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1198 A.D A hooded man brings rebellion to the forest… Lionheart’s England, with the King fighting in Normandy… For the oppressed villagers of Sherwood there is no escape from persecution and despair. They exist under the sufferance of their brutal overlords. When a mysterious stranger saves a miller’s son from cruel punishment, the Sheriff of Nottingham sends the ruthless Sir Guy of Gisborne to hunt him down. His past life destroyed, Robin of Loxley must face his greatest challenge yet. Deadly with a longbow and a sword, he will fight tyranny and injustice, encounter allies and enemies old and new. The vast Sherwood Forest with its hidden glades and ancient pathways is the last refuge of wolfsheads. Here their bloody battles will be fought, friendships forged and loyalties tested. Loxley will become Robin Hood. Notorious leader of outlaws. Their daring deeds will become legend in this exciting work of historical fiction. This is the first in a four-part series "The Chronicles of Robin Hood", and includes an historical note on the origins of the famous outlaw. Read the other three titles "Wolfshead", "Villain" and "Legend" now.
280 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 23, 2015
44 people are currently reading
709 people want to read
About the author
John Bainbridge
23 books79 followersJohn Bainbridge is the author of the thrillers. The Shadow Of William Quest, Deadly Quest and Dark Shadow, set in the Victorian underworld of the 1850s and Balmoral Kill and Dangerous Game - Golden Age style spy thrillers set in the 1930s.
John has written four historical novels in the series The Chronicles of Robin Hood: Loxley, Wolfshead, Villain and Legend. These take the legendary outlaw back to a gritty medieval reality.
A countryside access campaigner, John also writes non-fiction books about walking in the British countryside, Rambling - Some Thoughts on Country Walking, The Compleat Trespasser, Footloose in Devon, Footloose with George Borrow, and a memoir, Wayfarer's Dole.
He is currently writing a prequel to the William Quest novels.
John's wife, Anne Bainbridge, writes historical detective fiction, the Inspector Abbs Victorian Mysteries and the 1930s-set Inspector Chance Mysteries. Anne's novels were first published under John's name.
John blogs at:
www.johnbainbridgewriter.wordpress.com
www.walktheoldways.wordpress.com
John has written four historical novels in the series The Chronicles of Robin Hood: Loxley, Wolfshead, Villain and Legend. These take the legendary outlaw back to a gritty medieval reality.
A countryside access campaigner, John also writes non-fiction books about walking in the British countryside, Rambling - Some Thoughts on Country Walking, The Compleat Trespasser, Footloose in Devon, Footloose with George Borrow, and a memoir, Wayfarer's Dole.
He is currently writing a prequel to the William Quest novels.
John's wife, Anne Bainbridge, writes historical detective fiction, the Inspector Abbs Victorian Mysteries and the 1930s-set Inspector Chance Mysteries. Anne's novels were first published under John's name.
John blogs at:
www.johnbainbridgewriter.wordpress.com
www.walktheoldways.wordpress.com
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
June 15, 2015
Wonderful Retelling
I love Robin Hood so I'm predisposed to enjoy the book. That said, I've read so many that it's got to be a pretty good story to hold my interest. It was & I can't wait for the next adventure!
I love Robin Hood so I'm predisposed to enjoy the book. That said, I've read so many that it's got to be a pretty good story to hold my interest. It was & I can't wait for the next adventure!
November 20, 2017
How much did I enjoy this story? It took me back to the black and white TV series of the 1950’s, when I was no more than six or seven years old, and television wasn’t much older.
This treatment of the legendary villain, freedom fighter and ex-nobleman makes for a superb read. The entertainment begins in the first lines and continues to the end. Amid brilliantly choreographed fight scenes and chases through Sherwood Forest, there are moments to absorb the time and place. Loyalty, deceit, abuse, treachery, murder and mayhem all abound in the story.
Maid Marian, one of my first loves, is portrayed as a different character to the ladylike one I recall, but this author has created a mysterious, beautiful, brave and adventurous Marian.
