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Matthew Harffy

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Storm of Steel (The Bernicia Chronicles Book 6) Kindle Edition

by Matthew Harffy (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

4.5 3,568 ratings

Book 6 of 10: The Bernicia Chronicles

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AD 643. Anglo-Saxon Britain. A gripping, action-packed historical thriller and the sixth instalment in the Bernicia Chronicles.
Heading south to lands he once considered his home, Beobrand is plunged into a dark world of piracy and slavery when an old friend enlists his help to recover a kidnapped girl.

Embarking onto the wind-tossed seas, Beobrand pursues his quarry with single-minded tenacity. But the Whale Road is never calm and his journey is beset with storms, betrayal and violence.

As the winds of his wyrd blow him ever further from what he knows, will Beobrand find victory on his quest or has his luck finally abandoned him?
Praise for Matthew Harffy:
'Nothing less than superb... The tale is fast paced and violence lurks on every page' Historical Novel Society

'Beobrand is the warrior to follow' David Gilman

'A tale that rings like sword song in the reader's mind' Giles Kristian

'Historical fiction doesn't get much better than this' Angus Donald

'A brilliant characterization of a difficult hero in a dangerous time. Excellent!' Christian Cameron

'A terrific novel. It illuminates the Dark Ages like a bolt of lightning' Toby Clements

'Battles, treachery, revenge and a healthy dose of Dark Age adventure' Simon Turney

'Matthew Harffy tells a great story' Joanna Hickson

'Harffy's writing just gets better and better... He is really proving himself the rightful heir to Gemmell's crown' Jemahl Evans

'Harffy has a real winner on his hands... A genuinely superb novel' Steven McKay

'A breathtaking novel that sweeps the reader into a dark and dangerous world' Paul Fraser Collard

Editorial Reviews

Review

“PRAISE FOR THE BERNICIA CHRONICLES:

'Matthew Harffy's tale of England in the Dark Ages is nothing less than superb... The tale is fast paced and violence lurks on every page' Historical Novel Society.

'A tale that rings like sword song in the reader's mind. Harffy knows his genre inside out and The Cross and the Curse proves it' Giles Kristian.

'Murder, betrayal and vengeance fuel tribal warfare and personal combat. Beobrand is the warrior to follow' David Gilman.

'Historical fiction doesn't get much better than this' Angus Donald, author of The Outlaw Chronicles.

'Battles, treachery, revenge and a healthy dose of Dark Age adventure'” ―Simon Turney

About the Author

Matthew Harffy grew up in Northumberland where the rugged terrain, ruined castles and rocky coastline had a huge impact on him. He now lives in Wiltshire, England, with his wife and their two daughters. Matthew is the author of the critically acclaimed Bernicia Chronicles and A Time for Swords series, and he also presents the popular podcast, Rock, Paper, Swords!, with fellow author Steven A. McKay.

Follow Matthew at @MatthewHarffy and www.matthewharffy.com.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B07B4GBN46
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Head of Zeus -- an Aries Book; 1st edition (May 9, 2019)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ May 9, 2019
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 4841 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 468 pages

Best Sellers Rank: #353,617 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #235 in Ship History (Books)
- #668 in Travel (Kindle Store)
- #1,896 in Men's Adventure Fiction (Kindle Store)

Customer Reviews:
4.5 3,568 ratings

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Matthew Harffy

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Matthew Harffy lived in Northumberland as a child and the area had a great impact on him. The rugged terrain, ruined castles and rocky coastline made it easy to imagine the past. Decades later, a documentary about Northumbria's Golden Age sowed the kernel of an idea for a series of historical fiction novels. The first of them is the action-packed tale of vengeance and coming of age, THE SERPENT SWORD.

Matthew has worked in the IT industry, where he spent all day writing and editing, just not the words that most interested him. Prior to that he worked in Spain as an English teacher and translator. Matthew lives in Wiltshire, England, with his wife and their two daughters.

