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    Vagabond: A Novel
    Vagabond: A Novel
    Vagabond: A Novel
    Audiobook16 hours

    Vagabond: A Novel

    Written by Bernard Cornwell

    Narrated by Andrew Cullum

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    From New York Times bestselling author Bernard Cornwell, the sequel to The Archer's Tale—the spellbinding tale of a young man, a fearless archer, who sets out wanting to avenge his family's honor and winds up on a quest for the Holy Grail.

    In 1347, a year of conflict and unrest, Thomas of Hookton returns to England to pursue the Holy Grail. Among the flames of the Hundred Years War, a sinister enemy awaits the fabled archer and mercenary soldier: a bloodthirsty Dominican Inquisitor who also seeks Christendom's most holy relic. But neither the horrors of the battlefield nor sadistic torture at the Inquisitor's hands can turn Thomas from his sworn mission. And his thirst for vengeance will never be quenched while the villainous black rider who destroyed everything he loved still lives.

    ""Cornwell writes the best battle scenes of any writer I've read past or present.""—George R.R. Martin

     

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperAudio
    Release dateNov 25, 2014
    ISBN9780062393722
    Vagabond: A Novel
    Author

    Bernard Cornwell

    Bernard Cornwell was born in London, raised in Essex and worked for the BBC for eleven years before meeting Judy, his American wife. Denied an American work permit he wrote a novel instead and has been writing ever since. He and Judy divide their time between Cape Cod and Charleston, South Carolina.

