This group of men sleep on the ground, wear mostly leather clothes, and depend on the longbow, sword, ax and knife when fighting. He gets details wrong, like having his characters measuring time in seconds before the hour has become a consistent length, and he doesn't know how to address a fourteenth century king. This I found far more realistic than other novels where characters often cut down multiple foes without injury. We also have young Romford who winds up in the company of the black prince for the novels final sections. Rape is heavily implied too by the author without gratuitously dwelling on this dark aspect of medieval conquest.

In that time he had never known Millstone use an intemperate word; nor had he ever seen him take a backward step - an attitude that scared Loveday sometimes. The ordinary warriors and their ‘superiors’, the knights and lords, are all painted as trained killers. Loveday and Scotsman seemed to have echoes of 2 of Bernard Cornwell's characters, but this is very poor compred to the Sharpe books. Yep, England wanted what France had either rightfully taken, or illegally seized, all depending on your POV. I enjoyed seeing the story through the eyes of the Essex Dogs and all the side characters, discovering their backgrounds and their own individualities.Rooted in historical accuracy and told through an unforgettable cast, Essex Dogs delivers the stark reality of medieval war on the ground - and shines a light on the fighters and ordinary people caught in the storm. We see it especially in the Dogs' dealings with the noblemen who lead them, particularly people like Warwick and Northampton. You can change your choices at any time by visiting Cookie preferences, as described in the Cookie notice.

The impact half winded Loveday, but he heard Pismire shouting from the bow, screaming at the Dogs to get out and drag the boat up the beach.Rooted in historical accuracy and told through an unforgettable cast, Essex Dogs delivers the stark reality of medieval war in the round - and shines light on the fighters and ordinary people caught in the storm. Similarly, the plot seemed to have little drive, and I do wonder if this is a series that’s meant to be read all at once, where the plot is one that covers three books, rather than each book having its own self-contained plot. Another torrent of rocks hurled from the clifftop hit a boat being hauled out of the surf, scattering the archers dragging it. It was great to see the religiously-themed curses thrown in and they were amusing in the first few instances. Only one POV is shown and that is of Romford in a scene reminiscent of the Agincourt battle from the film ‘the king ‘.