Sword Song by Bernard Cornwell (2008)

I bought this book because it is number four in the Saxon series by this marvelous author,and I had read the first three.Although I did enjoy it,I do not believe it to be quite as strong as the first three.Somewhat of an anti-climatic end to this marvelous series.The four book series is well worth buying.

As Abraham Lincoln once said "If this is the sort of thing you like, You'll like this". NOTE it is the fourth of a series. That said, it also is a trip to the dark ages without the expense of a time machine. Cornwell does a perfect job of putting you in the action that living in the time of King Alfred would have been your day to day life. Really makes the 21st century look great. I can hardly wait for the fifth in the series.
Stan Kerns

Another great book! Cornwell does it again. No surprise there.

A page-turning read; Bernard Cornwell's 4rth "Anglo-Saxon Chronicles" book follows his sullen protagonist Uhtred of Bebbanburg, still the oath-man of the pious and shrewd Alfred of Wessex and the taking of the strategic city Lundene (London).
The story is seamless; going from one event to the next with barely you noticing and with several sudden turns regarding a new threat to Wessex, Alfred's daughter Aethelfaed, and of course Uhtred as he yearns to return home to Bebbanburg. Definitely worth the time and I'm dying to read the 5th book now.

This series just keeps getting better. It's about as realistic as you can imagine for the time. A great read.

I love this series. This book continues to enthrall me. I read it in a couple days. I bought this particular book because it is a signed first edition. I have copies of the whole series to read and signed first editions to keep mint.

The Saxon Chronicles, panned as Cornwell trying to return to his roots, has proven to be a juggernaut that can't be stopped by bad & off-base press reviews.
This continues the story of Lord Uhtred, Saxon born, Dane raised, sworn man of King Alfred the great. Uhtred fights to take London back from the invading Norsemen. Uhtred loves the Vikings far more than he cares for the Christian religion of the king he is sworn to serve, but now must fight to take back London & to save Alfred & his family, from defeat at the hands of the Norse.
This book, beginning in the year 885, probably doesn't see the end of 886 before the final page is turned. Unlike the first 3, this book covers a very short period of time, maybe 6-8 months. It is a fast moving, blood-letting adventure as Uhtred overtakes Danish controlled London whilst his cousin, Aethelred, marries King Alfred's daughter, Aethelflaed, in search of a kingdom of his own. Uhtred is ordered to produce a gift to the newly married couple. Aetheflaed, a young woman whom Uhtred has known and loved as a daughter since she was a child, marries Aethelred, who Uhtred respects little and whom Uhtred, due to Alfred's order, owes much; the city of London.
As we hear Uhtred continue the story of his service to Alfred (all the books in this series are told in 1st person), we find a dead Dane skald (poet) is rising from his grave & announcing that Uhtred is to be King of Mercia. Uhtred witnesses this & follows the corpses instruction to meet with the attackers who want to take the Saxon lands, present day England. Uhtred obeys the skald & travels to London to meet 2 brothers and Haesten, a man who Uhtred once saved & who owed Uhtred an oath, which had been broken. Uhtred, if nothing else, is a man of his word, but he is tempted by the prophecy of the dead skald. He was tempted by the opportunity to fight along side the Northmen that he loved. He was desirous of seeing Alfred dethroned for he hated the pious nature of the king.
Thus begins our journey that will lead to the battle for London, another war with the Vikings, and a twist of fate (Uhtred repeats throughout the series, 'Fate is inexorable') that will test his oath like no other has in his past.
Uhtred is one of the greatest characters ever written. He was born a Saxon and rightfully the Lord of Bebbanburg, a county in Northumbria, a part of Saxon England. That birthright was stolen from him by his treacherous uncle earlier in the series. Uhtred longs to regain his birthright but, being a man of his word, he continues to fight for Alfred, and continually waits for his opportunity to return to Bebbanburg and avenge the loss of his birthright.
This book, unlike book 3, returns to the gory battle & grisly action of the first 2 installments ('The Last Kingdom' & 'The Pale Horseman'). All books are excellent, but the battles & carnage of the first 2 books & this latest are more prevalent than in book 3.
Thankfully, Uhtred's tale will continue. Cornwell has promised more about the displaced warrior. I wait for the Saxon Chronicles to grow to a library the size of which his 'Sharpe' series has grown. A focus on the man & his adventures in establishing England is deserving of at least a large fraction of the number of books produced on Sharpe.
If you have read the first 3 books of this series, buy this immediately. I strongly recommend that you start from the beginning. I demand that you read the entire series!
THIS ENTIRE SERIES IS PHENOMENAl!!!