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    Death of Kings: A Novel
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    Death of Kings: A Novel
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    Death of Kings: A Novel
    Ebook465 pages8 hours

    Death of Kings: A Novel

    By Bernard Cornwell

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    About this ebook

    The sixth installment of Bernard Cornwell’s New York Times bestselling series chronicling the epic saga of the making of England, “like Game of Thrones, but real” (The Observer, London)—the basis for The Last Kingdom, the hit television series.

    As the ninth century wanes, Alfred the Great lies dying, his lifelong goal of a unified England in peril, his kingdom on the brink of chaos. Though his son, Edward, has been named his successor, there are other Saxon claimants to the throne—as well as ambitious pagan Vikings to the north.

    Torn between his vows to Alfred and the desire to reclaim his long-lost ancestral lands in the north, Uhtred, Saxon-born and Viking-raised, remains the king’s warrior but has sworn no oath to the crown prince. Now he must make a momentous decision that will forever transform his life and the course of history: to take up arms—and Alfred’s mantle—or lay down his sword and let his liege’s dream of a unified kingdom die along with him.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperCollins
    Release dateJan 17, 2012
    ISBN9780062097118
    Author

    Bernard Cornwell

    BERNARD CORNWELL is the author of over fifty novels, including the acclaimed New York Times bestselling Saxon Tales, which serve as the basis for the hit Netflix series The Last Kingdom. He lives with his wife on Cape Cod and in Charleston, South Carolina.

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    Reviews for Death of Kings

