The Last Kingdom by Bernard Cornwell
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Having only recently launched into Bernard Cornwell books (see my review of “Agincourt”), I decided to tackle the author’s Alfred the Great series. This book was not at all what I expected, and despite this (or maybe because of it), I enjoyed it immensely.
The main character is Uhtred, an “English” boy who is captured by the Danes and then ultimately pulled into Alfred’s orbit. Uhtred is sarcastic, irreverent, and has an outsider’s perspective of Alfred. He is disdainful of Alfred’s piousness but respects his intelligence.
The tone of the book is gritty and realistic–no romantic notions of battle will be found here. There is none of the lyrical work found in the books of my favorite historical fiction author (Sharon Kay Penman), but the author is equally effective with his sharp, terse prose and his unsparing portrayal of Danish society and the tension between the old gods and Christianity. The author’s understated style creates a surprising amount of drama, and the pacing is well done.
I look forward to reading #2 in the series soon!