only for long bow enthusiasts
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way too much emphasis on how archers worked/fought/prepared/ and not enough on how they felt, ate, walked, sat, talked, and what the countryside was like. It read like a 'Robert Hardy told me all he knew about longbows and you're going to get the whole lecture.'
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Second Book in the Grail Quest
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Bernard Cornwell is the author of the acclaimed Richard Sharpe series, set during the Napoleonic Wars To my shame I have not read any of these. The books about Arthurian England are much more my cup of tea and I read those avidly. He has also written among others, Stonehenge 2000 B.C. Bernard Cornwell lives with his wife on Cape Cod.
This second book in the series is even better than the first, perhaps because the reader is now more aware of the storyline and is familiar with the main characters. Although the first book was a good read and well up to Mr. Cornwell's high standard. In this one the story gathers pace and takes the reader along on a wave of emotion for Thomas of Hook ton.
Thomas, a young archer has been fighting in what became known as the Hundred Years' War. He has been with the English army in France and while the English are on foreign soil the Scots see it as their opportunity to come down from the north.
Sent back to England Thomas becomes involved in the fighting at Durham. He he meets an enemy, a Dominican, who, like most other people is looking for the holy relic, the grail. Thomas has one advantage, an old book left by his father seems to offer clues to its resting place. But after all the turmoil and upheaval will the relic even be in the place where it has rested for so many years . . . ?
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An entertaining sequel, but lacks direction
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"Vagabond" is the second book in Bernard Cornwell's Grail Quest trilogy, following on from where the story left off in "Harlequin", in 1346, just after the Battle of Crécy. Thomas of Hookton has been sent, along with his companions Eleanor and Father Hobbe, to Durham, in search of answers from a certain monk who knew his father - who was rumoured to have possessed the Holy Grail. Pursuing him is the Inquisitor Bernard de Taillebourg, who also seeks the Grail and will let no one stand in his way. Little known to Thomas is the fact that at the same time a Scots army is approaching the gates of Durham, and that his life and those of his companions are all in danger.
This is certainly an action-packed tale - we are hardly 20 pages into the book before we are into our first battle, which turns out to be merely a prelude to the main event, the Battle of Neville's Cross. After that we follow Thomas as he journeys the length of the kingdom from Durham to Dorset, and from there on to Caen and Britanny. Unfortunately, as with "Harlequin", there seems to be little direction to this story. Events simply happen; never is there a sense that we are going somewhere and we discover little more concerning the Grail than we knew at the outset. Thomas appears to wander aimlessly from place to place, sometimes deeply driven by his quest, but at other times strangely disinterested. After "Harlequin" I would have liked to have seen a development of Thomas's character, which sadly Cornwell never provides. Part of the problem lies in the style of narration he has chosen in this series, which slips disconcertingly between a wide number of points of view. This means that even when we do come back to Thomas, the main character, we are always kept at a distance, and it is difficult to ever connect emotionally or sympathise with him.
What Cornwell is very good at, however, is his evocation of time and place, and it is this feature of his writing which saves "Vagabond". His battle scenes are, as always, described in vivid detail and draw the reader right into the thick of the action. Similarly his depictions of the medieval landscape are colourful and the cast of supporting characters serves to flesh out this world in a interesting and believable manner.
"Vagabond" is by no means Cornwell's best work, and though it is perfectly readable and entertaining in the short term, it is also fairly forgettable. The scene has certainly been set, however, and there are many questions still to be resolved in the series's climax, "Heretic".
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cracking
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it is a real mans book, ok a bit tearful at times ,and the torture episode makes one want to wince, but the detail makes you feel that you are there and that you are pulling the long bow ,and walking ,sitting and sleeping in the mud, a real cracking tale ,and i am looking forward to the next instalmemt
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Excellent 2nd in the series
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Having read the first of the Grail Quest books and uttelry loved it I was looking forward to this one. I wasn't disappointed. The narrative and characters are as brilliant as ever with Cornwell and the progression of the story moves along well.
The only negative for me was that it felt a little more disjointed than the first. Thomas travelling here and there many times which for me made it lose focus a little bit. The upside of this is that there's always something going on, and helps keep your interest, but it didn't feel as purposeful as the first.
It really is only a minor gripe though as it is an excellent read, and made me very excited about getting the final book (As far as I believe it is only a trilogy)
Once again Cornwell excels, drawing the reader into a colourful and complete world with a book that is a pure joy to read.
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