Robin of Sherwood: The Hooded Man

Robin of Sherwood #3

by Anthony Horowitz, Richard Carpenter (Creator)

The English folk hero Robin Hood has more adventures.

Novelises Herne's Son Parts 1 and 2 and The Power of Albion from the beginning of Series Three, showing how Robert of Huntingdon became 'Robin'

Genres: Fiction, Historical, Historical Fiction, Media Tie In, Fantasy, Adventure, Tv

160 pages, Paperback

First published January 30, 1986

About the author

Anthony Horowitz, OBE is ranked alongside Enid Blyton and Mark A. Cooper as "The most original and best spy-kids authors of the century." (New York Times). Anthony has been writing since the age of eight, and professionally since the age of twenty. In addition to the highly successful Alex Rider books, he is also the writer and creator of award winning detective series Foyle’s War, and more recently event drama Collision, among his other television works he has written episodes for Poirot, Murder in Mind, Midsomer Murders and Murder Most Horrid. Anthony became patron to East Anglia Children’s Hospices in 2009.

On 19 January 2011, the estate of Arthur Conan Doyle announced that Horowitz was to be the writer of a new Sherlock Holmes novel, the first such effort to receive an official endorsement from them and to be entitled the House of Silk.

http://us.macmillan.com/author/anthon...

Reviews

[BooksAndFrogs (Mervi) · Rating 3 out of 5]

What a nostalgic trip to youth this was! I watched the series when it aired in Finland, and somehow many of the characters and scenes came back to my mind while reading, almost like re-watching the show. :D

[Dearbhla · Rating 4 out of 5]

aka Richard Carpenter's Robin of Sherwood : The Hooded Man.

This is the novelization of the start of season 3 of that wonderful 80s tv show, Robin of Sherwood. I loved that show, so I am unable to review this book objectively. Anything that brings me back to that world is only a good thing in my opinion.

I really enjoy this take on the Robin Hood legend, because in most versions the tale is a story of rich against poor, with Robin on the side of goodness and justice, obviously. But the tv show, and this book can actually be read as books about colonisation. Saxon England has been conquered by the Normans, now they are the ones with the power and the money, bringing their own rules and laws. They have colonised England ((the more history I read, the more I realise that power really is the biggest evil out there)) and the Saxons have to fight to survive in their own country.

Their own native religions and practices, long under threat from the various conversions to Christianity are put under more pressure because the Church backs the Normans, and the Normans back the Church. Older gods, such as Herne the Hunter, are being forced out. But in the world of Robin of Sherwwod he still lives and still has power.

The book itself is probably a little over-written in places, but it was very enjoyable. It is a quick and easy read, and if anyone out there enjoyed the show from the eighties then I'd highly recommend you give this a go. Horowitz knows his job and does it well. Two thumbs up.

Nothing's forgotten. Nothing is ever forgotten.

[J. White · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've watched the film of this book and in my opinion the book is better. The best bit about the book was that the author has managed to fit loads and loads into 160 pages.

Highly recommended.

[John Kirk · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is definitely the best book in the series. I think that's partly due to the writer and partly because it only adapts 3 episodes: that's the right amount of material for a book this length, and it gives the writer scope to add extra detail that I wouldn't have noticed in the original episodes. For instance, the author mentions that a banquet involves bowls of sugar, which was much more expensive than the usual honey. I don't know whether that's historically accurate, but I'm willing to believe it.

There's a solid "quest" structure to the story: Robert has to get the group back together, then rescue Marion. It obviously follows on from previous installments, but I don't think you really need to have read them in order to understand what's going on here.

Richard Carpenter still deserves credit for the original episodes; the various ways that people mangle Gisburne's name is genuinely funny.

[Arlene Allen · Rating 3 out of 5]

based on my favorite tv series of all time.