Book picks similar to
Housecarl by Griff Hosker


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The Wolf Cub


David Pilling - 2015
    The great city of Constantinople, last remnant of the once-mighty Roman Empire, falls to the Ottoman armies of Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror. An English knight named Sir John Page is taken prisoner by the Ottomans, and forced to entertain the Sultan with tales of the West. Page chooses to tell the story of his own long career as a soldier of fortune in France, Bohemia and the Italian city-states. Page’s tale begins in the year of Agincourt, Henry V’s famous victory over the French. As the bastard son of Thomas Page, a famous mercenary captain known as The Half-Hanged Man or The Wolf of Burgundy, Page soon acquires the nickname of The Wolf Cub. After slaying his cousin in a duel, Page flees his home and joins a band of outlaws in the forests of Sussex. At last - tired of the brutality of his companions - he decides to leave England and join the English army in Normandy. There he endures brutal sieges, vicious combats, torture, betrayal and imprisonment, all to win glory and redeem his father's name. Trapped in the Sultan’s prison, Page must hope his story is enough to save him from the executioner’s blade....at least for another three days...

Descendants of the Wolf


Jerry Autieri - 2017
    He dreamed of the Viking ideal, sailing to distant shores and battling honorable foes. Laden with gold, he would return home in glory. The same life of adventure that his grandfather, Ulfrik Ormsson, experienced awaited him. It proved a false dream. Along with his cousin and best friend, Yngvar discovers a world unlike the sagas of the great heroes. He encounters murder and treachery. Raiding is nothing more than merciless theft. True riches remain elusive and sea kings dominate the waves. Yngvar trusts to his honor and courage to carry him. Yet powerful enemies swarm all around him. Fate guides him into the teeth of a clash between two of history's mightiest jarls. He will require all his cunning and daring to survive. So begins a new saga of Viking adventure and war. Join the shield wall once more and witness the fierce history of the Norsemen.

Templar Steel


K.M. Ashman - 2018
    Reports of Saracen patrols devastating towns and villages cause panic throughout the Outremer, and Baldwin, the teenage king beset with leprosy, tries desperately to counter the threat. But nobody knows where the enemy forces are and the Christian forces are stretched thinly.With the king’s army campaigning in the north and the feared Templar knights defending the border far to the south, only one man has even the slightest chance of finding out Saladin’s true intentions, a Templar Sergeant named Thomas Cronin. With time running out and the odds stacked heavily against him, Cronin needs to find the Saracen army and relay the information back to the leper king in time to prevent the fall of Jerusalem, and indeed, the Holy Land itself!

The Sword Brothers


Peter Darman - 2013
    The battle to convert the natives is savage and unrelenting and into this holy war is thrust Conrad Wolff, a young native of the city of Lübeck whose family has suffered a terrible injustice. Forced to leave his homeland to seek sanctuary in Livonia, Conrad’s fate is soon entwined with that of the Sword Brothers, the order of warrior monks that fights to defend and expand Christendom in the Baltic. But as Conrad begins his training to become a member of the brethren, the enemies of the Bishop of Riga gather and soon Livonia is surrounded and battling for its very existence. Conrad and the order soon find themselves fighting for their lives as the enemies of the Sword Brothers close in on all sides. This, the first volume in the Crusader Chronicles, tells the story of Conrad Wolff and the Baltic Crusade during the first years of the thirteenth century.

Land of Blood and Water


Martin Lake - 2015
    A family at the mercy of men of power and violence. Brand and his family live simple lives in their quiet corner of Somerset. The war that Wessex wages against the heathen Danes takes place far away and is of no concern to them. But when a desperate war-band descends upon them one winter night their lives are changed forever. They are thrown into a dark world of savage warfare, lust, revenge and murder. Brand believes he can decide the path that he and his family must tread. But others have very different ideas. At stake is the survival of the kingdom. And now their lives are bound up with the fugitive King Alfred of Wessex. A gripping story from an accomplished author. Elaine Jeremiah. Author. The emotional content of the book is one of the highlights of the narrative. The characters are well written, the action flows seamlessly and the reader is left with a feeling as if they had been there. Paul Bennett. Fast paced from the start, the story blossoms as you read. A new novel from the author of The Lost King series.

