I greatly enjoyed this tale and found it engrossing and convincing in its painting of Danish/Viking life, perhaps slightly less convincing in the scenes in Wessex - was Alfred really running a kingdom effectively ruled by the church and priests.

But that's a minor quibble, and Uhtred's story and character is the centre of the tale and is a pleasure to ride along with.

I'm tempted to read the sequel - but there seem to be 12 more of them!