Essex Dogs – MJ Porter

Today, I’m reviewing Wolves of Winter by Dan Jones on the blog #blogtour #newrelease #TheHundredYearsWar #WolvesOfWinter

Here’s the blurb:

AN ENDLESS WAR.

A BLOOD-SOAKED BATTLEFIELD.

A BAND OF BROTHERS

1347. Bruised and bloodied by an epic battle at Crécy, six soldiers of fortune known as the Essex Dogs pick through the wreckage of the fighting – and their own lives.

Now a new siege is beginning, and the Dogs are sent to attack the soaring walls of Calais. King Edward has vowed no Englishman will leave France til this city falls. To get home, they must survive a merciless winter in a lawless camp deadlier than any battlefield.

Obsessed with tracking down the vanished Captain, Loveday struggles to control his own men. Romford is haunted by the reappearance of a horrific figure from his past. And Scotsman is spiralling into a pit of drink, violence and self-pity.

The Dogs are being torn apart – but this war is far from over. It won’t be long before they lose more of their own…

Purchase link

Amazon: https://tidd.ly/45jbT8S

My Review

Wolves of Winter takes readers to the aftermath of the English ‘triumph’ at the Battle of Crecy and reunites readers with those of the Essex Dogs who yet live. Far from the promise of returning home with their forty days pay for fighting in the English king’s army, our remaining Dogs find themselves directed to Calais, which the English king has decided must be taken from French hands. What ensues is a harsh portrayal of the life of fighting men, mere pawns in the hands of the English king, his son and their battle commanders.

This is not a tale filled with lighter moments. Our Dogs are world-weary and frustrated. Loveday is bedevilled by a face from the past, young Romford is a mess, and the others have their own problems as well. They haven’t even managed to make any extra cash from war booty because they’re too slow to try and sell their captured weapons, and the king has ordered all French weapons must be handed over to prevent them being sold to their enemy.

Told from multiple points of view, both from those inside Calais and those without, and also from someone who’s lost all thanks to the English, the story feels somewhat disconnected on occasion. There are also some characters who don’t fare well, and indeed, whose part in the story seems to serve little purpose (it’s somewhat unfortunate that these are two of the only three female characters mentioned).

This isn’t a simple story of a siege. Every party has a self-interest in the success or failure of the siege or in withstanding the siege. It’s multi-layered and fulfilling on a number of levels. It does lack some of the lighter moments from Essex Dogs. Northampton, a larger-than-life character, doesn’t feature as much, and he is a bit of a miss.

The eventual ending of the siege and the final moments of the book are particularly poignant, but it does leave me wondering whether we can even talk of the Essex Dogs any more or if they have simply become a few individuals with loyalty to no one but themselves. Perhaps that, then, is the meaning behind the title. I will have to wait and see when book 3 in the trilogy is released.

Wolves of Winter is a harsh tale of war and depravation – and how the machinations of the nobility and ruling family impact the lives of those they command or wish to overthrow. And behind the royalty and nobility are those with the money who truly hold all the cards.

Check out my review for book 1 in the series.

About the author

Dan Jones is the Sunday Times and New York Times bestselling author of many non-fiction books, including The Plantagenets, The Templars, and Powers and Thrones. He is a renowned writer, broadcaster and journalist. He has presented dozens of TV shows, including the Netflix series Secrets of Great British Castles, and writes and hosts the podcast This is History. His debut novel, Essex Dogs, is the first in a series following the fortunes of ordinary soldiers in the early years of the Hundred Years’ War. He is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society.

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Today, I’m delighted to be hosting Essex Dogs by Dan Jones on the blog #blogtour #newrelease #TheHundredYearsWar

Here’s the blurb:

July 1346. The Hundred Years’ War has begun, and King Edward and his lords are on the march through France. But this war belongs to the men on the ground.

Swept up in the bloody chaos, a tight-knit company from Essex must stay alive long enough to see their home again. With sword, axe and longbow, the Essex Dogs will fight, from the landing beaches of Normandy to the bloodsoaked field of Crécy.

There’s Pismire, small enough to infiltrate enemy camps. Scotsman, strong enough to tear down a wall. Millstone, a stonemason who’ll do anything to protect his men. Father, a priest turned devilish by the horrors of war. Romford, a talented young archer on the run from his past. And Loveday FitzTalbot, their battle-scarred captain, who just wants to get his boys home safe.

Some men fight for glory. Others fight for coin. The Essex Dogs? They fight for each other.

My Review

Essex Dogs by Dan Jones, despite its girth, coming in at nearly 7500 lines on my Kindle and 450 pages in hardback, is a really easy-going read. It has a light writing style, and therefore, it’s not an onerous read for anyone worried that it might just be that little bit longer than they’re used to. (I never used to consider the length of a book, but now I do, when there are so many books to read and so little time).

The opening scene, the landing on the beach for the invasion of France, is very well told, and draws you into the world that the Essex Dogs live within. The action then slightly backs off, as we learn more about the men behind the invasion and the details of what’s planned. And there are many little details that slowly draw the reader into the scenario the Dogs face, as just one of many bands of warriors, commissioned for their 40 days of service, to fight on behalf of a lord, who’s in turn beholden to the king or the prince of Wales.

While the Hundred Years War is not ‘my’ time period, I’m not a stranger to it. If you’ve read other books set in the period, as I have, then this feels very close to those books. In no time at all, I was remembering some of the historical details, and I felt right at home with the ‘Dogs.’

This, as the blurb says, is the story of the Essex Dogs, and not the king and lords. The prince, Northampton and Warwick are the most notable members of the nobility to get a decent-sized portion of the story but only in relation to the way the Essex Dogs’ lives mingle, merge and separate with them. You can almost smell the dust and heat, the stink of the rivers, and not for the first time when I read books like this, I’m left considering why the English king was so determined to claim a province that was so hostile to him.

The story, not without tragedy, slowly builds to an intriguing finale, on the field of Crecy, where we follow the efforts of young Romford as he attempts to stay alive.

There is blood and gore in this book, but not tonnes of the stuff. There is some pretty strong language, but not tonnes of it (if you’ve read my The Last King series, it will feel a little tame). My overwhelming feeling on finishing it is that the games kings play affected the men who fought for them more than them, and I more than imagine that this is what Dan Jones is hoping to make us feel. And so, an engaging and well-told tale, not without moments of tragedy and comedy, and one certainly worthy of picking up and devouring.

About the author

Dan Jones is the Sunday Times and New York Times bestselling author of ten non-fiction books, including The Templars, The Colour of Time and Powers and Thrones. He is a renowned writer, broadcaster and journalist, and has for many years wanted to write authentic but action-packed historical fiction. His debut novel, Essex Dogs, is the first in a planned trilogy following the fortunes of ten ordinary soldiers in the early years of the Hundred Years’ War. He lives near London with his family.

Purchase link

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3cNE9LN

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Twitter: @dgjones

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