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Bernard Cornwell

Biography

Bernard Cornwell

Bernard Cornwell was born in London in 1944 --- a "warbaby" --- whose father was a Canadian airman and mother in Britain’s Women’s Auxiliary Air Force.

He was adopted by a family in Essex who belonged to a religious sect called the Peculiar People (and they were), but escaped to London University and, after a stint as a teacher, he joined BBC Television where he worked for the next 10 years.

He began as a researcher on the Nationwide programme and ended as Head of Current Affairs Television for the BBC in Northern Ireland. It was while working in Belfast that he met Judy, a visiting American, and fell in love. Judy was unable to move to Britain for family reasons so Bernard went to the States where he was refused a Green Card. He decided to earn a living by writing, a job that did not need a permit from the US government --- and for some years he had been wanting to write the adventures of a British soldier in the Napoleonic wars --- and so the Sharpe series was born. Bernard and Judy married in 1980, are still married, still live in the States, and he is still writing Sharpe.

Bernard Cornwell

Books by Bernard Cornwell

by Bernard Cornwell - Fiction, Historical Fiction

If any man can do the impossible it’s Richard Sharpe. And the impossible is exactly what the formidable Captain Sharpe is asked to do when he’s sent on an undercover mission to a small village in the Spanish countryside, far behind enemy lines. For the quiet, remote village, sitting high above the Almaraz bridge, is about to become the center of a battle for the future of Europe. Two French armies march towards the bridge, one from the North and one from the South. If they meet, the British are lost. Only Sharpe's small group of men --- with their cunning and courage to rely on --- stand in their way. But they're rapidly outnumbered, enemies are hiding in plain sight, and as the French edge ever closer to the frontline, time is running out.

by Bernard Cornwell with Suzanne Pollak - Adventure, Fiction, Historical Fiction, History, Nonfiction

UHTRED’S FEAST offers rich background on the books of Bernard Cornwell’s Last Kingdom series, presenting a fascinating, detailed view of Anglo-Saxon life in all its splendor, danger and beauty. With his narrative flair, Cornwell explores every aspect of this historical period, from the clothes to weapons to food, offering beautifully crafted recipes of early Anglo-Saxon fare, created by renowned UK chef Suzanne Pollak. In addition, he has written three new stories exclusive to this book that reveal the man behind the shield --- Uhtred as a young boy, as Alfred’s advisor, and as prince.

by Bernard Cornwell - Fiction, Historical Fiction

Bernard Cornwell's iconic hero, Richard Sharpe, is dispatched to a new battleground: the maze of Paris streets, where lines blur between friend and foe. And in search of a spy, he will have to defeat a lethal assassin determined to kill his target...or die trying.

by Bernard Cornwell - Fiction, Historical Fiction

In this final installment of Bernard Cornwell’s Saxon Tales series, England is under attack. Chaos reigns. Northumbria, the last kingdom, is threatened by armies from all sides, by land and sea --- and only one man stands in their way. Torn between loyalty and sworn oaths, the warrior king Lord Uhtred of Bebbanburg faces his greatest ever battle --- and prepares for his ultimate fate.

by Bernard Cornwell - Fiction, Historical Fiction

It is a time of political turmoil once more as the fading King Edward begins to lose control over his successors and their supporters. Uhtred of Bebbanburg cares solely about his beloved Northumbria and its continuing independence from southern control. But an oath is a strong, almost sacred commitment, and such a promise had been exchanged between Uhtred and Aethelstan, his one-time companion in arms and now a potential king. Uhtred was tempted to ignore the demands of the oath and stay in his northern fastness, leaving the quarrelling Anglo-Saxons to sort out their own issues. But an attack on him by a leading supporter of one of the candidates and an unexpected appeal for help from another drives Uhtred south into the battle for kingship --- and England’s fate.

written by Bernard Cornwell, read by Matt Bates - Fiction, Historical Fiction

It is a time of political turmoil once more as the fading King Edward begins to lose control over his successors and their supporters. Uhtred of Bebbanburg cares solely about his beloved Northumbria and its continuing independence from southern control. But an oath is a strong, almost sacred commitment, and such a promise had been exchanged between Uhtred and Aethelstan, his one-time companion in arms and now a potential king. Uhtred was tempted to ignore the demands of the oath and stay in his northern fastness, leaving the quarrelling Anglo-Saxons to sort out their own issues. But an attack on him by a leading supporter of one of the candidates and an unexpected appeal for help from another drives Uhtred south into the battle for kingship --- and England’s fate.

by Bernard Cornwell - Fiction, Historical Fiction

While Uhtred of Bebbanburg might have regained his family’s fortress, it seems that a peaceful life is not to be --- as he is under threat from both an old enemy and a new foe. The old enemy comes from Wessex, where a dynastic struggle will determine who will be the next king. And the new foe is Sköll, a Norseman, whose ambition is to be King of Northumbria and who leads a frightening army of wolf-warriors, men who fight half-crazed in the belief that they are indeed wolves. Uhtred, believing he is cursed, must fend off one enemy while he tries to destroy the other. In this new chapter of the Saxon Tales series, Uhtred returns to fight once again for the destiny of England.

