"Looking for fiction with great battle scenes" Topic

I read a lot of books. I also wargame a lot. I recently got into medieval wargaming because I've been re-reading some of the Horseclans books that I first read back in the 80's.

Those books are sci-fi (of a sort) and have great battle scenes of armies armed at roughly 14th to 15th century Europe level. Unfortunately, besides the battle scenes, they mostly suck.

So I'm looking for books that have great battle scenes, preferably at the post-Viking medieval Europe tech level. Plate armor, pikes, pole-arms, cavalry charges, arrow storms. Historical, fantasy, sci-fi, whatever.

I've read Bernard Cornwell, and, of course, all the fantasy classics.

Suggestions? Thanks.

Poul Anderson's "Hrolf Kraki's Saga" and "The Broken Sword".

I remember some of Turtledove's earlier stuff (the Videssos books) having neat battles--though it was more a fantasy version of Byzantine stuff than high medieval.

Rob

I recommend "Heroes" by Abercrombie. The novel involves a large multiday battle between Viking/Scottish clan type forces versus late Medieval style troops. The author includes maps showing the starting positions for each day of the battle. It concentrates on various characters and what occurs to them on each day (including characters who are killed) and provides some good battle descriptions, especially as it appears to individual participants. Magic is held to a minimum.

The battle scene in Gemmell's The Hawk Eternal always struck me as very well written. Actually I liked both books in that series.

Try Dies the Fire. By S.M. Sterling. The first book is more a skirmish level but the later books in the series have some incredible battle scenes.

Harry of Monmouth – A. M. Maughan
A Bloody Field by Shrewsbury – Edith Pargeter

A bit earlier than specified:
A Sword at Sunset – Rosemary Sutcliffe

I know it gets a lot of flak for being converted into a TV show, but G.R.R.M.'s "A Song of Ice and Fire" series has some really great battles, complete with elements of fantasy. For instance, the Battle of the Blackwater deals with an assault on a fortified city from the sea. I could see it turn into an especially interesting wargame, especially when you throw the WildFire into the mix. Also, the seige of Meereen, which has both dragons attacking and a secret assault through the sewer system. Of course, there is also the fight on the Fist of the First Men, between Wights and men of the Night's Watch. If you are into a large scale battle with mammoths, giants, thousands of men, and a HUGE wall, then the siege of Castle Black would be your answer. If you're interested, youtube has some clips you could check out: https: YouTube link

Lord Kalvan of Otherwhen by H. Beam Piper, above all others!

The "sequels" by John Carr have great battles in them as well (John is both an established SF author in his own right, AND a wargamer).

Lots of information/links about the original and the sequels on my blog:

link

Down Styphon!

Peter

I'd also second the Videssos books of Turtledove, as well as his Lost Legion series.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Videssos

Also good is David Drake's "Belissarius Series":

link

Earlier period than you are specifying but I have really enjoyed Harry Sidebottom's (yeah, that's his real name) Warrior of Rome series. Everything from seiges, mass combats, ship combat, and small units.

Thanks guys! This list will hopefully fill out my reading list for many weeks.

Of course when you dig down, many of the best battles in fantasy and SF works are 'retellings' of historic battles. Sometimes with a twist by the author where to get a different outcome he 'corrects' a critical mistake made by one of the actual figures involved.

Turtledove, Piper, Pournelle and Niven, to name a few used this method. One of the 'tricks' is to take a battle from a later era and 'devolve' or 'evolve' the weaponry.

All three Videssos series have a lot of fighting, but the battles in the Videssos Cycle (first published but last chronologically) are the best – the main POV characters are closer to the front-line, and the Videssian army is more varied (essentially early Komnenan.) The Time of Troubles (third & first) is interesting because the books alternate between POV characters on opposing sides – 1 & 3 are the Makuraner (Persian) general, and the 2 & 4 are the Videssian emperor.

For late medieval, perhaps the Ash series by Mary Gentle? Lots & lots of fighting, including a mammoth siege. (Fair warning, though – Gentle's descriptions of medieval life are very forthright. She makes Martin look like a blushing schoolgirl.)

I've found the battle scenes in Christian/Miles Cameron's to be very well done. He does both historical fiction and fantasy.

This borders on late medieval/early renaissance (say late 1400s – there is some gunpowder), but Paul Kearney's Monarchies of God series is pretty good for battles, with a pseudo/near-Europe sort of setting. The proxies are pretty easy to see if you want to game it.

link

Oh, and for classics, Robert E. Howard's "oriental" (the old definition, so the Middle East) fiction is collected in a modern reprint, "Sword Woman and Historical Adventures". Crusades up to the Siege of Vienna.

When I got it, I gave one of my brothers a previous collection of Howard's oriental stories (I think that was the title even), and his comment after reading was "holy smokes that was bloody!"

Again most earlier than you stated but I would recommend the following:

* Eagle Series by Simon Scarrow (Rome)
* Oathsworn series by Robert Low (Vikings)
* Strongbow Saga by Robert Judson (Vikings)
* Blood Eye Saga by Giles Kristian (Vikings)
* Kingdom Series by Robert Low (Scots vs English)

another + for Christian Cameron (Best Ancients writer ever), for early WWII try 'Thunder in May' by Andy Johnson.
For 100 yrs war, recommend the 'Kemp' books by Daniel Hall, also Alfred Duggan (dated but very good) for ancients and ealy medieval (Crusades etc)

Also Anthony Riches ' Empire' series for ancient Imperial Rome (but set mostly in gthe porovinces), much better than Scarrow in my opinion. I also liked the Giles Kristian and Robert Low books noted above.

The Song of Roland and The Nibelungslied – Perhaps hard going for the modern reader but full of battle,blood, treachery, revenge, etc. I have had the Penguin editions since school (too long ago) and the commander of my Imagi-Nation army is Hagen Von Tronek.

Thanks for the tip Jarrovian… I'll take a look at Riches!

The approach to describing battles in Alfred Leo Duggan's work is my favorite….

Of Duggans work, I particularly likes 'Winter Quartters', 'Elephants and Castles', and 'Count Bohemond'.
I forgot to mention earlier the 'Masters of the Sea' series by John Stack (Roman Naval – Punic wars)

If you are not put off by the actions and moral self-flagellation of the titular character the second and third books in the first Thomas Covenant trilogy (The Illearth War and The Power That Preserves) contain some exceptional fantasy battle scenes, including a siege. Some of my favorite fantasy mass combat literature.

David Gemmell's 'Legend' also has some great descriptions of a fantasy siege.

Wow. Thomas Covenant. I read those a long time ago (in the '80s) and had forgotten all about them. I remember making a castle for my D&D campaign like the main castle in the books.

Memories. :)

As mentioned Miles Cameron's Red Knight and Fell Knight have very realistic medieval combat aganist an interesting fantasy army.

(Good to share pleasant memories of Thomas Covenant).

But to go real old school don't forget Jean Frossiart, The Chronicles.

(Just had an interesting debate over on Fanticus about realism in fantasy novels. Some were objecting to the increase "simulation" realism that adding the DBA3.0 mechanics had brought to HOTT insisting that fantasy combat was inherently unrealistic. They had not been reading much modern fantasy work (or even old Mary Gentle stuff)).

TomT

This "Ash: A Secret History" is really good. Thanks for the suggestion, Peachy rex!