The Empty Throne: A Novel

When I saw the book’s title, I had assumed the “empty throne” would concern Wessex, the English kingdom around which most of the “Last Kingdom” series has centered. After the death of King Alfred the Great in “Death of Kings,” I had no idea how long his heir, Edward, would survive. But Edward isn’t the subject of this tale. No, the “empty throne” belongs to the former kingdom of Mercia, and this time around Cornwell delivers his own version of a “game of thrones.”At the end of “The Pagan Lord,” both Uhtred and his hated cousin Æthelred, the Lord of Merica, suffered terrible wounds at the battle of Teotanheale. Uhtred was stabbed in the side by Cnut Ranulfson, with his legendary sword Ice-Spite, and it’s unclear by the end of “The Pagan Lord” if Uhtred will survive. Of course, we learn in this novel the he lived, though he remains weak and wounded and spends much of the novel with one foot inside death’s door. That said, however, he ends up doing far better than Æthelred.It turns out that Æthelred is dying without a male heir, so the nobles have summoned a Witan to decide Mercia’s future. Æthelred leaves behind only his teenage daughter and his estranged wife, the Lady Æthelflaed, one of the heroines of the last several novels and Uhtred’s former lover. Uhtred wants Æthelflaed on the throne, but the thought of a woman ruling Merica does not sit well with many of the nobles, especially the Ealdorman Æthelhelm of Wessex.Æthelhelm is not only King Edward’s father-in-law and the second richest man in Wessex, but he also has designs on controlling Mercia’s throne. His pawn in the game is Eardulf, the slick and mischievous commander of Æthelred’s household guards, but Eardulf isn’t noble, and the only way he can claim the throne is to marry a woman of royal blood. Uhtred is prepared to ensure that never happens, and his attempts to prevent the marriage propels the novel into a thrilling adventure, with plenty of intrigue and battles of the kind that Cornwell so masterfully writes.This novel is a bit unique among the series because Uhtred is basically too injured to fight, forcing one of the great warriors in fiction to rely even more on his mind than his battle prowess. But it also forces him to rely more on others, which makes “The Empty Throne” a family affair, Uhtred style. In the last book, we got to know Uhtred’s son Uhtred, who has grown in a warrior like his father. And in this book we’re introduced to his resourceful daughter Stiorra, a spitting image of Uhtred’s late wife Gisela, who has inherited some of her mother’s gift for prophecy. Stiorra is quietly pagan, genially natured, and fierce when crossed, which quickly made her one of my favorite characters in the series.In addition to its game of thrones intrigue, the novel offers plenty more, including a new and unexpected love interest for Uhtred, a new and dangerous Viking threat, and even a quest to find Ice-Spite after a priest tells Uhtred that if he finds the sword, the wounds it caused will finally be healed. Overall, “The Empty Throne” turned out to be one of my favorite books in Cornwell’s series. My only hope is that “The Last Kingdom” on BBC America lasts long enough to bring this book to life.

What more can hero Uhtred of Bebbanburg suffer? How many more Saxon lives can he save? How many more Danes will fall to his sword? Well, perhaps as this 9th century warrior has reached his mid-forties and is still recovering from the grievous wound he suffered from Cnut Cnutson’s sword Ice-Spite, we can expect his feet to move less swiftly, his sword to parry a bit more slowly, and his luck (wyrd bith ful arawd!) finally to run out. Yes, those things happen, and he even makes tactical mistakes now! (Double wyrd!) But after all, he still has Finan and company to ride with, and now his son Uhtred Uhtredson and daughter Stiorra give him a better chance of surviving the betrayals and schemes of the ‘Christian’ nobles, priests, and bishops out to exert their will over the kingdom (almost) of Mercia. Wessex’s King Edward, son of Alfred, wants to unite the two kingdoms over the reluctance of the Mercian nobles to yield any of their power to the men of Wessex, and the whole thing gets super-complicated as a Wessex noble attempts a scheme to discredit and kill Edward’s son Aethelstan, to kill Uhtred’s lover Aethelflaed (the wife of Mercia’s ruler Aethelred), and place his grandson, eventually, on the throne of Wessex. It’s complicated, but the solution involves hero Uhtred’s clever political savvy, as well as plenty of those excellent battles we found in the previous seven of Cornwell’s Saxon Tales.

