I have just finished “The Pagan Lord” and really enjoyed it, as I did the other books in the series.  I even ordered it from the UK to get it early.

I got the impression, more than in the other books, that Uhtred has a great sense of living in the squalid aftermath of a great lost civilization.  He often is depicted as wondering about these Romans and what happened to them.  This is especially evident in his regret at turning the beautiful Roman bowl into “hacksilver” but needs must.  Is this due to Uhtred’s advancing age and sense of mortality?
Bill Brockman