Senlac is a two-part historical novel that brings to life the turbulent period leading to the Norman conquest of England in 1066. A bloody war fought at close hand and on horseback with sword and battle-ax, with the English pitted on different fronts against the Normans and the Vikings, the results of this invasion would dramatically change the course of Medieval history and beyond.

Senlac opens during Christmas of the year 1065, a time of grave national crisis and disquieting omens, when the aged King Edward the Confessor, the seventh son of Æthelred the Unready, dies in the Palace of Westminster in London. He leaves behind no heir.

To fill the void, Edward’s brother-in-law, Harold, the Earl of Wessex and the greatest warrior in England, is hurriedly elected king by popular acclaim. Harold desperately seeks to unify a kingdom ravaged by the Danish occupation, and by unrest on both the Scottish and Welsh borders.

In order to ensure military support in the north, Harold must turn his back on his beloved common-law wife, Edith the Fair—also known as Edith Swanneck, for the graceful length of her neck—and their children to marry Aeldyth, the sister of both the Earl of Northumbria and the Earl of Mercia. Meanwhile, Harold’s mercurial younger brother, Tostig, is bitterly plotting a return from exile and revenge against the King.

Across the North Sea, the King of Norway, the aging and psychotic Harald Hardraada, who was said to be a full seven feet tall, dreams of a new Viking Empire on English soil, and strikes an alliance with Tosig. Likewise, across the English Channel, William, Duke of Normandy—the leader of a powerful yet unstable military state—plans his own attack, determined to avenge Harold’s broken promise to make England his.

Carefully researched and re-imagined by Londoner and first-time novelist Julian del la Motte, Senlac turns the dust of history into living flesh and emotion. “It might just be the best historical fiction you’ll ever read,” says Charles McNair, who was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize for fiction for his novel, Land O’ Goshen.

Praise for Senlac

“My astonishment grew by the page. Somehow Julian de la Motte summons up an image of the Europe of 1,000 years ago, an account that feels real not like fiction; an uncanny historical rendering that blends the exquisite detail of Hilary Mantel with the scope of Edward Gibbon. If you don't believe me then open Senlac. It might just be the best historical fiction you'll ever read.” —Charles McNair, nominated for the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, author of The Epicureans

Senlac (Book One) is a must read for all discerning fans of historical fiction. A narrative that is fearsomely visceral yet remains exquisitely in period throughout.”— BookViralReview.com

“Senlac (Book Two) delivers a rousing read that marks the best of its genre. It is a deeply layered read that ensnares the imagination. It is, in every sense of the word, an epic.” —BookViral Review.com

About the Author:

Julian de la Motte was born in London. He graduated in Medieval History and Theology from SDUC Lampeter, University of Wales, and gained a postgraduate qualification in Medieval Art from the University of York. After spending three years in Italy as an English teacher he returned to the U.K. and worked as a teacher, teacher trainer, materials writer and specialist in Cross-Cultural Training before becoming a Director of Foreign Language training to the U.K. corporate sector. This was followed by a career in International Sales and Marketing, involving extensive overseas business travel. Senlac is his first novel.

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