Ashes of Rebellion by Michael Jecks
Ashes of Rebellion by Michael Jecks
Beware the red and blue hoods - the signs of revolution
1358, Northern France. In a land ravaged by war, King John II is the prisoner of the King of England. His son, the teenaged Dauphin, must battle to impose control over the fractured kingdom. But King Charles of Navarre wants to wrestle power for himself. He leads Parisians and the Jacquerie to open rebellion, upending the social order, pitting noble against commoner in a brutal struggle for power.
A free company of English men and boys, led by John Hawkwood, previously of Sir John de Sully’s Vintaine, must navigate the treacherous landscape with only their wits, combat skills and each other to rely on.
From the smouldering ruins of small French villages, to the blood-soaked battlefields, their journey is fraught with danger, dogged by a mysterious enemy intent on revenge. As they face the harsh realities of medieval warfare, their bonds are tested, and their fates intertwined with the destiny of a nation.
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| Ashes of Rebellion by Michael Jecks |
My review
In Ashes of Rebellion, we follow the same troop or vintaine of Englishmen that we met in the first book in this series, Fields of Glory, set in 1346. I’ve somehow missed books two and three, Blood on the Sand and Blood of the Innocent, but it didn’t take me long to get the lie of the land and remember the names of significant characters.
Following the Battle of Crécy in 1346, the English marched on to the Battle of Poitiers in 1356 and this book picks up their journey from there, feeding my appetite for our shared history along the way. When we are out and about exploring France by bike, one of my favourite things to do is to detour via a medieval town and imagine the lives of those who wandered the same narrow, cobbled streets, hundreds of years ago. This book fuelled my imagination, escorting me back through the centuries, bringing to life the hardships and dangers that lay around every narrow street corner and every shadowy forest path.
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| Ashes of Rebellion by Michael Jecks |
Well-written historical fiction, like this novel, makes events so much easier to visualise than from a school textbook, especially as the noises, smells, and even their superstitions and fears were all vividly described.
In order to fill in the gaps of my knowledge, I will go back and read books two and three, and if you enjoy gritty historical fiction, I’d recommend adding this series to your reading list too.
Purchase links
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Ebook – all digital retailers
Author Bio
Michael Jecks is the author of over 50 novels inspired by history and legend. He is the founder of Medieval Murderers, and has served on the committees of the Historical Writers’ Association, the CWA and he Detection Club. He was International Guest of Honour at the Bloody Words festival in Toronto, and Grand Master of the first parade in the New Orleans Mardi Gras.
Social Media Links
You can read my review of Fields of Glory by Michael Jecks here.
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| Ashes of Rebellion by Michael Jecks |
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