The Flame Bearer
Written by Bernard Cornwell
Narrated by Matt Bates
4.5/5
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About this audiobook
The tenth installment of Bernard Cornwell’s New York Times bestselling series chronicling the epic saga of the making of England, “like Game of Thrones, but real” (The Observer, London)—the basis for The Last Kingdom, the hit television series.
Britain is in a state of uneasy peace. Northumbria’s Viking ruler, Sigtryggr, and Mercia’s Saxon Queen Aethelflaed have agreed a truce. And so England’s greatest warrior, Uhtred of Bebbanburg, at last has the chance to take back the home his traitorous uncle stole from him so many years ago—and which his scheming cousin still occupies.
But fate is inexorable, and the enemies Uhtred has made and the oaths he has sworn conspire to distract him from his dream of recapturing his home. New enemies enter into the fight for England’s kingdoms: the redoubtable Constantin of Scotland seizes an opportunity for conquest and leads his armies south. Britain’s precarious peace threatens to turn into a war of annihilation. Yet Uhtred is determined that nothing—neither the new adversaries nor the old foes who combine against him—will keep him from his birthright.
“Historical novels stand or fall on detail, and Mr. Cornwell writes as if he has been to ninth-century Wessex and back.”
—Wall Street Journal
Bernard Cornwell
Bernard Cornwell was born in London, raised in Essex and worked for the BBC for eleven years before meeting Judy, his American wife. Denied an American work permit he wrote a novel instead and has been writing ever since. He and Judy divide their time between Cape Cod and Charleston, South Carolina.
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Reviews for The Flame Bearer
310 ratings15 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Great book. One of the best in the series! I am totally hooked :D
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Love the series! Great writing, intriguing and overall best ever!
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5As with all in this series, this book was well-written and researched. Maybe a little over the top with the negative stereotype of Christians.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Uhtred never disappoints ! Another awesome book by Bernard Cornwell ! I love them (Saxon Stories) all !
I am bummed that I have to wait until October 2018 to get the new book .
I can't wait ! Uhtred is my Hero ! - Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Riveting and fast paced. Cornwell is an artist. His words place you in the shield wall, you hear the slash of blades, the crunch of gore. Truly an incredible author and this work is no exception to his talent.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Britain is in a state of uneasy peace. QNorthumbria’s Viking ruler, Sigtryggr (Uhtred’s son-in-law) and Mercian’s Saxon Queen Aethelflaed have agreed upon a truce. Thus, Uhtred seizes an opportunity to seize back his beloved Bebbanburg.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Time is as inexorable as fate, and we have come to Uhtred's last attempt on Bebbanburg. I shall not tell you how it goes except to say there is a tactical situation of byzantine complexity at the end of the book. Quite fun, as usual and Cornwell.s historical note at the end is illuminating.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5He's home at last!!!
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5This is the tenth novel in the Uhtred series. In this one, King Edward the Elder's son in law Aethelhelm is plotting with various others to ensure that this grandson succeeds to the throne, rather than the King's eldest son, by an earlier wife, Athelstan. Danes, Scots and various others all form part of the complex tapestry of struggle across the country. More centrally, our "hero" Uhtred finally succeeds in his lifetime's ambition to recapture his ancestral home, the fortress of Bebbanburgh, usurped by his uncle when he was a child. Needless to say, this struggle involves the usual bloodlust and battle-joy, Uhtred and his followers swimming through the blood of their enemies to win victory. But this victory does not mark the end of Uhtred's story, as there are at least two more books to follow.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I loved this series, and really find The Flame Bearer to be a satisfying finish to the Uhtred saga. Cornwell's characters are likeable and multi-dimensional throughout.