REVIEWS OF THE FIRST TWO BOOKS IN THE SERIES A good read for lovers of the Dark Ages period; well-paced, informative and placed in a time before the Vikings. The book is very well researched and I enjoyed it. Kept me turning the pages. I did not know anything about Oswald prior to reading this highly recommended book BOOK DESCRIPTION When his elder brother is killed Oswiu rides deep into enemy territory to recover King Oswald’s body. The Kingdom of Northumbria is split into two and Oswiu vows to reunite it. However, he is forced to concentrate on securing his northern border first. Once he becomes overlord of the North he fends off an invasion by Penda, the powerful pagan King of Mercia, before he resorts to underhand tactics to kill his cousin and unite Northumbria once more. He survives rebellion by the Picts and another invasion by the Mercians, only to be betrayed by his nephew who he raised up to be King of Deira. Matters come to a head at the Battle of the Winwaed where his army is heavily outnumbered. He knows that he must win or see Northumbria torn apart once more.