Bulletin Board

Dear Mr Cornwell, I hope this email finds you in good health. I am surprised about the number of readers "complaining" about the role the church plays in your books. When you look at history there is plenty of evidence to support your views as a historically correct view. The church as we know it now is much different as it is now. Or isn´t it ?? The cruelty,greed and ambition you described can be found in many examples. The inquisition is just one of many horror stories. Keep writing it like you see it as I am sure you will. Why did they stop the dutch translations of your work? With kind regards, Frank Kramer

HI Bernard, As an old Wellingtonian, I would like to thank you so much for recommending Charles Esdaile's Peninsular War to me a few months back. It gave me a fantastic insight into the people, politics and events that shaped that much ignored and now largely forgotten war. I was really struck by the horrible savagery that all sides displayed towards the civilian population, as well as the seemingly endless casualty figures on both sides. I think Esdailes did a great job in highlighting the enigmatic nature of the Guerillas, whilst debunking their heroic legend and portraying them as little more than criminals. I was also amazed at the remarkable ease with which all armies seemed to move around the country during the conflict. However, I was most struck by the great similarity between the inept Cortes of early 19th Century and the suicidal Socialist Government of 1930's. Both of whom seemed far more concerned in fighting their own side for factional power gain, than actually defeating the enemy. I can now read Sharp with a far greater understanding. Many Thanks SAM London

Dear Sir, I want to thank you for giving my son (now 19) the pleasure of reading good books. He started at ten with the Trilogy and never stopped. Once he told me he was reading Stonehenge late at night and suddenly he stood up in order to lower the sound afraid he would weak us up.He then realized the sound was in the story he was reading but so real. João Paulo, my son, is now studying Social Sciences at the University (PUC), second year of 4, and reading a lot is a must. He is used to read and this cause no problem because of his pleasure in reading. Calorosas saudações brasileiras. Professor Armando Freitas

I was a bit alarmed at what you allowed to happen to Hook. I still have my little finger alas bent from a tendon injury. I didn't realise the potential consequences until my operating surgeon explained. More follows. 'What would you lose if you didn't have a pinky finger? Often people consider the pinky (pinkie) as a decorative accessory of the hand. However, hand therapist will confirm that with losing your little finger you will lose about 50 percent of your hand strength. Interestingly, sometimes the pinky is used for making hand gestures. But more often the little finger is featured with abnormalities which appear to be related to certain problems in body and/or mind. For example, only recently a Dutch researcher revealed that a 'curved' pinky is often seen in the hands of people who have autism! The pinky, the humble fifth finger, is often considered as a bit of a decorative accessory: the little finger to crook daintily while sipping tea from a teacup. Compared with the other fingers the pinky doesn't carry the heavy burdens of the pointer, the index finger, which pokes things importantly and flicks through the Rolodex on urgent missions. The pinky also doesn't display your life's commitment with a belt of bright gold, as ring finger does. And the pinky doesn't, like the middle finger, succinctly communicate impudence or defiance.'

Ellie

Wicked, wicked man. Suffering as she does from chronic BBD (Busy Brain Disorder) and having a compulsion to solve any puzzle she sees, Aunt Susan was dismayed to run across the following yesterday: Take you out, put me in, and a horse appears in this happy person! It was no help at all that she does not wish to know the identity of Mr. Sharpes father; that she believes a key component in Mr. Sharpes claim to a place in the pantheon is his character as an orphan unencumbered by paternal legacy as an unexpected sport flowering sweetly at the back of the cosmic compost bin. She was helpless. She was lost. The universe must come to a screeching halt while she puzzled. She was also saddened to think that her rage for a solution must inevitably result in the destruction of something she loves. As it turned out, she need not have worried, and she forgives you the time that should have been spent doing the dishes. It could not be helped. Let me urge you, Sir, to resist any temptation and all entreaties to burden Mr. Sharpe unnecessarily. For one thing, it is one of the joys of your stories that you do not stretch your characters or their circumstances to the point of melodrama. Knowing what we already know about his mother, it seems unlikely that she or her customer would have had any notion as to her childs paternity. To produce a village explainer a long-remembering beggar or barmaid at this late date would draw a large bill on ones credulity, and to produce an aging Sharpe look-alike would be rather sad. For another, there are some questions that simply should not be answered (as the estate of Mrs. Mitchell should have known). For her part, Aunt Susan is perfectly content to love Sharpe as he is the result of the unremarkable congress between a whore and some gay and carefree rogue, perhaps a jolly tar or a plowboy. Encouraging you to remain resolute and, as ever, grateful for the pleasure you never fail to provide, I am yours etc., Aunt Susan P.S. Please do remember that we are still waiting for you to extract Sweet William from the wilderness and set him gently down on the Bridge of Angels.

