The Shining Company is in post-Roman British setting, a stirring tale based on "The Gododdin," the earliest surviving poem set in Northern Britain. Set in a.d. 600, the story is told by Prosper who, with his bodyservant Conn, joins Prince Gorthyn as a shieldbearer when the prince enlists in a company formed by King Mynyddog of the Gododdin in an effort to unite the British kingdoms against the ever-present Saxon threat. The bulk of the story concerns the forging of men from disparate parts of Britain into a fighting unit, combined in a common cause.

The rousing climax comes with their first mission when, sent deep into Saxon territory, they are abandoned by Mynyddog. Prosper, Conn, and Cynan, the lord they serve after Gorthyn's death, are among the survivors, and they return to discover that their betrayal had been planned from the beginning. As the story closes, Cynan and Prosper have turned their backs on Britain to find new lives as soldiers in Byzantium. Sutcliff has called all of her considerable talents into play here, creating strong memorable characters, sweeping action, and a vivid sense of place and time.

BDay gift from Jared.

The manuscript "The Gododdin" contains several stanzas which have no connection with the Gododdin and are considered to be interpolations. One stanza in particular has received attention because it mentions King Arthur, which, if not an interpolation, would be the earliest known reference to that character, as outside this poem, Welsh Arthurian legend is known to develop only from c. the early 12th century.