The Wolf Queen by Marie McCurdy is based on the life of real historical figures Thusnelda of the Germanic Cherusci tribe and Arminius, a Germani chief raised as a Roman officer. I admit I did not know of these historical figures before reading this book, but their tale intrigued me to find out what happened between the invading Romans and the Germani tribes in 9 CE.
Thusnelda is a warrior of her tribe, her motives set into motion after her mother is killed and her village is raided by Romans when she was a child. Her betrothed, Ermin, is taken by the Romans or presumed dead. But years later, Arminius (previously Ermin,) returns with the Romans with a proposition of rebellion for Thusnelda. She is rightfully distrustful of him, as was I. What made this doubly true for me was the name change, plus an additional character also with the name of Ermin (I also found myself getting two Roman officers confused, whose names were Varus and Vala.) Since I did not know the history going into this story, I had thoughts of duplicitous motives from Arminius until he eventually “proves” himself trustworthy and true to Thusnelda. Even though she comes to trust him and form a relationship with him, I personally did not like Arminius with his arrogance and cocky tough-guy act. There are a few moments during the climactic Battle of Teutoburg Forest that really sealed the deal for me in terms of my dislike for him.
As I previously stated, I didn’t know the history going into The Wolf Queen, so finding out what would happen next kept me engaged. While little is known about the real Thusnelda, McCurdy has crafted a believable backstory and social standing for her. At times I felt the characters spoke too modern (certain slang or swears, for example,) but this was just a matter of personal preference for me.
I believe there will be a follow up to The Wolf Queen, as this book ends on many unresolved matters.
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