It's the second in Cornwell's Saxon series. I read the first, The Last Kingdom, late last summer. Despite that book's slow build to an exciting finish, I found the narrating main character, Uhtred, fascinating, even endearing. He's a spirited warrior, a Saxon from northern English lands, who is captured at a young age and raised as a pagan Dane. Uhtred's skepticism, passion, and boldness are refreshing. But, it's his violent nature and reckless spirit that not only gets him into all kinds of interesting trouble in his adventures, it also complicates his moral nature for readers. Cornwell's writing historical adventure here, with heavy emphasis on adventure and action. It's well suited for an escapist read with a root in historical context, but has a slight taint of machismo. I find myself cheering for Uhtred in the series, but then realize some of the awful things he participates in, namely violence and a sketchy treatment of some women in his life.
In The Pale Horseman, Uhtred's tale continues. He's quickly saddled with the complicated life of a married, landed nobleman despite his wishes to be free of his obligations and beat the invading Danes at their own game. Cornwell captures that excitement quickly as Uhtred raids Cornwallum, finds a mysterious pagan lover, and ransacks a major Dane warlord.
But, as Uhtred abandons his obligations for a time, he suffers for it. He faces accusations at the court of Alfred, the king of Wessex, this historical king of England now known as Alfred the Great. Before he can finish trial by combat, Danes invade Wessex, and Uhtred escapes. Unwittingly, he rescues Alfred himself, and the core of the book is Uhtred's reluctant effort to improve his standing with Alfred. Sequestered in a swampy domain, Alfred and Uhtred gather a rag tag band that soon swells to an army of Wessex, and underdog effort to repel the Danes from Wessex once and for all.
Throughout it all, Uhtred retains his pagan beliefs, despite the highly pious Alfred and several other Christian warriors and women. I'm fond of this tension, especially between Uhtred and Alfred. Uhtred constantly seems like the wiser skeptic, but Alfred manages to find fortune in his beliefs at nearly every turn.
The climax of the book is, again, a large battle between Saxons and Danes, a press of shield walls and bloody mayhem. Here, the battle is more prolonged than the similar ending of The Last Kingdom. Cornwall appears to be falling into a formula a bit. It goes something like Uhtred loses everything, meets a mysterious and sexy woman, then recaptures glory with his heroics and passion in battle, despite losing his woman in the process.
Still, as I said, the series is endearing. Uhtred isn't a gallant. He has his flaws, but remains captivating. Meanwhile, his rough and tumble companions are amusing, often tough exteriors with tender-hearted interiors. But, they aren't much more realized that that. For all his sanctimony, Alfred remains the best realized character in the series, and the only one with any growth and depth.
The Pale Horseman is a good read, a historical romp with enough viking color to delight. I've not read Cornwell's other works, but am pretty familiar with the formulas of his famous Sharpe's series. He's at it here, too, crafting a slightly formulaic but entirely enjoyable adventure yarn that's enjoyable far outside the British isles.
The Pale Horseman: B
No comments:
Post a Comment