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A review by william_gwynne
Sword of Kings by Bernard Cornwell
Great to be back with Uthred in Sword of Kings in the penultimate instalment of The Saxon Stories. Cannot believe that I only have one to go!
I would say that Sword of Kings is one of the strongest of this series, with some very high points, and one of the most engaging opening sections of all the instalments so far. It was a fantastic start, and that continued through much of the story.
Whilst there was a section which I thought had pacing problems, the rest was usual Bernard Cornwell success. It has a great cast of characters, with an entertaining plot, and a smaller arc taking place and resulting satisfactory within the wider arc and drive of the series, which is the formation of England under one king.
What I particularly enjoyed in this instalment was that it seamed less streamlined than many of the other instalments. A major focus for Uhtred deviated somewhat from the usual, instead focusing on his hatred of slavery, partly due to personal experience. This materialised into some powerful scenes that both made me love Uhtred more, and also managed to explore the character of Uhtred even more! Bernard Cornwell somehow manages to expand on Uhtred every single book, and I would say this makes our main character one of the most successfully and interestingly developed characters in fiction.
Full Review to Come
I would say that Sword of Kings is one of the strongest of this series, with some very high points, and one of the most engaging opening sections of all the instalments so far. It was a fantastic start, and that continued through much of the story.
Whilst there was a section which I thought had pacing problems, the rest was usual Bernard Cornwell success. It has a great cast of characters, with an entertaining plot, and a smaller arc taking place and resulting satisfactory within the wider arc and drive of the series, which is the formation of England under one king.
What I particularly enjoyed in this instalment was that it seamed less streamlined than many of the other instalments. A major focus for Uhtred deviated somewhat from the usual, instead focusing on his hatred of slavery, partly due to personal experience. This materialised into some powerful scenes that both made me love Uhtred more, and also managed to explore the character of Uhtred even more! Bernard Cornwell somehow manages to expand on Uhtred every single book, and I would say this makes our main character one of the most successfully and interestingly developed characters in fiction.
Full Review to Come