Robin Hood builds his band of rebels from a humble few, but their interaction, and escapades are well written and bring the story to life.
A great read, and I’ll happily go on to the next in the series.
This treatment of the legendary villain, freedom fighter and ex-nobleman makes for a superb read. The entertainment begins in the first lines and continues to the end. Amid brilliantly choreographed fight scenes and chases through Sherwood Forest, there are moments to absorb the time and place. Loyalty, deceit, abuse, treachery, murder and mayhem all abound in the story.
Maid Marian, one of my first loves, is portrayed as a different character to the ladylike one I recall, but this author has created a mysterious, beautiful, brave and adventurous Marian.
Robin Hood builds his band of rebels from a humble few, but their interaction, and escapades are well written and bring the story to life.
A great read, and I’ll happily go on to the next in the series.
February 5, 2022
An intense, focused storyline about a determined rebel hero. Tight pacing, well structured plotting kept this an exciting read. Set up the sequel very well. I look forward to reading it.
June 6, 2024
A super book satisfying all my interests in history, Robin Hood & archery! The author, who's walking blog I follow will be pleased to know that I've already bought the other books in the 4-book series "The Chronicles of Robin Hood". A great read.
September 19, 2024
Five out of five stars, even after a second reading. Superb historical detail, carefully constructed plot, and multifaceted heroes and villains alike. My one criticism is about Marian: she’s much too forward and “20th-century-bold.” She’s a great character and it is true to myth that Marian fought alongside Robin Hood. That part I don’t have much of an issue with because it can be reasoned she would be atypical of most noble women of the period, simply because she grew up without a mother or much female influence. Her father Lord Fitzwalter definitely fits the mould of the indulgent older father who doesn’t quite know what to do or say to his only wild-hearted child, except utter mild reproofs at her for wandering all over the forest alone.
No, it’s none of these things that gave me pause about Marian. Rather it’s her (somewhat shocking) flirtation with Robin and her boasting about carnal experiences. This seems more in-line with the kitchen maids and servant girls that appear in the book, not a lady of noble birth. Yes, she’s daring and full of courage, but that hardly equates to all areas of her life. Women were anything but free to have a tumble in the hay/leaves with anyone, particularly those of noble birth and Marian would have been very conscious of those restraints. She may have dared to “push the envelope” but I doubt she would have bragged about it to Robin who she barely knows at this point in the series.
No, it’s none of these things that gave me pause about Marian. Rather it’s her (somewhat shocking) flirtation with Robin and her boasting about carnal experiences. This seems more in-line with the kitchen maids and servant girls that appear in the book, not a lady of noble birth. Yes, she’s daring and full of courage, but that hardly equates to all areas of her life. Women were anything but free to have a tumble in the hay/leaves with anyone, particularly those of noble birth and Marian would have been very conscious of those restraints. She may have dared to “push the envelope” but I doubt she would have bragged about it to Robin who she barely knows at this point in the series.
August 28, 2025
I have always loved the Robin Hood stories I watched on TV or in movies as a young boy. I read many books about Robin and his "merry men (and women)" over the years. Each one adding to the legend. This current effort by Mr. Bainbridge is one I found most exciting because it cast Robin as a much more believable character with strengths AND weaknesses. This Robin seems to me to be more personal and truer to the troubled times of the 13th Century. I look forward to the other volumes in the series.
March 21, 2019
Robin of the Hood
A fan of Robin Hood an you Sir have done him justice. The second best author I've read. A lot of action told in slow mode. So u get the feel of being there. The author pulls u you in with a longbow in hand an a quiver of arrows fighting for justice. To give the poor a helping an making fools of the Sheriff of Nottinghamshire an Ginsburg. Very well written Sir Jon Bainbridge. A must read for fans of Robin Hood or any reader who what's some good action
A fan of Robin Hood an you Sir have done him justice. The second best author I've read. A lot of action told in slow mode. So u get the feel of being there. The author pulls u you in with a longbow in hand an a quiver of arrows fighting for justice. To give the poor a helping an making fools of the Sheriff of Nottinghamshire an Ginsburg. Very well written Sir Jon Bainbridge. A must read for fans of Robin Hood or any reader who what's some good action
October 17, 2021
The legend lives on...
