Conquest Trilogy


Written by Jack Ludlow
Format: MP3

Mercenaries (2009)
(The first book in the Conquest Trilogy series)

1033 - Normandy. It will be 30 years before William Duke of Normandy sails to England and does battle at Hastings, but the events that lead up to that epic moment are already taking shape. The twelve sons of Tancred de Hauteville are forced out of their native region of Normandy and take service as mercenaries in Italy - their swords, like those of the confreres who had preceded them, for hire to anyone who would pay. The de Hautvilles were destined to become the most powerful warriors of medieval times.


Warriors (2009)
(The second book in the Conquest Trilogy series)

Italy, 11th Century. The Byzantine Empire rules much of Europe and in the Italian states it does so through force and bribery, but the indigenous populations are restless. Arduin of Fassano - with the Lombard and Norman men he commands - are mercenaries for the young and enterprising Byzantine general, Michael Doukeianos. However, Arduin feels the time may have come to rejoin his Lombard brethren and rise up in revolt against their Eastern rulers. A crucial city in this revolt is the fortress of Melfi. General Doukeianos appoints Arduin to protect it, unaware of his imminent betrayal. To guard this stronghold Arduin hires the most-feared of all the Western soldiers: the Normans. Led by Rainulf Drengot and his right-hand man William de Hauteville, oldest of the mercenary de Hauteville brothers, these men are Arduin's greatest hope of overcoming the might of Byzantium.


Conquest (2010)
(The third book in the Conquest Trilogy series)

In twenty years the de Hautevilles have gone from penniless obscurity to become the most potent warrior family in all of Christendom: depended on by the Pope, feared by Byzantium and respected by the Holy Roman Emperor. One by one they have proved themselves to be great warriors. Yet the greatest of the family has yet to make his presence felt. Roger, the youngest son of Tancred de Hauteville has finally come to Italy, not only a great warrior but an even more canny politician. The path is not easy amid the bubbling stew of Italian politics. There are enemies at Roger's back as well as before him, battles to fight and defeats to be reversed, treacheries both secret and transparent to circumvent in a bloody campaign. Although the loyalty of blood only goes so far, it is that, above everything, which will in the end be the catalyst that propels the name de Hauteville to the pinnacle of power. This is the final installment in Ludlow's latest series of historical adventure and intrigue.