Tag Archives: Robin Hood

Rise of the Wolf by Steven A. McKay – Review

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Title – Rise of the Wolf
Author – Steven A. McKay
Genre – Historical Fiction
Publication – Expected 31st July/1st August 2015
My Rating – 5/5

Synopsis

Sir Guy of Gisbourne is back!

Bent on vengeance against Robin Hood and with a turncoat new lieutenant in tow, an unlikely new hero must stand up for herself…

YORKSHIRE, ENGLAND – 1323 AD

The greenwood has been quiet and the outlaws have become complacent, but the harsh reality of life is about to hit the companions with brutal, deadly force thanks to their old foe, Prior John de Monte Martini.

From a meeting with King Edward II himself to the sheriff’s tournament with its glittering prize, the final, fatal, showdown fast approaches for the legendary Wolf’s Head.

New friends, shattered loyalties, and a hate-fuelled hunter that threatens to wipe out not only Robin’s companions but his entire family will all play their part in the RISE OF THE WOLF.

Review

This is the third book in the series and i can honestly say the books go from strength to strength. If you’ve not  read my reviews for the first two books have a look here at Wolf’s Head and here for The Wolf and the Raven

A word that springs to mind about this series is “Growth” Not only has each story line improved on the previous one but Steven has managed to grow his characters superbly throughout the series. You can really tell the author has put a lot of time and energy into his work.

In my previous review for The Wolf and the Raven i commented on how i felt some of the characters only played small parts… not in this book. Steven managed to give a lot of the characters the word count they deserved and ended up with a cracking story!

This book draws a line under the fight between Robin and Sir Guy and how the story plays out was brilliant. I even had my mouth open wide as i read as the story was that good i couldn’t believe what i was reading

Again Steven took risks as with the previous book, things happened i didn’t see coming but everything worked and there was a very interesting tale that developed with Robin’s sister that i thought brought something extra to this book. It was nice to have more of a family connection throughout this tale.

If you’ve read my previous reviews you know i’m not one to give away plot details but for me all the events that Steven portrayed fitted so well together i can’t think of anything i didn’t like. I can imagine it would have taken quite some time to plan the events of this book and i don’t think Steven could improve on it one bit, he has made a story that is by far the best I’ve read in a long time.

I’ll definitely be buying these books as a gift for my dad, they are just brilliant and i think anyone who likes Robin Hood or just even enjoys a good tale would love to read them.

My advice.. buy the books.. and keep an eye out for Steven’s next book. I for one can’t wait to see what he comes up with next.

The book hasn’t been released yet so keep an eye out on the authors Amazon page

The Wolf will Rise…Friday July 31st 2015!

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Excited to be reading this book shortly 🙂

stormwatch1977's avatarSTEVEN A. McKAY - Historical Fiction Author

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Yep, I’ve been waiting on feedback from beta-readers, changing things, tightening this and that and now I can tell you, Rise of the Wolf will be published next Friday, July 31 2015. Assuming I get the files all sorted and uploaded in time of course…

Obviously there won’t be a long pre-order period for it. I’ll hopefully have it listed to go on Amazon on Thursday night (GMT) – my reasons for this will be made clear in a blog post about it very soon. Ultimately, I’d like as many people as possible to buy the book the day it comes out, or as soon as they can, so it gets a good chart placing.

I’ll be offering prizes to everyone on my mailing list that buys Rise on day one – signed copies of each book, including the new one; free downloads of the audio books; Amazon gift cards… If…

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Proofs have arrived! – Blog Post by Steven A. Mckay

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stormwatch1977's avatarSTEVEN A. McKAY - Historical Fiction Author

The first proofs of the Rise of the Wolf paperbacks arrived today. Looking good, I’m very pleased with the whole set!

I still have some changes and revisions to make so haven’t got a firm release date yet. I am hoping to get it out there within the next two or three weeks though, so keep an eye open for it. Sign up for the mailing list (see the button at the top of the page) if you haven’t already, as I’ll be offering signed copies along with other prizes for anyone buying a copy on day one!

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Rise of the Wolf, the blurb.

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stormwatch1977's avatarSTEVEN A. McKAY - Historical Fiction Author

Sir Guy of Gisbourne is back!

Bent on vengeance against Robin Hood and with a turncoat new lieutenant in tow, an unlikely new hero must stand up for herself…

YORKSHIRE, ENGLAND – 1323 AD

The greenwood has been quiet and the outlaws have become complacent, but the harsh reality of life is about to hit the companions with brutal, deadly force thanks to their old foe, Prior John de Monte Martini.

From a meeting with King Edward II himself to the sheriff’s tournament with its glittering prize, the final, fatal, showdown fast approaches for the legendary Wolf’s Head.

New friends, shattered loyalties and a hate-fuelled hunter that threatens to wipe out not only Robin’s friends but his entire family will all play their part in the RISE OF THE WOLF.

What do you think? Comments welcome!

RotW final FINAL!

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The Wolf and the Raven (The Forest Lord #2) By Steven A. McKay – Review

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Title – The Wolf and the Raven (The Forest Lord #2)
Author – Steven A. McKay
Genre –  Historical Fiction
Length –  327 Pages (Kindle)
Publication – 7th April 2014
My Rating – 5/5 Stars

Synopsis

In the aftermath of a violent rebellion Robin Hood and his men must fight for survival with an enemy deadlier than any they’ve faced before…

1322. England is in disarray and Sir Guy of Gisbourne, the king’s own bounty hunter, stalks the greenwood, bringing bloody justice to the outlaws and rebels who hide there.
When things begin to go horribly wrong self-pity, grief and despair threaten to overwhelm the young wolf’s head who will need the support of his friends and family now more than ever. But Robin’s friends have troubles of their own and, this time, not all of them will escape with their lives…

Review

First off… have you read the first book in the series? If not, why??? Get it now. Click here to see my review of Wolf’s Head!

