Anarchy: England 1120-1180 Series

The throne of England is slipping from King Henry’s grasp. His only son has drowned in the English Channel and the predators are gathering ready to devour both England and Normandy. When the last of King Harold’s Housecarls returns to England to die he brings with him a reluctant hero who will save the kingdom. Alfred, son of Ridley, is the first of a new breed, he is an English Knight. The novel is set in a time when warlords fight for small parcels of land and treachery is the order of the day. English Knight is a fast moving novel set in that most turbulent of times, The Anarchy. Filled with action and battles this is the first in a series of chronicles painting a picture of a bloody time in English history when the only people you could rely on were your household warriors and you slept with a dagger beneath your bed.

Alfraed of Norton is given the task of protecting the Empress Matilda back to the Emperor, her husband. He and his men have to fight enemies, bandits and treachery from within as they battle thorough an Empire which is a nest of treachery and political ambition. While Princes play for thrones Alfraed must keep the Empress safe. A fast moving novel which is set against the turbulent 11th century.

With the Empress Matilda about to marry the Count of Anjou, Alfraed is thrown into a world of intrigue and treachery as he tries to hold on to the North. When he succeeds he finds that he is punished and sent to the east by King Henry and his family held hostage in the Tower of London. He finds himself embroiled in plots and campaigns there where he finally serves with his father's old comrades; the Varangian Guards.

Emperor Henry of the Holy Roman Empire is dying and his wife, the Empress Matilda is in danger from those who would use her to gain power. King Henry of England sends Alfraed of Norton to rescue her. With enemies from France, Flanders and the Empire, the handful of brave Knights have to fight across Europe and back. A fast moving novel set in the turbulent times of the early 12th Century.

Alfraed is now the Earl of Cleveland but his new position throws him into a world of intrigue. There are plots and coups as the enemies of England try to wrest the land from King Henry. The Earl has to fight the Scots, the Welsh and Vikings before he travels to Normandy to fight with the king. Filled with knightly combat the novel reflects the chaotic times before the first English Civil War.

Book Ten in the Anarchy Series. The tide is turning and the forces of the Empress are making inroads into Stephen's lands. The Warlord of the North, Alfraed, rides south to help the Earl of Gloucester with one final push to dislodge the Usurper but fate has a twist in the tail. There is much treachery and barons who fail to deliver on their promises. One thing is consistent; the Warlord's mission to restore the crown to the rightful ruler.

When the Earl of Gloucester suddenly dies and the Empress Matilda is forced to return to Normandy it seems that the civil war is about to end and Stephen of Blois will have succeeded in winning his crown. The Warlord of the North takes the fledgling Prince Henry under his wing and begins to train him to become king. When others try to take advantage of the Warlord's position he and his warriors have to dig deep to defeat their enemies. Gradually Henry becomes a man and shows that he has the potential to become a king.

Book 11 in the Anarchy series. King Stephen is captured and the Civil War seems over until disaster strikes while the Earl of Cleveland is in Normandy. The Empress' forces are routed and the Earl of Gloucester is captured. Forced to return to rescue the Empress the Earl of Cleveland has to fight King Stephen's army and the English winter to rescue his Empress. With the future King Henry II as his squire the Earl has to wage a war against an increasing number of enemies and a diminishing number of allies. The novel is filled with both intrigue and bloody medieval battles.

The Empress has given England a male heir but that single action unleashes rebels in Scotland and in Normandy who try to wrest Normandy and England from King Henry. When the Earl of Cleveland becomes his champion it unleashes a storm of murder and treachery at the very heart of the Earl's world, a world heading towards anarchy and civil war.

The Scots have decided to take advantage of the Civil War in England and King David invades. The only opposition to his mighty army of 26,000 men is the Warlord of the North and an ancient Archbishop of York. With cruel invaders rampaging through northern England and ravaging the land enemies must join together to fight off the enemy who threaten to take half of the land.

