The Death of Robin Hood (Outlaw Chronicles) Paperback – September 5, 2017

I postponed reading this last book in Angus Donald's great series because I didn't want to see Robin die and the series end! But I finally caved, wanting to see what was going to happen. As usual, Mr. Donald never disappoints. Robin Hood and his friend Alan Dale's relationship, as well as the relationship between those two and the supporting characters; Marie Anne, Book, Robert, Miles, Hugh, Tilda and the others create such a believable reality that you just have to see what becomes of them. And never was there such a loathsome villain as the White Count! As usual, the battle scenes are as vividly described as in Mr. Donald's previous Robin Hood books. By the time you get through some of these scenes, no rational reader would EVER want to experience the sights, sounds and especially the SMELLS of medieval hand to hand combat! Eight books that never waver in style, substance, continuity, and great storytelling. I am now ready to explore Angus Donald's other works and characters in his new endeavors! Next on my list is Gates of Stone, a new series coming out in February 2019! Oh, and for all you Hanno fans like me, there's a short story about him called The Hostility of Hanno I'm going to read while I'm waiting for that one!

I'm going to miss this series. I've enjoyed all of the Robin Hood books and this is a fitting end. Donald took a great character and reimagined the story and it made complete sense. The characters grew over the course of time and we cried when we lost characters. We traveled to the Holy Land during the Crusades but mostly stayed in England and Nottingham. Alan Dale was the perfect narrator. Some of the bad guys could have been more developed, but the ones we cared for, Robin, Alan, Little John, Will Scarlet, Tuck and new characters like Boot, Miles, Nur, and Robert were well drawn with logical back stories.I have friends who denigrate fiction and I think they are snobs and wrong. Donald writes beautifully and makes you think, as well. He wrote 'Money given to the deserving doesn't make you poor; it makes you rich.' explaining Robin's propensity to dole out money to the poor and this kind of writing raises the books above many others. While they are historical fiction, they have a basis in fact and Donald points out the changes he makes to real life. That said, he weaves his version of the story into the real story very smoothly. Nobody writes battle scenes better than Donald.I look forward to Donald's next foray into fiction.

An epic ending to a classic tale of a medieval legend. I had recently read a tale of El CID (The Lord of Valencia and 2 others), and found similarities that worked well in presenting the tales of these historical heroes. Both takes were presented by the best friend and comrade of the legendary figures. And both ended as they had to. If you appreciate knights in the warfare of the time, with plenty of intrigue, twists and turns , and enduring characters, you will love The Death of Robin Hood. And if you loved these books of Robin Hood by Angus Donald, you will also like the tale of El Cid by Grieff Hosker

decent ending.

A summer tradition has come to an end. Each summer I have quickly consumed the latest of the Outlaw Chronicles. And now it's all over. The Death of Robin Hood brought the series to a close. Unlike The Hardy Boys, Robin and Alan aged and turned to dust. Angus Donald was effective as always with the twists and turns of the plot - all the way to the end. If you want to know why I've enjoyed the series so much, read my reviews of the books. The Death of Robin Hood was as good as any of them.My new summer tradition will be to reread all the Chronicles. I may have to make that a Fall tradition and get started right away. Thank you Angus for an exciting and intelligent series of historical novels!

A great series sadly has ended. When I started to read the first one I felt like it would be kind of hokey and I would put it down. Little did I know how good a write is Angus Donald. I put him up there with Bernard Cornwell and Greg Iles. For me that puts him into the very best of company. He is that good a story teller. I will in the future be standing in line for his works. This book was like the others in the series action packed and a real page turned. Do start with the first one and enjoy the ride.

I bought this a while back for my iPad and held off reading. This because I dreaded the end of Robin. So...I reread the first seven to avoid the inevitable. The second read was as good as the first I should add. Anyway, just finished the eighth and final book of this series. Wonderful read beyond proper words to say so and I will truly miss all of the wonderful characters, twists, and turns. This author has gone into my pantheon of favorites.

Just finished the last of the series having read them all back to back . I feel like going out and making a long bow and living in the forest with some mates , maybe rob a few rich dudes and live as a pagan . Life has got too hard these modern days and reading the tales of Robin and Allan and co so well described by the author reminds me there is another path we could choose .A bit of danger is good for the soul . Loved every word , great characters and some historical background to add interest . And to think Little John is gay , awesome . Thank you Angus Donald .

