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Sto caricando le informazioni... Sword of Kingsdi Bernard Cornwell
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Iscriviti per consentire a LibraryThing di scoprire se ti piacerà questo libro. Attualmente non vi sono conversazioni su questo libro. Historical Fiction Nearing the end of the series, which started back in 2004! Can you believe it? 'The Saxon Stories', meanwhile turned into a TV-series under the title 'The Last Kingdom', has been published over the course of 17 years. It's a sort of coming-of-age of Osbert, eh, Uhtred... of Bebbanburg, the castle he always wanted to recapture/reconquer/reclaim ever since the Vikings invaded England (or rather, Northumbria, as England didn't exist yet), and farther into the other kingdoms (East Anglia, Mercia, and Wessex; not forgetting other territories, too, but they are less important for the series). I haven't reviewed the last few volumes (for whatever reason), but number 7, 'The Pagan Lord', was, after a very good run, the first "less good" novel. Things got much better again, though I did leave a gap of eight years before continuing the series, for various reasons, several out of my control. So, with volume 8, what with Aethelred sick and dying, Aethelflaed becoming Queen of Mercia, also thanks to Uhtred, it was another joy to dive back into this wonderful series. 'The Empty Throne', 'Warriors of the Storm', 'The Flame Bearer' ( A busy man, loved by many, despised by his enemies and Christian priests, except those he got along with. In 'Sword of Kings', we see a much older Uhtred, a more than foolish Uhtred, who should have stayed at home after his last, heavy, weary battles in 'War of the Wolf'. But those events would have consequences for the next volumes, as many ends were not tied up yet. Like the claim to the throne of Wessex and Mercia (and East Anglia). King Edward would at some point, due to age and health issues, have to pass on the power. However, bad influence and power-hungry men, like one of his generals/advisors, Aethelhelm), had a different future in mind. Edward had two children to succeed him: Aethelwaerd and Aethelstan, the last one being raised/protected by Aethelflaed and Uhtred, to make sure he survived. And this would be the core of 'Sword of Kings'. Uhtred, whilst not needed at all, would indulge in his pride and once again ride out to protect the interests of Aethelstan and King Edward. Like in a previous volume - the 10th or 11th - East Anglian troops were lured away, as a so-called army was on its way to invade. Previousy, it was Uhtred who had been lured away for a non-existing threat. And so, Uhtred returns to save the day. Not exactly as this time he would make many mistakes, many miscalculations. His intuition would be wrong many times. But despite this all, he remained stubborn, not wanting to delegate (much), ... In fact, at this old age, he'd become a rather pathetic image of his former self. Of course, it wouldn't be a good story, if it didn't end well. Uhtred did get beaten up, tried to see many times a sign of the gods in every flying bird, sound of the wind, what-have-you, to such an extent it became tedious and even obnoxious. Also, at his old age, not really worrying about his wife, children ( Long story short, 'Sword of Kings' is an uneven novel. It has its moments - Bernard Cornwell is one hell of a writer of battles, which are bloody, cruel, ... and show how man can be cruel to his own species. I did like, though maybe they were a wee bit too many in number, the flashbacks, the reflections of Uhtred on times and experiences past. They helped in refreshing my memory on the events in previous novels. Last but not least, despite this not being a very good book, Mr Cornwell's writing did make up for that. The ending was a bit rushed, I find, and not what I had hoped or expected it to be. Sure, Uhtred has become old, should have retired a long time ago, certainly not have interfered here, but in all his stubbornness, he did help turn the tide. Also, and again, there were some threads left unresolved. Those have been resolved now, but let's see what 'War Lord' will bring, as Uhtred swore an oath to Aethelstan, but the latter also swore one to the former. Time to end it all, so there can be a proper conclusion. ---------- For more information on the series, there's this fandom-website. very good but NOT great. There is an air of finality about this book. Utred is approaching 60/70 and is getting past it. Finan is the same age. There is no stopping time or progress. A curious thing: Utred never kills a priest in the whole book. Aside: Will BC fire up the Starbuck/American Civil War series? God I hope so. nessuna recensione | aggiungi una recensione
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Un pericoloso sussurro si diffonde dal castello pi©£ importante d'Inghilterra e attraversa il Paese gettandolo nel caos: re Edoardo ©· in fin di vita. Da tempo, sono molte le orecchie tese nella speranza di udirlo... E, infatti, i possibili successori e i loro sostenitori sono subito pronti a scendere in campo per reclamare la guida della nazione. Uhtred di Bebbanburg vorrebbe rimanere nella sua amata Northumbria e lasciare che gli anglosassoni belligeranti risolvano da soli la questione. Ma ricorda bene di aver giurato fedelt© a Aethelstan, suo ex compagno d'armi e ora uno dei due potenziali eredi di Edoardo. Un giuramento ©· un legame sacro e Uhtred ©· un uomo di parola. Per questo sa che ancora una volta dovr© lasciare la sua fortezza e rispondere all'appello di Aethelstan. Il signore di Northumbria condurr© i suoi uomini a Londra, nell'occhio del ciclone. Perch©♭ un trono non pu©ø rimanere vuoto e un nuovo regno non pu©ø nascere senza spargimento di sangue. La spada di Uhtred lascer© un re morto e un re vittorioso. Ma a volte ©· difficile conoscere la volont© degli dei... Non sono state trovate descrizioni di biblioteche |
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Google Books — Sto caricando le informazioni... GeneriSistema Decimale Melvil (DDC)823.92Literature English & Old English literatures English fiction Modern Period 2000-Classificazione LCVotoMedia:
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