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Cover of The Last Kingdom by Bernard Cornwell

The Last Kingdom

Book 1 of The Saxon Stories

  • 474 pages · about 8 hours
  • First published 2004
  • 29 editions

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1 About this book

The Last Kingdom is the first historical novel in The Saxon Stories by Bernard Cornwell, published in 2004.

This story introduces Uhtred of Bebbanburg, a Saxon noble who is kidnapped by Danish Vikings as a young child and is assimilated into their culture, religion and language before a series of events lead him into the service of King Alfred of Wessex and his participation in multiple battles, including the notable Battle of Cynwit before the book's conclusion.

Summary adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Good for readers who want: historical fiction, adventure, and a long read.

  • Historical fiction
  • Adventure
  • Great britain
  • War & military

2 About Bernard Cornwell

Born 1944

Bernard Cornwell (born 23 February 1944) is an English author of historical novels and a history of the Waterloo campaign. He is best known for his long-running series of novels about Napoleonic Wars rifleman Richard Sharpe. He has also written The Saxon Stories, a series of thirteen novels about the unification of England.

Bio adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

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