King Penda's Captain: A Romance of Fighting in the Days of the Anglo-Saxons

Mac Bride, Mac KenzieProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

Rating 2.6

Word count: 260K words
Chapters: 26

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.King Penda's Captain: A Romance of Fighting in the Days of the Anglo-SaxonsAuthor: Mac Bride, Mac Kenzie,Language: English, Class: PR: Language and Literatures: English literature, Release Date: May 1, 2019

Editor's review

This is a historical romance set in Anglo-Saxon England, centering on the experiences of a captain under King Penda and combining battle scenes with a romantic plot. As a free Project Gutenberg e-book, it preserves the narrative style of early English historical adventure fiction and suits readers interested in early medieval England who are willing to experience the atmosphere of the period through popular storytelling. The interweaving of combat, loyalty, and emotional threads lets readers encounter the political landscape and tribal conflicts of Britain around the seventh century in accessible reading. Note that it is a romance rather than rigorous history and should be read as literary imagination, not historical evidence. It works well in short sessions on a commute or before bed, and can serve as an entry point for enthusiasts of English historical fiction.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who enjoy historical fiction set in the Anglo-Saxon period
Those who want an accessible way to sense the atmosphere of early English history
Readers with solid English proficiency who want to try public-domain e-books
Readers interested in adventure stories blending war and romance

Not a good fit for

Academic researchers needing rigorous historical sources
Readers who prefer fast-paced modern narrative and have little patience for classical prose
Beginners with weak English who would struggle with the original text

Reading tips

Start with chapter titles and opening paragraphs to grasp the timeline and character relationships
Look up background information on tribal and place names as they appear
Distinguish the plot from real history and treat it as a romance, not a source
Read one chapter a day to balance narrative continuity with reading load

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book real history or fiction?

It is a romance set in the Anglo-Saxon period, with fictionalized characters and plot. Readers can absorb the atmosphere of the era but should not treat it as historical fact.

How difficult is the English? Is it suitable for non-native readers?

As an early English historical novel, it has a classical style and long sentences that pose some challenge for non-native readers. Intermediate or higher English reading ability is recommended, along with a dictionary or notes.

Why is this book available for free on Project Gutenberg?

Project Gutenberg offers e-books whose copyright has entered the public domain. This book is included as a public-domain work and can be downloaded and read free of charge.

What historical background should I know before reading?

Some familiarity with the tribal landscape of Britain around the seventh century and Anglo-Saxon social structure helps but is not required; the story can be read on its own.

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

Mac Bride, Mac Kenzie Author

Mac Bride, Mac Kenzie is an author about whom very little public information is available. Only one work by this author is held in the collection: King Penda's Captain: A Romance of Fighting in the Days of the Anglo-Saxons. The title suggests a historical romance set in Anglo-Saxon England, centering on a captain serving King Penda and combining adventure, warfare, and romance. Since the author's dates, nationality, education, and writing career cannot be confirmed, any judgment about style and influence must rest cautiously on this single work. The author appears to favor early English history as a setting, weaving fictional characters into real figures and events to create a legendary style of battle narrative. For readers of popular historical fiction, such a work offers a sample of early twentieth-century English historical romance.