Griff Hosker has 16 audiobooks on Listento.it, narrated by 4 narrators, with an average listener rating of 4★ across 16 ratings. The most-rated is Blood on the Crown.
Blood on the Crown
Summary
Based on the actual events of the years 1367-1382, the novel shows the struggle for the crown through the eyes of a young warrior. Blood on the Crown is set in the latter half of the 14th century. Will, son of Harry, is about to join one of the freebooting mercenaries who serve the Black Prince in Gascony and Spain. Soldiers of fortune, they fight for pay and for loot. Circumstances mean that he comes to the attention of the heir to the English throne, Prince Edward, and is chosen as the bodyguard for his sons, Edward and Richard. When the Black Prince dies before his father and his elder brother, Edward, also dies, a young Richard of Bordeaux becomes heir to the throne, and Will has a greater responsibility than he expected. He becomes King at the age of just 10. Intrigue, attempted murder and a revolt by the peasants of Kent, Essex and London put both the young King and his bodyguard in mortal danger.
©2018 Griff Hosker (P)2019 W. F. Howes Ltd
King in Waiting
Summary
"A rollicking historical adventure which flies like an arrow from a bow." (Giles Kristian) "One of the best Griff Hosker books I have ever read." (Paul J. Bennett) The sequel to runaway best seller Lord Edward’s Archer. The year is 1264. Simon de Montfort defeats and captures King Henry III of England at the Battle of Lewes to become de facto ruler of the country. Step forward Gerald War Bow, a man of humble birth but noble intentions, a superb archer and leader of men, and a committed servant of Lord Edward – the real heir to King Henry’s throne. So ensues a series of bloodthirsty battles, acts of bravery, and rescue missions, all in the name of toppling the treasonous de Montfort. Finally, Gerald and his archers find themselves at the edge of battle at Evesham. As the royalists face de Montfort’s army, which still holds King Henry among its number, Gerald War Bow knows that the future of his country – and his own life – lie in the balance. As Gerald pulls back his bow, will he hit – or miss? "Well researched and packed with accurate historical detail the King in Waiting brings an important period in English history to rousing life." (David Penny) "In Gerald War-Bow, Hosker has crafted a heroic, humble archer with the heart of a prince." (Brook Allen)
©2019 Griff Hosker (P)2020 Griff Hosker
Lord Edward's Archer
Summary
Thirteenth century. Wales and England. To young Gruffyd, life has been unkind. Eking out a meagre living with his father, he has learned very quickly how to look after himself in the hostile borderlands. His father, an archer, has taught him well, and at 17 Gruffyd is a keen and able bowman. Young, loyal and skilled, it’s not long before Gruffyd finds himself following in his father’s footsteps, working as an archer in the bordering castle. But tragedy strikes when his lord commits a devastating deed, and Gruffyd is forced to make a life altering decision. This is the story of a young archer’s riotous journey from avenging outlaw to merchant’s bodyguard to, finally, the captain of archers for the heir to the throne.
©2019 Griff Hosker (P)2019 W. F. Howes Ltd
The Road to Agincourt
Summary
Henry of Monmouth, Prince Hal, is barely recovered from a near-fatal wound when his father leaves him to retake his land. Owain Glendower and Edmund Mortimer, however, have French allies and the most inhospitable landscape to aid them. All that Prince Hal has to guide him is the guardian of kings, Will Strongstaff. The two of them have to fight treachery and those who count money as well as more traditional enemies, the Welsh archers. As the two of them fight together the young prince learns the skills which will help him in the fullness to time to not only defeat but to crush and humiliate the French at the Battle of Agincourt. This is the story of how a prince became a general and how he learned to fight!
