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Martin Lake

Goodreads Author

Born

London, The United Kingdom

Website

http://martinlakewriting.wordpress.com

Twitter

martinlake14

Genre

Historical Fiction, Literature & Fiction

Influences

Rosemary Sutcliff, Henry Treece
George McDonald Fraser
...more

Member Since

September 2011

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/goodreadscommartin_lake

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Hello, I'm Martin Lake. I've been writing fiction since the age of eleven when our inventive English teacher Mr Johnson asked us to imagine that we were a Guy on a Guy Fawkes bonfire. I discovered the thrill of words and character.

My favourite authors when I was young were historical novelists like Rosemary Sutcliff and Henry Treece and a galaxy of science fiction writers. Later on I discovered the Flashman novels by George McDonald Fraser which I still consider the best of historical fiction.

I studied English Literature and History at UEA.

I have written all my life and had my first success with another story about 5th November, 'The Guy Fawkes Contest.' This was broadcast on radio and I spent more than my fee on celebrating my success.

The ...more

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Combine Editions
Martin Lake’s books

Average rating: 4.16 · 5,545 ratings · 341 reviews · 42 distinct works • Similar authors

	Cry of the Heart: A World War II Novel 4.27 avg rating — 1,493 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	A Love Most Dangerous 3.76 avg rating — 903 ratings — published 2014 — 9 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Very Like a Queen 4.06 avg rating — 563 ratings — published 2016 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Flame of Resistance (The Lost King, #1) 4.01 avg rating — 330 ratings — published 2011 — 7 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Bold, Bright Spirit: a compelling story of courage and resilience in World War II (Miriam and Oscar Book 1) 4.40 avg rating — 264 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Wings of Fire: A World War 2 Novel 4.48 avg rating — 217 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Wolves of War (Viking Chronicles Book 1) 4.25 avg rating — 224 ratings — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Blood of Ironside (The Lost King, #3) 4.24 avg rating — 205 ratings — published 2013 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Triumph and Catastrophe (The Lost King, #2) 4.14 avg rating — 204 ratings — published 2011 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Land of Blood and Water 4.23 avg rating — 194 ratings — published 2015 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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272 posts
Martin Lake's Blog

A Great Review

via Wolves of War by Martin Lake

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Published on May 25, 2018 07:45

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Series by Martin Lake

The Lost King (4 books)
by

Martin Lake (Goodreads Author)

4.15 avg rating — 904 ratings

Viking Chronicles (3 books)
by

Martin Lake (Goodreads Author)

4.32 avg rating — 408 ratings

the Long War For England (2 books)
by

Martin Lake (Goodreads Author)

4.29 avg rating — 334 ratings

Crusades (1 book)
by

Martin Lake (Goodreads Author)

3.99 avg rating — 159 ratings

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Martin’s Recent Updates

Martin Lake is now friends with Liam
Jul 25, 2024 06:16AM · like

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Quotes by Martin Lake (?)

“pretty faces again.”
― Martin Lake, A Love Most Dangerous

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“reveal smooth white sheets.”
― Martin Lake, A Love Most Dangerous

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“The branches of the”
― Martin Lake, A Love Most Dangerous

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Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
Making Connections: Trade Winds to Meluhha by Vasant Davé ~ October 21st - 27th	42	69	Oct 28, 2013 05:38PM
Play Book Tag: [Poll Ballot] Wolves of War by Martin Lake - 3 stars	1	6	Jul 14, 2020 11:28AM
2025 & 2026 Readi...: Joy D's Book Balcony 2020	22	386	Dec 31, 2020 10:19AM
2025 & 2026 Readi...: Joy D's 100 in 2020	13	340	Dec 31, 2020 10:31AM
Play Book Tag: * Poll Ballot Tally -- Announcements and Reporting	5521	184	Dec 31, 2020 04:35PM
Ancient & Medieva...: Freebie/Giveaway/On Sale Historical Fiction Books - eBook and Audio	2625	1368	Dec 23, 2022 05:20AM