For all the latest news and exclusive competitions, join Matthew online:

www.matthewharffy.com

twitter.com/@MatthewHarffy

www.facebook.com/MatthewHarffyAuthor

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5

3,568 global ratings

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Marilyn

another topnotch chapter about Beo and his warriors

Reviewed in the United States on May 3, 2023

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So Beobrand’s adventures continue. Unfortunately he must listen to the new king, Oswiu, who isn’t his best supporter. As he goes to get the future queen, he worries about his son’s fate in Oswiu’s household. I hope he doesn’t keep him long.
There are some very strong female characters in this story: Eanflæd, Ardith, even Udela. There are some new male characters I like too who are part of Beo’s journey to Frankia. I look forward to more about Ferenbald and Brinin. We also see more of Coenred, who I think must be a reader favorite. He’s really showing his mettle here.
Beo’s health seems a little bit weakened from a blow to his head. I wonder how this will play out down the road.
There is a very mind blowing revelation which steers all Beo’s decisions. It is a wild ride Beo, his warriors, and sailors take to Frankia.
Battles are still tension filled and exciting. Just when I though the story was over, there were still some loose ends around Draca and Scrydan that needed to be resolved. Very satisfying ending!

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Manazon

Furious at the Author

Reviewed in the United States on December 2, 2020

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I do so enjoy the historical fiction genre, especially when it has larger than life heroes & heroines.

That is why I can’t enjoy a book to its fullest when the hero will have the most common, bad habits and addictions of humans. Such is Beobrand.

There was NO reason for him to make an oath to the swinish Oswiu, regardless of what he said to his brother before he died. You can only give and keep your oath to the living.....Without Coercion!! It must be given in a completely free environment.

And why must the hero get sloshed all the time...drink ale all the time? Not all people are so addicted. I believe it’s just the author projecting one of his weaknesses on the Hero, perhaps so he feels better about the addiction he has.

With all its warts, the book is near impossible to put down. The good characters are very likable. The bad/ evil characters I feel that I despise them, would be happy to run them through in the fictitious world.

Action is good and well described. I want to save the strong, intelligent damsel, whether beautiful or not. It makes me forget what a mess I’ve made of my life, especially most recently. Thank you for that!!

Reviewed in the United States on October 25, 2023

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I've enjoyed all of Matthew Harffy's books in this series. He's a very good author who tells a great story and paints a vivid picture of the characters. I can just picture massive Beobrand "half hand" and his giant friend Bassus as the author tells his story. I look forward to reading the remaining two books in the series.

Reviewed in the United States on August 23, 2019

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I really enjoyed the latest novel by Matthew Harffy! This book is a little different from the other books in that there is much more action on the sea, and Beobrand, the main character, is kind of a broken man from his past experiences. I don't want to get into too much detail, but it is nice to see the development of this character. He starts out as a cocky young warrior and he matures throughout the novels. In Storm of Steel, Beobrand becomes much more vulnerable as his past life as a commoner comes back to haunt him. He has mellowed a little, and not so quick to decapitate scumbags and ask questions later. Beobrand is sent on a mission that is straight out of a Greek tragedy, and he has to become a bit of a detective to figure out where to go on his latest quest. Matthew Harffy has become one of my favorite contemporary authors, and he always brings suspense and action with his wonderful writing ability. Mr. Harffy does a lot of research, and it pays off in his brutal descriptions of life in Britain during the 7th Century. Do yourself a favor, and read this book. You won't be disappointed.

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Wpj1957

Fun series with engaging characters.

Reviewed in the United States on May 19, 2022

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I hd been looking for a new series to get into. As a fan of the Last Kingdom, Pillars of the Earth, and a variety of medieval mystery series, I’ve thoroughly enjoyed the Chronicles of Bernicia. Well worth your time.

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DaveB.

A great read. Some of the best historical fiction around.

Reviewed in the United States on May 21, 2019

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Wow! Just wow. This is the sixth in the Bernicia Chronicles series and is every bit as compelling as the first five. Beobrand and his gesithas sail across the Whale Road to Frankia to rescue a girl sold to pirates by her father. As it turns out, there is much more to the story than first appears and as Beobrand gets deeper into the situation, facts are brought to light that will change his life forever.
As with the earlier books in this series, this one is well researched and well written. It makes the reader feel as if he or she is actually in the "Dark Ages." There is plenty of violence and bloodletting and enough suspense to keep the reader turning pages.
While not exactly a cliffhanger, there is enough of a hint of future adventures at the end of the book to let the reader know there will be future books. For me, that is terrific news. Matthew Harffy is one of my favorite historical authors. His work rivals anything out there and I cannot wait for the next chapter of this awesome series.

