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Walter Tirel #2
The Wolf Time
Sequel to the bestselling historical novel The Paladin. From the author of Imperial Governor, Knight in Anarchy, and The Chilean Club.
Walter Tirel, Lord of Poix, has entered the service of King William Rufus of England. He is aware of how the king’s ambitious and ruthless brother Prince Henry is plotting against him, and longs to expose this treason. But the king steadfastly refuses to believe such evil of his brother. In addition, Tirel must fight the king’s enemies in England, Normandy and France, and guide him in his relationships with the Church. At the same time he re-encounters his old love, Isabel of Conches. This is an action-packed historical adventure, full of battle scenes and romance.
Contains passages which may be offensive to LGBT readers
‘Sticking close to the facts… and very hot on detail, The Wolf Time is a very persuasive solution of the mystery’
Sunday Telegraph
Walter Tirel, Lord of Poix, has entered the service of King William Rufus of England. He is aware of how the king’s ambitious and ruthless brother Prince Henry is plotting against him, and longs to expose this treason. But the king steadfastly refuses to believe such evil of his brother. In addition, Tirel must fight the king’s enemies in England, Normandy and France, and guide him in his relationships with the Church. At the same time he re-encounters his old love, Isabel of Conches. This is an action-packed historical adventure, full of battle scenes and romance.
Contains passages which may be offensive to LGBT readers
‘Sticking close to the facts… and very hot on detail, The Wolf Time is a very persuasive solution of the mystery’
Sunday Telegraph
- GenresHistorical FictionNovels
304 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 13, 2015
About the author
George Shipway
13 books20 followersGeorge Shipway (1908–1982) was a British author best known for his historical novels, but he also tried his hand at political satire in his book The Chilian Club.
Shipway was born in 1908, and served in the Indian Imperial Cavalry until 1946. He died in 1982. His cavalry background served him well when he took up writing; his descriptions of cavalry battles are full of minute detail and his works generally were meticulously researched.
IN his 1969 novel Knight in Anarchy Shipway describes the life of Humphrey de Visdelou as he follows Geoffrey de Mandeville to his doom. In the book Shipway indicates that he lives on the estates that de Visdelou once owned.
Shipway was born in 1908, and served in the Indian Imperial Cavalry until 1946. He died in 1982. His cavalry background served him well when he took up writing; his descriptions of cavalry battles are full of minute detail and his works generally were meticulously researched.
IN his 1969 novel Knight in Anarchy Shipway describes the life of Humphrey de Visdelou as he follows Geoffrey de Mandeville to his doom. In the book Shipway indicates that he lives on the estates that de Visdelou once owned.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
December 30, 2018
An HF-favorite ... Encourage readers of Britain's fictional history to add Shipway to their collections.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_...
***
Caution : Wolf Time could also be titled Paladin, part II. The Wolf Time version I own is contained within the same physical book as "The Paladin"
It's about Walter Tirel
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_...
***
Re-reading Wolf Time reminds me how richly Shipway tells his tales. Compared to the tasty blood pudding books of many contemporary historical fiction writers, the retired British army officer presents a meaty full course meal.
If you want to know what happened in the 30-40 years following the Norman conquest of England ... if interested in contentious diverse sons of the Conqueror, you might appreciate reading Shipway's Paladin works.
For a bloody sample of the action, here's a quote from one of the minor segments of Wolf Time, wherein the main character, Walter Tirel, is part of a small English military action as allies of one warring Welsh faction:
"Welshmen fled to the trackway, and gestured urgently to the scarps whence they had come. We peered at the mist-clad slopes, seeking their pursuers, heard high-pitched yells and battlecries -- but saw not a living creatures. We nuzzled shield rims, balanced lances, and waited with nerves at stretch.
Whutt!
Navel of Christ, what's that?
Whutt! Whutt!
Someone screamed. A destrier reared; the files bucketed sideways. I goggled in disbelief. Feathers jutted from a shield, a barb bristled on the owner's back. The shaft had skewered hide and mail and flesh and bone like so much flimsy parchment. Hauberks were proof against arrows -- what sorcery was this?
Whutt!
A sound like a muffled whipcrack, like no arrow I ever heard -- and plenty had passed my ears. Another agonized cry. A destrier streaked from the ranks; the rider dropped his lance and clutched his thigh. An arrow pinned him to to the saddle, piercing hauberk-skirt and leg, alva and horse's ribs. The destrier faltered in his stride, and tumbled end over end. The knight, still pinned in place, shrieked as the cantle crushed him."
