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The Burning Land

Audiobook
0 of 1 copy available
Wait time: About 2 weeks
0 of 1 copy available
Wait time: About 2 weeks

The fifth installment of Bernard Cornwell's bestselling Saxon Tales chronicling the epic saga of the making of England, "like Game of Thrones, but real" (The Observer, London)—the basis for The Last Kingdom, the hit BBC America television series.

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. But fate has different plans . . .

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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    • Publisher's Weekly

      November 16, 2009
      Slathered in blood and gore, Saxon warlord Uhtred of Bebbanburg hacks his way through the ninth century in the exciting fifth installment to bestseller Cornwell's Saxon Tales series (following Sword Song
      ). This action-packed novel continues the saga of warfare for supremacy in Britain, a brutal period when Saxon and Danish swords, battleaxes, and treachery ruled the day. By now, Alfred the Great is old and feeble, unwilling and unable to repel the Danish invaders. He relies on trusty pagan warlord Uhtred, but Uhtred's temper and an unexpected violent act force Uhtred to break his oath of loyalty to Alfred and flee north with his men, intending to reclaim his ancestral home. En route, they face marauding Danish armies, betrayal, battles for a pirate treasure, and the curse of a vicious Danish witch, only to eventually be manipulated back into fighting for Alfred. Vivid descriptions of merciless battlefield slaughter, rape, and destruction are artfully related by a masterful storyteller. Uhtred is victorious in some battles, but the outcome of others will have to wait for the sequel.

    • AudioFile Magazine
      When he reads a monk's dubious account of a historic battle against the Danes, Uthred, a pagan serving a Christian king, tells listeners what really happened, with a beautiful Danish hostage ultimately coming between him and his king. Stephen Perring's voice is thoroughly modern but has enough hints of ninth-century England to make a lost pronunciation of London seem natural. Just about every emotion, from anger to playfulness, comes into the first-person account, and Perring brings each of those moods naturally into Cornwell's mesmerizing yarn. Listeners should be aware that this is a bloody account of a violent time in English history. But those looking for historical adventure won't be able to stop listening until the end. J.A.S. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award (c) AudioFile 2010, Portland, Maine
    • Library Journal

      December 15, 2009
      Uhtred the Warlord is the irreverent and conflicted hero of Cornwell's Saxon Tales saga about Alfred the Great. In the fifth volume (after "Sword Song"), both he and England are in peril. The Saxons and the Danes are at war, and this puts Uhtred in a precarious position. Worse, he is an unrepentant pagan in a world that is becoming aggressively Christian. After tragedy strikes, he is exiled and determines once again to become a Viking, retrieve the mighty fortress that is his heritage, and get away from not-so-merry England. However, fate pulls him back to help protect the kingdom of Mercia from the Danes. Almost unwillingly, Uhtred becomes a major player in an extremely violent and exciting period of English history. VERDICT The prolific Cornwell ("Agincourt") has been described as a master of historical fiction, but that may be an understatement. Cornwell makes his subject material come alive. Better, his major protagonist is totally believable and human, if incredibly violent. [See Prepub Alert, "LJ" 9/15/09.]Robert Conroy, Warren, MI

      Copyright 2009 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

    • Booklist

      December 15, 2009
      After taking a break from his best-selling Saxon Chronicles series to write the stand-alone Agincourt (2009), Cornwell revisits ninth-century Britain to continue the story of Uhtred, the morally and emotionally conflicted Saxon-born, Danish-bred prince who was kidnapped and trained in the arts of war by his captors. Reluctantly committed to King Alfred of Wessex, Uhtred is still plagued by divided loyalties that continue to influence his actions and reactions both on and off the battlefield. After an embittered and overlooked Uhtred finally sets off on his own, determined to reclaim Bebbanburg, his ancestral home in Northumbria, Harald Bloodhair makes a play for the aging and debilitated Alfreds throne. Called back into service by Alfreds daughter, Uhtred meets and defeats the Viking warrior at the Battle of Farnham. Once again, Cornwell, a master of martial fiction, makes history come alive with his rousing battlefield scenes. Since the future of a united Britain is left hanging in the balance, keep on the lookout for further installments.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2009, American Library Association.)

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  • English

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