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| About the Books |
Rebel Sword
When Henry I dies in 1135, his nephew, Stephen seizes the throne. Most of the barons support him, despite the solemn oaths they swore to Henry’s only legitimate heir, the Empress Matilda. It seems her cause is lost until her half-brother, the powerful Robert, Earl of Gloucester, falls out with King Stephen and decides to support Matilda.
While Robert plots treason, his bastard son, Thomas, sulks in a Bristol tavern. Though born of a Saxon mother, the youth is raised in his father’s Norman household, where his fierce pride and skill with a blade often lead him into conflict. After a violent brawl, he is exiled to his father’s estates in Normandy, though his punishment does not satisfy some of his opponents.
As Thomas rides south, in the company of his curmudgeonly Saxon uncle, the outlook seems bleak until a chance encounter with a troubled young heiress. But, since she is bound for a nunnery and he is condemned to exile, what possible future could they have together?
Only a fool would challenge barons, church and king for the sake of one young lady. Only a fool… or a determined, half-Saxon bastard who knows that his father is about to light the fire of rebellion across the kingdom.
“The sharp end of conflict, loyalty, passion and sacrifice finely balanced on the point of a Rebel Sword.” David Gilman
"Gritty, vivid and fast-moving, Rebel Sword takes us on a journey of treachery, rebellion and desperate courage, through the mud and blood of the Anarchy." Ian Ross
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| Read An Excerpt |
Our hero, Thomas FitzRobert, son of Robert Fitzroy, Earl of Gloucester, faces overwhelming odds…
Thomas took little satisfaction from the kill for, casting his eyes about him, he found not one of his own men still standing. Sir Roger, having snapped off the arrow protruding from his leg, now railed at his remaining men at arms to surround Thomas.
When he bent down to retrieve his discarded seax, Thomas was seething with guilt-fuelled rage. So that, by the time a cluster of Folcard’s comrades came at him baying for blood, every sinew in Thomas’s body seemed afire.
Blood, they crave, thought Thomas? So, he vowed silently, blood they would have. Without waiting for his enemies to close in upon him, he surged forward to carve a savage swathe into their midst. With raging hands, ever more bloodied, he wielded sword and seax like the scythes of the dreaded reaper. Seeing not a man but a demon facing them, Sir Roger’s men at arms scattered before him, but few escaped his flesh-seeking steel.
About the Author
Derek lives in Dorset but was born in Hampshire and spent his teenage years in Auckland, New Zealand, where he still has strong family ties. After teaching for many years in a Berkshire secondary school, he decided to concentrate on his writing.
Interested in a wide range of historical themes, Derek began his writing career with the late medieval period. He writes character-driven, action-packed fiction which is rooted in accurate history. His debut historical novel, Feud, is the first of a series of eight books and one novella entitled The Wars of the Roses which follows the fortunes of the fictional Elder family.
Derek has also written the Amazon bestselling trilogy, The Last of The Romans, which focuses on the real fifth century Romano-British character of Ambrosius Aurelianus. His latest book is Rebel Sword which is set during the Anarchy in twelfth century England.
Also out now is a modern thriller, Eyes Like Blades, which marks a change of genre for Derek and, later this year, Pen and Sword will publish his first non-fiction book: A Guide to the Wars of the Roses.
Derek has also written and produced over 40 podcasts on the Wars of the Roses. With historian, Sharon Bennett Connolly, he now co-hosts the podcast series, A Slice of Medieval, which is a fusion of history and historical fiction featuring popular historical novelists and medieval historians.
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