Series:

Saxon Tales

Main description:

The latest chapter in the epic saga of the making of England, magnificently brought to life by "the reigning king of historical fiction" (USA Today), Bernard Cornwell.

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.

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“[Cornwell] has been described as a master of historical fiction, but that may be an understatement. Cornwell makes his subject material come alive. Better, his major protagonist is totally believable and human.”

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“[Cornwell] possesses a gift for narrative flow and an eye of the telling detail that are the main reasons for his primacy in bringing turbulent times to vivid life.”

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“[Cornwell] writes morally complicated and intricate stories, and he’s won a following not just among readers but also among fellow writers.”

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“[M]asterful. . . . The surprise is that Cornwell’s love scenes are as deft as his action scenes, though far fewer, of course—all driven by a hard-shelled, sporadically soft-hearted, always charismatic protagonist.”

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“A master of historical fiction has produced another great read.”

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“As expected, the warfare is ferociously bloody, the sacrilege pointedly barbed, and the story expertly paced. Heck, we’d even extol Uhtred’s budding spells of sober reflection about life and love—if we weren’t certain he’d slice an ear off for saying so.”

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“Bernard Cornwell does the best battle scenes of any writer I’ve ever read, past or present.”

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“Bernard Cornwell ranks as the current alpha male of testosterone-enriched historical fiction.”

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“Compelling.”

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“Cornwell is adept at enveloping his fictional characters in British history. His use of geography, instruments of battle, strategy and ancient vocabulary is faultless….No knowledge of early British history or of his earlier Saxon volumes is necessary for a reader to enjoy his dexterous approach to historical fiction.”

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“Cornwell tells Alfred’s story with wit, intelligence and absolute narrative authority.... Cornwell remains in full control of this colorful, violent material, and his steadily deepening portrait of Alfred’s nascent England continues to enthrall.”

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“Gripping. . . . Mr. Cornwell’s ‘Saxon Stories’ subvert myths of national origin as few would dare. They are ‘unofficial histories’—and all the more realistic for that.”

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“History comes alive.”

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“Likely to appeal to anyone who has enjoyed George R. R. Martin’s Game of Thrones series....Cornwell is a master of historical fiction.”

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“Robustly drawn characters and a keen appetite for bloodshed whip the reader along in a frotThe fate of a young nation rests in the hands of a reluctant warrior in the thrilling sixth volume of the New York Times bestselling Saxon Tales series. Following the intrigue and action of The Burning Land and Sword Song, this latest chapter in Bernard Cornwell’s epic saga of England is a gripping tale of divided loyalties and mounting chaos. At a crucial moment in time, as Alfred the Great lays dying, the fate of all—Angles, Saxons, and Vikings alike—hangs desperately in the balance. For all fans of classic Cornwell adventures, such as Agincourt and Stonehenge, and for readers of William Dietrich’s Hadrian’s Wall or Robert E. Howard’s Bran Mak Morn, the stunning Death of Kings will prove once again why the Wall Street Journal calls Bernard Cornwell “the most prolific and successful historical novelist in the world today.”