I am taking a brief respite from my series on Medieval Fiction to review a wonderful new contemporary fantasy by author K.A. Krisko called Cornerstone: Raising Rook. While set in our day and age, there are distinct medieval elements to this novel and it was a nice change of pace from the pure historical fiction and…
Enemy of God is the second in Bernard Cornwell’s series The Warlord Chronicles. Its protagonist is still Derfel Cadarn, who is now near thirty years old and one of Arthur’s lords. The book begins immediately where The Winter King ended, after the battle among the British kings at Lugg Vale. Arthur is trying to keep…
I just finished Bernard Cornwell’s 1356, so I’m jumping ahead about nine centuries this week in my series on medieval fiction to allow for a review of yet another great work by one of my all-time favorite authors. “Go with God, but fight like the Devil!” 1356 is the fourth book in Cornwell’s Grail Quest…
This month I gave my first author interview for Enoch’s Device. Author Tyler Tichelaar, who specializes in Arthurian fiction, conducted the interview, which was first posted on Reader Views. It is also being featured in a newsletter going out to readers today. I had a fun time with it. Tyler asked some great questions that…
The Winter King is the first book in Bernard Cornwell’s masterful retelling of Arthurian legend. From the very first chapter, it is evident that Cornwell’s version would be different from many tales of Arthur. The narrator, for example, is the little-known Derfel Cadarn, writing his story as a monk in a small monastery to Igraine,…
Medieval fiction set in the late Fifth Century is largely of the Arthurian variety, as I noted last week in my post titled Who Was King Arthur? Many scholars believe that Arthur (assuming he really existed) would have lived during the last decades of the Fifth Century and the early Sixth Century. Saint Bede (a…
Leading up to my next installment in my series on Medieval Fiction, I thought I’d pose some questions about one of the late Fifth Century’s most legendary figures: Who was Arthur of Britain? And was he a real person or a purely mythical figure? Arthur vs. Mordred – One of my favorite Arthurian images! These are…
For the next week, the Kindle version of Enoch’s Device will be on sale for $2.99 at Amazon.com. That’s less than a Grande Chai Tea Latte or a Tall Mocha Frappuccino at Starbucks! So, if you’ve been waiting to buy a copy, or know someone who likes medieval adventure stories filled with mystery, suspense, and a bit of the…
As anyone who follows this blog knows, I am especially fond of fiction set in the Middle Ages. My own novel, Enoch’s Device, is set at the end of the Tenth Century, and most of the books I read and review have some connection to the medieval world. These include not only historical fiction, but…
I recently re-read William Goldman’s The Princess Bride for the first time in probably sixteen years. Although I also saw the film adaptation when it was released in 1987, I have probably watched the movie ten or twelve times, so I found it nearly impossible to separate my feelings about the book from Rob Reiner’s…
The Goodreads Giveaway for my novel Enoch’s Device closes in eight days. Click here to enter for a chance to win one of ten copies. Also, in honor of St. Patrick’s Day, and because my novel begins in Ireland and features a young Irish monk as the protagonist, here are some of my favorite Irish-focused quotes…