Correct me if I am wrong but I think I know why you have enjoyed writing and been so successful with the Sharpe series so much. For such a long time ago the military history is so well-documented that you have an extensive supply of resources. The technology of the time and relatively small number of participants allow you to depict a heroic or determined individual as the key to victory in many conflicts. In your Afterwords you often refer to actual individuals whose actions were key to or inspirational for success in a battle as well as to your most valuable resources. I have all your books and re-read most of them but these two elements make your Sharpe Series the best Re-Reads of any of your collections.

Ted Goldenberg

As you can see from my address my husband and I reside in Portugal. It has just been in the local paper that just outside Lisbon the site of Wellingtons command post has been discovered by archeologists at Forte Sobral de Monte Agraco located between Mafra and Torres Vedras. Just in case you have not heard the news yet, we thought you might be interested. We love your Sharpe Novels and have just finished reading them all again.
Gillian Hansford

Mr. Cornwell, While I'm sure you are inundated with numerous e-mails like this on a daily basis, I nonetheless wanted to send you a note of thanks and encouragement. A voracious reader as a youngster, I have always devoured books - especially those that have a historical fiction basis and are combat related. I am a 17-year career Infantry officer in the Army and have enjoyed several of your books immensely. My favorites include Agincourt, the Grail Quest series, and Saxon stories. I always wonder how my favorite authors (you, Steven Pressfield, Conn Iggulden) are able to capture the nuances of combat so well. I have deployed too many times and have been put into combat situations that I am unable to share with anyone who wasn't there - not because I don't want to, but more because it's difficult to articulate the emotions, fears, joys that accompany those unique and seemingly indescribable scenarios. You Sir, come the closest. I feel the same adrenaline and enhanced situational awareness when I read the battles of my favorite character, Uhtred of Babbenburg. January 2010 seems like a long time away for his next adventure but like a dutiful Soldier, I will be patiently waiting and look forward to immersing myself in his next book in order to share that warrior mentality once again. Thank you for your dedication and vision. I wish you the best of luck in future novels and will remain a devoted fan. Very respectfully, Eric Weis LTC, Infantry

Bernard I would like to say thank you. I started reading your books whilst deployed to Afghanistan with the RAF, as you can imagine it was not the best place to be, reading your books for the first time was a revelation, it was an addiction I was transported to various times through history as I read nearly all your works. Thank you for your genius that made my time more enjoyable. Darren Culley

Dear Mr. Cornwell, I am, as you probably are yourself, obsessed with history, and having Scandinavian and Frisian ancestry I have very much enjoyed reading your Saxon series, after discovering a first edition copy on the book shelf of a deceased English friend, I have since read both sequels, and am just starting to read Sword song. As you dedicate your novel to Aukje in Dutch, I must, alas, inform you that it is not ''mit liefde'' but ''met liefde'', I am a Dutchman by nationality, and not as thick as those Dutch chaps that blow up that one cannon on in France at Soissons I believe it was?? so i would just like to inform you of this small error, but it just seems a bit messy to me. Furthermore, I would like to salute you on your knowledge of Germanic history and language, you probably get praise all the time, so I'll stop it now. Thank you for your great stories, they continue to inspire me. Yours truly, Frederik Salomons