The Burning Land: A Novel (Saxon Tales) | Bernard Cornwell

The Burning Land: A Novel (Saxon Tales) | Bernard Cornwell | the burning land

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	The Burning Land: A Novel (Saxon Tales) Bernard Cornwell Harper, 2010 - 352 pages average customer review:based on 44 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

In a clash of heroes, the kingdom is born.

At the end of the ninth century, King Alfred of Wessex is in ill health; his heir, an untested youth. His enemy, the Danes, having failed to conquer Wessex, now see their chance for victory. Led by the sword of savage warrior Harald Bloodhair, the Viking hordes attack. But Uhtred, Alfred's reluctant warlord, proves his worth, outwitting Harald and handing the Vikings one of their greatest defeats.

For Uhtred, the sweetness of victory is soon overshadowed by tragedy. Breaking with Alfred, he joins the Vikings, swearing never again to serve the Saxon king. Instead, he will reclaim his ancestral fortress on the Northumbrian coast. Allied with his old friend Ragnar?and his old foe Haesten?he aims to invade and conquer Wessex itself.

Yet fate has different plans. The Danes of East Anglia and the Vikings of Northumbria are plotting the conquest of all Britain. When Alfred's daughter pleads with Uhtred for help, he cannot refuse her request. In a desperate gamble, he takes command of a demoralized Mercian army, leading them in an unforgettable battle on a blood-soaked field beside the Thames.

In The Burning Land, Bernard Cornwell, "the reigning king of historical fiction" (USA Today), delivers a rousing saga of Anglo-Saxon England?an irresistible new chapter in his thrilling Saxon Tales, the epic story of the birth of England and the legendary king who made it possible.

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Spellbinding!

Once again Lord Uhtred is back again in fine form in Bernard Cornwell's mesmerizing fifth installment of "The Saxon Tales".
"The Burning Land" finally finds Uhtred free of his life oath to Alfred, yet cunningly manipulated once again by him to be under oath to Alfred's daughter, Aethelflaed.

By far some of the best historicals ever written, Cornwell's
"The Saxon Tales" is set in the ninth century and will give the reader hours of exceptional and vivid storytelling. I would suggest reading them from the beginning to be familiar with Uhtred's background and how he has developed over time,(fascinating) starting with "The Last Kingdom", then on to "The Pale Horseman", "Lords of the North", "Sword Song", and now "The Burning Land". They're filled with intense and brutal war battles, magic, Vikings, Danes, women, cunning, and one of the best warlords of all time, Lord Uhtred.

Another series, which in my opinion, rivals Cornwell's writing, which is really saying something, is the little known
"The Strongbow Saga", books 1,2,and 3, written by the highly talented Judson Roberts. You can't go wrong with either of these great writers.

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the burning land

i thought the book was very good and had alot of action seens and always made you want to read on. i think that if anyone who is looking for a good book to read that they will love this one.

The best of Uhtred, from a master storyteller

Bernard Cornwell delivers another action-packed treasure in The Burning Land, fifth installment in his paragon Saxon Tales, set in 9th century Britain. Once again, Uhtred of Bebbanburg rises to his reputation as King Alfred's formidable warlord and snatches another great victory from the Danes, this time at Farnham. While his family grows and Gisela provides comforting familiarity, two other women - Aethelflaed,the fair daughter of Alfred, and raven-haired Skade, a cruel and enchanting Danish sorceress - tug Uthred's fate in opposing directions. At a time when it seems he is never more more highly valued by Alfred, an insult from a proclaimed saint incites an act of sacrilege and Uhtred becomes an outlaw on the run, seeking the fortune that will propel him back to power and seal his fate as Lord of Bebbenburg.

From the blood-soaked battlefields of Saxon versus Dane, where one can practically hear the guttural battlecries and clang of weapons, to the cold, spume-capped North Sea as Uhtred voyages on Seolferwulf, The Burning Land is perhaps the best so far of the series. Not only does Cornwell give us a superbly paced tale of adventure, impossible odds, unlikely trysts and a revolving appearance of old allies and sworn enemies, but here we begin to glimpse an Uhtred who is not only wiser and more far-thinking, but willing to risk seizing vengeance for the sake of a promise.

I've been a Cornwell fan since picking up one of the Grail Quest series in Scotland a decade ago. With an author as prolific as Cornwell, one might expect his stories to become more formulaic and his characters flatter, but in my opinion the opposite is true here: Cornwell somehow manages to get better with every story. This is one of those rare books I could read again. If you like historicals rife with battle scenes, perilous tales of adventure and an antihero who is, at the core, loyal and recklessly courageous, then don't miss this The Burning Land.

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Another great read for the Saxon series

Once again Bernard Cornwell does a good job with telling the story of Uthred in this fourth book of the Saxon series. Since there is about a year or so between when the new book comes out, I like the fact that the author explains some of the lesser characters role from the previous book. You start to forget minor details in a series and by taking a small paragraph to explain how they came into the story, it helps avoid any confusion. I am excited to see how this series ends and if Lord Uthred will finally ever get to go home to Bebbanburg.

I miss Narrator Jamie Glover

This is a review of The Burning Land Unabridged Recorded Book. This is the fifth book in the Saxon Chronicles I have listened to, and I adore the first four thanks not only to the brilliance of Bernard Cornwell and his impeccable research, but especially to the voice of Jamie Glover. "I am Uhtred" he said, and he was. Jamie Glover had a slow, easy style of narration. He had a large range of accents and one would believe and understand that Uhtred was speaking. The Burning Land is narrated by Stephen Perring and he is a huge disappointment to those expecting to hear the familiar voice of Jamie Glover. He races throguh the narration, speaking too quickly for the listener to absorb what he is saying. Unfortunately, Stephen Perring is not Uhtred. I gave this CD book only 3 stars because of it; in fact, I may just get the hardcopy from the library and read it with Jamie Glover's voice in my head. What a big disappointment.

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