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How long does it take to read The Empty Throne?

Bernard Cornwell

The Empty Throne by Bernard Cornwell takes about 6 hours 10 minutes to read at 250 words a minute.

Book 8 of The Saxon Stories

Previous: The Pagan Lord Next: Warriors of the Storm

About 6 hours 10 minutes

A weekend read

First published 2014. 336 pages, about 92,400 words.

13 days at 30 minutes a day

Estimate based on 275 words per page.

At other speeds

Slow, 150 words a minute 10 hours 16 minutes
Average, 250 words a minute 6 hours 10 minutes
Fast, 400 words a minute 3 hours 51 minutes

The page count is the median across 16 editions, so your copy may differ. How we calculate.

About the book

"Britain, early tenth century AD: a time of change. There are new raids by the Vikings from Ireland, and turmoil among the Saxons over the leadership of Mercia. A younger generation is taking over. Æthelred, the ruler of Mercia, is dying, leaving no legitimate heir. The West Saxons want their king, but Uhtred has long supported Æthelflaed, sister to King Edward of Wessex and widow of Æthelred. Widely loved and respected, Æthelflaed has all the makings of a leader--but could Saxon warriors ever accept a woman as their ruler? The stage is set for rivals to fight for the empty throne. Uhtred is still suffering from the wounds he received in battle. To recover his strength he needs to find the sword that caused the injury, but lost amid the battle's blood and mud, how could it be traced and who among the Vikings or Saxons might be holding it? In the end it is one champion, one hero, who will destroy the new Viking threat to Mercia and ultimately decide the fate of England."--

Subjects: Fiction, Saxons, Vikings, Kings and rulers, Succession, History

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