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| About the Books |
In seventh-century England, a vicious attack sets in motion a war of attrition which will last for generations. Four kings, connected by blood and marriage, vie for the mantle of overlord. Three affect to rule with divine assistance. The fourth, whose cousin and sister have been mistreated and whose friend has been slaughtered, watches, and waits.
He is a pagan, he is a Mercian, and his name is Penda. By his side is a woman determined to escape her brutal past. She aids his struggle against his treacherous brother and their alliance founds a dynasty with the potential to end injustice and suppression, if only they can continue to stand together… A story that spans generations, and travels from Sutton Hoo to the Holy Island of Lindisfarne and back to the buried treasure of Staffordshire, this is the first of a two-volume series of the tales of the Iclingas, the family who ruled Mercia, fighting to avenge their kin and to keep their people free.
Praise for Cometh the Hour:
“A wonderfully written historical fiction set in 600s England, sweeping through the lives of Anglo-Saxon kings and their loved ones in a time of war and fractured families. An intricately woven and impeccably researched narration of kings with very human struggles in Anglo-Saxon England.”
“Penda was the biggest draw in the book for me, a lot focuses around him and rightly so, but what I really enjoyed was insights into the man I’ve read about before. I know we don’t know truly what went through people’s heads but we do have a lot of evidence to events that happened and I like how Annie manages to put fact and fiction together in a way that brings life to a historical individual. What the author gets spot on for me is the flow of the story, effortlessly mixing detailed descriptions of places and people but at the same time never slowing down the pace of the tale.”
The Sins of the Father
AD658: The sons of Penda of Mercia have come of age. Ethelred, the youngest, recalls little of past wars while Wulf is determined to emulate their father, whose quest to avenge his betrayed kinswomen drew him to battle three successive Northumbrian kings.
Ecgfrith of Northumbria is more hostile towards the Mercians than his father was. His sister Ositha, thwarted in her marriage plans, seeks to make her mark in other ways, but can she, when called upon, do her brother’s murderous bidding?
Ethelred finds love with a woman who is not involved in the feud, but fate intervenes. Wulf’s actions against Northumbria mean Ethelred must choose duty over love, until he, like his father before him, has cause to avenge the women closest to him. Battle must once more be joined, but the price of victory will be high.
Can Ethelred stay true to his father’s values, end the feud, keep Mercia free, and find the path back to love?
This is the second of the two-book series, Tale of the Iclingas, but can be read as a stand-alone.
Praise for The Sins of the Father:
“The Sins of the Father is an engrossing read from start to finish and the fabulous cast of characters bring the story to life. There are too many to list and describe here, but Ethelred, in particular, is an unforgettable character and it is wonderful to see him grow from strength to strength.”
“This follows the life of Ethelred, Penda’s youngest son and is probably best read in sequence, though it could stand alone. Though there is adventure and struggle aplenty, the aspect of the story that came over to me most powerfully was the portrayal of Ethelred as a sensitive, vulnerable and thoughtful man, who accepts kingship more as a duty than an ambition. Annie Whitehead’s deep knowledge of this period in history shines through. An essential read for anyone who likes historical fiction, especially books which throw light onto the dark ages.”
Author Bio
Annie Whitehead is a prize-winning writer, historian, and Fellow of the Royal Historical Society, and has written four award-winning novels set in ‘Anglo-Saxon’ Mercia. She has contributed to fiction and nonfiction anthologies and written for various magazines. She has twice been a prize winner in the Mail on Sunday Novel Writing Competition, and won First Prize in the 2012 New Writer Magazine's Prose and Poetry Competition.
She has been a finalist in the Tom Howard Prize for nonfiction and was shortlisted for the Exeter Story Prize and Trisha Ashley Award 2021. She was the winner of the inaugural Historical Writers’ Association (HWA)/Dorothy Dunnett Prize 2017 and was subsequently a judge for that same competition. She has also been a judge for the HNS (Historical Novel Society) Short Story Competition, and is a 2024 judge for the HWA Crown Nonfiction Award. Her nonfiction books are Mercia: The Rise and Fall of a Kingdom (a #1 Amazon Best-seller, published by Amberley books) and Women of Power in Anglo-Saxon England (Pen & Sword Books). In 2023 she contributed to a new history of English monarchs, published by Hodder & Stoughton, and in February 2025 Amberley Books will publish Murder in Anglo-Saxon England.
Website
https://anniewhiteheadauthor.co.uk/
Amazon Author Page
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The Jan Christopher Cosy Mysteries set in the 1970s |
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| The story of the events that led to The Battle of Hastings in 1066 Harold the King (UK edition) I Am The Chosen King (US edition) 1066 Turned Upside Down an anthology of 'What If'' tales |
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THE PENDRAGON's BANNER TRILOGY |
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| US editions |
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Historical Stories of Exile by 13 popular authors Cryssa Bazos, Anna Belfrage, Elizabeth Chadwick, Cathie Dunn, J.G. Harlond, Helen Hollick, Loretta Livingstone, Amy Maroney Alison Morton, Charlene Newcomb, Elizabeth St.John, Marian L Thorpe, Annie Whitehead. With an introduction by Deborah Swift |
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Great books! Fantastic, poetic prose coupled with hard-core historical research. What more does one need?
ReplyDeleteThanks Anna. Dare I admit a secret? I'm really envious of Annie as she's such a marvelous writer!
DeleteAgree!
DeleteThanks so much for hosting me today Helen!
ReplyDeleteMy pleasure!
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