"Defiant Unto Death by David Gilman - a review.." Topic

"….so – a quick breather between slapping on coats of paint and varnish on anything that doesn't move [clicky] and as promised, a review of the last book…

One of the many wargame projects that I've been tempted by over the years is a medieval one – the Wars of the Roses (I read "Sun of York" [clicky] as a youngster and was immediately lost), but based on recent books by Cornwell and Gilman it could just as easily be the 100 Years War… that era where the English and Welsh archers, hauling back a 6 foot war bow sent cloth yards of death across almost every square foot of France… hugely stirring stuff, but I long ago came to the conclusion that the 'stirring stuff' doesn't actually translate the the table very well…

When push comes to shove (and that phrase describes warfare in the period quite nicely) the wars were about long range death (archery) followed by short range bludgeoning (pole arms) – long lines of opposed heavily armoured men, hitting each other with large heavy weapons preferably with as many spikes, cutting edges, and heavily blunted surfaces, as possible… battles were largely static, slow moving, affairs – all in all, better read about than recreated (in my mind anyway)…"

Main page
link

Amicalement
Armand

He makes it sound like a good read.

Indeed!

Amicalement
Armand

Blackstone, or Blackwood? Or both?

Is this writer to be compared to Cornwell? Because if he is, I am not going there. Cornwell is the most overrated "historical" novelist at the moment. His Agincourt novel stunk. Nothing happened that wasn't cliché and/or expected. He should be employed writing movie scripts for Ridley Scott….