The next installment of Bernard Cornwell’s best-selling series chronicling the epic saga of the making of England, “like Game of Thrones, but real” (Observer, London) – the basis for The Last Kingdom, the hit television series coming to Netflix in fall 2016.
From the day it was stolen from me, I dreamed of recapturing Bebbanburg. The great fort had been built on a rock that was almost an island. It was massive; it could be approached only on land by a single narrow track; and it was mine.
Britain is in a state of uneasy peace. Northumbria’s Viking ruler, Sigtryggr, and Mercia’s Saxon queen, Aethelflaed, have agreed to a truce. And so England’s greatest warrior, Uhtred of Bebbanburg, at last has the chance to take back the home his traitorous uncle stole from him so many years ago – and which his scheming cousin still occupies.
But fate is inexorable, and the enemies Uhtred has made and the oaths he has sworn combine to distract him from his dream of recapturing Bebbanburg. New enemies enter into the fight for England’s kingdoms: the redoubtable Constantin of Scotland seizes an opportunity for conquest and leads his armies south. Britain’s precarious peace threatens to turn into a war of annihilation.
But Uhtred is determined that nothing, neither the new enemies nor the old foes who combine against him, will keep him from his birthright. He is the Lord of Bebbanburg, but he will need all the skills he has learned in a lifetime of war to make his dream come true. The latest chapter in Bernard Cornwell’s “violent, absorbing historical saga”, The Flame Bearer confirms Bernard Cornwell’s title as “perhaps the greatest writer of historical adventure novels today” (Washington Post).
Five Stars As good as the rest of the series. Cornwell is the better of the historical fiction writers.
FANTASTIC! Another fantastic installment of the Saxon Tales. You MUST start with book one and work up to this book – though it could stand alone (but you’d miss many references). Will Uhtred finally get Bebbanburg? I’m 1/4 of the way through, and it looks as though he might! Read these books! you’ll love Uhtred!
No surprises here – Great writing, great plot, great story – I highly recommend it Cornwell didn’t surprise me with the quality of the writing, unpredictability of the plot or the depth of the characters. One of my favorite things about Cornwell’s handling of this story is how all of the action is in the present but it is being told as a memory of an old man so he can drop hints about what’s to come. How clever. I love a good story and I certainly love a great historical, action adventure. I mostly love the story though. This story doesn’t have as much…