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| Azincourt | 
 enlarge | Author: Bernard Cornwell
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Category: Book
List Price: £18.99
Buy New: £8.54
You Save: £10.45 (55%)
New (23) from £7.45
Avg. Customer Rating:  21 reviews
Sales Rank: 23
Media: Hardcover
Pages: 464
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.5
Dimensions (in): 9.1 x 5.9 x 1.7
ISBN: 0007271212
EAN: 9780007271214
ASIN: 0007271212
Publication Date: October 1, 2008
Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours
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| Customer Reviews: Read 16 more reviews...
 Solid, but lacks something November 17, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
Or Agincourt as it was when I was at school!
The Battle of Agincourt was a King Henry V led English victory against a larger French army during the Hundred Years' War (1415). In addition to a great deal of luck (ground conditions, poor French tactics) this was a battle where the power of the English archer (okay, a few Welsh as well) reigned supreme.
In typical Cornwall style he gives us a character (Nicholas Hook and English archer) against which to tell the tale and politics of the events leading up to, and the battle itself.
Cornwall's skill is in the blend of character, action and history. The Sharpe novels are obviously the perfect mix, and perhaps the blend was wrong with the Starbuck novels set in the US Civil War. In this novel it `almost' works but not quite. Hook is a talented fighter who hears voices (a Saint giving him advice) but his character felt lacking. On the march to Azincourt he suffers a personal tragedy, yet seems over it by morning!
The historical elements are, as always, excellent but the rest of this novel lacks that perfect blend that we have come to expect.
Disapointment November 14, 2008
As a big fan of Bernard Cornwell I was disapointed with this latest work. The characters were dusted off versions from his 'Grail' series, the plotline unimaginative and unconvincing. To make it work It was necessary for the hero to start hearing the voices of saints, who would tell him what to do - hardly the convincing narrative we're used to. The only saving grace was the descriptions of the siege of Harfleur and the Battle of Agincourt itself. Well researched and excitingly told. Did Mr Cornewell succumb to the siren song of the Christmas Market and rush this one out? It certainly feels like it.
 not yet available in Nice November 12, 2008
1 out of 5 found this review helpful
WHY is the book called AZINCOURT? The famous battle was fought at AGINCOURT but the French, having lost the battle, changed the name of the village to AZINCOURT. The U.S. edition of this book reverts to the original name. One-up to the Yanks!
Hmmmmmm November 7, 2008
I really expected more from Cornwell. This was my first read of his stuff and he came highly recommended by my brother, who just doesn't read but was transfixed by some other books from the great BC.
However, I found that the narrative centred on a few pretty well known facts, such as the French men-at-arms getting heavily bogged down in the mud, and the privations of the English army compared with those of the French. There was much hacking and slashing, obviously, but I thought it was all written with an air of casual detachment that did nothing to make me understand what it must have been like to have been in the midst of such a harrowing scene. The fear that must have been in these souls' bellies at the prospect of fighting against such withering odds must have been palpable, yet we are not treated to this terrifying suspense beyond flutters of doubt followed by the odd line rolled out from Shakespeare ('wish not one more man...' etc etc). Also the use of Hook as a framing device starts well but then blunders away with his relationship with Melisande. She is unnecessary, unbelievable, and the silly sub-plots surrounding her involvement add nothing to the main storyline, the atmosphere, or the reader's enjoyment.
 Hell of a read! November 5, 2008
BC has produced his usual enthralling and gripping read! Full of blood and guts of the battlefield, it transports you there. It took me five days to read it and I'm a very busy person.
Excellent stuff!
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