The Pale Horseman by Bernard Cornwell (2006, Abridged, Compact Disc)

The astonishingly prolific Cornwell has penned another fine historical tale of adventure and intrigue, as fresh and lively as if it were his first, rather than his 44th novel. Cornwell keeps himself and his readership fully engaged by thoroughly researching each era about which he writes. For this, the second installment of his “Alfred the Great Series,” he mined the Anglo-Saxon Chronicles and other texts to provide a detailed and accurate context for his saga. Uhtred, a Saxon warrior raised by Danes, gives a no-holds-barred, first-person account of events culminating in the 878 A.D. Battle of Ethandun, in which a beleaguered, defeated Alfred of Wessex (later King Alfred the Great) rallies to repel Viking invaders and forge a united Britain. Uhtred is a pagan who believes that nothing matters except “ale, women, sod and reputation.” Alfred is a devout, even overzealous Christian. How Uhtred comes to champion Arthur’s almost hopeless cause provides the book’s substantial dramatic tension.