Description

Don’t miss LION HEARTS, the final heart-stopping novel in the Essex Dogs trilogy from bestselling historian Dan Jones – available to pre-order now.

‘Draws you in page by page. The way Dan Jones writes enemies reminds me of Cornwell at his best.’ CONN IGGULDEN

SOME MEN FIGHT FOR GLORY.
OTHERS FIGHT FOR COIN.
THE ESSEX DOGS FIGHT FOR EACH OTHER.

July 1346. The Hundred Years’ War begins, 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 chaos, a tight-knit company from Essex must stay alive long enough to see their home again.

There’s Pismire, small enough to infiltrate enemy camps. Scotsman, strong enough to tear down a wall. Father, a priest turned devilish by the horrors of war. Romford, a talented young archer on the run from his past. And Loveday, their battle-scarred captain, who watches over them all.

With sword, axe and longbow, the Dogs must survive from the landing beaches of Normandy to the perilous field of Crecy. But this war is a bloody one – and it’s only just begun…

PRAISE FOR ESSEX DOGS

‘A new champion has entered the front line of historical fiction to stand shoulder to shoulder with Bernard Cornwell.’ JANE JOHNSON
‘Battle-bloody, brutal and perfectly pitched.’ DAILY MAIL
‘Vital, earthy, and heart-stopping.’ SUZANNAH LIPSCOMB
‘The soldiers’ lives are rather brilliantly recreated – the kit, the fighting, the boredom and discomfort.’ THE TIMES
‘Only Dan Jones can carry you through blood, piss and vomit and leave you wanting more.’ DAISY DUNN
‘A cast of unforgettable characters.’ SIMON SEBAG MONTEFIORE
‘Simply stunning.’ DUFF McKAGAN, New York Times No1 bestselling author

Publisher Review

'Oddly joyous - rolling action, fast-paced, a book that draws you in page by page. The way Dan Jones writes enemies reminds me of Cornwell at his best, turning up tension click by click.' * Conn Iggulden * Battle-bloody, brutal and perfectly pitched... Jones captures the fear and frenzy of the fight and the loyalty and kinship of the Dogs in this slaughterous, sweary, swaggering debut * Daily Mail * With a cast of unforgettable characters, written with irrepressible verve and historical accuracy, Dan Jones delivers a compelling novel that thrums with swordswinging energy -- Simon Sebag Montefiore A new champion has entered the front line of historical fiction to stand shoulder to shoulder with Bernard Cornwell... A full-throated charge onto the mediaeval battlefield, a rip-roaring adventure full of blood and guts, camaraderie and inventive curses -- Jane Johnson Horribly compelling... Only Dan Jones can carry you through blood, piss and vomit and leave you wanting more -- Daisy Dunn Vital, earthy, and heart-stopping... So deft and funny that you'd never guess this is Dan Jones' debut work of fiction -- Suzannah Lipscomb Few books manage to be as compelling on every level as Essex Dogs: it's adventure, history, and heart -- Dana Schwartz The battles that shaped Europe from the point of view of the soldiers... Searing -- Kate Williams A busy, urgent little masterpiece -- Graham Hurley Fascinating. Brutal. Real... Impossible to put down -- Simon Turney War. Looting. Junkies. Pintle-tugging. The English abroad. Dan Jones takes you to the year of Our Lord 1346 -- Tibor Fischer Essex Dogs is the first in a planned trilogy by the bestselling medieval historian Dan Jones. His mastery of his subject matter is obvious. The soldiers' lives are rather brilliantly recreated - the kit, the fighting, the boredom and discomfort. Jones is excellent on the battles, too, focusing on the violence and the panic * The Times * [Essex Dogs] is the first instalment of what promises to be an epic trilogy * History Revealed Magazine * The historical detail is totally authentic... Essex Dogs shows the total brutalilty of medieval warfare, but also the camaraderie of a troop of men who fight for each other and for England * Bishop's Stortford Independent * Visceral and powerful, the reality of medieval warfare leaping from every page, it's gripping storytelling at its best... With a cast of unforgettable characters, this is historian Dan Jones's first foray into fiction and it's terrific * Choice * With its unflinching emphasis on the blood and guts of 14th-century battle, Jones's debut is not for the squeamish, but it's an enthralling, character-filled read * Sunday Times * Historian Dan Jones plunges the reader right into the medieval battlefield in this riotous retelling of the epic Hundred Years War between England and France * Metro * Packed with historical insight, bringing alive not only the war, but the lives of the common soldiers... I can hardly wait for the next instalment * Historical Novel Society * 'Superb... The plot races along and there's huge insight into a band of brothers. Humour, archery, violence - and a fundamental decency underpinning all the rest.' * Conn Iggulden * Rooted in historical accuracy, and told through an earthy cast of archers, men-at-arms and misfits, Essex Dogs delivers the stark reality of medieval war in the round - and shines a light on ordinary people caught in the storm. * Mortimer Historical Society *