persuades Uhtred not to kill Æthelhelm but to ransom him so he can replenish his coffers and diminish Æthelhelm's ability to buy more men into his service. Æthelstan also suggests Uhtred keep Æthelhelm's daughter – Ælswyth, who was supposed to be wed to Uhtred’s cousin as part of the resupply deal – as a hostage and this is much to Uhtred’s son’s liking as he has taken a shine to her. Uhtred then goes and tells the Scots to leave his land, which they do, for now. It has been awesome binging the last few instalments, and The Flame Bearer was a good tale as well. It probably fits into the middle, in regards to my ranking of them, with some awesome moments, but some bits tending to be a bit repetitive as well. Astonishing storytelling skills. Bernard Cornwell brought 9th and 10th century England alive for me. War and fight scenes are chillingly realistic. I really felt like I was there with Uhtred, fighting every new enemy or being part of countless shield wars.

It is set in 10th-century England and continues to follow the fortunes of the fictional Uhtred of Bebbanburg. In this novel Uhtred is finally secure in his childhood home, Bebbanburg. It is the next stage in a long story that has many fans. [3] Plot [ edit ] I really enjoyed this read, though not as strong as the last few, but that’s probably because I’ve been binging them. The tension did build excellently however, and the ending is gripping and bloody. Exactly what we love to see in an Uhtred story. Aethelstan persuades Uhtred not to kill Aethelhelm, but to ransom him so he can replenish his coffers and weaken Aethelhelm. Aethelstan also suggests Uhtred keep Aethelhelm's daughter – who was supposed to be wed to Uhtred’s cousin as part of the resupply deal – as a hostage and this is much to Uhtred's son's liking, as he has taken a shine to her. Uhtred then tells the Scots to leave his land, which they do. This book features something unusual. Bernard Cornwell describes what it is like to be in a pitched battle, especially a shield wall. Cornwell portrays how utterly frightful the battles are to individual warriors. Even battle-hardened warriors must prepare themselves psychologically ahead of time, to get up the courage to be in a shield wall. A shield wall is nearly unstoppable, except when two shield walls face each other. One quote: "I doubt that I shall ever understand Christianity. 'Thou shalt not kill!' their priests teach, then encourage warriors to give battle against the heathen or even against other Christians if there is a half-chance of gaining land, slaves or silver. Father Beocca had taught me the nailed god's ten commandments, but I had long learned that the chief commandment of the Christians was 'Thou shalt make my priests wealthy."

At least one of the top three of this series, Cornwell has found "another gear". Loved this episode in one of the best historical fiction series of all time. I have been following the story of Uhtred of Babbenberg since the first book in the Saxon Stories. In this book Uhtred achieves his goal he has had since book one.

Uhtred fails again to capture Bebbanburg. His son-in-law, the pagan warlord Sigtryggr, king of Northumbria, asks for help against invading West Saxons who seem intent on breaking the recent truce with Aethelflaed, the ruler of Mercia and King Edward of Wessex’s sister. Uhtred’s men are outnumbered by invading Scots led by Constantin intent on making Bebbanburg their own. However, Uhtred's cousin is willing to wait out the siege behind the nearly impregnable walls of his fortress. I will make this a short review. The Flame Bearer is the tenth book in The Last Kingdom series by Bernard Cornwell. And I’m genuinely running out of words to say about it in my review. This isn’t because it’s book number 10 in a series; I’ve reviewed each book in The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher, The Realm of the Elderlings by Robin Hobb, and Malazan Book of the Fallen by Steven Erikson, and I always have a LOT of things to say as spoiler-free as possible on each book in these series. However, there’s nothing else to say in The Last Kingdom by this point; the entirety of the past four books have followed the same “strong beginning, then fill the middle with something pointless, and then end the book strongly” method. Seriously, I wouldn’t lose much—except one scene with Aethelflaed—if I just read the first two chapters and then read the last chapter of this book. But fate is inexorable, and the enemies Uhtred has made and the oaths he has sworn conspire to distract him from his dream of recapturing his home. New enemies enter into the fight for England’s kingdoms: the redoubtable Constantin of Scotland seizes an opportunity for conquest and leads his armies south. Britain’s precarious peace threatens to turn into a war of annihilation. Yet Uhtred is determined that nothing—neither the new adversaries nor the old foes who combine against him—will keep him from his birthright. Many of the novel’s characters, including King Edward, his sister, Æthelflaed, and his son Æthelstan, the presumptive heir to the throne, Æthelhelm and his grandson (and King Edward’s second son) Ælfweard, (whom Æthelhelm would like to see king), and King Constantin, are all historical figures, but they performed none of the actions attributed to them in the novel. Matt Bates can do any accent and does most of them superbly. There is usually a large cast in these books and Bates can rise to the challenge. He is particularly good at subtle inflection changes pertaining to dry humor.I was born a Saxon, but raised by Danes, my daughter had married a Norseman, my dearest friend was Irish, my woman was a Saxon, the mother of my children had been Danish, my gods were pagan, and my oath was sworn to AEthelflaed, a Christian. Whose side was I on?” There's not a whole lot I can say about this book that isn't just straight up plot spoilers, but it did remind me why I've enjoyed the series so much. I was mostly reading this book 1 chapter at a time, but there was a night where the book was too good to put down and by the end of the book the final part was very enjoyable. The book begins with another failed attempt by Uhtred to lay siege to Bebbanburg. His son-in-law, the pagan warlord Sigtryggr, ruler of Jorvik and in turn Northumbria, asks for help against invading West Saxons who seem intent on breaking the truce recently drawn up with the ruler of Mercia; Æthelflæd – King Edward of Wessex’s sister. Uhtred’s men are outnumbered by invading Scots led by Constantin intent on making Bebbanburg for their own. However, Uhtred’s cousin ensconced inside the fortress is willing to play a long game and wait out the siege. He won’t be enticed out from inside Bebbanburg’s strong walls. All in all, The Warrior Chronicles/Saxon Stories series (all 10 available books) is spectacular story with spectacular writing. It is one of the best historical fiction stories I have ever read and it is the perfect example of how to write engaging historical fiction series that never get boring or predictable! Moreover, I loved author’s note at the end of every book where author explained which parts were based on historical facts and which parts of his novel he made up.