Book 14 in the Anarchy Series. William of Stockton, the son of the Warlord, is heading to the Holy Land to do penance. He is leaving a world that he knows and entering a new one. The world he discovers is one filled with intrigue and false knights. Counts and Barons battle for thrones. All are not what they seem. William must return to his roots and become, as his father once was an English knight. He discovers unexpected allies and treacherous friends. He battles Seljuq Turks, Assassins, Egyptians and rogue knights. Through his journey, he discovers that most valuable of treasures: himself.

Book 13 in the Anarchy Series. With the civil war seeming to be never ending, the Warlord and Duke Henry decide on a bold strategy which pits the men of the north against the might of Stephen and his forces. At the same time a conspiracy of Kings and Counts attempt to wrest the young Duke's lands from him. Betrayed by his own family, Henry becomes the king who in later life will conquer Wales and Ireland.

Book 19 in the Anarchy Series by Griff Hosker. The Warlord has had a long and eventful life but he is growing old. Fate and King Henry determine that he will not go quietly watching the sun set from his castle. He is sent to cement the marriage between the King’s half sister and a prince of the Welsh. It is while he is there that he uncovers a plot which threatens not only his life but the very crown which Henry wears on his head. With his grandson, Samuel, at his side the Warlord fights one last war to save the land he loves, England.

Book 15 in The Anarchy series. The civil war is over. King Henry now rules a vast empire but even as he begins his rule the Scots steal slaves and cattle from the north of England and the Warlord's son, William, recently returned from the Crusades has to rescue them. King Henry and the Warlord cannot rest either for one of his brothers rebels in Anjou. With the Welsh border aflame no one is allowed the luxury of a peaceful existence. War has come again and the Warlord, along with his son, must fight again, for England.

This is the story of how Richard de Clare, Count of Striguil, aided by the Warlord took three hundred knights and carved out a kingdom for himself in Ireland. The Kingdom of Leinster would grow into the whole Kingdom of Ireland. The story takes the reader from the reclamation of Scotland to the Welsh Marches following the fortunes of the Warlord and the men who march behind their banners.

Book 18 in The Anarchy Series, by Griff Hosker. When King Henry makes the momentous decision to crown his eldest son King, even though he is still a youth, he sets in motion a series of events which will tear his empire apart. The Warlord and his son, Earl William, are called upon to not only defend their own land but save the empire for their king. As though things could not get any worse, Thomas Becket, the Archbishop of Canterbury returns to England and the land is plunged into turmoil and revolt. Culminating in the Battle of Alnwick, 1174, this is a fast moving and action packed novel which fictionalizes the real events of 1169-1174.

Book 14 in the Anarchy Series When King Henry appoints Thomas Becket as his Archbishop of Canterbury he does not realise the problems he will create for himself. When the priest refuses to allow the King’s brother then tensions escalate. It soon becomes clear that King Louis of France has woven a complicated alliance of enemies and spies in an attempt to reclaim the Vexin from King Henry. The Warlord is forced to defer his visit home and join the King in putting down a rebellion in Brittany. When the King of Scotland dies his hot-headed brother, William, gains the crown and war breaks out on the King’s northern border. There is only one man who can deal with the unrest and the Warlord returns to Northumbria to confront the Scots once more. Based on actual events ‘Poisonous Plots’ is a fast-moving novel and continues the saga of the Warlord and his family.

With a legend for a grandfather, it is hard to live up to not only men’s expectations but also those of the king. Sir Samuel of Stockton is a great knight but any chance of peace in his life ends when King Henry and his sons begin to squabble and bicker about the future of England, Normandy and Aquitaine. He either supports the king or the next king. How does a knight keep his honour in such circumstances? When King Philip of France also uses the discord to foster dissension then Sir Samuel must emulate the Warlord and defend a king and a country whilst keeping his home safe. The story moves from the borders with Scotland to the heart of France and thence to Sicily, Cyprus and the Holy Land in a fitting finale to the Anarchy series.