Okay so here goes.. book number two.. high hopes after the first instalment. The pressure was on to deliver!!  And boy did this book do that!

So from the synopsis you can gather the revolt didn’t go well. We are thrust straight into the action with Robin and the other rebels fighting against the king’s men. When Robin sees the war is over he orders his men back to the forest.

We see Robin beaten, men killed, imprisonments, executions the works. There is a lot of meat on the bone in this book and it makes it a very good read indeed.

Personally I feel this book is much darker than the first and even though I gave the first book 5* the author raised the standard!

Now I guess you want to know a little about the story.. well honestly if I told you anything I think it would spoil it. There’s so much happens that I want to tell you but you need to read it for yourself.

By far the best thing about the book is the development. The author has clearly developed the characters since the first book. Yes some characters only play small parts in this book but you can’t have everything.

Another thing I really liked about this tale was that things don’t always go Robin’s way. He’s beaten and broken, physically and mentally and there are a few moments you feel Robin may just give up.

The author had me wondering if even Robin would survive to make it to book number 3!

In this book we see the addition of Sir Guy of Gisborne.. turns out he’s more of an evil b*****d than I thought he would be! Wow. Ruthless doesn’t cut it.

We also see a very interesting tale with Sir Richard the Templar knight develop with the action moving from one point of view to another.

I think Steven took some risks with this book, certain characters meet their end and I honestly thought no way would he kill those characters off…. But he did.. and it works. It meant more development of Robin could happen as you can see him struggling with the events that unfold and you see another side to the man.

As a fan of audio books I also listened to this book while reading along. I guess this would be my only comment for the author. I didn’t much like the narrators voice. He didn’t emphasize words enough or put emotion into his voice. Overall I thought he was just too quiet for my liking but saying that, it’s just my opinion. It wouldn’t put me off audio at all… I just wanted more from the narrator.

Overall this book is top notch. The whole setup of the book is well planned to keep the reader engaged and it surpasses all expectations after the first book and I’m looking forward to seeing the direction Steven’s work will take after book 3 is released.

For more reviews or to purchase the book head to Goodreads, Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com

Wolf’s Head (The Forest Lord #1) By Steven A. McKay – Review

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Title – Wolf’s Head (The Forest Lord #1)
Author – Steven A. McKay
Genre –  Historical Fiction
Length –  329 Pages (Kindle)
Publication – 4th July 2013
My Rating – 5/5 Stars

Synopsis

When a frightened young outlaw joins a gang of violent criminals their names – against a backdrop of death, dishonour, brotherhood, and love – will become legend.

ENGLAND 1321 AD

After viciously assaulting a corrupt but powerful clergyman Robin Hood flees the only home he has ever known in Wakefield, Yorkshire. Becoming a member of a notorious band of outlaws, Hood and his new companions – including John Little and Will Scaflock – hide out in the great forests of Barnsdale, fighting for their very existence as the law hunts them down like animals. When they are betrayed, and their harsh lives become even more unbearable, the band of friends seeks bloody vengeance. Meanwhile, the country is in turmoil, as many of the powerful lords strive to undermine King Edward II’s rule until, inevitably, rebellion becomes a reality and the increasingly deadly yeoman outlaw from Wakefield finds his fate bound up with that of a Hospitaller Knight…

“Wolf’s Head” brings the brutality, injustice and intensity of life in medieval England vividly to life, and marks the beginning of a thrilling new historical fiction series in the style of Bernard Cornwell and Simon Scarrow.

Review

So we’ve all heard of Robin Hood yes? Of course we have. As a boy Robin Hood was always one of my favourite characters. This was one of my reasons for buying this book. It also had great reviews and the cover just screamed at me this would be a great read.. and guess what.. it was!

Steven has decided to revamp the whole Robin Hood tale and has moved location to Yorkshire when England was under the reign of Edward II. This makes the book quite refreshing as it’s moved away from the well know tale set in Nottingham. From the authors notes at the end of the book you can see a lot of thought has went into this book and it shows.

The story tells of Hoods early life and the event that leads him to become an outlaw. We see him climb the ranks to eventually lead this band of outlaws.

Along the way we see him deal will conflict not only with the rich people of Yorkshire but also himself and the outlaws where personalities clearly clash

Wolf’s Head is fast paced from the start and very well written. Add to this a great story and you’ve got yourself a book that you just can’t put down!

Even though the setting has changed we still have the heroes we all know and love, Little John, Friar Tuck, Will Scarlet & Much

I’m not one for spoilers but the depth of Will’s character is brilliant and the story behind him plays out to perfection. He’s hot headed but damn you can’t help but like his style.

Chapter after chapter you see the tension grow as Steven takes you from one characters journey to another. I especially liked  Sir Richard-at-Lee so I’m excited to read Knight of the Cross which is a novella of Steven’s which I believe has a lot of focus on this character

As the tension grows and grows you can see something is about to happen and the ending of this book won’t disappoint.. If anything you are left screaming for more. The good new there is more 🙂 book 2 is already available and book 3 is on its way.

All in all I can’t fault this book in any way, brilliantly written it engages the reader from the first sentence.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I’m 100% sure you will to!

Find out more here – Goodreads – Amazon UK – Amazon.com