Stolen Glory, Swamp Survival, and a Haircut

If you’re looking for a gritty historical fiction book review, you’ve come to the right place. I have been aching to go back and hang out with Uhtred of Bebbanburg for a few months now, and I finally squeezed The Pale Horseman into my reading schedule.

The Pale Horseman is the second book in Bernard Cornwell’s Saxon Stories. A quick correction for fans of the TV adaptation: while my memory initially tricked me into thinking this covered Season 2, this book actually lines up with the second half of Season 1 of Netflix’s The Last Kingdom.

I even have a minor real-life reveal at the end of this review that proves just how much this series has taken over my life. Grab a coffee, and let’s dive in, shall we?

🚨 SPOILER WARNING: Major spoilers for The Pale Horseman ahead. 🚨

Stolen Glory and Humiliation

When we left off in book one (The Last Kingdom), Uhtred had just done something monumental: he saved Wessex at the Battle of Cynuit and personally killed the terrifying Danish warlord Ubba. You’d think he’d get a parade, right?

Instead, Uhtred arrives to find that Odda the Younger has already reached King Alfred and claimed the glory for himself. Uhtred’s role is essentially erased. Watching Uhtred get forced to grovel in front of the King and God because of Odda’s lies had me screaming at the pages. Being a hothead, Uhtred doesn’t handle this well, and it sets off a chain reaction of terrible decisions.

Uhtred’s Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Decisions

Uhtred retreats to his wife, Mildrith, only to be reminded that her estate comes with massive Church debt. Uhtred needs silver, so he and his buddy Leofric decide to go Viking.

What follows is a delightfully chaotic stretch of the book. Uhtred sails to Cornwall, gets hired by a British ruler named Peredur, meets a shadow queen named Iseult (who he immediately falls for), and ends up teaming up with his supposed enemy, a Danish warrior named Svein of the White Horse, to rob Peredur blind.

Of course, Uhtred’s questionable decision-making catches up with him. A monk named Asser snitches to Alfred, and Uhtred is dragged into a trial by combat against Steapa, an absolute mountain of a man. Right as they are about to hack each other to pieces, fate intervenes.

The Swamp Survival Thriller

This is where The Pale Horseman transitions into an entirely new, incredibly stressful book. Guthrum launches a surprise attack, and Alfred’s carefully maintained kingdom collapses overnight.

King Alfred goes from ruling the last major Saxon kingdom to literally hiding in a swamp in Athelney. The tension in this section is incredible. It’s a bizarre reversal of power: Alfred has nothing, and Uhtred becomes one of the few warriors keeping him alive. Seeing Alfred forced to rely on a pagan he openly despises is brilliant character work by Cornwell.

The Last Kingdom: Book vs. Show Shield Walls

Eventually, the Saxon forces rally, leading to the massive Battle of Ethandun. If the Saxons lose here, Wessex falls entirely.

I have to say, the Netflix adaptation is great, but due to budget and time constraints, they had to take story shortcuts. In The Pale Horseman, the culmination of the battle scene where Uhtred cements his reputation in the brutal shield wall is infinitely more epic and satisfying on the page. You can practically hear the splintering wood and smell the mud.

However, victory comes at a devastating personal cost. Emerging from the shield wall to find both Leofric and Iseult among the dead absolutely gutted me. The battle saves Wessex, but the gap between Alfred’s vision for a unified England and Uhtred’s private ambition remains as wide as ever. Uhtred’s gaze is fixed firmly on the north and his stolen home of Bebbanburg, perfectly setting the stage for The Lords of the North.

My Real-Life Viking Reveal

I promised a reveal at the beginning, and here it is: while reading this book and thinking back on the  Netflix adaptation, I got inspired, went out and got a Viking haircut! The shaved sides, the slicked-back top, I went all in. Destiny is all!

Have you read The Pale Horseman or watched the show? Do you support my decision to get a Viking haircut? Tell me in the comments below!