Stonehenge - Bernard Cornwell

   2000; 482 pages.  New Author? : No.  Genres : Historical Fiction; English History; Ancient Historical Fiction; Action-Intrigue.  Overall Rating: 9*/10.

 

    Stonehenge.  There’s a mystique about it even now when it lies in ruins.

 

    Thanks to archaeology, we know a fair amount about the “when” of Stonehenge.  It went through several iterations over the centuries and first arose around the Third Millennium BCE.  Thanks to geology we have a good idea about the “how” of Stonehenge, most importantly where the stones of Stonehenge originated.

 

    We know a lot less about the “what” of Stonehenge.  What was it used for and what did those stone arrangements signify?  The “why” of Stonehenge is almost a complete mystery to us.  We know that some of the stones are carefully aligned to greet the Summer and Winter Solstice, but why was that done?

 

    Bernard Cornwell’s book Stonehenge presents one scenario where the “how” and “when” are adhered to and a plausible “what” and “why” are presented.  Yes, it’s fictional, but it conforms to what we know about Stonehenge, and generates a literary aura all its own.

 

What’s To Like...

    Stonehenge traces the lives of three brothers – Saban, Lengar, and Camaban – who are cast as the main protagonists.  In nature, they correspond closely to the titular roles in the Clint Eastwood oater The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly.  Most of the time we follow the “Good” guy, Saban, but there are occasional digressions into the lives of his two brothers, as well as several other secondary characters.

 

    There are two main storylines.  One of course it the building of Stonehenge from its very beginning.  The other is the internecine struggle between the three brothers to see which one will succeed their father, the ruler of a local nondescript tribe called Ratharryn.

 

    The tale takes place sometime during the span of 2000-3000 BCE England, during western civilization’s Bronze Age.  There were no kingdoms back then, just local villages raiding and trading with neighboring settlements.  Sorceresses and priests aided the village elders and family ties were flimsy at best when it came to being the group’s leader.

 

    I enjoyed watching as the Stonehenge temple gradually grew into the structure whose ruins we see today.  That might sound tedious, but Bernard Cornwell is a fantastic writer and storyteller, and the three brothers spark enough fighting and intrigue to keep the reader from getting bored.  I also liked the way various characters discerned the signs the various gods sent to their worshippers here on earth.  Divine communication methods have not changed much over the last 4000 years.

 

    The ending is logical and satisfying.  Stonehenge gets built, the fraternal squabbling comes to an end, and several characters relocate and/or shuffle off their mortal coil.  Stonehenge is not part of any of Cornwell’s series, nor AFAIK is there any sequel.

 

Ratings…
    Amazon: 4.1*/5, based on 2,613 ratings and 479 reviews.

    Goodreads: 3.67*/5, based on 11,702 ratings and 735 reviews.

 

Kewlest New Word…

    Plangent (adj.) : (of a sound) loud, reverberating, and often melancholy.

 

Excerpts...

    The gods talk by signs.  It may be a leaf falling in summer, the cry of a dying beast or the ripple of wind on calm water.  It might be smoke lying close to the ground, a rift in the clouds or the flight of a bird.

    But on that day the gods sent a storm.  It was a great storm, a storm that would be remembered, though folk did not name the year by that storm.  Instead they called it the Year the Stranger Came.

    For a stranger came to Ratharryn on that day of the storm.  It was a summer’s day, the same day that Saban was almost murdered by his half-brother.

    The gods were not talking that day.  They were screaming.  (pg. 3)

 

    Ever since he had left Sul he had been wondering why he was making this journey and he had found no good answers except for the dictates of instinct and duty.  He had a debt, and life was full of debts that must be honored if fate was to be kind.  Everyone knew that.  A fisherman was given a good catch so he must offer something back to the gods.  A harvest was plump so part must be sacrificed.  A favor engendered another favor and a curse was as dangerous to the person who pronounced it as to the person it was aimed against.  Every good thing and bad thing in the world was balanced, which was why folk were so attentive to omens—though some men, like Lengar, ignored the imbalance.  (pg. 252)

 

“It isn’t wise to pick a fight with wolves.”  (pg. 248)

    I thoroughly enjoyed Stonehenge, so finding things to nitpick about was a challenge.

