Hello Bernard,
I have not really made the time to read for a few decades, I used to love reading James Herbert in my younger years. Nowadays I am frequently very stressed, being self employed, and my wife Louise convinced me to start reading again to calm me down, she was a great advocate for the Sharpe series. I had watched them on the TV, wonderful, though I’m not a great fan of being patient whilst, already, knowing the punch line. However, that said, I persevered and the books absolutely blew me away, yes the fictional characters were sensational and the written stories totally outstripped the TV series, but it was the history, the situations real people were in, the history of this country, the alliances that we don’t spare a second thought to now. I stopped reading James Herbert because I thought some of his gore was too over the top and overly sensational to the effect on myself of thinking, ‘yeah yeah more death’, but the descriptions and the reality of what actually happened at the battles and sieges in the peninsula war are so horrific and so personal I found it quite breathtaking. The same can be said of the Uhtred and the Thomas of Hookton books. I don’t want to drone on too much (I am quite fanatical about these books) but the books were educational to me and made me take a lot more interest in the history of my country(I do pick up a few Americanisms though). However, I am now on the third book of the Game of Thrones series, they are so addictive, I am past where the TV is up to and enjoying the books even more, I find the characters so real, again the books way outstrip the TV series, and that’s saying something, but instead of sleepless nights worrying about where the next pay roll is coming from, I am worrying about dragons and especially that none of the characters have ever existed, they are entertaining but not as amazing as history and especially English/British History,.
Would you ever write another Sharpe book? The Indian campaign
(Pre -Napoleon) was a period with quite a few holes in it that a good novel could fit? Personally Uhtred and Thomas are my favourite characters and I await further instalments, will I have to wait long? Do you ever think a film studio or TV franchise will take up the Viking series? That could be sensational AND real! Thank you for your amazing work and sorry for going on and on, I’m sure my wife regrets encouraging me to read more again, once I start I struggle to stop. Thank you for your time.
Barry Dawson.