This eighth volume of Cornwell's SaxonTales starts with a bit of a surprise beginning, making regular readers of the series fear the worst, and then continues with the narrative of the most irrepressible, willfully unrepentant, and magnificent warrior to come out of the author's imagination. As with all the others in the series, this one is not for the faint of heart or weak of belly; it has more bloodshed than the closing scene of Titus Andronicus. Every once in a while the author's imagination does take off as far as the hero's abilities, but one must remember this narrative is supposed to be a retelling of his own life by a man who valued his reputation above almost all else. The dim historical sourcing for the Saxon period gives Cornwell lots of room to roam, although he does go to some pains to explain where he deviated or invented. The book, as do all in the series, conveys very well the violence, superstition and prejudices, stench and filth, and sheer backwardness of the age (by our standards). On occasion, a bit of retrojection of contemporary or later mores does pop up, but for the most part the story is true to form. Cornwell's maps are useful, and it is kind of him to provide a lexicon of the ancient and modern names of locations; I still needed a smaller-scale map to figure out the context of the action. Although compared to Patrick O'Brien's novels, Cornwell injects a lot more battle even in the midst of a lot of thinking and talking. By the way, the series would be worth reading just for the insults Uhtred and the others hurl at each other before battle, or when enraged, or when just having their jollies.

I read book 1 - 8 of the Last Kingdom series back to back as if they were one omnibus through a wet and miserable January. I had seen the BBC 2 series which covered book 1 and book 2 and found The Last Kingdom and The Pale Horseman such good reads I was glad that I had not read them before seeing the series. I was impressed by the explanations of the internal struggle Uhtred has to establish his identity,, and the uniqueness into which he forges his experiences , philosophy and education into the warrior and man he grows into. I was also impressed by the historical integrity Conwell brought to the background of Uhtred's adventures. Definite page turners all the way through. Loved every minute spent reading 1-8.Although one should not bring 21st century thinking, morals and mores to 10th century life, one could not help thinking that 'everything changes and nothing changes.' Cornwell does encourage the reader to stop and think beyond the swashbuckling thoughout.I am not sure whether Uhtred's forewords are a good or bad thing - whether they telegraph the ultimate outcome of the scrapes and adventures or whether they enhance the enjoyment of the finer points of the tale...I was disappointed at the Kindle price of book 9- Warriors of the Storm, which at the present time is more than the hardback edition. Although I am hooked enough to want to read it very badly, principle prevents me following on at this time.

This is the eighth novel in the seemingly endless series about Uhtred of Bebbanburg, now given a new lease of life through the second TV series, which is well made and seems well cast to fit the characters from the novels. The seat of action this time is Mercia and the death of its ruler Ethelred, married to Ethelfleda, the famous and powerful Lady of the Mercians, and the late King Alfred's sister. Uhtred is a less all powerful character here due being wounded, and his namesake son comes more to the fore here. Beyond this, it's the usual mayhem and killing, but well written and with a few more minor characters entering the fray.

Another satisfying Uthred book. As usual the pace is wicked fast from start to finish.I read this book in under a day. LIterally could not (and didn't want to) put it down. The plot of this book is as compelling as the rest of them. There is as much action and and gore as in previous books and Cornwell, as always, does not disappoint. It is a slick production and one that is as entertaining and emotional as any blockbuster. After reading 8 of his Uthred books I cannot get enough and when this saga comes to a close, it will feel like the loss of a friend. As ridiculous as that sounds, reading this whole series you cant help but invest part of yourself in the story.Long may this series continue. A world with Uthred Uthredson is not a world that I wish to see.

Cornwell's narrative skills are immense. Tight prose ensures that the story line flows smoothly without unnecessary verbiage to distract the reader. I have been completely ensnared by the Saxon Chronicle series. I feel I know Uhtred as I would know a beloved father. All the principal characters are well rounded and entirely believable. Interesting too to revisit Saxon history, not studied since primary school. Perhaps the only complaint I have is that I am frequently forced to read late into the night as I find it difficult to put the book down!

Bernard Cornwell's character Uthred of Bebbanburg stirs the mix well between drama and history, the twists and turns of plotting Lords usurpers to the crown and the dream of one Kingdom of England with the added spice of the good and bad sides of religion thrown into the mix for good measure.Intriguing, action packed, character driven, thoughtful and brilliantly written as are all of this series of stories.