The Hero and the Crown
Book cover
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| Author | Robin McKinley |
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| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Fantasy novel |
| Publisher | Greenwillow Books |
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Publication date
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1984 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 227 pp |
| ISBN | |
| OCLC | 17421714 |
| LC Class | PZ7.M1988 He 1985 |
| Followed by | The Blue Sword |
The Hero and the Crown is a fantasy novel written by Robin McKinley and published by Greenwillow Books in 1984. It is the winner of the 1985 Newbery Medal award. The book is the prequel to The Blue Sword, written in 1982. This story focuses on "Aerin Dragon-Killer," also known as "Aerin Firehair," the heroine who is introduced as a legendary character in The Blue Sword. The book narrates Aerin's evolution from the shy, retiring daughter of the King of Damar to the heroic queen who protects her people from the demonic Northerners.
Aerin is the only child of Arlbeth, king of Damar, and his second wife. Aerin inherits her mother's pale skin and fiery red hair, setting her apart from all other Damarians (who are dark-haired and dark-skinned) and causing her to be feared and ostracized by them. It is rumored, possibly correctly, that Aerin's mother was a witchwoman and she made Arlbeth fall in love with and marry her by magically enchanting him, so that she might bear an heir to rule Damar. However, when she saw that it was a girl that she had born rather than a boy she died of despair.
While the king and the first sola, Tor, supported Aerin, some of the royal family, especially Galanna, a beautiful, but vain young woman, hated her. They went so far as to suggest that her mother was unfaithful, that she is not truly Arlbeth's daughter. This idea is supported by the fact that Aerin failed to develop the Gift, known as kelar, an ability to use magic that all members of the royal family inherit to some degree. During one of her regular fights with Aerin, Galanna convinces her to eat the leaves of the surka plant, known to aid the magic of those of the royal blood, but poisonous to all those not of royal blood. Aerin takes up to the challenge, eats a branch full of leaves and promptly starts to feel ill. While the surka plant does not kill Aerin, it makes her extremely ill, affecting her condition for many years. The one single surka leaf can sometimes kill the consumer and one can safely assume that Aerin is Arlbeth's child since she did survive eating all the surka leaves.
Aerin stumbles upon a book about the history of Damar and the dragons of old that used to terrorize it, of which only much smaller relatives still exist. Finding privacy in the pasture of her father's now-injured war horse, Talat, Aerin reads through the book while forging a friendship with him. At the back of the book she finds a recipe for kenet, an ointment meant to protect the wearer from the effects of fire. Unfortunately, the recipe does not specify the amounts of each ingredient needed. While her first attempts to make the ointment fail, Aerin begins to split her time between learning to ride Talat and experimenting with the fire-proof ointment. After three years of experimenting, Aerin stumbles on the correct proportion of ingredients, successfully making kenet. Then, Aerin goes off to slay a small dragon that is terrorizing a village with the help of her kenet and Talat.
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