©2019 Griff Hosker (P)2020 W. F. Howes Ltd
King Henry IV
Summary
The latest book in the Struggle for a Crown series by best-selling author Griff Hosker! King Richard is barely buried when the men who opposed him plot and plan to remove the new King, Henry Bolingbroke! With enemies in the north and the west, the new king and his son, Henry of Monmouth, find themselves besieged on all sides not knowing whom they can trust. William Strongstaff, now a lord, is the only one they can truly rely upon, and any thoughts of hanging up his sword are forgotten as King Henry sends the former royal bodyguard to help his son and quash a Welsh rebellion. Based on the events leading up to the battle of Shrewsbury, the story is fast moving, with larger than life characters like Harry Hotspur and Owain Glendower!
©2019 Griff Hosker (P)2020 W. F. Howes Ltd
The Bear and the Wolf
Summary
The first attempt by the Norse explorers to settle in the New World has ended in disaster. With most of their better warriors dead in a battle with the Penobscot tribe, the survivors decide to head home across the wide and empty seas. They would risk a battle with King Harald Finehair. What they do not know is that they have left their Navigator alone and surrounded by enemies. The novel follows the two brothers Erik the Navigator and Fótr Larsson as they both do what they must to survive. Erik must learn to live like a Skraeling, and Fótr must fight the enemies of the Clan of the Wolf. Summoned by Ylva the volva, Fótr is charged with a quest which seems impossible while Erik has to fight Penobscot warriors who are intent on vengeance.
©2020 Griff Hosker (P)2020 W. F. Howes Ltd
Blood on the Blade
Summary
Erik and his family are Norse who live on the island of Orkneyjar. Their world is thrown upside down when the King of Norway colludes with their jarl to take over their home. They flee to the land north of Mercia. Hoping for a life free from the tyranny of a King, they have to fight Danes and Saxons. When King Harald of Norway sends ships to destroy them, the Clan of the Fox is forced to flee to the newly discovered land of ice and fire. They travel beyond sight of land into an uncharted ocean to face a future which is uncertain. Their only certainty lies with their navigator, Erik. He is their only chance to find a new home.
©2018 Griff Hosker (P)2019 W. F. Howes Ltd
El Cid: Castilian Knight
Summary
This first instalment in the Chronicles tells of Rodrigo’s rise to prominence when he became the champion of Prince Sancho of Castile. This is but the beginning of a tale which still stirs the blood a millennium after it began. The legend that was El Cid began more than 1,000 years ago, and time has meant that reality and fiction are intertwined like the threads of a spider’s web. This is the story of a time when brother fought brother and Christian fought Christian. Power was all, and Spain was riven by strife which was political, religious and familial! One man came from the harsh land of Castile to make one land and one state. Spain truly began with Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar, El Campeador, El Cid. His story is told through the eyes of the warrior who spent his life at his side. William Redbeard came from humble origins, but he was destined for greatness too as he walked in the seemingly endless shadow of El Cid.
©2019 Griff Hosker (P)2020 W. F. Howes
Commando
Summary
It's 1940, and the British Expeditionary Force is caught ill prepared for the onslaught of the German Blitzkrieg and its deadly panzers. Caught in the desperate retreat to Dunkirk, Tom Harsker, son of a World War One ace, discovers that he is a natural soldier. Escaping to England and with complete disaster narrowly averted, Tom is selected to join the newly formed Commandos. With Britain standing alone and the seemingly inexorable German forces massing across the Channel for invasion, Tom and his fellow Commandos must battle against all odds in daring raids to buy precious time.
©2015 Griff Hosker (P)2015 Tantor
The Throne
Summary
When a King becomes a tyrant then blood will flow and men will die. In this sequel to To Murder a King, we follow the fortunes of a sword for hire who has to tread the difficult path between two rivals for the throne. When the Queen of England dies then King Richard suddenly changes. He wreaks vengeance on all those who have slighted him, and only William Strongstaff and John of Gaunt are in a position to curb his excesses. Beginning in the Baltic, where there is a crusade against the Lithuanian pagans, the novel moves to England, Scotland and Ireland before the owner of the crown of England is decided.
