Earl

Cast in Time #4

by Ed Nelson

An Engineer finds himself in an Alternate reality, Cornwall, in the year 715 A.D. He awakens in the body of a young Baron.
James Fletcher, now the Count of Cornwall, is facing new adversaries in the Franks. They try to assassinate him and his family, precipitating a full-out war. In the meantime, advancements were made in steam engines, cannons, ships, and electricity. Continue you on with this wild ride through the eighth century.

Genres: Time Travel, Historical Fiction, Alternate History, Fantasy, Historical Fantasy, Science Fiction, Fiction

386 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 1, 2023

Reviews

[Kenny Mullen · Rating 4 out of 5]

read chapter 28 after 29!!!

Great book but Big edit required, chapter 28 is in the wrong place, as usual a great book, have rad all the author’s books

[Roberto Flores · Rating 5 out of 5]

Some will find this dry.

But I find them soothing. If you read the first three, this is just more of the same. I think it is the rhythm that keeps me coming back for more.

[S Seaberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Very Good Series

I’ve just finished book 4 and, since I started this series, I’ve still been impressed with the quality of this work. My only complaint is that when the author goes into discussions of how things are made he goes into too much detail. This level of detail makes me feel that the storyline is being interrupted so the author can display how thorough the research was done. Much like the MC’s status is displayed in too many current publications. If it is not really contributing to the story, it is unnecessary.

[Paul Coleshill · Rating 3 out of 5]

OTT technical detail

In the 4 books to date the technical descriptions of chemical or engineering processes need to be reduced simplified or done away with. This is supposed to be a story, not a "how to" manual. Put in an appendix with detail if you are so minded.
In this book the author, living in Cornwall and surrounded by sea, finances a track to Africa to get salt!!
The romance of a Yankee in the court of king Arthur is getting stretched thin with the world take over!
Even with an eidetic memory, the most wonderful people, great luck and a fair wind, the protagonist could not have produced the social revolution dipicted in ten years!

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting.. Lots of deux ex machine, eiditic memory and 50 continuous years of MIT PhD studies

With multiple areas of focus plus military 4 star General. Yea, and magical language knowledge.. But a cracking fun romp.
Good book
Interesting story and concepts







😁

[Charles · Rating 2 out of 5]

These are just "Cross Time Engineer" with a less piggish first person and an aversion to overt sex and excessively graphic violence. Our fearless hero even references the Polish slayer of Mongols in this volume. The Pride of Cornwall with his multiple doctorates and perfect memory seems to have forgotten that he can get rock salt without traveling to Africa, that there are oil fields a lot closer than Saudi Arabia or Texas, and...but darn it the narrative must go on. In the next volume, he'll introduce Tom Swift's repelatron! I can't wait.

[Frank Bertino · Rating 5 out of 5]

Entertaining Read

James is now Count of Cornwall. He has absorbed the surrounding baronies into one overall entity. other kingdoms come knocking when bad harvests result in starvation for their people. Cornwall has a surplus so helps out. The goodwill and trade engendered by this translate into more manpower for the industrial revolution. Technical advancement, war, and politics ensue. I look forward to the next book.

[Tony Hisgett · Rating 3 out of 5]

I quite like these books, even though at times they are ridiculous. The technological progress is unbelievable, but it still makes for an interesting read.

There are numerous inconsistencies in the story, some of which may be due to the author being American e.g.
James decides he is short of salt so he has to mount an expedition to Timbuktu, but Salt has been extracted in Cheshire since Roman times and even today accounts for 50% of Salt sold in Britain.

[Micheal Hood · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good Historical Fiction

Crosstime Engineer....
Mr. Norton, as always , tells an excellent story. He always has interesting characters and sets a good pace. So many authors I have read lately seem to be padding their books for the simple purpose of word count. Too many web serials adapted to novel form without a good editing in Kindle Unlimited nowadays.

