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Battle of Poitiers

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annis
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Battle of Poitiers

Post by annis » Wed March 14th, 2012, 12:49 am

Excited to see from a post by Tanzanite that Bernard Cornwell has an as yet untitled new novel due out later this year (September in the UK)

"A fascinating hero, the pursuit of a sword of mythical power and one of England’s greatest and least known battles – a remarkable novel by Britain’s master storyteller .

Thomas of Hookton, a veteran of Crecy and many other battles, is the leader of a mercenary company of bowmen and men-at-arms who ravage the countryside east of Gascony.

Edward, Prince of Wales, later to be known as the Black Prince, is assembling an army to fight the French once more but before Thomas can join, he must fulfill an urgent task.

La Malice, a sword of mythical power guaranteeing victory to its owner, is thought to be concealed somewhere near Poitiers. With signs that a battle between the English and the French is looming others are seeking the treasure too, and some – French, Scots and even English – are pursuing their private agendas against Thomas.
But all – Thomas of Hookton, his enemies and friends and the fate of La Malice – become swept up in the extraordinary confrontation that follows, as the large French army faces the heavily outnumbered English to battle."

A return to the 100 Years War and Thomas Hookton, plus the Black Prince! Sounds like a winner. This must be set around the Battle of Poitiers, since Cornwell has already covered Crécy and Agincourt, the other two major battles won by the English against the French during the 100 Years War.

In fact, I’ve just come across this interesting interview last year with Bernard Cornwell, where he drops a hint or two.
Quote:
Cornwell’s’ already made some progress on his next book, which he’ll begin writing in earnest next month. “I’ve been thinking about it all summer, thinking about the plot, listening to conversations in my head. I’ve got a couple of chapters done, a nice start.”
Before then, he and Judy are off to Poitiers so he can do some research. “It's really an excuse to eat, drink, meet friends. But I really don’t think you can write about a place unless you see it.
“Part of the problem is nobody actually knows where the Battle of Poitiers was fought, which is great because if they don’t know then no one can say I'm wrong. I'll go there and wander aroun for a couple days and make up my mind where I think it was fought.”

Full text of Telegraph interview
A Page in the Life : Bernard Cornwell
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/book ... nwell.html

Carla
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Post by Carla » Wed March 14th, 2012, 7:04 pm

I dimly remember seeing an interview with Bernard Cornwell some years ago when he said he planned to return to Thomas of Hookton eventually. This must be what he had in mind. I wonder how he's going to work a supernatural sword into the Battle of Poitiers? I look forward to finding out :-)
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Shield-of-Dardania
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Post by Shield-of-Dardania » Mon January 14th, 2013, 1:19 am

A mythical sword. That's always a great theme for me. It's really amazing, but I have yet to read something from Bernard Cornwell, although from what I've gathered he's probably one of the big guns of HF.

Plus I also have a similar theme in my WIP. For quite some time, I did consider if that might distract from the main theme in my story, or get in the way somehow, but I have persevered with it. Now that someone of the stature of BC is doing the same, it has in a way justified my faith in my own instinct.

And I was just reading a short review about 1356 in our local newspaper last night. What a string of coincidences. I mean, wow!

So 1356 would be on my list on my next visit to the bookstore.

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