by Bernard Cornwell - Fiction, Historical Fiction

In the heart of Elizabethan England, Richard Shakespeare dreams of a glittering career in one of the London playhouses, a world dominated by his older brother, William. But he is a penniless actor, making ends meet through a combination of a beautiful face, petty theft and a silver tongue. As William’s star rises, Richard’s onetime gratitude is souring and he is sorely tempted to abandon family loyalty. So when a priceless manuscript goes missing, suspicion falls upon Richard, forcing him onto a perilous path through a bawdy and frequently brutal London. Entangled in a high-stakes game of duplicity and betrayal, Richard has to call on all he has now learned from the brightest stages and the darkest alleyways of the city. To avoid the gallows, he must play the part of a lifetime.

by Bernard Cornwell - Adventure, Fiction, Historical Fiction

Britain is in a state of uneasy peace. Northumbria’s Viking ruler, Sigtryggr, and Mercia’s Saxon Queen Aethelflaed have agreed to 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. But the enemies Uhtred has made and the oaths he has sworn combine to distract him from his dream of recapturing Bebbanburg. New enemies enter into the fight for England’s kingdoms, and Britain’s precarious peace threatens to turn into a war of annihilation. But Uhtred is determined that nothing, neither the new enemies nor the old foes who combine against him, will keep him from his birthright.

by Bernard Cornwell - Adventure, Fiction, Historical Fiction

A fragile peace reigns in Wessex, Mercia and East Anglia. King Alfred’s son, Edward, and formidable daughter, Aethelflaed, rule the kingdoms. But all around the restless Northmen, eyeing the rich lands and wealthy churches, are mounting raids. Uhtred of Bebbanburg, the kingdoms’ greatest warrior, controls northern Mercia from the strongly fortified city of Chester. But forces are gathering against him. Northmen allied to the Irish, led by the fierce warrior Ragnall Ivarson, are soon joined by the Northumbrians, and their strength could prove overwhelming.

by Bernard Cornwell - History, Nonfiction

On June 18, 1815, the armies of France, Britain and Prussia descended upon a quiet valley south of Brussels. In the previous three days, the French army had beaten the Prussians at Ligny and fought the British to a standstill at Quatre-Bras. The Allies were in retreat. The little village north of where they turned to fight the French army was called Waterloo. The blood-soaked battle to which it gave its name would become a landmark in European history. In his first work of nonfiction, Bernard Cornwell offers a riveting chronicle of every dramatic moment.

by Bernard Cornwell - Adventure, Fiction, Historical Fiction

It's a time of change for Britain in the early 10th century. There are new raids by the Vikings from Ireland, and turmoil among the Saxons over the leadership of Mercia. A younger generation is taking over. When Æthelred, the ruler of Mercia, dies, he leaves no legitimate heir. The West Saxons want their king, but Uhtred has long supported Æthelflaed, sister to King Edward of Wessex and widow of Æethelred. Widely loved and respected, Æthelflaed has all the makings of a leader --- but can Saxon warriors ever accept a woman as their ruler? The stage is set for rivals to fight for the empty throne.

by Bernard Cornwell - Adventure, Fiction, Historical Fiction

At the onset of the 10th century, England is in turmoil. Alfred the Great is dead, and Edward his son reigns as king. Wessex survives, but peace cannot hold: the Danes in the north, led by Viking Cnut Longsword, stand ready to invade and will never rest until the emerald crown is theirs. Uhtred, once Alfred’s great warrior but now out of favor with the new king, must lead a band of outcasts north to recapture his old family home.

by Bernard Cornwell - Adventure, Fiction, Historical Fiction

In September of 1356, the English army is about to invade France, and France is ready for them. Thomas of Hookton has special orders to uncover the lost sword of St. Peter, a weapon that is said to grant victory to whatever side wields it. It won't be an easy task because the French are searching too. When Thomas and his men are trapped near Poitiers, he, his men, and his enemies converge in a maelstrom of violence, action and heroism.

by Bernard Cornwell - Fiction, Historical Fiction

In this latest installment of Bernard Cornwell’s saga of England, loyalties are divided and chaos is mounting. As the ninth century wanes, Alfred the Great lies dying, his dream of a unified England in danger and his kingdom on the brink of chaos. While his son, Edward, has been named his successor, there are other Saxon claimants to the throne --- as well as ambitious pagan Vikings to the north.

by Bernard Cornwell - Fiction, Historical Fiction

In 1779, as the major fighting of the Revolutionary War moves to the South, a British force sails to the New England coast. A mortifying defeat leads to stunning repercussions for a young Scottish lieutenant named John Moore and a Boston patriot named Paul Revere.