War of the Wolf (Saxon Tales)

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Cornwell has his protagonist observe: "The gods are not kind to us, any more than children are kind to their toys. We are here to amuse the gods, and at times it amuses them to be unkind....Perhaps my conviction that I was cursed was false, but there were not birds in the winter sky, and that omen told me I was the plaything of cruel gods." Uhtred's on-again, off-again lover and ruler of Mercia, dies. Edward, King of Wessex, seizes the opportunity to take over her kingdom. Uhtred ignores Edward's summons to swear fealty to him, and his Mercian lands are forfeited, but Uhtred is content with his beloved Bebbanburg.

Strong narrative, vigourous action and striking characterisation, Cornwell remains king of the territory he has staked out as his own' SUNDAY TIMES I've enjoyed the Uhtred series and was eagerly awaiting this new volume. it was enjoyable but was not as engrossing as previous ones. I think Uhtred, now in his sixties, is running out of steam or perhaps Cornwell is. First of all, the new villainous Norseman is much like previous villainous Norsemen, the Christian priests are still lying manipulators and the Saxons are still underhanded. Not much new there. Secondly, some of the fascinating characters are no longer around. Aethelflaeda has died, Edward is dying, and Skiorra.....better left unsaid. Aethelstan is coming into his own and we know he will be the new king as soon as Edward shakes off his mortal coil but he is becoming something of a sanctimonious prig. Third, the plots are too similar...one grasping invader after another in the North and political maneuvering in the South. Of course, Cornell is only being true to history. Now, for the positives. The action is fast paced and Uhtred is still a fascinating character, cynical, determined but sadder and older. Descriptions are vivid although I tend to skim over the bloody battles. It was a violent age and Cornwell is true in depicting this reality. To Master Alexander le Convers, for money paid by him to the carpenters making the engine called ‘War Wolf’, and other workers working (also on the engine), in May and June 1304, 10 shillings on 7 June 1304.War is bitter. The poets give battle a splendor, extolling the brave and exulting in victory, and bravery is worth their praise. Victory too, I suppose, but the poems, chanted in mead halls at night, give boys and young men their ambition to be warriors. Reputation! It is the one thing that outlives us. Men die, women die, all die, but reputation lives on like the echo of a song, and men crave reputation, as they crave the heavy arm rings that mark a warrior’s victories. Unforgettable narrator. Uhtred of Bebbanburg is unapologetic and ruthless yet lovable and admiration worthy character with brilliant military strategic mind. He is a true hero! He and Sigtryggr lead nearly 500 warriors there, but their assault fails, and both Uhtred and Sigtryggr are wounded. Their situation is dire, as they are outnumbered, and retreating would be perilous. Then Snorri comes outside the fortress and starts cursing them. The half-mad, self-styled bishop Ieremias engages in a war of cursing and scores a victory of sorts, when Snorri's dog deserts him for the bishop. This enrages some of Sköll's wolf-warriors, half-crazed from applying an ointment of henbane. They charge out as a disorganised rabble, but are defeated by a disciplined shield wall. Then, something unexpected happens. Berg becomes separated from the rest of Uhtred's men during the fighting. He finds his two older brothers in Sköll's fortress and persuades them to switch sides. With their help, Uhtred and Sigtryggr's warriors force their way inside, and Sköll's men either die or surrender. Sköll himself pretends to surrender, then tries to kill Sigtryggr, but Uhtred saves his son-in-law. Uhtred disables Sköll in single combat, then invites Sigtyrggr to avenge his wife, but not before he disarms Sköll, thus ensuring that Sköll will not go to Valhalla. The Flores Historiarum claims that the Warwolf sent a single stone through two of the castle's walls in the course of the siege, "like an arrow flying through cloth". [4] Other sources, however, report that the weapon was only finished after the Scots had surrendered. [3] Edward decided to use it anyway, refusing to let anyone enter or leave the castle until it had been tested. [5] In the original records [ edit ] When a new Viking invader decides to set up his own kingdom in the lawless Western Northumbria, fate pulls Uhtred down a difficult new path of sorrow, pain, and renewed entanglements with Wessex.

