1066 What Fates Impose

LoveReading Says

A page-turning, punch-packing, personality-rich evocation of the political landscape and rivalries that gave rise to the Battle of Hastings. Illuminating in its fresh coverage of familiar pivotal past events, G K Holloway’s 1066: What Fates Impose is a fine example of how history can be rendered heart-poundingly real and relevant by storytellers who are passionate about their subject, and have a flair for understanding motivations of both the political and psychological variety.

Here Holloway begins his well-woven, energetically-conjured story in 1045 on the occasion of King Edward’s wedding day: “At last England would have a Queen…and with God’s grace she would produce an heir to the Crown”. But, as destiny plays out, Edward has no clear successor.

Amidst erupting struggles between a number of claimants, England is threatened by border raids and plots from outside that escalate to a tinderbox of turmoil, setting the fateful stage for Harold’s Godwinson’s ultimate downfall, and the end of Anglo-Saxon rule. Though steeped in detail of time and place, the story never feels bogged down in said detail.

Rather, thanks to a style that straddles literary lyricism and epic adventure fiction, 1066: What Fates Impose soars with the thrills of its subjects’ personal struggles, desires and motivations, adding up to a rip-roaring read that’s likely to entertain and enlighten even those who are very well-versed in the Norman Conquest.

Joanne Owen, A LoveReading Ambassador

About 1066 What Fates Impose

England is in crisis. King Edward has no heir and promises never to produce one. There are no obvious successors available to replace him, but quite a few claimants are eager to take the crown.

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