An excellent retelling of the Robin Hood legend, Loxley is the first in a four book series. Very well written, as I've found all Bainbridge's books to be, it is full of adventure as only a Robin Hood tale can be. The familiar characters are all there, with a new twist or two. Looking forward to #2, Wolfshead. Bravo, John!
An excellent retelling of the Robin Hood legend, Loxley is the first in a four book series. Very well written, as I've found all Bainbridge's books to be, it is full of adventure as only a Robin Hood tale can be. The familiar characters are all there, with a new twist or two. Looking forward to #2, Wolfshead. Bravo, John!
July 26, 2019
Brilliant
I loved this book .. I loved Robin Hood as a kid.. and as an adult this book took me back and much more it's not your merry men in green tights it's brutal bloody and you can almost smell Sherwood Forrest as you read.about it ... now for book 2 ...
I loved this book .. I loved Robin Hood as a kid.. and as an adult this book took me back and much more it's not your merry men in green tights it's brutal bloody and you can almost smell Sherwood Forrest as you read.about it ... now for book 2 ...
January 19, 2017
First of all i want to thank goodreads and the author of this book Loxley: The Chronicles of Robin Hood for giving me the opportunity to discover this book.
Now on to the review...
I liked this book and it was an easy and enjoyable read.
That is because there is never a dull moment, there is a lot of action but from time to time we get some character development as well, which makes it a nicely balanced read. The fact that i could read again about characters that i was so fond of while i was a child was definately a bonus, it brought back some nice memories, and yet some characters have a somewhat different role than i am used to in a robin hood story. ( That is a good thing by the way not a bad thing)
It is obvious that the book is the first in a series of books if you read the ending but it does have a kind of self contained story so you can read it without being forced to read the following ones. That is something that i find very important, because i don't like it if the story just stops while there is no ending in sight.
And then maybe something a little negatif, and that's the fact that it was fairly predictable. However it did not bother me personally because robin hood is a well known story and so being a little predictable means that the author stayed true to the story that we all know and love.
I give this book a 4/5 because it was a very enjoyable read and i'm looking forward to reading the next installments in this series.
Now on to the review...
I liked this book and it was an easy and enjoyable read.
That is because there is never a dull moment, there is a lot of action but from time to time we get some character development as well, which makes it a nicely balanced read. The fact that i could read again about characters that i was so fond of while i was a child was definately a bonus, it brought back some nice memories, and yet some characters have a somewhat different role than i am used to in a robin hood story. ( That is a good thing by the way not a bad thing)
It is obvious that the book is the first in a series of books if you read the ending but it does have a kind of self contained story so you can read it without being forced to read the following ones. That is something that i find very important, because i don't like it if the story just stops while there is no ending in sight.
And then maybe something a little negatif, and that's the fact that it was fairly predictable. However it did not bother me personally because robin hood is a well known story and so being a little predictable means that the author stayed true to the story that we all know and love.
I give this book a 4/5 because it was a very enjoyable read and i'm looking forward to reading the next installments in this series.
November 30, 2016
"Loxley" as the name suggests is a re-telling of the hackneyed Robin Hood story.
This, however, is an excellent version, retaining the bones of the legend, but written with style. It is fast-paced, entertaining and keeps one's interest throughout. There are new twists and slants that make the story even more interesting. I thoroughly recommend this book and I am looking forward to the next episode by this excellent author, John Bainbridge
This, however, is an excellent version, retaining the bones of the legend, but written with style. It is fast-paced, entertaining and keeps one's interest throughout. There are new twists and slants that make the story even more interesting. I thoroughly recommend this book and I am looking forward to the next episode by this excellent author, John Bainbridge
May 20, 2016
I really enjoy this authors writing. It has a lot of action and intrigue.
February 15, 2017
Really enjoyable. Full review over here: https://rickusbookshelf.wordpress.com...
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews