Mr. Cornwell,
I admire the fact that you do interact with your (many) readers.
As a youth, I read Hornblower, later Flashman and the earlier works of O’Brian.
It was however Richard Sharpe who caught my imagination. So much that I have left travelled from North America to visit Winchester, home of the Rifles (and a wonderful city) and Waterloo (a bit of a disappointment).
Due to the magic of film and Sean Bean’s charisma, Sharpe will be your enduring legacy. Read and admired long after we both are gone.
As much as I enjoy Sharpe, his history/backstory is a little haphazard and we first meet him as a fully formed adult. Sharpe is in my estimation something akin to a shark , a killing machine who takes part in combat because it is there that he is most comfortable. He does not philosophize or grow introspective wondering why he is what he is. Therefore, in my estimation Uhtred is your most compelling character. We have observed his life’s progress, as he ages, matures and develops a personal philosophy.
Thus, if I had my druthers you would concentrate on completing Uhtred’s story, taking time off in between to compose some new adventures for our old friend Richard. The Arthurian trilogy is complete, please spend your time and energies on those two.
Uhtred still has some slights to avenge, some enemies to defeat (the Scots and the grandson of Ivar the Boneless). I hope that you are more protective of the lives of his companions than you were with those of Sharpe. A lord is only as powerful as his retainers and unless Uhtred’s grow to be old, rich and renowned, then his owner power and reputation will be somewhat lacking. Certainly fearless and faithful Finan deserves a chance to grow old and fat. Hopefully the bond between Uhtred and Ragnar will remain strong and unbroken. Ragnar of all your characters is the only one with a true ‘love of life’ (I know, it is due to your upbringing) a man who might be considered ‘the life of the party’ and therefore, I hope that he does not experience any more disappointments or betrayals.
Finally there is Haesten, whose actions in many ways mirrror those of Uhtred. He too left behind those who saved his life to return to his kinsmen. Would it be to much to have these two reconcile at some time?
Dan McGarry