The Normans are coming! Not content with conquering England, they now have their sights set on the USA as well…
And their campaign begins today with the Stateside release of Sworn Sword in both hardcover and eBook editions, courtesy of the hard-working people at my publisher Sourcebooks Landmark, who have done an absolutely fantastic job
The Normans are coming! Not content with conquering England, they now have their sights set on the USA as well…
And their campaign begins today with the Stateside release of Sworn Sword in both hardcover and eBook editions, courtesy of the hard-working people at my publisher Sourcebooks Landmark, who have done an absolutely fantastic job of making the book a reality.
Sworn Sword • James Aitcheson • Sourcebooks Landmark • 400 pp. • Hardback • $24.99
As readers in the UK already know well, Sworn Sword is the first instalment in the Conquest Series, which tells the story of the violent and treacherous years immediately following the Norman invasion of England in 1066, when rebellion gripped the kingdom and its fate hung in the balance. As will become clear, the fateful Battle of Hastings was not the end of the struggle for England; in fact, it was just the beginning.
Based on real-life events, the series follows the career of the ambitious young knight Tancred, who is hungry for battle, for glory and for vengeance after his lord is murdered by English rebels. To find out more, have a look at the cover blurb and download the first chapter from Sworn Sword to whet your appetite.
The second in the series, The Splintered Kingdom, will be published in the US in summer 2014, followed by Knights of the Hawk in summer 2015, so there are plenty of Norman Conquest-related adventures to look forward to! As always, I’ll be posting the latest information about the novels as and when I have it, so keep checking back from time to time to see what’s new.
The Normans are taking over – not just Britain but now America as well! In exactly one month’s time, on August 6th, the first novel in the Conquest series, Sworn Sword, will be arriving on bookshelves across the US.
Based on real-life events, Sworn Sword tells the story of the great rebellions that swept England
Sworn Sword • James Aitcheson • Sourcebooks Landmark • 400 pp. • Hardback • $24.99
Based on real-life events, Sworn Sword tells the story of the great rebellions that swept England in the years after 1066, as seen through the eyes of a Norman knight named Tancred, who seeks vengeance after his lord is killed by English rebels.
Published by Sourcebooks Landmark, it’ll be available from all good bookstores and, of course, online as well, in both hardcover and eBook editions. Here’s the full synopsis:
January, 1069. Less than three years after the Battle of Hastings in 1066 and the death of the usurper, Harold Godwineson, two thousand Normans march in the depths of winter to subdue the troublesome province of Northumbria. Tancred a Dinant,a loyal and ambitious knight, is among them, hungry for battle, honor, silver, and land.
But at Durham, the Normans are ambushed in the streets by English rebels, and Tancred’s revered lord Robert de Commines is slain. Badly wounded, Tancred barely escapes with his own life. Bitterly determined to seek vengeance for his lord’s murder, the dauntless knight quickly becomes entrenched in secret dealings between a powerful Norman magnate and a shadow from the past.
As the Norman and English armies prepare to clash, Tancred uncovers a cunning plot that harks back to the day of Hastings itself. If successful, it threatens to destroy the entire conquest-and change the course of history.
This stunning debut sweeps readers into a ruthless, formidable world, where violent warriors seek honor in holy places and holy men seek glory in dark deeds. As the two opposing forces battle for conquest, the fate of England hangs in the balance.
Battles and betrayals abound, and there’s also a touch of romance, too – something, I hope, for everyone. And if that’s whetted your appetite, here’s the first chapter to give a further taste of what’s in store.
The Splintered Kingdom is released today in paperback in the UK, with a vibrant and striking new cover design! Look out for it in supermarkets and all good bookshops, as well as online. As always, e-book editions are also available on all platforms for the more technologically inclined.
Set one year on from the end
The Splintered Kingdom is released today in paperback in the UK, with a vibrant and striking new cover design! Look out for it in supermarkets and all good bookshops, as well as online. As always, e-book editions are also available on all platforms for the more technologically inclined.
The Splintered Kingdom • Paperback • £6.99 • Arrow
Set one year on from the end of Sworn Sword, it once more features the knight Tancred, who has been rewarded for his exploits with a lordship on the turbulent Welsh Marches. But as the enemy stirs, his hard-fought gains are soon placed in peril. Under siege on all sides, the Norman realm begins to crumble, leading Tancred to face his sternest challenge yet. It will be either his chance for glory, or his undoing.
To whet your appetite for further Tancred adventures, the paperback edition also contains a sample chapter from the forthcoming third book in the Conquest series, which I can now reveal will be entitled Knights of the Hawk. There’ll be more info on where Tancred’s travels will be taking him next in the coming months.
Slamjet Stadium • iPad • £1.99 / $2.99 • Alistair Aitcheson
It’s a huge amount of fun and has already been generating a lot of buzz in the gaming community. But don’t just take my word for it – give it a go yourself! It’s now available from the App Store across the world. For more details, including the trailer, visit the game’s official website.
