The Empty Throne (The Saxon Stories, #8)

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This eighth entry in New York Times bestselling author Bernard Cornwell s epic Saxon Tales series brings to life the harrowing and turbulent tale of a nation torn apart by sectarian and religious strife, a political struggle dominated by dynastic rivalries, and the remarkable strength that elevates some characters above their time The reigning king of historical fiction USA Today My name is Uhtred I am the son of Uhtred, who was the son of Uhtred Britain, early tenth century AD a time of change There are new raids by the Vikings from Ireland, and turmoil among the Saxons over the leadership of Mercia A younger generation is taking over thelred, the ruler of Mercia, is dying, leaving no legitimate heir The West Saxons want their king, but Uhtred has long supported Athelflaed, sister to King Edward of Wessex and widow of Aethelred Widely loved and respected, Athelflaed has all the makings of a leader but could Saxon warriors ever accept a woman as their ruler The stage is set for rivals to fight for the empty throne Uhtred is still suffering from the wounds he received in battle To recover his strength he needs to find the sword that caused the injury, but lost amid the battle s blood and mud, how could it be traced and who among the Vikings or Saxons might be holding it In the end it is one champion, one hero, who will destroy the new Viking threat to Mercia and ultimately decide the fate of England.With this eighth entry in the epic Saxon Tales series, we are reminded once again why New York Times bestselling author Bernard Cornwell is the most prolific and successful historical novelist in the world today Wall Street Journal. New Read [ The Empty Throne (The Saxon Stories, #8) ] By [ Bernard Cornwell ] – kino-fada.fr Has Uhtred finally ran out of fight Uhtred was severely injured at the end of the last novel It is a wound that would kill off a lesser men But Uhtred is stronger than that Even in his old age he retains the courage of a warrior He seeks the blade that pierced his flesh in order to cure his ailment His pagan superstition demands that this will save his life thus, most of the novel is given over to an injured Uhtred trying to find a sword amongst the backdrop of a few nobles fighting over Has Uhtred finally ran out of fight Uhtred was severely injured at the end of the last novel It is a wound that would kill off a lesser men But Uhtred is stronger than that Even in his old age he retains the courage of a warrior He seeks the blade that pierced his flesh in order to cure his ailment His pagan superstition demands that this will save his life thus, most of the novel is given over to an injured Uhtred trying to find a sword amongst the backdrop of a few nobles fighting over the throne of Mercia As far as these novels go, this plot was a little weak It didn t really head towards a fulfilment or epic conclusion It was just a man looking for a sword whilst dealing with some minor politics The throne of Mercia doesn t really speak of conquest or grand achievement It is the ruling seat of...I will never forget the day I turned those initial pages and started the very first book in the Warrior Chronicles Saxon Stories in the US for the very first time It was many years ago now and was the beginning of a wonderful journey for me I had always been an avid reader Since I learned to read really, but I had never found my niche fiction genre I dabbled in fantasy fiction, I dipped my toe in horror, absorbed myself in crime thrillers, but it was not until I forged my way through the I will never forget the day I turned those initial pages and started the very first book in the Warrior Chronicles Saxon Stories in the US for the very first time It was many years ago now and was the beginning of a wonderful journey for me I had always been an avid reader Since I learned to read really, but I had never found my niche fiction genre I dabbled in fantasy fiction, I dipped my toe in horror, absorbed myself in crime thrillers, but it was not until I forged my way through the historical pretenders quagmire to this series that I finally discovered what I wanted as a reader I wanted history Brutal, honest, raw histori...Coming back to Uhtred after reading tons of mediocre literature across all genres is like finding an oasis in a desert I was engrossed from the first sentence, and The Empty Throne brought back the joy of reading that I always lose a bit of when reading too many dreary books.However, there is no doubt that Bernard Cornwell is running out of plot and has to turn to half and half improvisation and rehashing of old storylines to keep the series going until the two inevitable final goals Uhtred s Coming back to Uhtred after reading tons of mediocre literature across all genres is like finding an oasis in a desert I was engrossed from the first sentence, and The Empty Throne brought back the joy of reading that I always lose a bit of when reading too many dreary books.However, there is no doubt that Bernard Cornwell is running out of plot and has to turn to half and half improvisation and rehashing of old storylines to keep the series g...Like books four and five in the GoT series, much of this book feels like housekeeping Perhaps I should say, hallkeeping or castlecleaning.I thought maybe in The Empty Throne our half Dane, half Saxon hero Uhtred of Bebbanburg might finally regain his lands and castle, but instead the story veers away from what it seemed to be leading up to and turned its focus on the bigger picture That s annoying, but perhaps it s for the best The get my castle back storyline was getting stale Besides, if h Like