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Kings of Northumbria #1
Whiteblade
Woken in the middle of the night to flee the fortress of Bebbanburg on the Northumbrian coast, the twelve year old Prince Oswald escapes his father’s killer, Edwin, to establish a new life for himself on the West Coast of Scotland. He becomes a staunch Christian on Iona and trains to be a warrior, making a name for himself in the frequent wars in Ulster and in a divided Scotland. Having earned himself the nickname of ‘Whiteblade’, he establishes himself as the greatest war leader in his adopted homeland. However, he is beset by enemies on all sides and is betrayed by those he should be able to trust the most.
After playing a leading role in deposing the treacherous Connad, King of Dalriada, he helps his successor to extend Dalriada to include the Isles of Skye, Arran and Bute. When King Edwin is killed in battle and those who try to succeed him are also killed by Cadwallon and his invading Welsh army, Oswald decided that his moment of destiny has arrived; he sets out with his warriors to confront Cadwallon and win back the throne of Northumbria.
After playing a leading role in deposing the treacherous Connad, King of Dalriada, he helps his successor to extend Dalriada to include the Isles of Skye, Arran and Bute. When King Edwin is killed in battle and those who try to succeed him are also killed by Cadwallon and his invading Welsh army, Oswald decided that his moment of destiny has arrived; he sets out with his warriors to confront Cadwallon and win back the throne of Northumbria.
221 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 12, 2016
190 people are currently reading
79 people want to read
About the author
H.A. Culley
42 books31 followersH.A. Culley served in the Army for twenty four years during which time he had a variety of unusual jobs. These included commanding an Arab unit in the desert for three years and a tour as the military attaché in Beirut in the late seventies.
After leaving the Army he became the business manager of a large independent school for twenty years before moving into marketing and fundraising. He has also been involved in two major historical projects and now works for an educational charity.
He has given talks on historical subjects for several years and the research involved provided his inspiration for writing historical fiction.
He has three adult children and lives near Holy Island in Northumberland with his wife and two Bernese Mountain Dogs.
After leaving the Army he became the business manager of a large independent school for twenty years before moving into marketing and fundraising. He has also been involved in two major historical projects and now works for an educational charity.
He has given talks on historical subjects for several years and the research involved provided his inspiration for writing historical fiction.
He has three adult children and lives near Holy Island in Northumberland with his wife and two Bernese Mountain Dogs.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
September 28, 2019
Northumbria has been a place of interest to me quite a while as has Bamburgh Castle. H. A. Culley’s Whiteblade: Kings of Northumbria Series (#1) caught my attention because of my interest in Northumbria. Amazingly, I even knew of King Oswald, but not much. Reading Whiteblade, a name Oswald received when he was in exile after his father was killed in battle in 616 AD, has helped me learn the partial history of Britain in the Dark Ages. The author provides a list of main characters, place names such as Bebbanburg (Bamburgh today), Pictland (confederation of kingdoms such as Shetland, the Orkneys, the Outer Hebrides and more area, and Caledonia (Scotland) and a short glossary. I wish that the author had included a map along with the list of place names as I believe locating an area would have been much easier viewing a map versus reading and rereading a list of place names, but the history of all the peoples especially Oswald fascinated me. During this era there were two occupations for males: warrior or monk. Oswald spent time on the Isle of Iona where he received his education and became a devout Christian, but his role was to be a warrior and leader. Some of Oswald’s brothers became monks. The kingdoms in Britain at this time were small and numbered 20: some Christian/some pagan. Eventually, Oswald wished to become King of Northumbria and have his subjects convert to Christianity. I look forward to book #2. 3.5 stars
May 25, 2017
This was the first H A Culley book I've read and in general I enjoyed it and I would read other books by this author.
Good Points - strong attention to Historical detail, the book felt like an accurate portrayal of this time period. Flowing plot and good descriptions of what was going on.
Minuses - the dialogue was at times a bit wooden, at times characters clearly had dialogue just to give background information for the reader. Character development was a bit weak.
Overall verdict, not bad, worth reading if you are interested in this time period, just don't expect the prose of a Bernard Cornwell or Anthony Riches.
Good Points - strong attention to Historical detail, the book felt like an accurate portrayal of this time period. Flowing plot and good descriptions of what was going on.
Minuses - the dialogue was at times a bit wooden, at times characters clearly had dialogue just to give background information for the reader. Character development was a bit weak.
Overall verdict, not bad, worth reading if you are interested in this time period, just don't expect the prose of a Bernard Cornwell or Anthony Riches.
May 8, 2017
A great read. History, action, plot and characters woven into a sweet pie. If you like Bernard Cornwell's historical fiction you will love this. I am into the second book at the moment and it is just as good.
The authors' writing is a river of words that waste no time in pouring out a fast moving exciting story stretching across the life of the protaganist and the time he lived.
You won't want it to end.
The authors' writing is a river of words that waste no time in pouring out a fast moving exciting story stretching across the life of the protaganist and the time he lived.
You won't want it to end.
May 18, 2017
It was ok... but just. Can't excuse the lacklustre writing and the way the book ended. Series books should at least conclude some of the main story they have told. Historical info was fine, but I'm getting a little sick of historical writers who fail to 'write' and hope the historical setting will be enough. There was little drama and emotion... it lacked suspense and imagination. Writers of contemporary fiction cannot get away with lazy writing. I won't be reading anything else from H A Culley, who is nothing more than a fan of the period who thought to write books... he is not a writer. My money is spent better elsewhere.
Ps ... I wanted to make sure I was not maligning a book before I had chance to compare my views with others. Never before have I seen so many 'profiles' created simply to review this book... It's not what Goodreads is about.
