Author Description

From the ashes of empires, new warlords rose to claim the world. When Rome fell, the world did not grow quiet-it roared. From Constantinople to Córdoba, from the windswept steppes to the storm-tossed North Sea, kings and generals carved their realms in an age when faith and steel were the measure of power. These were the war kings of the Dark Ages-men who ruled not only by crown, but by the sword's edge and the will to defy the chaos around them. They were warriors, statesmen, and visionaries: Belisarius, the last great general of Rome, who fought to reclaim a shattered empire. Taizong of Tang, the Chinese emperor who turned a dynasty into an unstoppable war machine. Khalid ibn al-Walid, the "Sword of Allah," undefeated in a hundred battles. Charles Martel, who stood against the tide of conquest at Tours. Charlemagne, who dreamed of a united Christendom. Basil II, the "Bulgar Slayer," whose name inspired fear for generations. William the Conqueror, who crossed the sea and claimed a kingdom. El Cid, a knight of legend whose name would outlive the men who called him enemy....and twelve more rulers, generals, and warlords who rose from the shadows of fallen empires to forge their own. In Tales of Legends: War Kings of the Dark Ages, twenty first-person narratives plunge you into the minds of history's most formidable leaders. Feel the weight of their decisions, the clash of their armies, and the dangerous allure of absolute power. This is no cold chronicle of names and dates-this is the world's turbulent rebirth told through the voices of those who made it happen. History remembers their kingdoms. This book remembers their voices.