 

    Foul language is close to nonexistent; I counted only four cusswords in the entire book.  At one point, where swearing was called for, Bernard Cornwell resorted to “improvised cussing”, coming up with the delightful slam “toad-dung made flesh.”  I loved that.

 

    I only saw one typo in the Harper Torch Publishing paperback version: though/through.  Kudos to their editors and beta readers.  There are a slew of gods and mortals to keep track of, so a Cast of Characters would’ve been nice.  Ditto for a map to show where the various settlements and spheres of influence were located.

 

    But I quibble.  For me, Stonehenge was a perfect blend of historical fiction with action-adventure.  The character-building was excellent, the world-building was convincing, and the Bernard Cornwell’s writing was, as usual, impressive.  Here’s hoping that he someday decides to write a sequel, chronicling Stonehenge’s impact on the next generation of early Britons who lived in its shadow.

 

    9 Stars.  Tacked onto the end of the tale is a 13-page “Historical Note” section, wherein Bernard Cornwell discusses what is known about Stonehenge, including a brief reference to its sister structure, Woodhenge.  The discussion was enlightening to me.  I have a non-fiction book on my Kindle, titled Stonehenge - A New Understanding, by Mike Parker Pearson.  Perhaps it’s time to read that tome.

Sharpe's Tiger - Bernard Cornwell

   1997; 379 pages.  Book  1 (storywise) or Book 15 (in order written) out of 24 in the “Sharpe Novels” series.  Alternate Title: “Richard Sharpe and the Siege of Seringapatam, 1799”.  New Author? : No.  Genre : Historical Fiction; Military Fiction; English History.  Overall Rating : 8*/10.

    Life is hell for Private Richard Sharpe, a member of low standing in His Majesty’s 33^rd Light Company.  He’s a long way from his native England, trudging through the hot, mosquito-laden parts of southern India, on his way to some woe-begotten city called Seringapatam in the spring of 1799.  Chances are he won’t live to see 1800.

    He has no one to love, except maybe Mary, the widow of the lately-departed Sergeant Bickerstaff.  But why would she want to be with a lowly private?  The proper thing for her is to marry an officer who can give her better protection and security this long, long way from home.

    But Private Sharpe has bigger problems than a war that can kill him and a woman who’s socially out of his reach.  Captain Morris, who he indirectly answers to, doesn’t like him, and Sergeant Obadiah Hakeswill, who he does directly answer to, hates his guts.  Hakeswill especially would like to see Sharpe dead, either in battle or flogged to death.  He’s a conniving so-and-so, and when you combine that with Sharpe’s hot temper and sassy tongue, it’s only a matter of time before bad things happen to “Sharpie”.

    So it’s a godsend when Sharpe is offered a chance to go on a suicide mission behind enemy lines.  The odds are overwhelming that he’ll never come back alive, but those are slightly better than the odds of surviving Hakeswill’s wrath.  Besides, if the mission is a success, Sharpe’s been promised a promotion to sergeant.

    And Sergeant Sharpe versus Sergeant Hakeswill is what we call a “fair fight”.

What’s To Like...

    Sharpe’s Tiger is the first book in a “prequel quintet”, chronicling the early years of Bernard Cornwell’s famed protagonist's military career in the British wars in India.  Sharpe will eventually rise through the ranks to become a lieutenant, but for now he is just a lowly private, bored to death, seeing no future for himself, pondering the circling vultures, and weighing the pros and cons of desertion.

    I liked Bernard Cornwell’s balanced treatment of the two opposing forces here.  The British may be the good guys, because Sharpe’s part of their army, but they have some rotten officers in their ranks and their justification for marching on Seringapatam is far from noble.  The opposing leader, “the Tippoo”, has a streak of cruelty in him, yet he’s also a charismatic leader who inspires his men by acts of personal bravery.  If there’s an overlying theme here, it’s that war is hell, no matter what side you happen to be on.

    The three religions involved – Hinduism, Islam, and Christianity – are also treated equally.  Each has one or more dedicated believers in this tale, and at times each of their gods seems to give divine messages and/or answer prayers.

