Don Hollway

Weaving together Norse sagas and Anglo-Saxon chronicles to vividly depict the violence and spectacle of the Viking age, Don Hollway brings the legendary Olaf Tryggvason to life. Hammer of the Gods tells the extraordinary saga of Olaf Tryggvason – warlord, wanderer, king, and crusader – whose life rivals the most legendary figures of Viking lore. Born in exile and hunted from birth, Olaf survived slavery, betrayal, and shipwreck to become a fearsome warrior across the Viking world from the icy fjords of Norway to the courts of Kyiv, the slave markets of the Baltics, and the battlefields of England and Ireland. His rise would shake the foundations of Norse society, forge new kingdoms, and ignite a holy war against the old gods themselves. In an age of axe and flame, when the Viking world stood at the crossroads of pagan traditions and the spread of Christianity, Olaf emerged as the fiercest adherent to the new faith – a sword in one hand and a cross in the other. Drawing on a vast array of early medieval sources from Icelandic sagas and skaldic verse to Byzantine and Anglo-Saxon chronicles, Don Hollway brings the world of Olaf Tryggvason vividly to life cutting through the legend to reveal the man behind the myth. For readers of Bernard Cornwell and lovers of Viking history, Hammer of the Gods is the epic history of a great Norse king whose story shaped the fate of a civilization.

SHORTLISTED FOR MILITARY HISTORY MATTERS BOOK OF THE YEAR 2024Includes all the key individuals that inspired the final season of Netflix''s Vikings: Valhalla and the brand-new BBC drama King and Conqueror. Bloody battles, political intrigues and dynastic marriages all played a part in shaping a nascent England. Battle for the Island Kingdom is a rich history of the violent six decades when Vikings, Anglo-Saxons and ultimately Normans vied for the English crown before the seismic Battle of Hastings determined the fate of England for centuries. Discover the defining personalities of the age, from the English king Aethelred and his nemesis Viking Svein Forkbeard to Cnut who forged an empire across England and Scandinavia only for his Norman queen Emma and Saxon consort Aelfifu to pit his sons against each other. We discover how the power-hungry Earl Godwin plays all sides until his own son Harold eventually seizes the crown and why Harold''s brother Tostig chose to betray both him and his people for the Norman William the Bastard, who would become William the Conqueror. This is a gripping tale of divided loyalties, treason and military might by master storyteller Don Hollway, author of the critically acclaimed The Last Viking.