Dear Mr. Cornwell,
After reading through the ‘contact guidlines’ firstly, I just want to say that I’m not going to ask you for a copy of a book, send you a manuscript, or suggest a plot line for Uhtred.
In reality, I just wanted to express my appreciation for your work. I have seldom (actually never) felt the inclination to contact an author, but having just whizzed through Excalibur in two days, I decided I would write.
Although I had seen some T.V. episodes of Sharpe, I had never actually read any of your work until my wife came across a book called ‘The Last Kingdom’ when it first hit the shelves a few years back (I guess a good few years now).
Being a (casual) reader of mainly Fantasy (LOTR etc), and historical novels, seeing one followed the story of a protagonist from Bamburgh (some four miles from the village of my birth) sounded like it might be of interest, and so I snapped it up. It instantly grabbed my attention, and a few days later I was ruing the fact that I would now have to wait until the next in the series. I read those first three books of the series (and others to fill the long voids between them) before a change in my work, and later the arrival of my first child meant that books were dutifully bought, but left on the shelf unread, and my habit of reading on the way to work all but ended completely.
It wasn’t until earlier this year (mid June), when I came across an article about a book, Edwin: High King of Britain by Edoardo Albert (a very good read, although perhaps lacking in your refined ability for pacing), which I duly purchased, that I once again got into the habit of reading. After finishing that book, I was in the mood for more, and (after quickly refreshing my memory of the first three), I picked up Sword Song and continued with the trials and tribulations of Uhtred. The following four books were consumed with vigor, until once more I found myself in the unfortunate situation of having to wait (until 23rd October I believe), to find out how our hero recovers from his wounds.
Not knowing what to read next, I remembered a had purchased a copy of The Winter King, some years before, but had never gotten around to even opening the first page, so I gave it a go (early August), and, in testament to your skills, here I am writing a ‘fan email’ less than month later, and a few hours after bidding farewell to Arthur and with Sansum beckoning poor Derfel . I was utterly unable to put them down, and, in both cases, had to purchase the following book before finishing the one I was reading.. And they say reading is a ‘cheap’ hobby…
Your ability to bring so many characters into a story and provide each one with so much back story and life that they are not simply 2D page fillers is truly remarkable, and whereas some authors would have me flicking back to remember who was who, this simply wasn’t the case with these memorable personalities. Equally, your skill in describing battles (while dropping us slap bang in the middle so we can smell the mead, sweat, and leather), means they are gripping from start to finish without becoming over complicated and tedious.
I guess, in summary, I just wanted to say thank you for the excellent reads! Although, at the beginning of this email, I promised not to ask for anything or make any suggestions, should you ever feel inclined, a series about the years between the Warlord and Saxon Chronicles, or the withdrawing of the Romans from Britain, would certainly get my preorder.
Thank you once again (and thank you for taking the time to read this rather rambling email).
Sincerely,
Simon