    The book is written in English, so you have picquet lines, jewellery, and saltpetre; and things can be meagre, sombre, and grey, but I didn’t find it distracting.  There’s a brief mention of chess, a smattering of French, a potent booze called “arrack” to drink, lots of potent-but-inaccurate rockets to shoot, and a way to determine whether some unknown black substance is or isn’t gunpowder.  Hey, you never know when that last one will come in handy.

    There’s a 7-page “Historical Note” at the end of the book, where Bernard Cornwell details who/what is historical face and who/what is literary fiction.  It gives you some idea of the depth of the author’s research for this novel, and I always like it when a writer of this genre takes the time to provide these details.  There’s a few instances of cussing – probably less than a dozen, and a fair amount of blood and gore, courtesy of battles and executions.  It’s certainly not a cozy, but neither does it wallow in R-rated stuff.

    The ending is reasonably exciting: some baddies get to live to fight another day, some don’t.  The good guys suffer some casualties along the way as well.  Things close with a “sombre” funeral cortege where those in attendance can reflect upon the cost of taking part in war.

Kewlest New Word...

Kirks (n., plural.) : a church.  (a Scottishism, and/or northern Britishism)

Others: Brailed (v.); Havildar (n., Indian rank).

Excerpts...

    “Assaulted me, sir, he did!”  The Sergeant could scarcely speak for the pain in his belly.  “He went mad, sir!  Just mad, sir!”

    “Don’t worry, Sergeant.  Hicks and I both saw it,” Morris said.  “Came to check on the horses, ain’t that right, Hicks?”

    “Yes, sir,” Hicks said.  He was a small young man, very officious, who would never contradict a superior.  If Morris claimed the clouds were made of cheese Hicks would just stand to attention, twitch his nose, and swear blind he could smell Cheddar.  (pg. 76)

    “I think the British army lost a good man in you, Sharpe,” Gudin said, standing and guiding Sharpe deeper into the trees.  “If you don’t want to stay in India you might think of coming home with me.”

    “To France, sir?”

    Gudin smiled at Sharpe’s surprised tone.  “It isn’t the devil’s country, Sharpe; indeed I suspect it’s the most blessed place on God’s earth, and in the French army a good man can be very easily raised to officer rank.”

    “Me, sir?  An officer?”  Sharpe laughed.  “Like making a mule into a racehorse.”  (pg. 220)

“Fight like the Englishmen you are.”  “I’m a Scot,” a sour voice spoke from the rear rank.  (pg. 17 )

    For some reason, Sharpe’s Tiger was a slow read for me.  I’m not sure why – the writing is good, which is the norm for any Bernard Cornwell effort, and it’s not a difficult read.  I suspect it’s due to the subject matter:  sieges just aren’t as exciting as glory-filled running battles.  The author does his best to liven things up – with sorties and skullduggery and lots of intrigue – but we read his novels for the epic battle scenes and that doesn’t occur until the British begin their assault on Seringapatam.  No matter, once that commences, things hum along nicely.

    Other than that, well…  the horse dies, and the cat dies.  Oh, and Amazon inexplicably lists this as a “Sea Adventure Fiction” for the paperback version, which is the format I read it in, and nobody here even gets close to the ocean.  The other options – Hardback, e-book, audiobook, don’t call it that, which makes me wonder just how Amazon chooses the genre options for its books.

    This is my third Bernard Cornwell book; the other two are reviewed here and here.  All have been superb works of historical military fiction and if I don’t rate this one quite as high, it’s not because it was bad; it’s because the other two were  Just.  That.  Good.

    8 Stars.  We’ll close with a teaser.  One of the characters here is a British officer named Colonel Arthur Wellesley.  He’s a “grey” character – young, headstrong, and Sharpe and him don't think much of each other.  Wellesley was a real historical figure, and went on to fame and fortune under a different and more familiar name.  Who was he and what is he known for?  (Answer in the comments)

The Last Kingdom - Bernard Cornwell

    2005; 384 pages.  Book # 1 (out of 12) in the “Saxon Tales” series. New Author? : No, but a new series.  Genre : Historical Fiction; English History.  Overall Rating : 10*/10.

