Another Bernard Cornwell series down! This trilogy, while not as good (in my opinion) as his Arthur trilogy, was absolutely worth reading if you enjoy European historical fiction and/or military historical fiction.
The series, which starts with The Archer's Tale, follows our hero (or anti-hero?) Thomas of Hookton from a small village where he is a priest's bastard son, to a military career as an English archer and leader of men. It continues with Vagabond and wraps up with Heretic. (A fourth book, 1356, is sometimes listed as a fourth book in the series, but from what I can tell is technically a stand alone that features Thomas, but is a separate series of events and does not need to be read as part of the Grail trilogy.)The trilogy follows historic events and includes life battles, but the primary focus is definitely on the characters, not the bigger events. However, the English longbow and the advantage it gave to English armies is also a major focus; almost like a character in itself.
Cornwell goes into great depth (although not enough to get boring, at least for me!) on the construction and use of the bow, and particularly why it was so lethal and gave such advantage to the warriors that used it. I wasn't really aware of this (military history isn't a particular passion of mine), so I found this really fascinating.
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From an illuminated manuscript of
Jean Froissart's Chronicles
dating from the 15th century,
depicting the Battle of Crécy between the
English and French in the Hundred Years' War, 1346
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While there is plenty of military action mixed in, the main plot of the story is (allegedly) Thomas's search for the Holy Grail, which his father, a mad priest, allegedly possessed. I think there could have been more focus on the Grail and its lore, and on the actual search for it; the first two books were supposedly about his Grail search but focused primarily on his travels and the battles he was involved in.
However, as mentioned before, some of that history is really interesting. While the book isn't focused on the major historical events going on around Thomas and his companions, it is focused on the details of everyday life for someone like Thomas - an archer in the English army (most of the time). Generally in the historical fiction I have read, the focus is on the big picture events more than those gritty details. Incidentally, this seems to be something Cornwell excels at, as he does it really well in his Arthur trilogy as well. You really feel the detail of the battles and the experiences of the characters, right down to the lice.
Despite all this, I did feel the first two dragged a bit. Cornwell keeps teasing this great hunt for the Grail... that doesn't come until the third book, for the most part. Then, I felt the ending was a bit pat and predictable. In the end, the Grail quest felt almost as if it was an excuse to write about the time period, rather than the real focus of the story.
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| The
Attainment: The Vision of the Holy Grail to Sir Galahad, Sir Bors, and Sir
Perceval Sir Edward Burne-Jones, overall design and figures; William Morris, overall design and execution; John Henry Dearle, flowers and decorative details. |
However, it was an eminently enjoyable read and I suggest for any fan of Cornwell, this period in history, or military history. I also suggest for the character development; we see Thomas grow from a very green and naive young man to a leader of men, learning the ways of the world and making better choices (including in his romantic life) over the course of the trilogy. This is another thing Cornwell does well; his characters develop over time and are nice and "gray" - even his heroes are not angels.
Overall, this an excellent look into the time period and the military technology of the time, as well as a good character study of an English archer of this era.
Stay tuned for reviews of:
- City of Lies
- The Romanovs
- The Sultan's Harem
- The Conqueror Series (series review)
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