The ninth installment of Bernard Cornwell's bestselling series chronicling the epic saga of the making of England, "like Game of Thrones, but real" ( The Observer , London)--the basis for The Last Kingdom , the hit BBC America television series. A fragile peace reigns in Wessex, Mercia and East Anglia. King Alfred's son Edward and formidable daughter, Aethelflaed, rule the kingdoms. But all around the restless Northmen, eyeing the rich lands and wealthy...