Sword of the War God - Out on April 11

My tenth novel, and first hardback, will be published on April 11. Sword of the War God is a bit of a departure from my usual vikings. Its an epic tale (608 pages) set in a truly legendary age, the early half of the Fifth Century AD. The Roman Empire is tottering on its last legs. A new threat has emerged: the Huns, led by their charismatic and brutal king, Atilla, sweep into Europe burning and massacring all in their path. Caught in the middle of this titanic conflict, a small Germanic tribe, the Burgundars, battles for survival in a war in which both protagonists seem intent on wiping them out. At the time of their greatest danger, a small band of strangers led by a strange, one-eyed wizard, each of them armed with a unique talent, arrive from the east to help.

The Fifth Century was a time of legends. The historical events of those few decades have led to a slew of myths, legends and tales we still tell today. If they existed, the real personages of the folk we now know as King Arthur, Saint Patrick, Sigurd the Dragon Slayer, Brunhild the valkyrie and the Nibelungs with their cursed treasure, the Rhine Gold, lived their lives a this time. 

George RR Martin took real history (the Wars of the Roses) and put it into a fantasy setting. In Sword of the War God I have tried to do the opposite: To take the legends which grew out of real events and try to place them back into the historical context in which they happened.

Over the next few days I plan to post short introductions to the characters in the book and the legends that inspired them.

In the meantime you can order your copy from all good retailers:

• https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sword-War-God-Tim-Hodkinson/dp/1804540609
• https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/sword-of-the-war-god-9781804540602/