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    Reviews for Vagabond

    4/5

    479 ratings19 reviews

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    • 3/5
      Another solid book by Cornwell. This is Cornwell's classic style of good guys who do bad things (but it doesn't bother you), fall in love with the pretty girls, and bad guys who are really bad and who are easy to hate. What prevented this book from the four stars for me was that I felt it dragged big time in the middle. Also, as this is the Grail Quest Series, I would expect a bit more of the focus to truly be on the Grail. It is talked about quite a bit, but never in a way that, for me at least, it could truly be a magical item. It is always just understood that it is a chase for something that couldn't possibly be the miracle everyone wants or hopes it to be. Anyway - will read the third and final installment in the series at some point.
    • 3/5
      I didn't like this one as much as I liked the Warlord Chronicles, and I never really got to care for the characters, but it was an enjoyable, quick summer read. The historical details were interesting, and although the actual location of the grail and what it was like weren't surprising to me, it was an interesting idea. I don't remember much about this middle book at all.
    • 4/5
      Greatly enjoyable audiobook. I loved the sections featuring Robbie the Scotsman. The story ALWAYS got better when he appeared. Does he appear in Part 3, I wonder? BTW De Taillebourg deserved his out come. EVERY TINY PIECE OF IT.
    • 4/5
      My favourite book of the series. More background is given to the various protagonists who seek the grail and their motives setting up for the ultimate clash in book 3.
    • 4/5
      Set in the aftermath of Crecy, Vagabond looks further into the chaos and destruction of the Hundred Years War. Thomas of Hookton now also has to deal with the Inquisition, the Scots, and personal difficulties in the English Army, turning the plot darker and more desperate.
    • 3/5
      “Vagabond” did not appeal to me as much as the first book in the Grail series. Certain episodes did draw me in, though, and this author is in my opinion second only to Robert E. Howard when it comes to depicting battle scenes.I do like the main character – Thomas – and also his Jewish friend who has a passion for checking the colour of people’s urine. Jeanette is also an appealing character. Unfortunately she isn’t in this tale as much as the first one.I would’ve rated this novel four stars but, like all the Bernard Cornwell books that I’ve read to date, I’ve deducted a star because they are all let down by substandard elements of style. Long-winded sentences are plentiful. The needless dialogue attribution drives me to distraction whilst the overuse of the word “then” is surprising for such a seasoned author.The long-winded sentences are often kept going by numerous “ands” plus a “then” or two, like with the quote below:>David's sheltron had forced the central English battle back across a pasture, they hadstretched it thin and they were closing on the Archbishop's great banner, and then the arrows began to bite and after the arrows came the men-at-arms from the English right wing, the retainers of Lord Percy and of Lord Neville, and some were already mounted on their big horses that were trained to bite, rear and kick with their iron-shod hooves.And then, from where the Scots waited on the higher ground, the drums began to beat.The drums began to beat from where the Scots waited on the higher ground.'Charge now, sir,' he suggested, 'before they can make a battleline.''When this day's done, uncle,' Robbie Douglas said, 'you'll let me go after that priest.''What would happen, Thomas, if you found the Grail?' He did not wait for an answer. 'Do you think,' he went on instead, 'that the world will become a better place?
    • 3/5
      The non-battle scenes were very enjoyable, but the author is too enamored with the gory details of medieval battle. I don't need to know that someone's intestines were hanging out or that someone's head was split open by an ax.
    • 4/5
      I've enjoyed reading the whole series of the Grail Quest. This 2nd book carries on the story but, if need be, could be read independently.
    • 3/5
      The machinery is noticeably creaky in this second volume of the adventures of Thomas of Hookton...BC has not produced one of my favourite series in this fourteenth century excursion.
    • 3/5
      Love the time period, really liked the hero, but the Perils of Pauline arch villains cast touch of silliness over the whole book. Not as interesting in any way as book 1 of the series, but I will plod on because I will put up with mediocrity to read the historical trivia laden story about an archer.
    • 4/5
      This is the second in the Grail Quest series. I read the first some time ago but had trouble finding this book. Even though there was a gap between the books they flowed together nicely. This is a enjoyable read about knights, archers and men at arms battling to the death and seeking fortune during the 100 Years War between England and France that focuses on an archer who is on a quest to find the grail that is part of his family's history.
    • 5/5
      Just like all of B. Cornwell's books Vagabond was thoroughly enjoyable. It makes reading about The Hundred Year War more interesting. But I have always wondered why he always has his hero's beat to within a inch of their lives. Every one should read the Grail Quest books.
    • 4/5
      Though there's not much to the plot of this story (the Grail is more a plot device than a central theme in this tale), my attention never flagged because I was having so much fun getting to know the colorful characters, thrilling at the battle scenes, and appreciating the amazingly detailed and accurate historical detail on every page of this great read.But that's not the main reason that I enjoyed this book.Anyone who has studied the middle ages has probably struggled to understand the frankly foreign morals and attitudes of the time. It was a time when superstition was rife, attitudes were fatalistic, the church sold forgiveness and tortured people into acquiring faith, intellect/logic was regarded with suspicion, women were property, revenge was a sacred duty, loyalties were fleeting, and yet men willingly gave their lives for "honor" or "glory".This is the first book about the period I've ever read that not only got all this right, but actually made the idiocyncracies of period seem real and credible. If I could travel back in time to the year 1347, it would look - and feel - like this.This is the second book of a trilogy but you don't need to read the first - or last - to appreciate the experience. Having said that, I'm now going to run out and acquire both since book #2 was so much fun!
    • 2/5
      I took a long time to finish the trilogy. Was slow in places, and frustratingly, it seemed to end when I was just getting engaged by the character. Learning that not every era in human history is my cup of tea. The bow-crafting and shooting information was fascinating, even if the details of each staged battle were not as gripping.
    • 5/5
      Vagabond is book 2 of the Grail Quest series following the exploits of British archer Thomas of Hookton. King Edward III is sieging Calais, while Thomas is sent to Northumberland to talk to a priest who knew his late father, whom people suspect possessed or knew of the whereabouts of the Grail. Thomas gains another nemesis in the person of an Inquisitor, and also adds another poor British lord to his enemies list. Meanwhile, Thomas gains an unlikely companion in Robbie, the son of Scottish noble assigned to accompany him while waiting for a ransom to be raised.Appropriate to the medieval time period, death is everywhere, and several main characters from the first volume do not survive the end of this book. The French remain inept and unable to win any battle in spite of crushing odds. The main story arc established early in the first book is still alive and well going into the third (and last) volume.
    • 5/5
      With this second book in the series, I'm finding more and more to enjoy and savor. Thomas faces new enemies (Father Bernard, and Sir Geoffrey the "Scarecrow") and makes a new friend, Robbie Douglas, a hot-headed Scot. Mordecai, a very interesting and likeable secondary character from book one, that I really like, makes an appearance in this book and continues to add to the overall enjoyment.The story opens with the battle of Neville's Cross in northern England when a small English force defeats a much larger force of Scots under King David II, again because of the presence of English archers. The story ends back at Le Roche-Derrien in France where Thomas has once again encountered Jeannette, and helps defeat the French/Breton forces. The scene involving Thomas' torture by a Dominican inquistitor is hard to endure, but later the Dominican gets his comeuppance and that is most satisfactory.
    • 4/5
      The second book in the Grail Quest series. not as strong as the first or last in my opinion, a bit meandering at times, but still wll worth reading. The torture of Thomas was surprising, i kept expecting him to manage to get out of it somehow, so it was more true to reality when he didn't.
    • 5/5
      Another excellent read from Cornwel. This is my second foray into his work and I must say I am very impressed. Picked up the third book right after finishing this one.
    • 3/5
      The story of Thomas of Hookton continues with his involvement of the historical battles of Neville's Cross and the siege of La Roche-Derrien. Thomas also finds out more about his family's secret past, and has a nasty run-in with the torturers of the Dominican Inquistion. Nasty stuff, but fun overall.