy novels in order to cash in on the success of ''TheLordOfTheRings'', ''The Weirdstone'' went on to critical and commercial success at the time and has remained popular ever since (though not so much with it's author). There's even a musical adaptation made in the 70s, which was recently re-arranged by goth band Music/InkubusSukkubus, though for copyright reasons their version is unlikely to ever see the light of day.

* BigBad: The Morrigan, aka Selina Kyle.

Centuries later, Susan and Colin, the child-protagonists, are sent to stay with grumpy farmer Gowther Mossock and during their explorations of nearby Alderly Edge, come to encounter the wizard, Cadellin Silverbrow, who is the guardian of the Cave of The Sleepers. Unbeknownst to either the children or the wizard, Susan is related to the farmer whom Cadellin purchased the horse from; the stolen Weirdstone became a family heirloom which Susan wears around her wrist in a bracelet. Cadellin fails to notice the bracelet, but its significance is not lost on the malevolent Selina Kyle and her Morthbrood, who seek to bring about the return of Nastrond, the Spirit of Darkness whom the Sleepers banished centuries ago and whose return they were enchanted to wait for.

* RavensAndCrows: Serve as spies to Selina Kyle, appropriately enough, since she is an {{Expy}} of the Morrigan. In Irish mythology, the Morrigan is an aspect of the Goddess Babd, specifically goddess of war, strife and sovereignty who generally appears in the form of a crow.

* RavensAndCrows

Weirdstone starts out with a retelling of a local tale of the Wizard Under The Hill, who needed a white mare to complete his set of horses for the Sleepers. He buys one from a local farmer at market, and in the process, the farmer is taken to Fundindelve, the Cave of The Sleepers. Being an avaricious man, he steals away the Weirdstone from the cave, compromising the spells that keep the Sleepers from aging and dying.

''The Weirdstone of Brisingamen'' is a 1960 fantasy novel by Alan Garner. Though somewhat inspired by ''TheLordOfTheRings'' and ''{{Narnia}}'', it's primarily a vehicle for reinventing traditional English and Celtic folklore in a new setting. It also has a sequel, ''The Moon of Gomrath'', written a few years later.

The novel involves two children called Colin and Susan who are introduced to the surviving creatures and beings of fantasy still present in the background of rural north-west England.