    England in the 9^th century was a turbulent place.  The Saxons held the greater part of it, divided into four separate kingdoms – Northumbria, East Anglia, Mercia, and Wessex.  The Bretons (aka “the Britons”) had been bumped over to the west, clear into the wilds of Wales.  To the north were the fierce Picts and Scots, but nobody tried to invade their turf because their land was rocky and and the booty was sparse.

    Then there were the Danes, who terrorized the whole west coast of England in their long ships, pillaging anyplace that looked like it might have silver and other valuables hidden away somewhere.  Monasteries and nunneries were particularly lucrative targets.  And after plundering and swiving (look it up),  the Danes would pile back into their ships and sail away scot free, because the Saxon kingdoms had no ships of their own.

    But in 866 A.D., change was in the air.  Instead of just a couple boatloads of Danish marauders showing up now and then, fleets with hundreds of ships began to arrive.  And instead of looting-&-leaving, these Danes came to fight.  And conquer the Saxons, one kingdom at a time.  And stay.

What’s To Like...

    The Last Kingdom is the first book in Bernard Cornwell’s epic historical fiction series called the “Saxon Tales” and focuses on the protracted 9th-century struggle between the Danes and the Saxons for control of England.  The title refers to the low point in the war for the Saxons – all their kingdoms had fallen to the Danish invaders, save one: Wessex.  Its demise seems imminent, after which the Danes will be in complete control.

    I assumed that the protagonist would be Alfred the Great, and he certainly plays a major role in the book.  But the protagonist is a fictional character named Uhtred, a minor Northumbrian noble, and the narrator of the book.

    The Last Kingdom is divided into four sections:

Prologue (prior to 866 AD)

Part 1: A Pagan Childhood (chapters 1-6, and roughly 866-871 AD)

Part 2: The Last Kingdom (chapters 7-9, and roughly 874-876 AD)

Part 3: The Shield Wall (chapter 10-11, and roughly 877 AD and beyond)

    Part 1 deals with Uhtred’s capture by the Danish raiders and his not-at-all-unpleasant life growing up in their culture.  In Parts 2 and 3, he’s back in Saxon hands, so the reader gets to view the war from both sides.  But there is a strong religious aspect as well; Alfred and the Saxons are devout Christians, the Danes follow Odin, Thor, and the rest of the Norse pagan gods.  If either side conquered the land you where you dwelt, religious conversion was mandatory.  Since Uhtred lived for years in the camps of both sides, he gives us some great pragmatic insight as to how deal with these spiritual upheavals.

    I loved the attention Bernard Cornwell gives to the historical aspects of the story.  The degree of detail is amazing, yet it never came across as info-dumping.  I got well-acquainted with the “three spinners”, gasped at Uhtred as he tried“ice gliding”, chuckled when he was given the “evil sign with the left hand”, and hoped he wouldn't die when he went into battle as part of a “shield wall”.  The only detail that gave me pause was a chess game he observed; I’m not sure that chess had yet made its way to England by the middle of the 9^th century.

    The “Historical Note” at the back of the book is worth your time, as Bernard Cornwell lists which characters were real and which were fictitious.  He also takes the opportunity to debunk the myth that the Danish helmets had horns on them (why give your foe something to grab onto and twist your neck around?) as well as explain why he steadfastly refuses to use the word “Viking” to describe the Danes.

    The cussing is deftly handled.  At times Old English versions are used, such as “earsling” and “endwerc”, with Uhtred helpfully listing what the modern translations are.  Other times, present-day vernacular is used, with some imaginatively coined phrases, such as “the devil’s turds”, “son of a goat”, and “a turd of men”.

    The book closes with an exciting battle, which is a key turning point in the war for England, replete with subtle strategies and not-so-subtle battle tactics.  It is a logical place to end the book, yet in no way is it the end to the war.  I think mostly it sets up the next book in the series, The Pale Horseman, which resides on my Kindle.

Kewlest New Word...

Withies (n., plural of ‘withy’) : a tough, flexible branch of an osier or other willow, used for tying, binding, or basketry.