***
I seem to snatch quotations from books' bloody scenes. Hmm.
Don't think Shipway so much bloody as historic thoughtful. The teacher turned author.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_...
***
Caution : Wolf Time could also be titled Paladin, part II. The Wolf Time version I own is contained within the same physical book as "The Paladin"
It's about Walter Tirel
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_...
***
Re-reading Wolf Time reminds me how richly Shipway tells his tales. Compared to the tasty blood pudding books of many contemporary historical fiction writers, the retired British army officer presents a meaty full course meal.
If you want to know what happened in the 30-40 years following the Norman conquest of England ... if interested in contentious diverse sons of the Conqueror, you might appreciate reading Shipway's Paladin works.
For a bloody sample of the action, here's a quote from one of the minor segments of Wolf Time, wherein the main character, Walter Tirel, is part of a small English military action as allies of one warring Welsh faction:
"Welshmen fled to the trackway, and gestured urgently to the scarps whence they had come. We peered at the mist-clad slopes, seeking their pursuers, heard high-pitched yells and battlecries -- but saw not a living creatures. We nuzzled shield rims, balanced lances, and waited with nerves at stretch.
Whutt!
Navel of Christ, what's that?
Whutt! Whutt!
Someone screamed. A destrier reared; the files bucketed sideways. I goggled in disbelief. Feathers jutted from a shield, a barb bristled on the owner's back. The shaft had skewered hide and mail and flesh and bone like so much flimsy parchment. Hauberks were proof against arrows -- what sorcery was this?
Whutt!
A sound like a muffled whipcrack, like no arrow I ever heard -- and plenty had passed my ears. Another agonized cry. A destrier streaked from the ranks; the rider dropped his lance and clutched his thigh. An arrow pinned him to to the saddle, piercing hauberk-skirt and leg, alva and horse's ribs. The destrier faltered in his stride, and tumbled end over end. The knight, still pinned in place, shrieked as the cantle crushed him."
***
I seem to snatch quotations from books' bloody scenes. Hmm.
Don't think Shipway so much bloody as historic thoughtful. The teacher turned author.
November 14, 2012
I've been re-reading Geo. Shipway--- always a favourite author, and someone whose novels (except for "Imperial Governor", his best work) have been all-too-neglected. "Wolf Time" is the sequel to "The Paladin", and it follows the career of Walter Tirel--- Norman knight and courtier, skilled archer, political failure ---to its climax, with the death of William Rufus (Red William, William II, the son and successor to William the Conqueror) from a crossbow bolt launched by Tirel. Assassination, accident, personal vendetta, pagan ritual--- all those questions still hover over the Red King's death, and Shipway lets Tirel, now a fugitive and exile, try to explain what happened that day in the New Forest.
As always, Shipway has a keen eye for local politics, and his vision of England and Normandy in the 1090s brings up local chaos and a culture of mail-fist brutality overlain with a very thin veneer of gentility. Shipway served out his own military career on the Northwest Frontier, and his description of life among the Norman barons draws on his personal experience among Pathan and Afghan chieftains in the 1940s.
"The Wolf Time" works as both historical fiction and as a story of politics and ambition. It has to be read in tandem with "The Paladin", but, then--- you should be reading all of Shipway anyway.
As always, Shipway has a keen eye for local politics, and his vision of England and Normandy in the 1090s brings up local chaos and a culture of mail-fist brutality overlain with a very thin veneer of gentility. Shipway served out his own military career on the Northwest Frontier, and his description of life among the Norman barons draws on his personal experience among Pathan and Afghan chieftains in the 1940s.
"The Wolf Time" works as both historical fiction and as a story of politics and ambition. It has to be read in tandem with "The Paladin", but, then--- you should be reading all of Shipway anyway.
September 16, 2018
George Shipway (1908-82) was an excellent British historical novelist, whose strengths include a strong realism, and whose cavalry background made him well qualified to write about military matters. Not for Mr Shipway the romance of chivalry; the nasty, brutish and short side of life in the Middle Ages is presented plainly.
The Wolf Time is the second part of the story of Walter Tirel (reputed killer of William Rufus), the first being The Paladin. The author never makes the mistake of imputing modern ethics or motives to his characters, all of whom seemed completely believable; and I found the book most enjoyable.
