DEATH OF KINGS by Bernard Cornwell, 2011.
The year is 899 AD, King Alfred the Great of Wessex is dying, and the kingdom is in turmoil. His lifelong desire to see a unified country is in danger of falling apart, unless his son and successor, Edward, can provide the leadership, cunning and know-how to pull the various tribes together and defeat their common enemies. But Edward, attacked from all sides by Saxon claimants to the throne, as well as Danish invaders, needs help with this daunting task. It falls to the novel's hero, Lord Uhtred, a Saxon raised by Vikings and who is liked and trusted by King Alfred, to participate in the power struggle upon Alfred's death. He had sworn oaths to Alfred but not to Edward to create a united "Anglcynn," so he must decide whether to assist Edward, or to follow his own path to reclaim his family's lands lost years earlier in Northumbria. It is a decision that will change Uhtred's life--and the history of England.
   Cornwell knows how to tell a story, keep it moving at a fast clip, and provide plenty of excitement and adventure. He creates well defined characters and situations, his descriptions are colorful, and his battle scenes are vivid. Uhtred, the main protagonist, he is a powerful warrior, with deeply conflicting loyalties and inner struggles that make him very human. Cornwell has created a multifaceted figure adept at the art of war and other manly exploits, yet who can also express a depth of feeling for several of the other characters, notably the spy Ludda, his sometime mistress Aethelflaed, and for his monarch, King Alfred. I found Uhtred a strong, likeable hero, decisive, determined, and loyal to his beliefs and vows.
   This novel is part of a series called "The Saxon Tales," but I have not read any of the previous books and found this fine to read on its own. I have to admit, though, that perhaps I would not have been so confused by characters' names or needed to continually use the place-name glossary if I had read the earlier stories. Nevertheless, I found this a rousing, stirring tale, complete with a strong and charismatic hero, and with plenty of history, adventure, brutality, and violence to keep me entertained throughout.

THE TUDOR SECRET by C.W. Gortner, 2011.
It's the summer of 1553, and young King Edward VI lies seriously ill in London. Brendan Prescott, an orphan without a past raised by the Dudley family, is sent to serve Lord Robert Dudley at court, and is immediately plunged into a world of politics, danger, and deceit. Within no time at all, he is forced to work as a double agent for William Cecil, a master manipulator whose main concern, along with the dark visaged Walsingham, is for Elizabeth Tudor's welfare. Plenty of villainous nobles, a headstrong lady in waiting, a helpful stableboy, ruthless royals, and enough dark plots and secrets for several books, keep the story moving at breakneck speed. Brendan becomes enmeshed in the attempt to disinherit the Lady Mary and the Lady Elizabeth and place Lady Jane Grey on the English throne, and during his involvement discovers the answers to some questions he has concerning his own troubled past. Gortner weaves his various threads of the plot together very well and provides enough background and details of Tudor England to add depth and interest. He's good with his characters, although at times his villains seem almost too villainous to be credible, but the whole thing is a fun, fast moving adventure with lots of twists and turns and suspense and violence and a bit of romance for good measure thrown into the mix. The end result for this reader: good writing, interesting characters, an appealing hero, and a strong story that kept me wanting to turn the next page. I also appreciated the author's afterword and bibliography. A very enjoyable outing overall; I liked the character of Brendan and hope that as this is the beginning of a series (Elizabeth I Spymaster Chronicles) that he will have many more adventures. If you enjoyed the Ursula Blanchard series by Fiona Buckley or Karen Harper's Elizabeth I mysteries, this novel should appeal.