Fire & Steel


C.R. May - 2016
    Arthur is dead. As Britannia burns a small tribe clings to its colony of Anglia. Across the German Sea powerful enemies covet Engeln itself. But the English are not easily cowed. As Spear-Danes threaten the homeland a hero returns, leading the fightback with ferocity and guile...

Kemp: The Road to Crécy


Jonathan Lunn - 2018
    While he remains hopeful that at least there’s the chance for some heroics,  the reality is very different. Kemp’s war is instead a terrifying odyssey through the panic and confusion of his first battle, the brutal realities of siege warfare, and eventually to the field of Crécy, where he faces the armoured might of the French nobility. But as an elite longbowman, when it comes to winning or losing, he could have a vital – though dangerous – part to play.This stunning adventure brings the medieval world vividly to life, and is ideal for fans of Bernard Cornwell, Matthew Harffy and Giles Kristian. Arrows of Albion series Kemp: The Road to Crécy Kemp: Passage at Arms

The Slayer Rune


John Snow - 2013
    It's a story of love and hate and Viking action, infused with Norse mythology. Does Sigurd’s love for Yljali lead to his dark deeds, or do other powers force him to act?The stage is set in the Scandinavian Viking Age in 967 AD. Young Sigurd is in love with Ylajali, a mysterious foreign thrall girl. Helgi Blackbeard, the king's captain of arm, discovers her beauty and wants to marry her. Blackbeard is a powerful man, a friend of the king, but he is not the only one to lust for the girl. Harald Chieftain, Sigurd's father, has sworn an oath never to touch Yljali.Sigurd has friends. Grim teaches him the use of runes, and Gisli owns the best sword at Vik. When Sigurd decides to act, he sparks a chain of event he is unable to control. In the book you’ll meet Odd the Squinter, Big Bork and his brother Bork Berserk, Skarphedin the Second-Sighted, Hakon, Hild, Sigrunn Silkyhair, and the Witch from Spedale. They are all unique characters who play pivotal roles in the plot. Will Sigurd get Yljali?The Slayer Rune is the first book in The Viking Series.

Whiteblade


H.A. Culley - 2016
    He becomes a staunch Christian on Iona and trains to be a warrior, making a name for himself in the frequent wars in Ulster and in a divided Scotland. Having earned himself the nickname of ‘Whiteblade’, he establishes himself as the greatest war leader in his adopted homeland. However, he is beset by enemies on all sides and is betrayed by those he should be able to trust the most. After playing a leading role in deposing the treacherous Connad, King of Dalriada, he helps his successor to extend Dalriada to include the Isles of Skye, Arran and Bute. When King Edwin is killed in battle and those who try to succeed him are also killed by Cadwallon and his invading Welsh army, Oswald decided that his moment of destiny has arrived; he sets out with his warriors to confront Cadwallon and win back the throne of Northumbria.

Legion


Geraint Jones - 2019
     AD6: The greatest army assembled in a generation. Battle, plunder, and glory await. But not for Legionary Corvus. He and half of his legion have been left behind to garrison the province of Pannonia; a wild place where the mountains are as deadly as any foe. Corvus despairs as he watches his closest friend Marcus march to war, not knowing that his own eager thirst for battle is about to be quenched; a huge rebel army has revolted against The Empire, and Corvus and his few comrades are all that stand against them. ‘Blood and guts, but also a clever exploration of the moral ambiguity of war and loyalty to a flag.’ Mail on Sunday. ‘Historical fiction written by a real war veteran who knows all there is to know about blood and bonding in battle.’ Weekend Sport. Legion is the eagerly anticipated prequel to Blood Forest (Ambush) and Siege.

