Hawkwood

by Jack Ludlow

The Hundred Year s War is over and newly-knighted Sir John Hawkwood is headed for France to make his fortune.

Fourteenth-century Italy: a country in upheaval as desperate cities struggle against both each other and venal Papal rule. Unable to rely on their own citizens to fight their battles, the cities and Popes are forced to pay vast amounts of money to mercenary captains to fight on their behalf.

Hawkwood, a valiant Englishman, shrewd and relentless on the battlefield, finds himself fighting for and against any state of Italy prepared to pay handsomely. If none will pay, he and the White Company brutally seize what they desire. As he leaves stains of his presence up and down the country, those who curse him at their defeat can soon be those who praise him for their deliverance.

It is a world of massacre and pillage in which life is less than cheap and no one can be trusted. To survive, a man has to be quick thinking, fleet of foot and strong in his sword arm: Hawkwood is such a man.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Italy, Fiction, Historical

352 pages, Hardcover

Published May 19, 2016

About the author

JACK LUDLOW is the pen name of writer David Donachie, who was born in Edinburgh in 1944. He has had a variety of jobs, including selling everything from business machines to soap. He has always had an abiding interest in the naval history of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, which he drew upon for the many novels he has set in that period. The author of a number of bestselling books, he now lives in Deal with his wife, fellow A&B author Sarah Grazebrook.

Reviews

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

If I could've given 2.5 stars, I would have.
I stuck with it to the end, but it wasn't an easy read.
First, Mr. Ludlow's writing style is . . . odd. His sentence structure is unusual and unwieldy.
Getting past that, the book was simply boring. The author missed many opportunities to really develop some kick-ass battle scenes. The whole thing just fell a little flat for me.
Even though it was a slog, I did stick it out. I have never read anything set in Italy in this time period before this book, so that interested me.
Will be a while before I pick up another Ludlow book, I think.

[Jo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hawkwood has followed his king, Edward III, to war and once it ends he decides not to return to England. He and his band of longbowmen join with other mercenaries and lay waste to France and Italy. They hear of a large amount of cash being moved from one place to another and decide to ambush the party. This was a decent enough medieval caper although there isn't much of a plot.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well enough written but never fully engaging. Although it had plenty of personal detail about Hawkwood the characters seemed to stay two dimensional on the page, never really seeming fully lifelike.

[Evelyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not my usual read. A knight’s tale firmly based in historical fact. 14th century Italy is the setting for this story based on the adventures of an English knight who remains in Italy after fighting for King Edward for many years. He turns to free booting - a mercenary who sells his skills to any willing to pay. Set against the backdrop of Papal corruption and powerful Italian families seeking fortune - the story is rich in detail of battle strategy and negotiating the intrigues of Italian politics. Interesting read 😊

[Terri · Rating 3 out of 5]

REVIEW TO COME...

[Laurence · Rating 3 out of 5]

Difficult one to review. Fairly competently written, but it's a whole life in 400 odd pages. He had an action filled life and I think would be better suited to a series. Some scenes are more fleshed out and then years are glazed over without really signaling the passage of time. There are few scenes of action or even really showing his leadership cunning.
None of the other soldiers or family are really fleshed out which I think makes everything seem a bit shallow too.

Still, better than I expected after I saw quite low reviews. I still want to read one of the non fiction John Hawkwood biographies.

[James Casey · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this book rather boring. It read like a documentary and it just flitted about from one scene to another without anything really making you want to read on. I only did in the hope that something might just take my interest but to no avail. John Hawkwood was obviously a man of great courage and fortitude and leadership but any battle scenes were just glossed over or brushed aside and in a story of a warrior action is a necessary ingredient, instead it was simply all about money, possessions and politics. Sorry, rather disappointing.

[Scott Gardner · Rating 2 out of 5]

To try and put John Hawkwood's life into a 382 page book was always going to be a tough ask , it makes the book seem rushed , part story , part historic .
A trilogy would have better suited , i kept thinking how a major historic story teller like Conn Iggulden or Simon Scarrow would had done a lot better with this hero of Florence

[Brian Stone · Rating 1 out of 5]

This author’s English is abysmal - he doesn’t know the difference between abjure & adjure, between discussion and digression or between who and which. I could cite numerous similar errors in this book which has irritated me beyond measure! His editor at Allison & Busby needs shooting - did they even bother to read the proofs?
Brian Stone

[Lynn Hutchinson · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was a dreadful book, no proper story, it just lurched boringly from a few details about one battle to the next, it had no depth and even Hawkwood himself was depicted as quite a shallow character which I suspect doesn’t do him justice at all.
I shan’t rush to read another book by this author.

[Alicia Pearson · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book starts out well, but then gets very 'point by point' and bland.

[Richard · Rating 2 out of 5]

A bit disappointing after enjoying the author's novel, Burning Sky. I never felt fully engaged with the character John Hawkwood and therefore the story became a bit of a mess.

[Catia Pereira · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit slow but ok read.

[Julian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite enjoyed it, a little known part of history.

[Boulder Boulderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book about a very interesting historical character. John Hawkwood could've been the basis for a trilogy at the minimum, to tell the story of his life; Bernard Cornwell could easily basis a series of a dozen or more books.

This is a valiant attempt but to capture 50 years of the life of one of the most lively historical figures is a big ask. The long time-frame and constantly shifting cast prevent any real depth, and there's never more than a sketch of any particular event.

While I didn't hate this book by any means, Hawkwood deserves more.