More Sharpe! This is a big series (21 Novels not counting 2 extra short stories) and I seem to be working my way through it. The trouble will be when I can’t remember which books I’ve read when I see them in the second hand book shop. I guess I’ll have to keep a list on my PDA.

Anyway, the story continues. In Sharpe’s Enemy Sharpe finally defeats his original enemy from the first books. Sergeant Hakeswill has deserted and joined a band of renegades formed from all opposing sides (the historical note actually says there really was a band of deserters at the time!). The deserters capture a village and the wife of a British nobleman and Sharpe is sent to rescue her. That would be far to simple a task for Sharpe so of course it gets a little more complicated. He makes the first successful battle use of rockets in this book and gives Napoleon’s forces a surprise or two.

In Sharpe’s Sword he begins by capturing a French officer who says he is a Captain but is really a much feared General. He escapes and Sharpe’s duty is to capture him once more. There are a few twists and turns, some clever camouflage, yet more romance and yet more misery. I have to wonder what rank Sharpe ends up as – I seem a good number of books away from Waterloo and I’m not sure how many ranks are left! I’ll let you know when I get there.

I enjoyed Uhtred in Bernard Cornwell’s Saxon Series, go forwards several hundred years and join Thomas of Hookton on his equally enjoyable adventures.

Thomas is an English Archer who’s father was a village priest. The story begins with the death of his father and the destruction of Thomas’s home village by European raiders and follows his journey first for vengeance but equally to discover the truth about his family’s origins. He discovers his family was said to be the keepers of the Holy Grail and circumstances conspire to make him search for it. There are plenty of twists along the way, a dash or two of romance, death (well, he is an archer in the middle of a war) and valour.

Uhtred from the Saxon series was a sometimes like-able, oftentimes detestably violent person. Thomas is much more like able as a character. Perhaps even more pleasant that Richard Sharpe in the Sharpe series. He is no less realistic though and I can’t help but look out for the third book in the series “Heretic” – Does Thomas find his Grail?

As I read more of Bernard Cornwell’s books I am impressed by the historical settings. The end of each book puts in place some divisions between fact and fiction making reading his books a little bit of education as well as a pleasure.