©2019 Griff Hosker (P)2019 W. F. Howes Ltd
Across the Seas
Summary
The eagerly awaited sequel to Blood on the Blade. When you live at the edge of the world with a volcano for a neighbour and bloodthirsty warriors who wish to end your existence then a voyage towards the edge of the world is possible. Seeking a new home for the Clan of the Fox, Erik the Navigator, with his younger brother and three companions, leaves Iceland for a land he does not know exists. In the smallest of ships, they face seas which would daunt any sailor, and they discover a new land. They find a home but one which is fraught with danger.
©2019 Griff Hosker (P)2019 W. F. Howes Ltd
To Murder a King
Summary
Will Strongstaff has achieved far more than he ever thought. He is a gentleman. He has land, a wife and children. Yet he is still a warrior. He still has an oath to honour. King Richard is now under the sway of the evil Earl of Oxford Robert de Vere. When the king’s cousin, Henry Bolingbroke, sends for Will to fight in Galicia for his father, John of Gaunt, then Will has to return to the world in which he grew up, the world of the hired sword. This time he not only has enemies on the battlefield but enemies closer to hand as murderers try to end the life of his new lord, Henry Bolingbroke.
©2018 Griff Hosker (P)2019 W. F. Howes Ltd
An Archer's Crusade
Summary
The battle of Evesham is over, and Gerald War Bow is now the owner of a manor. But a leader of archers cannot rest for long. Lord Edward is on a mission to hunt down the remaining Simon de Montfort supporters and snuff out the last of the rebellions. When the rebel leaders prove harder to eliminate than the rest of the mob, Lord Edward is helped in his quest by Pope Adrian V. In thanks, he agrees to join the Crusades with King Louis IX of France. The so-called holy war is a complex and punishing pursuit, and Lord Edward needs help in defeating the Mamluks. He calls upon his trusted comrade Gerald to lead a crusade of his own, to enlist the aid of Abaqa Khan, a Mongol leader and much needed ally. With miles of Muslim-controlled land to cross, can Gerald make the journey unscathed, and will his efforts help to turn the war? Packed with exhilarating action and historical detail, An Archer’s Crusade will delight fans of Giles Kristian and Matthew Harffy.
©2020 Griff Hosker (P)2020 Griff Hosker
The Savage Wilderness
Summary
Desperate times cause for desperate measures and when the Clan of the Fox flees, first Northumberland and then Iceland, the Viking warriors have no idea of the world they will find when they sail across the endless ocean. It is not just the sea and the weather which tries to kill them; it is the animals in the land that they find and it is the Skraeling, the natives who see them as a threat from the east. The clan flees danger but finds more in this new world in the west. When divisions emerge in the clan then it seems as though they are doomed to die in this savage wilderness.
©2019 Griff Hosker (P)2020 W. F. Howes Ltd
El Campeador
Summary
The Christian armies of Spain are on the rise and are taking back the land controlled by the Taifa States. All seems well and the star that is Rodrigo de Vivar continues to rise. All of this ends when King Fernando dies, and his heirs begin a self-destructive civil war. Only the knight respected by both Christian and Muslim alike, the man known as El Campeador can unite the troubled land of Spain. We see the troubles of Spain through the eyes of the man who trained Rodrigo, William Redbeard, and it is through him that we see the effect the civil war has on the ordinary people. When King Sancho is murdered then all hope seems to disappear and Rodrigo and Will Redbeard have to choose which side they are on.
©2020 Griff Hosker (P)2020 W F Howes
St Crispin's Day
Summary
The incredible story of how a handful of men at arms and less than 5,000 archers defeated more than 20,000 men at arms and 20,000 other warriors. The story of how a king won a crown! The last time an English king had come to France, it had been led by the Black Prince. Now a new king, a throwback to those days, contemplated retaking what he believed to be his birthright! King Henry V of England plans to do just that, but disease and sickness robs him of half his army. Forced to flee north as his predecessor had done, the English and Welsh army is surrounded on all sides and a host even greater than that which fought at Crécy awaits them. When St Crispin’s Day dawns, the beleaguered English are ready to die and prepared to fight to the last.
©2020 Griff Hosker (P)2021 W F Howes