Cornwell was born in London in 1944. His father was a Canadian airman, and his mother, who was English, a member of the Women's Auxiliary Air Force. He was adopted and brought up in Essex by the Wiggins family, who were members of the Peculiar People, a strict Protestant sect who banned frivolity of all kinds and even medicine. After he left them, he changed his name to his birth mother's maiden name, Cornwell. One of the most beautiful women ever to grace the silver screen, Hedy Lamarr also designed a secret weapon against Nazi Germany. Astonishing storytelling skills. Bernard Cornwell brought 9th and 10th century England alive for me. Uhtred, now older, wants nothing more than to enjoy retirement at Bebbanburg, but pressures on Northumbria from Edward to the south and the Scots to the North are stretching their small armies to the max and making for an uneasy peace. Uhtred is in his 60s for this book. He's more cautious, superstitious, he's less impulsive, less confident, anger doesn't control him the way it used to. I found myself missing some of his other qualities as a younger man, but his wit is still fully intact and there were several parts of this book that made me laugh out loud.Lady Æthelflaed, Uhtred's on-again, off-again lover and ruler of Mercia, dies. Edward, King of Wessex, seizes the opportunity to take over the kingdom from his niece Ælfwynn. Uhtred ignores Edward's summons to swear fealty to him, and his Mercian lands are forfeited, but Uhtred is content with his beloved Bebbanburg. The themes of War of the Wolf are in many ways beautiful. Here is an old and weathered warrior whose family and friends are mostly all gone with the wind. His old enemies, once legends of the sword threatening the very existence of the places and people we readers have come to know and love, are distant memories from days of yonder. When Uhtred's internal monologue considers his father, his brother, his wife, his children, his mentor, the kings who made him and who he made, his brothers-in-arms from countless battles, and now even the lost keeper of the oath who shaped him, the thoughts are simply glimpses of something that once was, and is no more. Bull's Eye Sniper Chronicles Collection (The Second Cycle of the Betrayed Series) by McCray Carolyn(11219) I really did not enjoy the first part & if it was another book in a series I may well have thrown it in......

At the opening of War of the Wolf, Uhtred has grown old — he’s now over 60 — but is still a formidable warrior. King Alfred is dead, as is his daughter, Æthelflaed, ruler of Mercia, as well as Uhtred’s lover and best friend. Alfred’s son, King Edward, rules England and pursues his father’s dream of bringing Northumbria under his rule. But first he must confront the Danes, who roam the untamed lands of northern England. The epic Uhtred chronicles continue steadily onwards with the characteristics which have made it such a success still in place: War is bitter. The poets give battle a splendor, extolling the brave and exulting in victory, and bravery is worth their praise. Victory too, I suppose, but the poems, chanted in mead halls at night, give boys and young men their ambition to be warriors. Reputation! It is the one thing that outlives us. Men die, women die, all die, but reputation lives on like the echo of a song, and men crave reputation” Eadgifu sends a message to Uhtred, begging for his help. Over the objections of his wife and friends, he heads south, accompanied by Finan and a handful of his men. They rescue Eadgifu from Æthelhelm's men and flee. Then Uhtred receives the news that Edward is dead. Edward's will gives Wessex to Ælfweard and Mercia to Æthelstan; Uhtred realises that this will inevitably result in civil war. It has been no easy road to for Uhtred to achieve his life’s ambition and I have fought by his side from day one.

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Domino Alexandro le Convers, pro denariis per ipsum datis,…, carpentariis facientibus ingenium quod vocatur Lupus Guerre, et aliis operaris diversis operantibus, …, mensibus Maii et Junii anno presenti (1304), vii o die Junii, …, 10 s. There is a very odd series of passages towards the end of WAR OF THE WOLF, the 11th entry in Bernard Cornwell’s Saxon Tales. The great warrior Uhtred pauses in his recollection of the mighty battle he fought against a nefarious Norse intruder to correct the bard who is writing a song about it. So what you have is a fictional character, telling the story of what is essentially a fictional battle, being interrupted by another fictional character, telling the story of the same battle. But it’s a different story, and the two stories disagree with each other. Yet he still feels bound by an oath he took to protect Æthelstan, his friend, protege and Edward's oldest son. So when there is a Mercian revolt against Edward, he rides with Finan and about 90 veteran warriors to relieve the siege of Ceaster. When he gets there, he realises he has been lied to; the besieged, led by Æthelstan, were in no real danger, and the enemy are soon defeated. One quote: Uhtred on god: "The men who fought for me worshipped a dozen gods and goddesses, The Christian god among them, but if a man believes the nonsense that there is only one god then there's no point in arguing because it would be like discussing a rainbow with a blind man." battle scenes bettered in their excitement levels only by those of Wilbur Smith, yet generally without the tongue-in-cheek elements meaning Bernard' s work delivers more credibility to the reader.