Review: "The Pale Horseman" by Bernard Cornwell
This book is the sequel to "The Last Kingdom" and should only be read as part of the series.
Bernard Cornwell may be the best historical fiction writer today. The major events of the book involve King Alfred the Great and how he leads the Saxons against the Danish (Viking) invasion. I didn't realize before reading this book how close the Saxons came to losing England to the Danes - we might all be speaking Danish now! For a few months, the limit of Saxon control of England was a few miles of swamp in Wessex. The story is about Uthred, a Northumbrian raised by Danes whose loyalties are divided between the Saxons and Danes. He is a pagan surrounded by Christian priests, a man whose dream is to reclaim his birthright in northern England but finds himself siding with Alfred in the swamps in southeastern England facing overwhelming odds.
"The Last Kingdom" has more combat and action but this book has excellent character development and plot development. At the end of the book I could not wait for the next one to come out, and that is a good sign.
One warning - the book contains old English, Danish and Welsh names for people and places and that takes some getting used to. (if you have read Cornwell's Warlord series on King Arthur 0r Mary Stewart's Merlin series then you know many of the place names already.)
One review down and thousands to go. ha.
Bernard Cornwell may be the best historical fiction writer today. The major events of the book involve King Alfred the Great and how he leads the Saxons against the Danish (Viking) invasion. I didn't realize before reading this book how close the Saxons came to losing England to the Danes - we might all be speaking Danish now! For a few months, the limit of Saxon control of England was a few miles of swamp in Wessex. The story is about Uthred, a Northumbrian raised by Danes whose loyalties are divided between the Saxons and Danes. He is a pagan surrounded by Christian priests, a man whose dream is to reclaim his birthright in northern England but finds himself siding with Alfred in the swamps in southeastern England facing overwhelming odds.
"The Last Kingdom" has more combat and action but this book has excellent character development and plot development. At the end of the book I could not wait for the next one to come out, and that is a good sign.
One warning - the book contains old English, Danish and Welsh names for people and places and that takes some getting used to. (if you have read Cornwell's Warlord series on King Arthur 0r Mary Stewart's Merlin series then you know many of the place names already.)
One review down and thousands to go. ha.
posted by John Ringer at
11:49 AM
1 Comments:
Sounds extremely interesting. I didn't know that about the Saxons and the Dutch either.
It brings to mind a quote I just came across in Patrick O'Brian's "The Surgeon's Mate" (vol. 7 of the "Master & Commander" series).
As Jack Aubrey's ship sails past famous Elsinore Castle (home of Hamlet) along the Danish coast, Dr. Stephen Maturin is speaking kindly of Denmark. Then the Danes fire a cannon shot at them, just as Maturin is studying some nearby seabirds.
"The Goths!" cried Stephen, glaring angrily at Elsinore. "They might have hit the birds. These Danes have always been a very froward people. Do you know, Jack, what they did at Clonmacnois? They burnt it, the thieves, and their queen sat on the high altar mother-naked, uttering oracles in a heathen frenzy. Ota was the strumpet's name. It is all of a piece: look at Hamlet's mother. I only wonder her behaviour caused any comment."
LOL
By
Van Allen Plexico, at 4:07 PM
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