The Pale Horseman: Book 2 (The Last Kingdom Series) - Softcover

Cornwell, Bernard

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0008139482 ISBN 13: 9780008139483

Publisher: HarperCollins, 2015

Synopsis

The ninth book in the epic and bestselling series that has gripped millions.

A hero will be forged from this broken land.

As seen on Netflix and BBC around the world.

ALONE IN A SEA OF ENEMIES. BOUND TOGETHER BY LOYALTY, BELIEF AND DESPERATION.

Wessex, led by the pious King Alfred, is the last Saxon stronghold against the savage strength of the Vikings. Now it is struggling for its very existence. Uhtred, a Saxon raised by Vikings, is no ordinary warrior. As sharp of mind as he is of sword, his lust for life and battle sits badly with Alfred and his priests. But they face dire odds and Uhtred’s unique knowledge and fearlessness mean that he may be their only hope in the coming battle ...

About this title

Review:

The Pale Horseman is the second book in Bernard Cornwell's Alfred the Great sequence, and this highly experienced author will be well aware of the pitfalls awaiting the creator of any second book in a series -- particularly when its predecessor, The Last Kingdom, was so enthusiastically received. The fact that Cornwell's Sharpe books are so beloved (for their immense colour and vivid recreation of a very lively period of history) was not a guarantee that this latest venture for the author would succeed. But succeed it did, and The Last Kingdom conjured an era of Vikings and massacres, with a brilliantly drawn (and complex) King Alfred at the centre of the narrative. So -- does Cornwell bring off this second book with equal panache?

No need for suspense -- The Pale Horseman is just as exhilarating a recreation of an age of heroes as its predecessor, delivered with the brio that is the author's trademark. Uhtred was born in Northumbria but rais! ed as a Viking. Married to a Saxon, he has achieved fame as a doughty warrior. But the more reflective Alfred has problems with the aggressive, self-serving manner of his young friend. An alliance, though, is necessary: these two are the sole remnants of those who commanded Wessex, after ill-judged bargains have destroyed the union. The Vikings now reign over most of England, and Alfred and his company are obliged to hide in the swampy netherland of Athelney, trying to regain the support they once enjoyed. Uhtred cannot shake off his Viking training, but finds himself acquiring an admiration for Alfred, who he comes to sense is a great man. As the narrative progresses, the conflict between the two men must be resolved before bloody battles will change the fate of England.

One expects the heroic endeavours of Bernard Cornwell's novels to be dispatched with panache, but there is another element which his admirers rely on: the conflict between his strongly drawn characters,! exemplified here by the two proud leaders. It'll take a while! before this new sequence achieves the immense popularity of the Sharpe novels, but the auguries are good. --Barry Forshaw

Review:

‘NOBODY IN THE WORLD DOES THIS BETTER’
Lee Child

‘LIKE GAME OF THRONES, BUT REAL’
Observer

‘THE BEST BATTLE SCENES OF ANY WRITER I’VE EVER READ, PAST OR PRESENT. CORNWELL REALLY MAKES HISTORY COME ALIVE’
George R.R. Martin

About this edition

• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Publication date: 2015
• ISBN 10: 0008139482
• ISBN 13: 9780008139483
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 432