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King of the Wood John Maddox Roberts 9780812552065 Books

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King of the Wood John Maddox Roberts 9780812552065 Books

King of the Wood is a story about a warrior who is banned from his tribe of Norseman living in America for killing his half brother. He begins an arduous journey across the land, first meeting and becoming linked to a witch/priestess then eventually escaping from her and heading south. Along the way he has many high adventures including getting lost at sea, becoming part of the Aztec empire, journeying north from there where he becomes embroiled in Monguls and ends up conquering the aztecs, and stopping their horrendous ritual slaughters. The book is very interesting, though I was not a fan of the ending it was still a great read. I highly recommend it, though there are points of this book that become a bit too graphic in the storytelling. As much as I enjoyed this book, I enjoyed John Maddoc Roberts 'Conan' books a good deal more. But this should be read if you are a fan of this type of story, it is a very good book, enjoy,.


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King of the Wood John Maddox Roberts 9780812552065 Books Reviews

Imagine an alternative history

The Nordic people have colonized North America.

For approximately four hundred years settlers have sailed the Atlantic Ocean in large numbers, cultivating the lands east of the Appalachian Mountains. Where Britain would have thirteen colonies, the Northmen have built two kingdoms A Christian nation in the north, a pagan kingdom in the south. There is also an Islamic colony in what would have become Florida, where the Norse people find profitable commerce in trade.

Here is the tale of Hring, a young warrior, sentenced to outlaw status for killing a man in a duel. The Althing has exiled him outside their borders for several years, Hring goes south to seek better fortune in the pagan kingdom. He has no idea what enormous continent-spanning adventures he is about to embark upon. His epic deeds and travels will one day result in him taking his place on the throne of a united Nordic nation...

One of many excellent tales by Mr. Roberts, I wish he had written a whole series on the adventures of Hring.
this is what good writing is all about the author has clearly delved into very extensive research before writing. his love of knowledge shines through. words are chosen with great precision. as for the plot itself, it's the trek of a young man, exiled from his home, from north to south america and back. along the way he would meet a powerful witch who would use him in her plots, and try to save his homeland from invaders. i won't spoil it for you. to the author's credit, he is aware that the various societies and cultures featured in his story are complex, with different moral preceptions from our own. no one culture is described as superior or inferior compared to others. this is not a case of "norse supremacy" or "american native supremacy". in conclusion, the author has written some conan pastiches, which are considered to be well-written by experts. it's possible that this novel is a more realistic version of howard's story "the marchers of valhalla", which it resembles to some extent. anyhow, it's highly recommended.
King of the Wood is a quick, fast-paced alternate history story by John Maddox Roberts. To some people it will read very much like a historical fiction novel. Others may see it more as a fantasy novel with “historically” places and people used to make it more easily accessible. Some will label it a “What If” tale, where the focus is “What if the Vikings had fought the Aztecs?” or such as that. No matter how you view it, King of the Wood does one thing extremely well It entertains.

Our point-of-view character throughout the narrative is Hring Kristjanson, son of the Thane of Long Isle. This young man having been banished from the Kingdom of Treeland and excommunicated from the Christian faith for killing his half-brother. The story which unfolds showing his epic travels across an alternate North America in 1485, as he is exposed to numerous cultures, has high adventures, becomes embroiled in epic wars, and ultimately ends his life back where his journey began so many years before.

As an alternate history buff, the thing I loved the most about this story was the world John Maddox Roberts creates. Basically, in 1485, the eastern coast of the United States has been colonized by Vikings, Saxons, and other Europeans; their union creating a new country which is split into the northern Kingdom of Treeland (Christian) and the southern Kingdom of Thorsheim (pagan). South of this coastal realm is a Muslim Kingdom in Florida and stretching from the American Plains into Central America is a powerful Aztec Empire, which is even more vibrant and bloodthirsty than the real life one. All of these places coming to life as our hero travels through them; Maddox’s quick, compact style perfect for giving readers a big picture of this world, setting the tone, then diving into the action without ever bogging down into too much detail.

But what about the characters and plot? I hear some of you asking.

Overall, King of the Wood is a straight-forward but very compelling tale, which is very much in the mold of sword and sorcery (though there really isn’t any magic here). Hring’s penchant for stumbling from one horrible yet epic situation to another very reminiscent of Conan the Barbarian’s adventures among strange cultures. And like Robert E. Howard’s best known works, Mr. Roberts shifts quickly from event to event; some character growth shown, but the focus more on the journey itself. Many memorable characters passing into and out of our heroes life. They might not be the most well-developed people, but they capture the spirit of the moment, burst to life quickly then burn brightly until the tale moves along. Which is actually very fitting, because Hring’s tale is much like an autobiography where the writer is hitting upon the major events of his life, telling a life story not moment by moment but important event to important event, and so it is only natural that many people pass into his orbit but do not remain ever circling him.

Intriguing, concise, and memorable, King of the Wood is a fine action-adventure set in a alternate North America. Perhaps John Maddox Roberts could have expanded this tale to a hefty 500 or 600 hundred pages or made it into a trilogy so that he could delve into the cultures, societies, and characters to a greater degree, but he chose to streamline the tale of Hring down into a very readable 256 pages. Nothing wrong with that, because, even without all those details, this is still a fine tale.
Absolutely involving. The best book of its kind because there is no other book like it. Mixing history with great story telling, Mr. Roberts once again shows his tremendous ability to engage the reader in a story. You will not put it down.
Nice alternative history read.
King of the Wood is a story about a warrior who is banned from his tribe of Norseman living in America for killing his half brother. He begins an arduous journey across the land, first meeting and becoming linked to a witch/priestess then eventually escaping from her and heading south. Along the way he has many high adventures including getting lost at sea, becoming part of the Aztec empire, journeying north from there where he becomes embroiled in Monguls and ends up conquering the aztecs, and stopping their horrendous ritual slaughters. The book is very interesting, though I was not a fan of the ending it was still a great read. I highly recommend it, though there are points of this book that become a bit too graphic in the storytelling. As much as I enjoyed this book, I enjoyed John Maddoc Roberts 'Conan' books a good deal more. But this should be read if you are a fan of this type of story, it is a very good book, enjoy,.