Robyn Hood Outlaw Princess
John Reynolds
Paperback
(Independently published, Feb. 1, 2018)
Robyn Howard is rebellious teenage schoolgirl who lives with her father and her workaholic mother who always seems too busy for her. Robyn dreams of making a difference and wonders why there are so few famous women in history. After her mother lets her down yet again, she finds herself having a really bad day at school. She clashes with the school principal who sends her to after-school detention and quarrels with her boyfriend William. During the detention class there is a sudden violent lightning storm and Robyn is knocked unconscious. She awakens to find herself in an oak forest, dressed in medieval clothing, carrying a sword, bow and arrows. She is soon surrounded by young female outlaws who address her as Robyn Hood. She quickly realises that they regard her as the leader of their band — and that she’s in Sherwood Forest. Adapting to her new role she leads a raid on the Sheriff of Nottingham's soldiers and rescues a young princess. The outlaws are horrified to learn that she was being taken to Nottingham to become the Sheriff's bride. After a series of adventures, Robyn is captured by the Sheriff's soldiers and taken to Nottingham. There, on a stage in the central city, she is tried for treason by the Sheriff. She makes a brave attempt to stand up to him, but the odds are against her. When he sentences her to death for treason, escape seems impossible. John Reynolds is a New Zealand-based writer of novels, musicals and screenplays. His young adult novel Robyn Hood Outlaw Princess is based on a full-length musical of the same name for which the author wrote the storyline, dialogue and lyrics (music by Gary Daverne). The show has been widely performed in New Zealand, the UK and the USA. Currently he in completing a screenplay for a full-length film based on the musical and the novel. John is a qualified teacher who has lived and worked in England, Canada, Zimbabwe, Australia and the USA and has a PhD from the University of Auckland. He and his wife Bess live in Auckland.