I love Dan Jones non-fiction history books and this is no exception. I’m not coming to this one as a neophyte, either, knowing a lot about that period of history and Hery himself. Jones gives a balanced portrayal, devoting a good chunk of the book to Henry’s life before he became king. This is a vital look at what shaped him from his father’s complete inability to manage money, despite putting the infrastructure for modern law and order in place, to Henry’s own ability to ‘spit straw into gold’ in the most unpromising of circumstances. There’s a lot more to Henry V than Agincourt and Jones does a brilliant job of depicting this. Highly recommend.

Dan Jones is not only an authoritative historian, he’s an outstanding storyteller. I don’t know a lot about Henry V and our view of many of these early monarchs is often coloured by Shakespeare or accounts of a single event, Agincourt. Dan Jones explores the whole life of Henry, placing it in context of his father’s reign and Richard II. This was a time of significant turmoil for the country and the monarchy. As well as incursions into Europe, the royals were also keeping a wary eye on potential usurpers closer to home. In particular, Owain Glyndwr was exercising his (arguably rightful) claimto the English throne and urging other Celtic leaders to support him. The young Henry was directly involved in battles in and around Wales and as a very young teenager, was already showing his ability to command and control. I found the descriptions of these battles compelling and the graphic detail of the actions of the Welsh women in dealing with the dead brought an horrific scene to vivid life.

Historians like Dan are vital to give an honest and impartial view of the past. I have a whole new perspective on this period; the infighting amongst the nobles, keen to better themselves, the uncertainty for the people, divided by location, bound to conflict. And most of all, the blossoming and development of a future monarch who:s brought to vividly to life as an individual. Exceptionally, Dan is also a great narrator and I’ve enjoyed every minute of this incredible journey. Very highly recommended, not only for insight into Henry, but for a rollicking adventure.

I'd not picked up any of Dan Jones's books before and was only aware of him through his TV work, which I found insightful but accessible.

Luckily his written work proves to be much the same - there's a lovely conversational style but without being simplistic, and the book raced by whilst teaching me a lot.

really informative book written and read by a great story teller.
dan jones really pulls out the person behind the myths, with a great understanding of the subject matter.

I will bw recommending the book to any readers who are interested in this topic.