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Martin’s Quotes

“Do your bit to save humanity from lapsing back into barbarity by reading all the novels you can.”
― Richard Hughes

1964 likes

“It is in my mind that a people faced with death or slavery as their only choices are not readily going to relinquish war. - Longinus Sdapeze”
― Manda Scott, Dreaming the Bull

6 likes

“Like the measles, love is most dangerous when it comes late in life.”
― Lord Byron

tags: love

82 likes

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Martin’s Groups

Ask Carol McGrath — 23 members — last activity Nov 13, 2014 06:46AM
...June 05, 2013 to July 05, 2013...

UK Book Club — 6886 members — last activity 21 hours, 22 min ago
This is a book group for GoodReads users in the UK, but members from other countries are welcome too so long as all posts are made in English. The g ...more

Writing Historical Fiction — 639 members — last activity Nov 11, 2025 11:12AM
I had trouble locating a group dedicated solely to those of us who love writing historical fiction (but if you love reading historical fiction, you're ...more

Kindle Readers and Authors — 366 members — last activity Aug 23, 2025 11:31PM
Discussion forum to bring together readers on Kindle (and other ebook formats) with authors

Ancient & Medieval Historical Fiction — 6118 members — last activity 7 hours, 28 min ago
The focus of this group is historical fiction set in Ancient and Medieval eras(with some post Medieval), in any geographical location. Preference is g ...more

UK Amazon Kindle Forum — 6637 members — last activity 9 hours, 40 min ago
Where every hour is happy hour.

Writers Worth — 1516 members — last activity Jun 21, 2024 02:15PM
Book-lovers unite! Writers Worth is a group where writerly types meet & mingle, and everyone's welcome to promote books, sites, brands, services, and ...more

Historical Info for Historical Fiction Readers — 1565 members — last activity Aug 11, 2022 01:41AM
Information about eras past in different parts of the world. Help for readers who may feel lost in an unfamiliar historical setting, may not understan ...more

All Things Medieval — 523 members — last activity Dec 14, 2022 08:31PM
where people can talk about anything and everything Medieval from known historical figures to life and times of the period to favorite authors of the ...more

Plagues, Witches, and War: The Worlds of Historical Fiction — 92 members — last activity May 23, 2014 06:09AM
Coursera course

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Martin’s Friend Comments

Comments (showing 1-6) post a comment »

date

newest »

message 6: by Sophia

Jun 07, 2013 03:12PM

Thanks for the friend request, Martin!

reply | flag

message 5: by Saul

Jun 07, 2013 02:04PM

Hey Martin. Thanks for connecting!
Saul

reply | flag

message 4: by Susan

Nov 26, 2012 06:13AM

Thanks for the friendship, Martin

reply | flag

message 3: by Jill

Sep 03, 2012 01:59PM

It's lovely to meet you here too, Martin. Thanks for your friendship. I love English history so will look for your books.

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message 2: by Martin

May 01, 2012 06:55AM

Robin wrote: "Hi, Martin,
Thanks for friending me! I see you are reading The Long ShipsThe Long Ships and am curious to know what you think of it!
It's always good to be connected to another writer of historica..."

Hi Robin,
To be honest I've only read a few pages of The Long Ships. It's one of my all time-favourite books and I want a period of uninterrupted time to give it my full attention. I've got friends and family staying for much of May so it will probably be June now.

I can say that I think it is one of my favourite novels. As a child I loved Henry Treece's Viking trilogy - this is better and for grown-ups.

reply | flag

message 1: by Robin

Apr 26, 2012 11:13AM

Hi, Martin,
Thanks for friending me! I see you are reading The Long ShipsThe Long Ships and am curious to know what you think of it!
It's always good to be connected to another writer of historical fiction. Good luck with your writing!
Robin

reply | flag

Martin Lake’s Followers (148)

Martin Lake

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