Knight of Rome Part I


Malcolm Davies - 2019
    No nation can stand against his legions but even the Empire has its limits. The brooding forests across the Rhine hold warriors who will not submit and the Suevi are the mightiest of them. With only their hatred of each other in common, the Romans and the Germans cross the river to raid and slaughter but neither of them has the force to take the other’s territory and hold it. This does not prevent them trying. Otto of the Suevi, son of the Chieftain and war counsellor Badurad, lives freely among the woods and glades on the far side of the river, hoping to live the same life as his father and become a respected warrior in his turn but that is not to be. He visits a wise woman with his father and her shocking, prophetic vision of his future sets him on a different path than he could never have imagined. Fate is not to be defied so Otto accepts what she has told him as absolute truth and lets it guide him through blood and fire to his personal destiny far from his own people.

Mary Dannie


Patricia Keil - 2010
    It is the story of the struggles, simple joys and wisdom surrounding a young girl growing up in the 1940's in Appalachia.

The Earl of Mercia's Father


M.J. Porter - 2013
    Leofwine must fight for his position and influence amongst an unruly mob of self-interested nobles, while coming to terms with his life changing injuries and new responsibilities, as both a husband, father and ealdorman. To make England safe again, he must also force his frightened king to combat a new wave of Viking Raiders with an offensive attack on those who aid the Raiders.The Earl of Mercia’s Father is the first book in the epic Earls of Mercia series charting the final century of Anglo-Saxon England, as seen through the eyes of Ealdorman Leofwine, the father of Earl Leofric, the Earl of Mercia, and ally of Lady Elfrida, England’s first queen.The Earl of Mercia's Father is where readers of The First Queen of England, and The King's Mother trilogies will first encounter Leofwine, the ealdorman of the Hwicce, and ally of Lady Elfrida.The Earls of Mercia Series The Earl of Mercia's FatherThe Danish King's EnemyNorthman Part 1Northman Part 2The King's EarlThe Earl of MerciaThe English EarlThe Earl's KingViking King (coming soon)PRAISE FOR THE EARLS OF MERCIA SERIES"This is a fantastic series of books, by an author who certainly knows his subject. I was into the Roman invasions but am rapidly converting to the Britons!" Amazon Reviewer"A must-read for fans of Viking age England. This promises to be a very good series of which I can't wait for the next instalment." Amazon Reviewer"Intriguing, well-written stories about the early days of Great Britain between Alfred the Great and William the Conqueror... at the time Athelred was King... the story is written from the perspective of one the emerging Earl's who sits on the Witan (counsel). The time period show the interplay between Great Britain and the Scandinavian countries (Viking raiders) as well." Amazon.com ReviewerABOUT THE AUTHORI'm an author of fantasy (Viking age/dragon-themed) and historical fiction (Anglo-Saxon, Vikings and the British Isles as a whole before the Norman Conquest), born in the old Mercian kingdom at some point since the end of Anglo-Saxon England. Raised in the shadow of a strange little building and told from a very young age that it housed the bones of the long-dead kings of Mercia, it's little wonder that my curiosity in the Anglo-Saxons ran riot. I can only blame my parents!I write A LOT. You've been warned!Find me at www.mjporterauthor.com and @coloursofunison on twitter

The Wellington and Napoleon Quartet: Young Bloods, The Generals, Fire and Sword, Fields of Death


Simon Scarrow - 2015
     Arthur, Duke of Wellington, and Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte were adversaries on an epic scale. Across Europe and beyond, the armies of Great Britain and France clashed, from the Iberian Peninsula to India, from Austerlitz to the final confrontation at Waterloo. What drove the two clever, ambitious, determined men who masterminded these military campaigns? How did the underdog from Corsica develop the strategic military skills and the political cunning that gave him power over swathes of Europe? And how did Wellington, born to be a leader, hone his talents and drive an army to victory after victory?From an outstanding historian and novelist come four epic novels, now available in one volume for the first time, which tell the full story of both these men, from their very early days till the momentous battle at Waterloo which decided the future of Europe.INCLUDES MAPS

Samurai's Apprentice


David Walters - 2011
    All this seems far removed from Kami, a boy who quietly goes about his everyday life in his farm village until one day he trips over the unconsious body of a warrior hidden in the long grass.That discovery will lead him on an adventure across the warring kingdoms, facing assassins and enemy soldiers as he journeys to the capital to face the new Shogun. Through his travels he aspires to become a samurai, and in his many challenges he eventually comes to understand what it means to be one.