I loved Conn Iggulden's earlier books; I enjoyed Emperor and Conqueror immensely. This subject is potentially of even more interest to us British, but it was difficult to discern a central 'character' as in the other series, unless it was Margaret, who was I suppose the 'Stormbird' of the title. The book, while well written and researched, had the feel of a very long prologue to ensuing events, so I await the next volume with interest but without the sense of serialisation and personal involvement that the author managed to create in his earlier works, without which it reads more like a history book than a historical novel. I felt bored by the writing unfortunately.