Kings of the North [Hardcover]

Cecelia Holland (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 6, 2010

Having fled from Constantinople, Raef Corbanson and his companions--Lief the Icelander, and Laissa, the young girl who they rescued from Constantinople--are cast up on shore in Normandy. Their goal is to return to Raef’s home in the Viking town of Jorvik in England.  Raef is back in his home territory, and his old friend and shipmate Sweyn Forkbeard is now King of Denmark--and soon to overthrow King Ethelred II of England. Raef’s connections throw him into the middle of the struggle between Sweyn, Ethelred, and Ethelred’s son Edward. Raef becomes foster father of Sweyn’s son Knut…who will become known as King Canute when he in turn takes the throne of England.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Raef Corbanson and his companions return to England in this Viking-era sequel to The High City. England is going through tumultuous times as power struggles first put Ethelred the Unready on the throne, then Sweyn Forkbeard, and a raging civil war follows between Ethelred's son, Edmund, and Sweyn's son, Knut. Raef has his work cut out for him: be a good foster father to Knut; struggle with his daughter, Gemma; and face his fear of the Lady of Hedeby. While Holland's novels are always immersive and set in chaotic times rife with drama, unfortunately, once again, Raef is a hopeless protagonist, too passive and far from the action. His mysterious spiritual powers destroy any dramatic tension because he can foretell the future and also mysteriously defeat his opponents. The characters around him, however, particularly hottempered Knut, are fantastic. Readers of Holland's last works will be a little confused and may finally be frustrated, assuming they have any investment in Raef as a character at all.
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Review

"[Holland has] the hard, sharp lines of a master storyteller. She seems remarkably skillful at portraying the masculine mind."--Houston Chronicle

"We have come to expect rich, vivid historical novels from prolific Cecelia Holland, and this one, set in ninth century Constantinople, more than fulfills that expectation.  We observe the legendary Byzantine duplicity through the eyes of our honorable barbarian hero as he tries to unravel the intrigue. Swiftly moving, plausible, and with just the right amount of historical details to make scenes come clear, the novel is an engrossing tale."--Publishers Weekly on The Belt of Gold

--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 416 pages
• Publisher: Forge Books; First Edition edition (July 6, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0765321920
• ISBN-13: 978-0765321923
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 6.1 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #571,099 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Saga continues!, July 11, 2010

By 

Edward Alexander Gerster "miamibooks" (South Miami, FL USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Kings of the North (Hardcover)

Cecelia Holland continues with characters and themes from previous novels (Varanger, The High City) in this Viking saga mixed with high fantasy. Through the adventures of her protagonist Raef Cornansson, and his companions -- Leif the Icelander, and Laissa, whom Raef rescued from Constantinople -- the author effectively portrays the brutality of the era and the uneasy relationship of the Danes and English. The story begins in Normandy and continues on with Raef and his companions traveling to return to Jorvik (York), the Viking town in England which was once Raef's home.

During the time of Raef's journey, England is ruled by Ethelred II who later acquired the epithet the Redeless or Unraed because of his repeated failure to follow wise counsel. (This may have been a pun on the name of Ethelred, which in Anglo-Saxon meant noble counsel.) While Raef and his companions are in London, they experience the Saint Brice's Day massacre first hand (November 13, 1002),where Ethelred and his right hand man Edric Sreona engineer the deaths of all the Danes and Danish sympathizers he could find, either real or imagined. Ethelred's Norman wife Emma has become the embodiment of evil and Raef's natural foe.

Raef's journey continues northward to Jorvik, and the fantasy elements of the novel come fully to the forefront. There is much more high fantasy in this novel than in Varanger, or The High City - and there is a classic struggle between good and evil, played out in parallel through the struggles for the crown of England. Further along in the storyline, Reaf becomes foster father to Knut, son of Sweyn Forkbeard, Raef's old friend and shipmate who is now King of Denmark. This sets the stage for further events of war between the Danes and the English - culminating in Sweyn Forkbeard being declared King of England, and Knut (King Canute) taking over after his father's sudden death.

Readers familiar with the historical facts surrounding the reign of Ethelred II the Redeless (978-1016) or Sweyn Forkbeard, King of Denmark, may find themselves a bit confused by historical liberties that the author has taken. Please read the authors notes in the Afterward first to alleviate any anxieties associated with these changes, and instead enjoy the engrossing epic that unfolds in the storyline.

Highly recommended, this novel stands well alone, but is even better in context of the authors previous novels in this sequence: The Soul Thief, The Witches' Kitchen, Varanger, and The High City.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars terrific dark ages thriller, July 18, 2010

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Kings of the North (Hardcover)

After being away for several years, Raef Corbanson, accompanied by his traveling friends Leif the Icelander and Liassa, returns to England at a time when strife threatens the country. Whereas Raef just wants to go home to Jorvik, several men strive for the throne ever since Ethelred the Unready became the ruler.

Raef's former shipmate Denmark King Sweyn Forkbeard wants the crown now precariously worn by Ethelred. The monarchs' respective sons Edmund and Knut also covet the throne. Raef tries his best to be a decent foster father to Knut and reconcile with his daughter, Gemma. However he hesitates to confront Lady Hedeby while also hoping to stay out of the monarchy free for all.

The final tale of the Loosestrife dark ages thriller (see The High City) is a terrific Viking era historical. Partially because he can see the future that he believes cannot be changed, Raef remains submissively acceptant of his and others' fate. His realistic reaction to his paranormal skill leaves him relatively inert as the center of the story line reacting to those hyperactive rivals seeking the crown. Still fans of the Loosestrife epic will relish the fight for the throne in the early decades of the eleventh century.

Harriet Klausner