Book excerpt: Cover Flap English children learn that Knut the Great was a pre-Norman king born of Royal Danish blood who thought he could command the ocean tides. The rest of Europe learn that he was the Emperor of the North Sea, the Baltic Sea, the Irish Sea and the Channel. Knut was the son of Sweyn Forkbeard, a Danish king of kings who by 1000AD ruled all of Scandinavia. His empire was at peace, trade was thriving, and life was better than anyone could remember. Meanwhile the Norse trading and raiding empire, which stretched from Norway through the Irish Sea to Normandy, was crumbling. Everyone knows that the Normans invaded England in 1066, but few realize that the Normans also invaded England in 1000. Our Joms hero Vagn Akesson is caught right in the middle. About the Author Skye Smith is my pen name. My interest in Knut stems from the endless research I did while writing “The Hoodsman” series of historical novels about the Norman invasion of England. That invasion by William the Conqueror was not a quick subjugation of an Anglo-Saxon England, but a long and bitter genocide of an Anglo-Danish England and the destruction of Knut’s great legacy. The first novel “Knut - Jomsviking” sets the characters and scene for the entire series, so if you haven’t yet read it, now would be a good time. This fifth novel in historical sequence describes life in England under the reign of Aethelred the Unread, focussing on Devon. Other Novels By The Same Author: The Hoodsman – 12 historical adventures set in the Norman conquest. Maya’s Aura – 8 new age adventures while tripping around the world. The Pistoleer – 9 historical adventures set in the English Civil War. Knut – many historical adventures set in the Viking Era. Knut #1 – Jomsviking (980 – 984) Knut #2 – Varangian (986 – 992) Knut #3 – Strandhogg (993 – 994) Knut #4 – Forkbeard’s Peace (995 – 999) Knut #5 – Brice’s Massacre (1000 – 1002) Knut #6 – Vengeance (1002 – 1006 coming soon)