Ps ... I wanted to make sure I was not maligning a book before I had chance to compare my views with others. Never before have I seen so many 'profiles' created simply to review this book... It's not what Goodreads is about.
January 31, 2018
Great story!
There are many battles for power going on at this juncture of the century and HA Culley did a fantastic job of bringing them in detail without confusing the situation. I’ve only read stories that depicted Oswald in a not-so-great light so this was refreshing to sorta “grow up with him” as the protagonist. Culley was able to bring many Kings into the story without making judgements and let me decide who I liked or didn’t!
There are a lot of names and places but if you are even remotely into UK his fic, that wouldn’t be an issue. Really helps to be familiar the various names and locations when reading other stories. Gave me plenty of aha! moments. I’d highly recommend to those readers of authors Ashman, Harffy, Cornwell, Schumacher, etc....
There are many battles for power going on at this juncture of the century and HA Culley did a fantastic job of bringing them in detail without confusing the situation. I’ve only read stories that depicted Oswald in a not-so-great light so this was refreshing to sorta “grow up with him” as the protagonist. Culley was able to bring many Kings into the story without making judgements and let me decide who I liked or didn’t!
There are a lot of names and places but if you are even remotely into UK his fic, that wouldn’t be an issue. Really helps to be familiar the various names and locations when reading other stories. Gave me plenty of aha! moments. I’d highly recommend to those readers of authors Ashman, Harffy, Cornwell, Schumacher, etc....
October 25, 2017
Not a bad story following the adventures of Oswald of Northumbria and the monk Aiden, but it does end rather abruptly without the battle the whole book was leading to taking place. The writing style is a bit irritating at times as the author tends to adopt the characteristics of a 1960s children's adventure novel writer when giving voice to their conversations and sometimes in the way the characters behave to one another.
In one chapter there is a storyline about Aiden taking advantage of the pagans by using an eclipse to win them over. I am certain this has idea has been used many times before in movies and novels and it seemed a bit of a worn old cliche in this context.
In one chapter there is a storyline about Aiden taking advantage of the pagans by using an eclipse to win them over. I am certain this has idea has been used many times before in movies and novels and it seemed a bit of a worn old cliche in this context.
August 2, 2017
Too confusing to hold my interest
Too many characters, too much unconnected history introduced too early to determine who or what was the focus of the book. I lost interest early. Too bad, could have better.
Too many characters, too much unconnected history introduced too early to determine who or what was the focus of the book. I lost interest early. Too bad, could have better.
September 18, 2020
Good
Enjoyed the story and really like the characters. The fact that they were real just adds to the story. At times I did have trouble keeping track of the different characters, but the explanation of who they were at the front of the book helped.
Enjoyed the story and really like the characters. The fact that they were real just adds to the story. At times I did have trouble keeping track of the different characters, but the explanation of who they were at the front of the book helped.
May 12, 2017
A irritating story.
This is the first H A Culley book I have read and I am certainly looking forward to the next. Well written and a well thought out plot, loving it.
This is the first H A Culley book I have read and I am certainly looking forward to the next. Well written and a well thought out plot, loving it.
September 28, 2019
Wow
How did the world go on after so much killing. Enjoyed reading very much and looking forward to the next book.
How did the world go on after so much killing. Enjoyed reading very much and looking forward to the next book.
January 17, 2020
Cully tells incredible tale
Cully masterfully weaves fiction with fact in the first book of this incredible series. Hard to put down anxious for book 2
Cully masterfully weaves fiction with fact in the first book of this incredible series. Hard to put down anxious for book 2
February 6, 2020
I tried twice to read this book and just found that I couldn't get into it at all due to the writing. It wasn't that the writing was bad. It just wasn't engaging enough to keep me interested.
January 4, 2017
I am intrigued by this period of English history and enjoyed the fast pace of the book. My personal inclination would be to have more depth of character development, but maybe that's just me. I am reading the second book in the series mainly because I love the time period. I did not like the way this first book in the series ended. There should be a fulfilling way to end each book in a series that leaves the reader satisfied should they decide not to read the next book. That is definitely not the case with Whiteblade. That being said, writing a book is not the easiest thing to do, so I applaud the author.
February 15, 2025
A successor to Nigel Tranter
Impressed by his knowledge of the geography of Dark Ages Scotland (though, probably I shouldn't call it that, too early perhaps) though I found his actual narrative rather simplistic but often so was Tranter, and I ended up reading nearly all his books, as I intend doing with Mr. Culley's.
All-in-all, an enjoyable read..
Impressed by his knowledge of the geography of Dark Ages Scotland (though, probably I shouldn't call it that, too early perhaps) though I found his actual narrative rather simplistic but often so was Tranter, and I ended up reading nearly all his books, as I intend doing with Mr. Culley's.
All-in-all, an enjoyable read..
December 2, 2016
An enjoyable read.
I'm looking forward to reading the second book
I'm looking forward to reading the second book
December 26, 2016
Entertaining and knowledgeable
A good read for lovers of the dark ages period, well paced and informative and placed in a time before the Vikings.
A good read for lovers of the dark ages period, well paced and informative and placed in a time before the Vikings.
Read
February 8, 2017Excellent start to a period about which little has been written.
April 19, 2017
Complex Story
This book rambles from village to village and from clan to clan, often leaving this reader wondering where it's going. Based on historical events and characters, it probably gives a reasonably accurate picture of the era.
This book rambles from village to village and from clan to clan, often leaving this reader wondering where it's going. Based on historical events and characters, it probably gives a reasonably accurate picture of the era.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews