Bernard Cornwell

Today we are talking about Bernard Cornwell. Cornwell is a British Author most commonly known for his historical fiction books like the Sharpe Stories (a television series by ITV), The Grail Quest Novels, The Last Kingdom Stories (a TV show on BBC), and other series and novels.

Cornwell was born in London in 1944 and adoped by an Essex family, who were members of the Peculiar People. After the passing of his adoptive father, (Mr. Wiggins), Bernard took on the last name Cornwell in honor of his birth mother;s maiden name. Prior to that he had used Bernard Cornwell as a pen name.

His first series of novels followed the adventures of Richard Sharpe, a soldier from the Napoleonic Wars (the War of 1812 in North America), focusing specifically on the Iberian Peninsula. There are a total of 24 novels in this series. His next series is the Warlord Chronicles and they take place in a historical re-creation of Arthurian Britain. His next series include the Grail Quest Novels, Thomas Hookton goes in search of the Holy Grail, The Saxon Stories (The Last Kingdom), again set in the Anglo-Saxton kingdom of Wessex. The Starbuck Chronicles, set during the American Civil War, and the Thriller series; a set of modern mysteries all with sailing themes.