KING

Autumn 1192. Richard the Lionheart is free at last to travel back to his strife-ridden kingdom. With the loyal knight Ferdia by his side, the king will face not just his arch enemy Philippe Capet of France, but also his treacherous younger brother John. Forced into a perilous journey through enemy lands, Richard is taken prisoner and handed over to Henry VI, the Holy Roman Emperor. His captivity lasts for over a year, fanning the flames of unrest in his territories in England and beyond. Talks between Richard's mother Queen Alienor and Henry VI last for months, but finally reach a bitter agreement. The extortionate sum demanded to free the king will empty the treasury and bleed England dry. Crowned for a second time, Richard restores order in England. His next task is to recover territories lost to Philippe Capet, and to re-establish his dominance over the French king. Forging clever allegiances, building strategic castles and when obliged, waging war, the Lionheart carves a unique path into history. 'A rip-roaring epic, filled with arrows and spattered with blood.' - Paul Finch. 345pp, paperback.