I read this & the following two books quite a few years ago and left it at that. Then recently I found myself without reading material and decided to read the books again & bingo! I was hooked. It was like being whisked back to my childhood. The books are very well written & sometimes graghic but what do you expect when reading about medieval battles. The times described were hard & the law was decided by the person dishing out the punishment which was understandably harsh to the point of inhuman. The characters are larger than life & the dialogue between them leaves nothing to the imagination. So now I've read the 8 book series and loved them. If you like historical fiction then I don't think you'll be disappointed. There are gaps of a few years between the adventures in the books & the author is writing a couple more stories to fill in those gaps & I can't wait to get stuck in!!

Loved this series. Sorry to see it end.

I've enjoyed the whole series but I must confess I was a bit scared about the end of it because part of me wanted the story to continue somehow and part of me didn't want to let Alan and Robin go after so many reading hours.Nevertheless, Angus Donald achieved to soften the blow and make it real nice.You can't help thinking that the characters described in this series are not so far away from those we can find today. So much for their profoundness and Mr. Donald writing style.Don't miss it!

Þ A VERY GOOD CONCLUSION TO AN EXCELLANT SERIES. FICTION BUT WITH HISTORIC ACCURACY. A GREAT SERIES BY A COMPETANT WRITER.

This is book eight of the Outlaw Chronicles. It is the last one and it features, as indicated by its title, “the death of Robin Hood.” It is also very much true to form, meaning excellent, as most of the seven previous titles have been, and for similar reasons.This plot in this volume centres on the civil war that followed the repudiation of Magna Carta by John and on the almost successful invasion of England by Louis of France, the eldest son of the French King, and the future Louis VIII.As usual Angus Donald has carefully researched his book and explained just as carefully what really happened and how he adapted the historical events to fit his story and give Robert of Locksley (Robin Hood) and Alan Dale, his faithful right-hand man, a key role in the events. The various twists of the plots and the ways in which Robin remains true to form, including the behaviours of a thief, of a vengeful murderer and of a feudal lord who seeks to safeguard and protect his lands, family and followers. Interestingly, Robin’s behaviours are not necessarily so far apart from and can be compared with those of William Marshal, who tends to be presented as the paragon of chivalry that he was not always. An additional twist is to have the historical character that got credit for the guerrilla warfare waged in the Weald between Tonbridge (where the author happens to live) and Hastings as Robin’s squire, allowing our two heroes to also participate and take a leading role.Another couple of strong pieces are the siege of Rochester by King John and his mercenaries and the battle of Lincoln in May 2017 where the English nobles commanded by William Marshal and Earl Ranulf of Chester defeated the French and rebel English on behalf of the young Henry III.The siege of Rochester is depicted in all of its gruelling horror, a bit like the siege of Château-Gaillard had been described by the author in a previous title (the Iron Castle), and with hunger being one of the main enemies. The battle of Lincoln is also vividly described and although the author does acknowledge that there are two main versions of the events, it clearly was, and is clearly shown to be a decisive victory and a crushing defeat for the French which ruined their chances to conquer England for reasons that are well presented by the author.Also important and well-presented were the harassing of the French supply lines through the Weald and the long resistance of besieged Dover. The raid on the camp of the camp of the French besieging army really took place but, because it did not succeed in breaking the siege, the author has chosen to have the raid done by just a handful of men. This (together with the battle of Lincoln) was one of my favourite parts of the book.Angus Donald has, as he has done already in previous books, introduced some interesting features for some of his secondary characters.King John is, of course, one of the “arch-villains”, suitably traitorous, paranoid and cruel. Angus Donald presents rather well his lack of trust in his nobles, his own lack of self-confidence and his tendency to only trust those whom he paid – his mercenaries. Interestingly, both of his predecessors (Richard I and Henry II) also made heavy use of mercenary troops to put down the multiple rebellions of their respective vassals, although, unlike the very vindictive King John, they were trusted and believed when offering pardon.The other “arch-villain” is Thomas Count of Perche, a real historical character who did command the French army at Lincoln was one of the great French lords and was killed during the battle at age twenty-two. As acknowledged by the author, he was not, however, the sadistic monster that appears in this novel. I am not quite sure this twist was really necessary, except, of cause, as a ploy to oppose the “nasty” invading French to the “nice” “Englishmen” defending their country. This is also a little bit artificial to the extent that the war was in fact between sets of nobles (and their retainers) who all spoke French, with those following Prince Louis of France seeking to displace and take the lands of those that were holding the fiefs, whether Anglo-Normans or from Anjou, Poitou or Aquitaine. In fact, the author does allude to this in what is an excellent and exciting novel which I warmly recommend and I will not even hint at the circumstances of Robin Hood’s demise or that of Alan Dale, his talented swordsman and troubadour, but leave you to discover them for yourselves. Five stars, easily…