Poul Anderson was one of giants of the golden age of science fiction and fantasy, authoring vintage classics like Three Hearts and Three Lions. But he also wrote historical fiction, including a trilogy about Harald Hardrada, a Norwegian king whose failed attempt to conquer England in 1066 marked the end of the Viking Age. I…
Winter of 2016 is promising to be a fantastic year for historical and fantasy-themed television. Season 3 of Black Sails is right around the corner, followed by the debut of Season 4 of History’s Vikings. And, in perhaps the most unexpected new addition, MTV, of all networks, has already brought us a surprisingly good adaptation…
For months I’ve been meaning to post my review of Fin Gall by James L. Nelson. Guest reviewer Bill Brockman first reviewed the book here. My take follows this image of the book’s cover. Fin Gall turned out to be a wonderful surprise. I was expecting a book focused on Vikings, but Nelson’s novel is…
This one snuck up on me, but thanks to friend of the blog Bill Brockman I’ve learned that the television adaptation of Bernard Cornwell’s The Last Kingdom will premier this Saturday on BBC America! Young Uhtred For those that follow this blog, you know that Bernard Cornwell is my all time favorite author of medieval…
Another busy week means another post from the archives. This one’s from 2011. Because I was traveling for the past five weeks, I had little time to do research on Vikings for my next novel. But I did have enough time to re-read another of my favorite stories about Vikings, Michael Crichton’s Eaters of the Dead….
Once again I’m pleased to feature a guest review by Bill Brockman, this time of The Lord of Vik-Lo by James L. Nelson. Bill is an avid reader of historical fiction, but he’s also devoted his life to public service as a Battalion Chief of the Atlanta Fire Rescue Department and a 31-year part-time airman in the Air National…
Tonight marks the finale of Season 3 of Vikings on History. While this season has been as good as the prior two, it’s also highlighted the artistic license the writers have taken with real historical events. Let’s just say the “history” of Vikings is a complete mess. It’s conflated nearly a hundred years of real…
I’ve had no time to write this week, which never fares well for this blog. Fortunately, Marvel Entertainment has released the latest trailer for the upcoming Avengers: Age of Ultron film, which looks amazing. Generally, I like to keep this blog about historical and fantasy fiction, but the Avengers get an exception thanks to every Vikings’ favorite…
As Season 3 of Vikings gets underway, it just so happens I’m immersing myself in Viking-related fiction. I just finished Blood Eye by Giles Kristian, a book about the Vikings in England that guest reviewer Bill Brockman introduced me to last year. A quote on the cover from Bernard Cornwell (who writes some of the…
Television gets even better tonight as Season 3 of Vikings premiers on History. Vikings, along with Black Sails, is part of a quintet of great historical fiction and historical fantasy shows that will soon include Da Vinci’s Demons, Outlander, and Season 5 of Game of Thrones. Needless to say, I love this time of year!…
To kick off the New Year, guest reviewer Bill Brockman has reviewed Odin’s Wolves by Giles Kristian, and it looks to be another fantastic Viking tale. Bill is an avid reader of historical fiction, but he’s also devoted his life to public service as a Battalion Chief of the Atlanta Fire Rescue Department and a…