One person found this helpful

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Andrew Clark

It was an ok read.

Reviewed in the United States on May 13, 2019

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Certainly an adventure tale with very memorable characters. The end just seemed a little rushed to me but otherwise was good.

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Kindle Customer

Another great Harffy read

Reviewed in the United States on April 5, 2021

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This book is part of the Bernicia Chronicles, a terrific series set back in the Dark Ages, but hung loosely on the known history of the period. The characters are great, each with a distinct personality that you pull for (or against) as the series continues. Always action packed and entertaining, this series keeps your attention. Mr Harffy is good enough to explain who were the real historical figures, and what in the book was based on actual records and what comes from his wonderful imagination at the end of each book. For history buffs like me, this makes each story even better.

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Top reviews from other countries

KAIDO

Awesome

Reviewed in Canada on August 10, 2020

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The only problem is I'm all caught up on his books and now have to wait.. this gives you a great idea of what the dark ages are all about

Clemens Schoonderwoert

Beobrand's Amazing Chilling Whale Road Encounters!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 12, 2021

Verified Purchase

This wonderful novel is the 6th volume of the astounding "Bernicia Chronicles" from the author, Matthew Harffy.

Storytelling is once again of a top-notch quality, all characters, whether they are real historical or fantastic fictional, come vividly to life in this tale of Storm and Steel, and the atmosphere of the Dark Ages shines as ever wonderfully out of the pages.

Right inside the book you'll find a well-drawn map of Southern Albion and Northern Frankia in the year AD 643, with places that will play an important part in this great tale.

At the beginning of the book you'll see an informative list of Place Names, while at the back you'll notice a very well documented Historical Note, where the historical details are superbly explained.

The book is divided into five parts, with three bigger and two smaller ones, and the story itself is set during the years AD 643-644.

In this book we will follow Beobrand, his gesithas, and the crew from Hithe, with Ferenbald, son of Hrothgar, as their captain, riding the waves of the Whale Road, in search of a girl who goes by the name of, Ardith, who was taken by pirates with at their head the brothers, Grimr and Draca, and that girl seems to be originally the natural daughter of Beobrand and his youth love, Udela.

What is to follow is an amazing, fast-paced and action-packed tale that will take Beobrand and his gesithas to the lands of the Franks, and after leaving the Whale Road they will meet traitors at Mantican's Hall, and at the Palace of Vulmar at Rodomo (Rouen) they will be in the heat of the action, and in these environments Beobrand and his friends will meet betrayal, loyalty and various deadly clashes, all in an attempt to free Ardith from the clutches of Vulmar, Grimr and Draca, and after a close-run thing on the Whale Road, a final battle on a beach in Albion will decide who will be victorious, a battle where Beobrand will lose old and gain new friends, and after that battle a definite score will be settled with a certain individual.

Highly recommended, especially for fans of Bernard Cornwell's "The Last Kingdom" series, because this series has much in comparison in the way of its set up and accuracy, and storytelling wise it is with as much quality, or even better in my humble opinion, and to come back to this episode I like to call it: "Beobrand's Amazing Chilling Whale Road Encounters"!

John Taylor

Good follow on

Reviewed in France on June 5, 2019

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An excellent read

Barry Finch

Another wonderful and well researched novel by a very talented author - Matthew Harffy

Reviewed in Australia on May 28, 2019

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HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. I am really loving this 'series'. For me Storm of Steel (Book 6) took on a different and in many ways a less violent narrative (I susect the body count was lower) as the story line was a much more personal insight into the characters themself. If I have a dissapointment it was that the end of this tale arrived too soon, and left we wanting more. Maybe that's the authors plan. I am very much looking forward to Book 7 (For new readers of this series I strongly suggest that you start at Book 1- The Serpent Sword)

GregH

Another amazing tale in Mathew Harffy's Bernicia Chronicles.

Reviewed in Canada on June 6, 2019

Verified Purchase

A story weaver to match Bernard Cornwell, Mathew Harffy has fast become one of my favourite HF writers. His detailed research lends life-like credibility to his spell-binding stories.

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Storm of Steel (The Bernicia Chronicles Book 6) Kindle Edition

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