Enter the date into your diaries! Thursday 14th March marks a mega-launch day for the Aitcheson clan. Not only will the paperback edition of The Splintered Kingdom be hitting the shelves – available in all good bookshops, supermarkets and online – but also my brother Alistair’s latest game for iPad, the fast and frantic Slamjet
Enter the date into your diaries! Thursday 14th March marks a mega-launch day for the Aitcheson clan. Not only will the paperback edition of The Splintered Kingdom be hitting the shelves – available in all good bookshops, supermarkets and online – but also my brother Alistair’s latest game for iPad, the fast and frantic Slamjet Stadium will be unleashed upon the world.
Set in the distant future, Slamjet Stadium features a galaxy of sporting stars drawn from the furthest reaches of known space to take part in the ultra-competitive and deadly Slamjet Tournament. There can only be one winner, and the only rule is that there are no rules!
Having already played the pre-release version of the game, I can tell you that it’s not just brilliant fun, it’s also incredibly addictive. Check out for yourself what’s in store, in this sneak preview:
Here’s what Alistair himself has to say about the game:
Based on an ancient 20th Century sport known as “football”, the Slamjet tournament is the hottest event of the galactic calendar. Arenas are filled with deadly saws, mysterious wormholes and ridiculous power-ups, and only the fastest and toughest can win!
Played on a shared iPad, players are free to get in each other’s way, steal each other’s characters or set off traps to mess their opponent up. It’s fast, it’s chaotic and breaking the rules is encouraged!
You can get all the latest updates by following Alistair on Twitter, while more information about Slamjet Stadium can be found on the official website and also on Alistair’s development blog, which also features behind-the-scenes videos and articles on the making of the game.
Slamjet Stadium will be released worldwide on 14 March 2013, the same day as The Splintered Kingdom is published in the UK in paperback. Spread the word on Twitter with #AitchesonBrosLaunchDay!
First copies of The Splintered Kingdom arrived recently and look amazing, as I hope you will agree. Although of course the words contained within its cover and even the jacket design are now very familiar to me, seeing the finished book in the flesh, so to speak, is still a tremendous thrill. I’m looking forward
First copies of The Splintered Kingdom arrived recently and look amazing, as I hope you will agree. Although of course the words contained within its cover and even the jacket design are now very familiar to me, seeing the finished book in the flesh, so to speak, is still a tremendous thrill. I’m looking forward to spotting it on bookshelves when it’s published in just a few days from now, on Thursday 13th September.
Set one year on from the end of Sworn Sword, it once more features Tancred, who has been rewarded for his exploits with a lordship on the turbulent Welsh Marches. But as the enemy stirs, his hard-fought gains are soon placed in peril. Under siege on all sides, the Norman realm begins to crumble, leading Tancred to face his sternest challenge yet. It will be either his chance for glory, or his undoing.
If you fancy a sneak preview of what’s in store, the synopsis and even a downloadable extract from the novel (PDF) can be found here.
I’ll be launching the novel with several events this coming week, starting with a talk and signing in Marlborough in Wiltshire on the evening of Tuesday 11th. Hosted by the White Horse Bookshop, who organised a highly successful signing last year on the publication of Sworn Sword, this will be an exclusive opportunity to get your hands on the book before it goes on nationwide release two days later.
Then on the evening of Friday 14th, I’ll be continuing the book tour with a talk at Waterstones in Salisbury. I’ll be discussing what inspired me to write about the Norman Conquest and how I go about my research, and giving readings from the new novel. That’s followed by a signing session the following morning, on Saturday 15th, at the wonderful Cotwold Bookstore in the picturesque town of Moreton-in-Marsh in Gloucestershire.
The following week, I’ll be attending History in the Court at Goldsboro Books in London along with a host of other writers of historical fiction and non-fiction. Now in its second year, this event is a great opportunity to mingle with your favourite authors and other fans of historical writing.
Full details of these and all my other upcoming signings, talks and festival appearances, including start times and how to obtain tickets, can be found as always on my Events page. I’m adding new dates to my calendar all the time, so if you can’t make it to any of those currently listed, keep checking back to see if I’ll be appearing soon in your area.
Here it is! If you’ve been browsing online bookstores for the forthcoming sequel to Sworn Sword, you might already have caught a glimpse of it, but for those of you who haven’t, this is the jacket design for The Splintered Kingdom in all its glory.
Once again the cover illustrator Tim Byrne and everyone on the team at my publisher, Preface, have done a great job. In lots of ways it represents a continuation of a theme from the cover to Sworn Sword, and I think it really captures a sense of the energy and drama, as well as some of the darkness, of the new novel, which will see Tancred tested as he never has been before. Some familiar characters will return – friends and foes – but he will also find himself facing fresh challenges as rebellion stirs up once more and the threat of imminent invasion looms. That’s all I’ll say for now!
The Splintered Kingdom is currently scheduled for release on 13 September 2012, but if you really can’t wait until then, the first chapter is contained within the paperback of Sworn Sword as a sneak preview. I’ll be releasing more details about the book and giving a taste of what’s in store over the next few months, so keep checking back here on the website or follow my updates on Twitter or Facebook.
