Death of Kings

by Bernard Cornwell

Part of The Last Kingdom, book 6

First published 2011

King Alfred lies dying, and with him dies the hope of a united England. Saxon nobles scheme for the throne while Viking armies gather in the north, ready to reclaim what they see as rightfully theirs. Uhtred of Bebbanburg stands at the center of this gathering storm. Born Saxon but raised by Vikings, he has served Alfred faithfully for years, yet his oath dies with the king. Alfred wants his son Edward to rule, but Uhtred owes the young prince nothing. Meanwhile, Uhtred's own dreams pull him northward to Bebbanburg, the ancestral fortress stolen from him as a child. He could abandon the Saxon cause and pursue his birthright, or he could take up Alfred's vision of a Christian England united under one crown. The choice will determine not just Uhtred's fate, but the future of a nation balanced on the edge of chaos.

Genres: historical-fiction, adventure, action, alternate-history

Vibes: fast-paced, suspenseful, thought-provoking

Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, fish-out-of-water

Setting: Bebbanburg, England

Period: Dark Ages, Medieval

320 pages · Hardcover · Harper

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