Publisher's Synopsis
'Nobody but Dan Jones could write this story... It captures the grime, blood, sweat and friendship of medieval war brilliantly.' GARETH RUSSELL AN ENDLESS WAR. A BLOOD-SOAKED BATTLEFIELD.
A BAND OF BROTHERS 1347.
Bruised and bloodied by an epic battle at Crécy, six soldiers of fortune known as the Essex Dogs pick through the wreckage of the fighting – and their own lives. Now a new siege is beginning, and the Dogs are sent to attack the soaring walls of Calais. King Edward has vowed no Englishman will leave France til this city falls. To get home, they must survive a merciless winter in a lawless camp deadlier than any battlefield. Obsessed with tracking down the vanished Captain, Loveday struggles to control his own men. Romford is haunted by the reappearance of a horrific figure from his past. And Scotsman is spiralling into a pit of drink, violence and self-pity. The Dogs are being torn apart – but this war is far from over. It won’t be long before they lose more of their own…
From a vast siege camp built outside Calais' walls, to pirate ships patrolling the harbour, and finally into the darkest corners of oligarchs’ houses inside a starving city, this captivating and darkly comic story brings the fourteenth century vividly to life. A searing tale about merchants, money and the medieval ‘deep state’, this is a must-read for fans of Bernard Cornwell and Conn Iggulden.
Praise for Essex Dogs: 'Oddly joyous – rolling action, fast-paced, a book that draws you in page by page. The way Dan Jones writes enemies reminds me of Cornwell at his best, turning up tension click by click.' CONN IGGULDEN 'A testosterone fuelled, blood soaked rampage across the Middle Ages, this is the Hundred Years' War as directed by Oliver Stone with a historian's eye for detail' ELODIE HARPER 'A new champion has entered the front line of historical fiction to stand shoulder to shoulder with Bernard Cornwell.' JANE JOHNSON 'Battle-bloody, brutal and perfectly pitched.' DAILY MAIL 'With a cast of unforgettable characters, written with irrepressible verve.' SIMON SEBAG MONTEFIORE
