The last Norse king of Caithness, Hrolf Earthstar and his 12 champions are woken from a centuries-long sleep when an archaeologist finds their grave. He decides to carry on his ancient war against the Sourcerer-King, and must face such perils as BBC film crews and the Bakerloo line along the way.
Who's Afraid of Beowulf?
and over 1.5 million other books are available for Amazon Kindle . Learn more
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. Learn more. |
Book Description
Product details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
More About the Author
Discover books, learn about writers, and more.
Product Description
About the Author
Tom Holt's first book was published when he was just thirteen and, to his horror, he was hailed as an infant prodigy. While studying at Oxford however he discovered Bar Billiards and turned from poetry to comic fiction.
--This text refers to the
Perfect Paperback
edition.
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
More along the straightforward lines of Flying Dutch than his weirder offerings, this is classic comic fantasy in which it transpires that London is the modern successor to Geirrodsgarth, lair of the Sorcerer King, and in which awakened Vikings must cope with the modern world. Even funnier if you know the sagas - I laughed at Starkad Storvirksson being so sweet and dopy and just-a-big-lamb, knowing what a vicious brute he is in, say, Heidrek's Saga or Saxo's history; but Norse scholarship is not required....
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By L O'connor
Format:Mass Market Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Hildy Frericksen is a young American archaeologist with a passion for Vikings. While working on a dig in Caithness, she uncovers a Viking longboat burial and is very surprised when the passengers turn out to be not dead but merely sleeping. When they awake, the leader turns out to be Hrolf, last King of Caithness, reawakened to fight the evil sorcerer-king who wants to rule the world. Hildy has to help the Vikings in their quest to hunt down the sorcerer-king and defeat him, helping them to cope with the modern world along the way. There are many amusing characters among the Vikings, especially Starkad the Berserker (strong but stupid) and Brynjolf the Shape-Changer. The Vikings have to cope with a number of modern complications in their quest, from the SAS to the London Underground, but they take everything in their stride. There are also two cthonic spirits, Prexz and Zxerp, who are addicted to playing Goblin's Teeth, live off electricity and play havoc with the National Grid. This is a very funny fantasy, by the end of the story you will be as enchanted with the Vikings as Hildy was.In my opinion, Tom Holt's best book by far.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
If you enjoy books by authors such as Terry Pratchet and Robert Rankin then this is for you. Laugh all the way through as olde worlde characters battle with the complexities of the modern world.They come face to face with deadly perils such as the terrifying BBC (du du dah!). Feel sorry for the cast as they try to make their way through the mystic maze of the Bakerloo line (shudder).And Oh, I forgot to mention, and they're also trying to save the world from the evil mastermind, theSourcer-King.
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
›
Go to Amazon.com to see all 8 reviews
4.6 out of 5 stars
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Your starter for ten.
This was the first Tom Holt book I read and has cost me a lot of money since in keeping up with his output! He has a very individual style and is bizarrely logical in his fantasy. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Zoe B
5.0 out of 5 stars
Quite simply his best
I have read most of the books written by Tom Holt and I would say this is his best. Like all his books you have to have an ability to willingly suspend disbelief - but it's well... Read more
Published 6 months ago by Richard H
5.0 out of 5 stars
This book
Is good reading. I loved it and moved me to buy other Tom Holt creations. I will not bore you with parallels and general wordy stuff as I have no perception or ability to do so. Read more
Published 12 months ago by bellowsmain
3.0 out of 5 stars
Not actually that funny
I didn't find this book all that funny. It has mildy amusing bits in it but not a patch on Terry Pratchett or Douglas Adams. Read more
Published 13 months ago by Ms. D. K. A. Mccarthy
5.0 out of 5 stars
The best of all Tom Holt's books.
I have read a lot of Tom Holt but this is still to me the best.It is really very funny, but do not try to read it or anything by Tom Holt unless you can suspend disbelief and just... Read more
Published on 5 April 2010 by The humble reader
5.0 out of 5 stars
Anglo-Saxon was never like this...
Tom Holt's humorous fantasies tend to have the same basic framework, involving a feisty present-day female who somehow gets involved with historical or mythical characters come to... Read more
Published on 24 Jan 2008 by Iain S. Palin
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