Others :  swiving (v., and quite the eye-opener).

Excerpts...

    “The signs are best read by a clever man,” he went on, “and Storri is clever.  I dare say I am no fool.”

    I did not really understand what he was saying.  “But Storri is always right?”

    “Storri is cautious.  He won’t take risks, and Ubba, though he doesn’t know it, likes that.”

    “But the sticks are messages from the gods?”

    “The wind is a message from the gods,” Ravn said, “as is the flight of a bird, the fall of a feather, the rise of a fish, the shape of a cloud, the cry of a vixen, all are messages, but in the end, Uhtred, the gods speak in only one place.”  He tapped my head.  “There.”  (loc. 1299)

    These days I employ poets to sing my praises, but only because that is what a lord is supposed to do, though I often wonder why a man should get paid for mere words.  These word-stringers make nothing, grow nothing, kill no enemies, catch no fish, and raise no cattle.  They just take silver in exchange for words, which are free anyway.  It is a clever trick, but in truth they are about as much use as priests.  (loc. 3182)

Kindle Details...

    The Last Kingdom sells for $6.99 at Amazon.  The other books in the series range from $9.99 to $14.99 apiece.  Bernard Cornwell has a slew of other books and series to offer for the Kindle, including his original and very popular Sharpe series.  Those books are mostly in the prince range of $4.99 to $14.99.

“For something that dribbled out of a goat’s backside, (…) you’re not completely useless.”  (loc. 3488)

    For me, there were no nits to pick.  Others may disagree.  There are a slew of characters to follow, which may give some readers a memorization challenge and leave them wishing a "Cast of Characters" had been added at the front of the book.  But I take notes anyway, including who’s who, so this didn’t hinder me.

    There's a “Place-Names” section at the start of the book, and in it Bernard Cornwell explains why he opted to use some of the “Old English” spellings for names of the various cities in England at the time.  For instance, he calls London “Lundene”, and mentions that it was also called Lundonia, Lundenberg, Lundenne, Lundenwic, Lundenceaster, and Lundres back then.  Some readers might have preferred the modern names, but I thought the author's decision helped set the tone.

    Using Old English names means using Old English letters, such as “Ӕ”, which I liked, but which the MSWord-to-Kindle conversion program apparently went nutso over.  It looked like Cornwell was forced to insert these as images in order for them to appear in the e-book text.

    10 Stars.   All-in-all, I found The Last Kingdom to be a fantastic work of historical fiction, and I’m looking forward to reading more of the series.  Of course, I say that about the author's Sharpe” series as well.  I don’t think it’s hyperbole to say that he may be the best writer around right now in this genre.

Sharpe's Rifles - Bernard Cornwell

    1988; 304 pages.  Book # 6 (story-wise) out of 24 in the “Sharpe” series; Book #9 (published date-wise). New Author? : Yes.  Genre : Historical Fiction.  Overall Rating : 9*/10.

Nothing is worse when you’re in the army than to have to retreat across a foreign country with the enemy nipping at your heels.  That’s what Sir John Moore’s British troops are doing in the opening months of 1809.  They’re trudging through northwest Spain  (Galicia province), trying to stay ahead of Napoleon’s dreaded dragoons, and hoping they make it to Portugal before the French catch up to them.

    It’s even worse if you have the bad luck to be part of the rearguard of Moore's army.  You have to turn around, give token resistance to the French dragoons chasing you, then turn tail yet again, and hope that not too many of your comrades (including yourself) get killed carrying out the delaying action.

    And even worse than that is if you’re a lieutenant in that ragtag rearguard group, lacking the loyalty and support of the soldiers you’re giving orders to.  After all, you’ve been promoted from within the ranks, and everyone knows that leadership skills are something that only highbred men from the upper classes possess.  And you aren't one of those.

    So they've made you a quartermaster to keep you from mucking things up.  Procuring food, clothing, and other supplies for the honest-to-goodness fighting men.  Let’s just hope the other officers stay alive so that you don’t have to be put into any meaningful command.

    Welcome to Lieutenant Richard Sharpe’s daily hell, quartermaster for the British 95^th Rifles unit.

