Table of Contents

Maps
List of Illustrations
Acknowledgments
Introduction

Part One
I. Seven Feet of English Ground
II. Eye of God
III. Exile
IV. Kievan Rus
V. Miklagard

Part Two
VI. Varangian
VII. Command
VIII. Holy Land
IX. Sicily
X. Uprising
XI. The Burner of Bulgars
XII. Reign of Terror
XIII. Revolution
XIV. Blinding
XV. Power
XVI. Lover
XVII. Downfall
XVIII. War
XIX. Escape from Byzantium

Part Three
XX. Prince of the Rus
XXI. Denmark
XXII. Treachery
XXIII. Kings of the North
XXIV. Thunderbolt of the North
XXV. Dragon Ships
XXVI. Hard Ruler
XXVII. The Battle of the Nisa
XXVIII. Sweden
XXIX. England

Part Four
XXX. Stamford Bridge

Epilogue: The Last Viking
A Note on Sources
Bibliography
Index

Promotional Information

A rich and compelling account of the life of King Harald Hardrada of Norway, one of the greatest Viking warriors to have ever lived.

About the Author

Don Hollway is an author, illustrator, and historian. He is also a classical rapier fencer and historical re-enactor. His articles on aviation, history and re-enacting have appeared in magazines including Aviation History, History Magazine, Military Heritage, Military History, Wild West, World War II, Muzzleloader, Renaissance Magazine and Scientific American. His work is also available at www.donhollway.com.

Reviews

The Last Viking reads like the sagas on which it is based. It's Beowulf on steroids, laced with purple prose...This book is great fun.
*The Times*

[Don Hollway's] book is great fun ... I enjoyed very much reading it.
*Times Radio*

Riveting! Open this book and be prepared to see it through to the end. Fascinating and thoroughly engaging!
*History Magazine*

Don Hollway not only knows the history, he also knows how to tell a great story. The Last Viking is a masterful and pulse-pounding narrative that transports the reader into the middle of the action. Hollway weaves together multiple original sources, and he clearly has a deep understanding of the period. He gives us a convincing and detailed story of this fascinating Viking king.
*Military Heritage Magazine*

The story pulls you in, and doesn't let go.
*New York Times bestselling author of 'The Last Battle'*

This is a lively and fun retelling of the story of Harald Hardrada, the famous Norwegian king. There is, without doubt, no greater symbol of an 11th-century warrior-adventurer.
*Professor Kelly DeVries*

Don Hollway is that rarest of treasures - a nonacademic whose command of the source material and commitment to uncompromising scholarship rivals any PhD. Writing with a pop journalist’s flair for story, The Last Viking is a brilliant look at the little known story of one of history’s most fascinating warriors, told with the pacing and dramatic flair of the best investigative pieces in Rolling Stone. It’s history at its absolute best.
*Myke Cole, author of 'The Bronze Lie'*

Hollway is a master storyteller, weaving together Hardrada’s life into a biography that you can’t put down. His writing draws you in and keeps you coming back for more. The Last Viking reads more like an adventure novel than a historical biography… From beginning to end it is an engrossing and captivating biography that you won’t put down! Whether you’re a seasoned historian, a newcomer or somewhere in between The Last Viking will make an excellent addition to your library.
*MedievalArchives.com*

[A] riveting story... this isn’t just a book for military history buffs. If you love Frans Bengtsson’s picaresque masterpiece, ‘The Long Ships,’ Robert Graves’s intrigue-suffused ‘I, Claudius,’ or heroic fantasy in the mold of Robert E. Howard, George R.R. Martin and Howard Andrew Jones, you owe it to yourself to pick up “The Last Viking.” It’s that exciting, that good.
*The Washington Post*

Don Hollway tells this astonishing story with immediacy and verve, making use of an enormous breadth of sources ... An engaging and unexpected read.
*Country Life*