A fourth installment in a saga of early England that includes Lords of the North finds Alfred of Wessex surviving the Danish invasion, only to find the Saxons targeted by Vikings, a conflict during which he harnesses the abilities of the formidable warrior Uhtred. Reprint. 100,000 first printing. The fourth installment of Bernard Cornwell's New York Times bestselling series chronicling the epic saga of the making of England, "like Game of Thrones, but real" (The Observer, London)--the basis for The Last Kingdom, the hit television series. The year is 885, and England is at peace, divided between the Danish kingdom to the north and the Saxon kingdom of Wessex in the south. Warrior by instinct and Viking by nature, Uhtred, the dispossessed son of a Northumbrian lord, has land, a wife and children--and a duty to King Alfred to hold the frontier on the Thames. But a dead man has risen, and new Vikings have invaded the decayed Roman city of London with dreams of conquering Wessex... with Uhtred's help. Suddenly forced to weigh his oath to the king against the dangerous turning tide of shifting allegiances and deadly power struggles, Uhtred--Alfred's sharpest sword--must now make the choice that will determine England's future.