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5"The Flame Barer" didn’t match up to the excitement of the previous book in the Saxon series, nor with most of the others, but I still enjoyed thee past-paced narrative with its vivid imagery.Uhtred is in my opinion Bernard Cornwell’s best character creation. I never tire of the scenes when some cocky youth fancies his chances in a duel, only for the “old man” to announce his identity, thus quashing any boldness from young challengers. In short, they pee themselves.The author’s depictions of battle scenes are vivid and believable in all his works, but more so in the Saxon tales because Uhtred’s personality helps the reader – this one at least – to feel part of this charismatic warlord’s fights. Any confrontation, be it physical or verbal, is expertly portrayed. The typical humour, especially Uhtred’s conversations with priests, is as entertaining as ever.In my view, what prevents Mr Cornwell from being an even better writer than he is already, is his dialogue attribution. The actual dialogue is excellent, but for 90+ per cent of the time he interrupts the flow by needlessly reminding the reader who’s speaking, more often than not inserting this pointless information – pointless because it’s obvious who’s speaking – in the middle of sentences.Mr Cornwell maybe doesn’t realise that the strength of his characters make it clear to the reader who’s talking, just as he fails to grasp how irritating it is to have his believable dialogue swamped with superfluous attribution, which sometimes includes unnecessary adverbs.I dislike the author’s elements of English style in the most part, especially his overuse of the word “then” – arguably the laziest choice for moving a story forward – and the amount of long-winded sentences he uses. Some of his books are worse than others for these annoying traits.He tends to overuse “and” too much as well, as though determined to make his sentences as long and clunky as possible. Like with using “then”, repeating “and” in this way changes Uhtred’s strong warrior voice to that of an excited child.Anyway, style aside, Mr Cornwell’s done a good job with the story side of "The Flame Barer"
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Too short at 300 pages. Feels very much like a money spinnner while BBC are showing the Uhtred series. 400 to 500 pages would have been better value and it's getting tiresome with authors stretching what should be one novel into two or three novellas.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5I found this book pacier and more entertaining than some of the recent editions in this series. I was glad that Uthred was focused on the Northumbrian situation chiefly. Is this the near end of the series?
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5With The Flame Bearer Bernard Cornwell brings the tenth entry in his vivid Last Kingdom series (once known as the Saxon Chronicles). In it Lord Uhtred continues to focus his energy and his followers on retaking his ancestral home, the fortress at Bebbanburg. The action continues apace, with vivid, expertly done battle scenes, and theatrical set pieces where Uhtred holds center stage at court, adroitly turning the tables on ambitious nobles and venal churchmen. Yes, all the usual thrills are here for your delectation.While the campaigns with their vivid 10th Century battles do not come as frequently as in other Last Kingdom novels, Flame Bearer makes up for it with its climax. Uhtred must lull his usurping cousin into a false sense of security (through use of strategically placed misinformation) while running a blockade set by a fierce Norseman. Throw into the mix a third enemy, no less than the feared army of Scotland, led by its King Constatin, and you have unusually long odds, even for Uhtred. Suffice it to say the final battle scene makes up for the occasional - and comparative - calm that precedes it. Excellent stuff.This is an escape I savor every time a new Uhtred of Bebbanburg book comes out. Cornwell excels at this writing, and is widely admired for it. It isn’t just every series that is made into a Netflix series - I was deeply interested to start watching it, but with my schedule that’s all I could manage - just the start. I am glad and proud that others have noticed the quality of the thrills, plots, characters, and yes, the truth of these tomes. Cornwell puts into his hero’s mind and speech the consciousness of war’s horrors, the plain if covered-up truth of men’s fear on the eve of battle, the honest and frank description of shit, and blood, and guts, and screams, and stench of it all. If these are things to escape to, let Cornwell be your guide. I have no idea now how many more books he will bring out in this series. I feel like I’ve been on borrowed time for a couple of books now, anything else has been and will be a bonus. Escape to 10th Century Britain. You couldn't find a finer time machine.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The quest for Bebbanberg continues as B Cornwell weaves once more; frail skeins of history into another engaging Saxon Tale. Peace in Britain during this period means that everyone is choosing sides to go to war. Uhtred has a plan which requires selecting allies from his many enemies and creating sufficient confusion that his meager army can divide, multiple and conquer. It is hard not to like a warlord who's when all else fails is: " we will kill them". Cornwell is the consumate teller of stories in this venue.