books four and five in the GoT series, much of this book feels like housekeeping Perhaps I should say, hallkeeping or castlecleaning.I thought maybe in The Empty Throne our half Dane, half Saxon hero Uhtred of Bebbanburg might finally regain his lands and castle, but instead the story veers away from what it seemed to...thelhelm thelstan thelred ethelflaed thelwold thelfrith lfwynn lfl d lfadellThese are all characters in this book You fucking with me, Uncle Bernard An actual 10th century Anglo Saxon would have trouble telling all these names apart It s almost jarring when a character pops up whose name DOESN T start with an ash, like Edward or Brice Given that only one or two of these people probably actually appear in the Anglo Saxon Chronicle this reliance on the ash has to be a Cornwell thing, and it b thelhelm thelstan thelred ethelflaed thelwold thelfrith lfwynn lfl d lfadellThese are all characters in this book You fucking with me, Uncle Bernard An actual 10th century Anglo Saxon would have trouble telling all these names apart It s almost jarring when a character pops up whose name DOESN T start with an ash, like Edward or Brice Given that only one or two of these people probably actually appear in the Anglo Saxon Chronicle this reliance on the ash has to be a Cornwell thing, and it became distracting and ridiculous by the end of the book Thankfully, it STILL didn t dim the casual awesomeness of these books This is the 8th book in the series I have given four stars, which might make it THE most consistent series I ve read Of course, I haven t seen a single other person w...If you ve already read the other 7 books then this isof the same AWESOMENESS But I can t keep gushing every instalment.If you haven t read any of these books then all I want to say about this series is in my review of the last book hereTo be totally fair, the first few books were probably better as they were Uhtred s coming of badassery and from 4 or 5 onwards is just Uhtred being badass.Also, the series is now pretty episodic I m now convinced that Uhtred s never getting to Bebbanburg If you ve already read the other 7 books then this isof the same AWESOMENESS But I can t keep gushing every instalment.If you haven t read any of these books then all I want to say abo...Review in Portuguese from Desbravando Livros Essa resenha foi feita a partir da vers o brit nica, intitulada The Empty Throne, em outubro de 2014, data de lan amento do e book estrangeiro Depois, foi atualizada com imagens e nomes em portugu s em 12 06 2015, quando foram anunciadas a capa e a sinopse da nossa edi o brasileira.Com a morte de thelred pedindo para chegar ap s ser ferido gravemente na batalha final d...I began this tale with trepidation fears of it being another filler akin to The Pagan LordAnd so it starts with a prologue to fill in the gaps from the previous tale at first you question if Uhtred still lives, then all becomes clear We have the usual politicking which takes us through the first third of the book then onto the adventure part where we have to get from A to B before X does. all sounds very formulaic to those of us that have been here before, especially I began this tale with trepidation fears of it being another filler akin to The Pagan LordAnd so it starts with a prologue to fill in the gaps from the previous tale at first you question if Uhtred still lives, then all becomes clear We have the usual politicking which takes us through the first third of the book then onto the adventure part where we have to get from A to B before X does. all sounds very formulaic to those of us that have been here before, especially so those that found Pagan Lord a book to far He kills a priest well not quite him goes against the church. however the addition of Stiorra Uhtred Junior as well as Athelstan coming to an age, as well as old favourites Finan, Athelfraid Osferth make it enjoyable enough the dynamics have changed as Uhtred himself has reached that age where the once mighty warrior s body begins to fail can empathise with that bit Its go...Historical political intrigues at their bestI liked it which is extraordinary when you consider that Bernard Cornwell s books are miles away from the kinds of books I normally read I ve read several of the Saxon Chronicles The Last Kingdom, Death of Kings, The Pagan Lord before this one and liked all of them There s just something about Uhtred, hard bitten warlord that he is, that makes him an appealing character His appreciation for strong women, perhaps, or his relentless honesty, including honesty about his own flaws Or perhaps i I liked it which is extraordinary when you consider that Bernard Cornwell s books are miles away from the kinds of books I normally read I ve read several of the Saxon Chronicles The Last Kingdom, Death of Kings, The Pagan Lord before this one and liked all of them There s just something about Uhtred, hard bitten warlord that he is, that makes him an appealing character His appreciation for strong women, perhaps, or his relentless honesty, including honesty about his own flaws Or perhaps it s his quality of being the perpetual outsider a pagan among Christians, a Saxon who fights for a united England even though he loves the Danish raiders who raised and, in their rough and ready way, nurtured him from boy to man I m not sure, but some combination of those characteristics certainly explains his attraction.This book opens, rather disconcertingly, with an exact repetition of the opening sentences of The Last Kingdom except...

The Empty Throne (The Saxon Stories, #8)
  • English
  • 18 December 2017
  • Paperback
  • 302 pages
  • 0007504179
  • Bernard Cornwell
  • The Empty Throne (The Saxon Stories, #8)