The Last of the Vikings: The Sagas of Gustav Adolf and Karl Xii, Hardcover

The Viking Age began like a violent thunderstorm in the year 793 when a band of Norse warriors raided Lindisfarne, a small island off the coast of ancient England. For the next three hundred years, these fearless men dominated life on the European continent. Contrary to popular belief, the Viking aura was not extinguished at the dawn of the second millennium. In truth, it lasted far longer. In a fascinating saga divided into three parts, John Eklund begins by recounting the exploits of some of the most famous Vikings from 793 to 1066, and then describes the adventures of the two latter day heroes from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, Gustav Adolf and Karl XII, who through their incredible courage and fighting skills, proved they were worthy of the same level of praise and admiration as their seafaring warrior ancestors. The Last of the Vikings is a concise collection of sagas that shines a spotlight on the hero warriors of the Viking Age that include the greatest of the Norsemen and the king who lost an empire but saved a nation.