What’s To Like...

    Sharpe’s Rifles is set in what is known as the “Peninsular War” (the Wikipedia article on it is here), which, quite frankly, I’d never heard of.  This is embarrassing since I’m a history buff.  There’s lots of action, and it starts immediately.  The brutality is vivid, with plenty of blood and gore, but hey, war is dirty, and this one was especially nasty.

    There are two main story lines: Sharpe (British) and his crew trying to escape the French, and Vivar (Spanish) and his crew trying to safeguard a mysterious trunk (which I thought was a macguffin at first). while also being pursued by the French  Vivar's and Sharpe’s paths cross pretty quickly, which is not a spoiler, then continue as an on-again/off-again alliance.

    The character studies are as fascinating as the warfare.  Sharpe is a great anti-hero: hated by his men and inferior in leadership skills to both Vivar and Rifleman Harper.  Heck, even Sgt. Williams commands more respect than Sharpe.  And the chief bad guy, the French Colonel Pierre de l’Eclin, is a worthy enemy, outthinking and outfoxing Sharpe every step of the way.  I like it when an antagonist is on equal footing with the hero.

    The story is written in “English” as opposed to “American”, so you get words like waggon, sabre, ageing, picquets, grey, foetid, and doxie.  That's always a plus for me.  There’s also some cussing, but hey, war is hell.

    There is also a secondary religious motif throughout the story.  Catholic France is brutalizing Catholic Spain, and Protestant England finds itself an uneasy Spanish ally.  Sharpe himself can best be called an Unbeliever, and some of his Irish underlings are Catholic to boot.  Bernard Cornwell treats all these religious viewpoints with remarkable balance, something you rarely see in novels nowadays.

    The ending has some nice twists, including the revealing of the contents of the strongbox, and everything ends with a climactic battle.  Despite being part of a 24-book series, this is a standalone novel.

Kewlest New Word...

Doxie (n.) : floozy

Others :  byre (n.); rumbustious (adj.).

Excerpts...

    They were the sting in the army’s tail.  If they were lucky this day no Frenchman would bother them, but the probability was that, sometime in the next hour, the enemy vanguard would appear.  That vanguard would be cavalry on tired horses.  The French would make a token attack, the Riflemen would fire a couple volleys; then, because neither side had an advantage, the French would let the greenjackets trudge on.  It was soldiering; boring, cold, dispiriting, and one or two Riflemen and one or two Frenchmen would die because of it.  (pg. 16)

    “Mind you, I knew an officer in India who converted the heathen to Christianity,” Sharpe said helpfully, “and he was most successful.”

    “Truly?” Mr. Parker was pleased to hear this evidence of God’s grace.  “A godly man?”

    “Mad as a hatter, sir.  One of the Royal Irish, and they’ve all got wormscrew wits.”

    “But you say he was successful?”

    “He threatened to blow their heads off with a musket unless they were baptized, sir.  That queue went twice around the armoury and clear back to the guardhouse.”  (pg. 111)

“I’m sure God did his best, but where was the sense in putting Ireland plum next to England?”  (pg. 262)

    For some reason, I thought this was the opening book in the series, but instead I wallowed into the storyline at Book 6.  Bernard Cornwell gives bits and pieces of the backstory, mostly Sharpe’s prior wartime activities in India, and his unwanted promotion to lieutenant.  It was also obvious that several of Sharpe’s Riflemen comrades had been introduced in earlier books.  But I never felt like I was missing crucial background information, and that was a real plus.

    It should also be mentioned that Cornwell didn’t pen this series in chronological order, so even those who have read the books in the series as soon as they were published have had to do some jumping around timeline-wise.  Wikipedia gives the chronological and literary order of the books here).   Since I plan to read some more of the series, it is nice to know that I don’t have to worry about which order I read them in.

    9 Stars.  I’ve been meaning to check out Bernard Cornwell for quite some time, and it was a real treat to finally get acquainted with his works.  He is a prolific writer of Historical Fiction, and I have two more of his books, set in England during the Dark Ages, awaiting my attention on my Kindle.  I doubt it will be long before the next review of one of his books appears on this blog.