The Wolf Time is the second part of the story of Walter Tirel (reputed killer of William Rufus), the first being The Paladin. The author never makes the mistake of imputing modern ethics or motives to his characters, all of whom seemed completely believable; and I found the book most enjoyable.
April 26, 2025
as a child I new William Rufus was killed in the New Forest but did now the back story
9
9
January 6, 2016
‘And what is Walter of Poix, France’s liege, doing in this assembly?’
In ‘The Wolf Time’, the story follows the career of Walter Tirel, Lord of Poix. Walter Tirel, a Norman knight and courtier was a skilled archer. Tirel serves King William Rufus of England, at times complicated by his own allegiance to the King of France. But Tirel swore an oath years earlier to serve and protect William Rufus, and has no intention of breaking his oath. Tirel knows that the King William Rufus’s brother, Prince Henry, is plotting against him. But at every turn, he is thwarted. Honour, to King William Rufus, is everything and the King will not believe his brother capable of such treachery.
England and Normandy during the last decade of the eleventh century are full of violence as knights (and kings) jockey for land and power. It’s a brutal world. Tirel tries to protect the King, by fighting his enemies where he can. Tirel’s own life is complicated by the reappearance of Isabel of Conches, her husband and son.
‘And now I must describe how my honour collapsed around my ears,…’
Despite Tirel’s best efforts, King William Rufus is killed by a crossbow shot in the New Forest. Evidence seems to indicate that Tirel fired this fatal shot. But did he? In this novel, Walter Tirel provides his own account.
‘Wolf Time’ is the sequel to ‘The Paladin’ and is an engrossing historical fiction about Walter Tirel and King William Rufus. Mr Shipway has developed Walter Tirel’s life within the confines of what is known historically, and provided a plausible story for the death of King William Rufus. I enjoyed this novel better for having read ‘The Paladin’ comparatively recently: the detailed background provided in the first novel comprehensively sets the scene for what happens in the second.
Be warned, this is not a gentle story, and many of the attitudes portrayed would definitely not be considered politically correct these days. And now, I need to seek out more of George Shipway’s work.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
In ‘The Wolf Time’, the story follows the career of Walter Tirel, Lord of Poix. Walter Tirel, a Norman knight and courtier was a skilled archer. Tirel serves King William Rufus of England, at times complicated by his own allegiance to the King of France. But Tirel swore an oath years earlier to serve and protect William Rufus, and has no intention of breaking his oath. Tirel knows that the King William Rufus’s brother, Prince Henry, is plotting against him. But at every turn, he is thwarted. Honour, to King William Rufus, is everything and the King will not believe his brother capable of such treachery.
England and Normandy during the last decade of the eleventh century are full of violence as knights (and kings) jockey for land and power. It’s a brutal world. Tirel tries to protect the King, by fighting his enemies where he can. Tirel’s own life is complicated by the reappearance of Isabel of Conches, her husband and son.
‘And now I must describe how my honour collapsed around my ears,…’
Despite Tirel’s best efforts, King William Rufus is killed by a crossbow shot in the New Forest. Evidence seems to indicate that Tirel fired this fatal shot. But did he? In this novel, Walter Tirel provides his own account.
‘Wolf Time’ is the sequel to ‘The Paladin’ and is an engrossing historical fiction about Walter Tirel and King William Rufus. Mr Shipway has developed Walter Tirel’s life within the confines of what is known historically, and provided a plausible story for the death of King William Rufus. I enjoyed this novel better for having read ‘The Paladin’ comparatively recently: the detailed background provided in the first novel comprehensively sets the scene for what happens in the second.
Be warned, this is not a gentle story, and many of the attitudes portrayed would definitely not be considered politically correct these days. And now, I need to seek out more of George Shipway’s work.
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
September 10, 2016
Wonderful!
A well written historical fiction in two volumes by a master story teller. Bravo. The reader's glimpse into history is just a little bit broader, and their vision of the past a little deeper, thanks to writings such as these.
A well written historical fiction in two volumes by a master story teller. Bravo. The reader's glimpse into history is just a little bit broader, and their vision of the past a little deeper, thanks to writings such as these.
January 24, 2012
I registered a book at BookCrossing.com!
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/10368608
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/10368608
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews