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4.19 AVERAGE
4.19 AVERAGE
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
“I have lived long and I know the turbulence of life, the cares that weigh a man’s soul and the sorrows that turn the hair white and the heart heavy, but all those are lifted along the whale’s path. Only at sea is a man truly free.”
So says Uhtred of Bebbanburg, in his attempt to evade all those who want him dead.
The Pagan Lord is book 7 of 13 in Cornwell’s series about the Saxons who long to establish a unified England, and the invading Danes who seek to claim the land for themselves. This particular installment focuses on the events leading up to and including the battle between the two forces at Teotanheale, known today as Tettenhall, in 910AD.
It’s no secret that I love The Last Kingdom and its main character, Uhtred. (I most definitely visualize Alexander Dreymon as I read.) I consider the series to be the perfect blend of fiction and historical fact. Yet, although the story is well-paced and held my attention, I was disappointed by the anti-climactic battle scene. Considering how skillfully the tension between Uhtred and one of his longtime foes was built across several books, the manner in which their years of warring culminated left me feeling a bit underwhelmed. Regardless, I look forward to continuing on with the series.
So says Uhtred of Bebbanburg, in his attempt to evade all those who want him dead.
The Pagan Lord is book 7 of 13 in Cornwell’s series about the Saxons who long to establish a unified England, and the invading Danes who seek to claim the land for themselves. This particular installment focuses on the events leading up to and including the battle between the two forces at Teotanheale, known today as Tettenhall, in 910AD.
It’s no secret that I love The Last Kingdom and its main character, Uhtred. (I most definitely visualize Alexander Dreymon as I read.) I consider the series to be the perfect blend of fiction and historical fact. Yet, although the story is well-paced and held my attention, I was disappointed by the anti-climactic battle scene. Considering how skillfully the tension between Uhtred and one of his longtime foes was built across several books, the manner in which their years of warring culminated left me feeling a bit underwhelmed. Regardless, I look forward to continuing on with the series.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I haven’t read any of the other books in this series, and after ploughing my way through this I feel I should give a word of advice; do not even attempt to read this book unless you have read the previous six.
Having read other books by this Author, I went into this being acquainted with the way he puts a plot together and develops his characters, and I was not disappointed by what I found within the pages of this novel, his attention to detail from an historical point was apparent on every page. However, it was the main character I had the most problem getting to grips with, and I attribute this entirely to my not having read the series from the beginning. I found that I had no idea as to the personality traits and motivation that drove this character through the book and, because of this lack of background I found the book very hard to finish.
Using the weather to reflect mood is always a good direction for an Author to go, especially if their novels are set in times about which very little is known; but in writing this book I felt that the Author had just a little too much grim weather, in both nature and the demeanour of the main character, that really began to pull me down and make me weary. Another issue I had with this book, was the overuse of the word ‘and’; it appears everywhere from the beginning of a sentence, to liberally sprinkled in the same sentence it began, to linking sentences and starting paragraphs. There were way too many of them. I can’t remember any of the other books I have read by this Author using the word so liberally, but by doing so it made the calibre of this piece of work fall dramatically.
I haven’t decided whether I will backtrack to read this series from the beginning, but I would recommend any books by this Author who enjoys a good historical read; with this book though, just remember to start with book one.
Originally reviewed on: http://catesbooknuthut.com/2014/01/31/review-the-pagan-lord-the-warrior-chroniclessaxon-stories-7-bernard-cornwell/
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
Having read other books by this Author, I went into this being acquainted with the way he puts a plot together and develops his characters, and I was not disappointed by what I found within the pages of this novel, his attention to detail from an historical point was apparent on every page. However, it was the main character I had the most problem getting to grips with, and I attribute this entirely to my not having read the series from the beginning. I found that I had no idea as to the personality traits and motivation that drove this character through the book and, because of this lack of background I found the book very hard to finish.
Using the weather to reflect mood is always a good direction for an Author to go, especially if their novels are set in times about which very little is known; but in writing this book I felt that the Author had just a little too much grim weather, in both nature and the demeanour of the main character, that really began to pull me down and make me weary. Another issue I had with this book, was the overuse of the word ‘and’; it appears everywhere from the beginning of a sentence, to liberally sprinkled in the same sentence it began, to linking sentences and starting paragraphs. There were way too many of them. I can’t remember any of the other books I have read by this Author using the word so liberally, but by doing so it made the calibre of this piece of work fall dramatically.
I haven’t decided whether I will backtrack to read this series from the beginning, but I would recommend any books by this Author who enjoys a good historical read; with this book though, just remember to start with book one.
Originally reviewed on: http://catesbooknuthut.com/2014/01/31/review-the-pagan-lord-the-warrior-chroniclessaxon-stories-7-bernard-cornwell/
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
It's been a few years since I have immersed myself in the world of Uhtred. The changing pagan world of the new nailed God, interfering priests, the wars between Saxons and Danes, shield walls and Bebbanburg.
Even at 50, Uhtred has not slowed down, become more temperate or changed his view on Christian priests. Even though this story includes fewer battles and the least amount of Saxon royalty to date, I thought it was on par with most of the rest of the series.
Whether I rated this book so highly because it really was that good or because I was a little nostalgic for a favorite character or because it was just nice to get back to some Cornwell writing, I don't know but I hope the next book is as good.
Even at 50, Uhtred has not slowed down, become more temperate or changed his view on Christian priests. Even though this story includes fewer battles and the least amount of Saxon royalty to date, I thought it was on par with most of the rest of the series.
Whether I rated this book so highly because it really was that good or because I was a little nostalgic for a favorite character or because it was just nice to get back to some Cornwell writing, I don't know but I hope the next book is as good.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
These books are getting really predictable! Still enjoyable and the battle at the end is always the best bit. Descriptions are some of the best I've ever read!