[Dannan Tavona · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absorbing

Alternate universe, time travel, world building

Other than the faux pas with the titles Count (Compte) and Earl (Jarl) being equivalent, the growing empire and the battles held my interest. Again, hyperlinks should be at the back as end notes. Usual amount of typos for indie writers. Will purchase book 5.

[Nick Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you for a good Reed

I enjoy this series, and find the progression to be interesting and I look forward to seeing were this will go and look to the north America expansion or the sub continent maybe. So thanks for your hard work and I hope you will think about audio books later

[Darin Dunn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book but needs better proofreading

Good story but the book has many grammar and spelling errors. It made reading annoying and sometimes confusing. That’s why only four stars.

[Henry Cosgrove · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent addition

Further times of the way it could have been. Great series about an engineer with a photographic memory advancing his times. Vaguely reminiscent of Twains A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court.

[hlbonnett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

I enjoyed this book a lot . I have not had a book I liked this much in years . Well crafted and it pulled you into the grand world of adventure. Through descriptions of how it all comes together . Could not put it down, and looking forward to the next in the series .

[Matt2015 · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've read a lot of this author's books. I like the concept of the story. However it gets caught in minutiae and skips over what might be most interesting. It also needs serious editing. Thus 3 stars. I do enjoy the story and look forward to the next.

[Jon Ellis · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book needs a lot of editing. There are grammer and spelling errors all through the book and there is one chapter that is out of sinc, but the story is solid and captivating. I'm hoping that was another error at the end when it said the next book in the series is due out in January of 2025. I think I'm going to have to download some of ther authors other work to see if it's as good.

[Carlos · Rating 4 out of 5]

Long live the Earl!

Enjoyable story and love to commentary and technological upgrades..can't wait to see what the Earl will go next...but he needs a title upgrade soon he holds way to much land and people to be a Earl.

[Ron]

Great series

This book has a pacing and tone that is classic engineer. I really enjoy it. It understates some things, but you know they are there, it's just how engineers talk and think. It's really enjoyable to me. I look forward to the next adventures!

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

The conquest continues.

Author Ed Nelson continues James, now Earl Owen-Napp’s conquest of Britain and Northern Europe. The writing is still fresh and exciting. Keep reading, you’ll enjoy it.

[Al · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a hard science fiction fan I’m enjoying this series of stories. It is interesting to see the development of modern devices and to think about how a society evolves around these technologies. I look forward to reading the rest of the series.

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book four in the series

Lots of things that can be improved: preserving food, health care for people outside Cornwall, making plastics, an oil refinery, and other things. There are battles to fight and new lands to manage. A great story.

[Elisabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Needs editing

Chapter 28 and 29 are out of order. Very very jarring. Other than that, the story is as good as ever. Once edited, deserves 5 stars.

[R S SHANNON · Rating 5 out of 5]

An Earl in Time!

Five Star Read!*****!!
Continuing story of an American General Engineer cast into the 8th Century...Conquest of England and near Europe to an eary Renaissance!!

[Mr. M Morgan · Rating 5 out of 5]

one of the best books……

One of the best I have read in a long time. I could not put it down, until i read all the book.. I cannot wait for the next one.

[Maurice King · Rating 4 out of 5]

good read

Chapters 28 & 29 need to be flipped. The aftermath of the war is described before the actual war. Enjoyable as usual.

[John Allen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the fourth book I've read. I like the concept which is fun to read - a little bit out there as far as the progress that the author is making - but fun all the same :-)

[dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well done!

A positive enjoyable book that held my interest till the end. I am looking forward to the next book the Duke.

[Daniel Athearn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another fine voume.

This newest addition to this world is a great one. Continuing the story laid out previously and adding more depth to our protagonists' empire.

[Jorge3 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Saga Continues

The author keeps the reader engaged as the protagonist continues his nation building. By keeping the scientific details to a minimum.

[J. Straley · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Romp

Suspend your disbelief and just enjoy the romp. I think stuff like the chemistry may be poof-presto, but who cares.