    4/5

    376 ratings15 reviews

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    • 4/5
      This is the sixth novel in the Warrior Chronicles series featuring Uhtred of Bebbanburg. This is the novel where Alfred the Great dies and his son Edward (called the Elder) succeeds, but is rivalled by his cousin Ethelwold, son of Alfred's elder brother, King Ethelred. This gives an interesting historical dimension to the proceedings, but otherwise it is the usual killing and mayhem throughout. With every passing book in this series, I wonder why I carry on reading, as they feel very samey - yet at least one further novel is about to appear, and I am sure I will read it in due course.
    • 5/5
      Another excellent book in a great series. Cornwell's ability to take a brief skein of history and to turn into a compelling story keeps him at the very forefront of the current author's of historical fiction.
    • 5/5
      The further adventures of Utred in the Saxon saga. I wanted to read it in one go. Brilliant and I hope the next installment is soon.
    • 4/5
      The year is 899, and Alfred the Great is on his deathbed. His favorite Danish-raised pit bull, Uhtred of Bebbanburg, is summoned to appear before the dying king. A broke lord who is the continued target of assassination attempts, Uhtred knows he will be asked to swear fealty to Alfred's son Edward, and help keep the kingdom of Wessex together in what promises to be a round of internal strife and opportunistic attacks by the Danes. While Uhtred still dreams of reclaiming his birthright of Bebbanburg castle (Bamburg), he has resigned himself to the fact he'll never have the men to do so until Alfred's vision of a united England is realized. Alfred grants Uhtred a wealthy estate, and in return, he pledges himself to Edward,Uhtred expected the Danes to attack immediately. Alfred's brother's son laid a claim to kingship, but was run into exile. The King of East Anglia (a Danish stronghold), is allied with other strong Danish Jarls and they amass a large army, the largest single army yet. However, the army suffers from too many leaders, and while they wreak local havoc, they accomplish little when they finally invade 3 years later.Edward is faring no better...trusting in the advice of priests over that of his warriors. When an opportunity to trap the invading army falls by the wayside as Uhtred is summoned to Edward's court in London, the plan becomes to wait them out then pursue. Edward cites waiting for reinforcements from Kent as the reason for this delay. As the climatic battle approaches, Uhtred struggles to make sense of everything that has been happening. Nothing seems quite right. Finally, he has an ah-ha moment where he sees everything in perfect clarity. He could still be wrong and if so, will be condemned. Uhtred is now 45 years old. We know Edward rules for 25 years, and his son, Aethelstan, was the first to become king of all of England. War injuries are building up...Uhtred can't be top warrior for much longer. But I'm sure Cornwell will continue giving us entertaining tails...I wonder if Bebbanburg will ever be his?
    • 4/5
      While I did enjoy reading Cornwell's "The Burning Land" I preferred “Death of Kings” as there was a great deal of political and religious intrigue throughout the book which appealed to me despite less emphasis on military conflict. Again Cornwell demonstrated an excellent knowledge of the subject matter of the time in which he was setting his book as is typical of his other works. I would be content to read other works in the Saxon Chronicles but, if I can be allowed a gripe or two as I own all bar two of Cornwell's works, I still would like it to reach a definitive conclusion soon so as to reduce the similarities between Uthred and Derfel Cadarn, from the Warlord Chronicles, my favourite series, who deserves to be a stand-alone figure in his own right. Finally I think it is overdue for Nathaniel Starbuck to march again given that Sharpe is essentially retired.
    • 4/5
      The grand fun continues! Now Uhtred is now an old man, and he has a huge alliance against him and now, with Alfred dead, his support is very faltering. His enemies set a huge trap for him. He figures it out at the last minute, and takes a huge courageous risk to come out victorious, with the reinforcements arriving just in the nick of time. Yeah, it's a bit of a formula, but done with style and skill... another page turner!
    • 3/5
      Uhtred saves England, well, Wessex again. Alfred dies, and his son Edward "The Elder" gains the throne. there are several bloody episodes and the sulky reluctant saxon, Uhtred makes everything right in the end. The major villains survive, so we'll be ready for the next chapter.
    • 4/5
      Utred is back and this time he means business. Sorry I was talking about the summer blockbuster. Even though it was more of the same I felt this one was better than the last couple books in this series. Cornwell is a master of coming up with cool tricks that Utred can use to outsmart his enemies, very similar to things they did in the movie Braveheart. He always adds in something "mystical" that your 95% sure is just bunk but that 5% adds something to the stories. He did it a lot more in the Warlord Trilogy but it's still present in these books.After reading so many books with these characters they almost seem like old friends. That said, I really do think he should end the series soon. Utred is getting old and he still hasn't achieved his ultimate goal.
    • 4/5
      Bernard Cornwell is one of my favorite authors. This book has excellent pace while still being able to develop the characters and their struggles in a way that drags me in.
    • 4/5
      Cornwell's Saxon Stories continues with Death of Kings, which discusses the death of Alfred the Great and the immediate aftermath of his vacancy. One of Cornwell's talents is to offer up conflicting feelings towards characters that make our protagonist's life more difficult, which is precisely the case here. Like Uhtred, Alfred is a complex and imperfect character, which is what makes them so interesting.
    • 4/5
      This sixth instalment of the Saxon Stories is set from 898-902, covering the latter days of Alfred the Great and the early period of his son Edward’s reign as King of Wessex.As usual, the tale is narrated by the anti-hero of the piece, Lord Uhtred, a Saxon warrior now in his forties. His age makes no difference to his fighting prowess and his reputation as a great warlord continues to grow. Uhtred is a pagan but is also good friends with several Christian priests. His conversation with them is often amusing, as are his confrontations with priests whom he doesn’t get along so well with. This story features the most entertaining priest to date, namely Cuthbert.Uhtred is, in my opinion, Bernard Cornwell’s best character creation. The author’s depictions of battle scenes are vivid and believable in all his works, but more so in the Saxon tales because Uhtred’s personality helps the reader – this one at least – to feel part of this charismatic warlord’s fights. Confrontation of all varieties, be it physical or verbal, is expertly portrayed. The plot here compared to the earlier novels in the series differs somewhat, partly through Alfred being less involved, and partly because the amount of time focusing on battles is reduced. The first book, for instance, felt like one long continuous battle, but here the Saxon characters spend most of their time waiting for an attack that never seems to come.That’s not to say narrative is slow-paced through a lack of action. In fact, I felt the story moved at a fast pace, featuring much more humour than usual. When the main battle finally does take place it seems to be over too quickly, ending rather abruptly as the book does on the whole, which disappointed me a little. On the plus side, the long build-up creates suspense, resulting in said main battle being very exciting. The thing that, in my view, prevents Mr Cornwell from being an even better writer than he is already is his dialogue attribution. The actual dialogue is excellent, but for 90+ per cent of the time he interrupts the flow by needlessly reminding the reader who’s speaking, more often than not inserting this pointless information – pointless because it’s obvious who’s speaking – in the middle of sentences.Mr Cornwell maybe doesn’t realise that the strength of his characters make it clear to the reader who’s talking, just as he fails to grasp how irritating is to have his well-written dialogue swamped with superfluous attribution. I also dislike his elements of English style in the most part, especially his overuse of the word “then” – arguably the laziest choice for moving a story forward – and the amount of long-winded sentences he uses. Some of his books are worse than others for these annoying traits. I feel these Saxon stories are least affected by poor style, though maybe that’s owing to them being his strongest works (in my view), thus I don’t notice the weak elements so much.Anyway, Mr Cornwell’s done a good job with the story here. I also liked his author’s note at the end, as the “genesis” of England through to the conquest doesn’t get much attention in popular culture, any more than it did during my school years.
    • 4/5
      The Sixth book in the series brings Alfred closer to his goal to unite England and Lord Uthered is in the middle. Like the other 5 books this is a very easy read and fast-paced book that is an enjoy to read. The fiction is melted into the historical facts so well that you really believe it could have happened this way. The more you read the mover you learn about the characters and their goals and the more you believe them.These books are made to read under a blanket on a rainy Sunday.
    • 5/5
      Of all of the books in the series thus far, this was my absolute favorite. Fantastic, enthralling storytelling that kept me reading every chance I got. Not surprisingly, this is probably the quickest I've ever finished a book.
    • 5/5
      Cornwell's Saxon series is incredible. A real job to read.
    • 4/5
      I'm going to have to stick my neck out and say this (number six) is the best of the series so far. Certainly the most enjoyable one for me.

      There's no doubt about it, 'Death Of Kings' is much more sure, more direct, more honest and more perceptive than most of Cornwall's competitors out there. A really satisfying, considered and poignant exploration of the main character of Uhtred and origins of what we now think of as 'England'.

      I don't know about anyone else, but Alfred The Great was always an irritation and I'm glad he dies in this one. Now, Uhtred the Saxon raised as a Viking, can really come into his own and shine. And shine he does - and he needs to, as after Alfred's death there are no shortage of Britons and Danes wanting to take advantage and take the country for their own. But then if you're reading this one, you've probably read the previous ones and/or have a reasonably good idea of the real history that lies behind the story and you know all that.

      Uhtred really wants to go north and try to reclaim his ancestral home in Norhumberland, but his loyalty is torn and that mission must wait for another time. Now, he has to cut through the crap being scattered about by various usurpers and claimants to the throne of a land that is still struggling to come together.

      Can't recommend 'Death Of Kings' highly enough and while half of me thinks a couple more battles wouldn't have gone amis, the other half of me finds myself thinking that this is a story of history of such grand stature that it doesn't need them.