The author chose to write this book in a poetic style meant to feel like old English. Unfortunately, the wording she chose is so repetitive I had to struggle to understand what I was reading, often reading the same sentence 3 or 4 times. 
Almost every paragraph started with "As already" or "as expected". Instead of using names or he/she the author repeats "the one who..." over and over while referring to different people.
Example:
“My Lord,” ventured the one who claimed to be the boy’s cousin and gave the name Sévère, “here not only further proof Mace is Wulfrith kin but descended from Saxon royalty.” Hector considered the slender hand that once more offered a parchment drawn from the cask, next that one’s face framed by a woolen cap, then the boy of seven or eight years. Though there was no silver in that...

I think I would have really liked this story if ut was a little more polished and easier to read.