From the Publisher
The first must-read of 2013 arrives….Bernard Cornwell is a master of combining a thumping good tale with a fascinating history lesson.” — Reader's Digest
“In addition to carving out another action-packed martial adventure, Cornwell spotlights one of the most significant but often overlooked battles of the era.” — Booklist
“No one picks a fight like Cornwell, who here does for the Battle of Poitiers what he did for the bloody fray that was Agincourt in the book of that name.” — Library Journal
“A master of action-packed historical fiction…a vivid, exciting portrayal of medieval warfare….Nobody writes battle scenes like Cornwell, accurately conveying the utter savagery of close combat with sword, ax, and mace, and the gruesome aftermath.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Bernard Cornwell does the best battle scenes of any writer I’ve ever read, past or present.” — George R.R. Martin
“Nobody in the world does this stuff better than Cornwell - action set six hundred years ago is as fresh and vital as six days ago, with rough, tough men at war, proving once again that nothing changes... least of all great storytelling.” — Lee Child
“The reigning king of historical fiction.” — USA Today
“Bernard Cornwell is a gifted and prolific historical novelist who seems at home in virtually every era….A lively, accessible account of a remote moment in European history, a book in which Cornwell’s gifts as scholar and storyteller come together spectacularly.” — Bill Sheehan, Washington Post
“Tired of waiting for another of George R.R. Martin’s Game of Thrones books? Cornwell’s latest novel may be your best option.” — Billy Heller, New York Post
“Cornwell is one of the best writers of historical fiction.” — McClatchy News
“The legions of Cornwell’s fans…will need little encouragement to devour this latest installment in the Hundred Years Way sequence. Everything you expect of a Cornwell offering is here in abundance: interesting characters, rich historical detail, thrilling battles, war, violence, gore, heroism, wry humour….Highly recommended.” — Historical Novels Society
Historical Novels Society
The legions of Cornwell’s fans…will need little encouragement to devour this latest installment in the Hundred Years Way sequence. Everything you expect of a Cornwell offering is here in abundance: interesting characters, rich historical detail, thrilling battles, war, violence, gore, heroism, wry humour….Highly recommended.
McClatchy News
Cornwell is one of the best writers of historical fiction.
Billy Heller
Tired of waiting for another of George R.R. Martin’s Game of Thrones books? Cornwell’s latest novel may be your best option.
Bill Sheehan
Bernard Cornwell is a gifted and prolific historical novelist who seems at home in virtually every era….A lively, accessible account of a remote moment in European history, a book in which Cornwell’s gifts as scholar and storyteller come together spectacularly.
USA Today
The reigning king of historical fiction.
Lee Child
Nobody in the world does this stuff better than Cornwell - action set six hundred years ago is as fresh and vital as six days ago, with rough, tough men at war, proving once again that nothing changes... least of all great storytelling.
George R.R. Martin
Bernard Cornwell does the best battle scenes of any writer I’ve ever read, past or present.
Booklist
In addition to carving out another action-packed martial adventure, Cornwell spotlights one of the most significant but often overlooked battles of the era.
Reader's Digest
The first must-read of 2013 arrives….Bernard Cornwell is a master of combining a thumping good tale with a fascinating history lesson.
Barbara Hoffert
"No one picks a fight like Cornwell, who here does for the Battle of Poitiers what he did for the bloody fray that was Agincourt in the book of that name."
Dawn Raffel
"The first must-read of 2013 arrives….Bernard Cornwell is a master of combining a thumping good tale with a fascinating history lesson."
Kirkus Reviews
The most notable English victory of the Hundred Years' War turns on the possession of the sword Jesus bade Peter sheathe in the garden of Gethsemane. At least that's how it looks in Cornwell's fictionalization of the events leading up to the Battle of Poitiers, beginning at the moment that a Black Friar breaks into a 150-year-old coffin and steals off with la Malice, the sword he finds inside. Scant hours behind Fra Ferdinand is an enforcer of the Avignon pope calling himself Father Calade and armed with a hooded hawk who serves as his own enforcer. The large-scale opposition between the English and French forces as they skirmish over ransom for hostages and salaries for mercenaries is complicated by the number of key characters who change sides. Sir Thomas Hookton, who begins by serving the Count of Labrouillade, soon breaks with him over (what else?) the money due him for restoring the faithless countess to his hearth and home. Brother Michael, a Cistercian who's come to Montpellier to study medicine, takes up with Thomas. So does Sir Robert Douglas, who's already fought against the English under his Scottish uncle. Few of these characters have any inkling that a pivotal battle in the endless war for France looms ahead. Neither, for that matter, will unwary readers. For, although every intrigue springs to life under the close-up focus veteran Cornwell (Death of Kings, 2012, etc.) has long since mastered, the strands aren't always closely knitted together: Heroes and subplots blossom and fade with no consistent sense of their connections, and readers approaching the tale without the appropriate historical background will have to survive a long probationary period before they realize where this is all heading. Best for fans of historical fiction who have both a taste for the Hundred Years' War and some base-line knowledge that will allow them to enjoy this swashbuckling recreation.
