The Black Hawks

Articles of Faith, Book 1

By: David Wragg

Narrated by: Colin Mace

Dark, thrilling, and hilarious, The Black Hawks is an epic adventure perfect for fans of Joe Abercrombie and Scott Lynch.

Life as a knight is not what Vedren Chel imagined. Bound by oath to a dead-end job in the service of a lazy step-uncle, Chel no longer dreams of glory – he dreams of going home.

When invaders throw the kingdom into turmoil, Chel finds opportunity in the chaos: if he escorts a stranded prince to safety, Chel will be released from his oath.

All he has to do is drag the brat from one side of the country to the other, through war and wilderness, chased all the way by ruthless assassins.

With killers on your trail, you need killers watching your back. You need the Black Hawk Company – mercenaries, fighters without equal, a squabbling, scrapping pack of rogues.

Prepare to join the Black Hawks.

©2019 David Wragg (P)2019 HarperCollins Publishers Limited

Critic reviews

‘Reminds me of Abercrombie’s THE BLADE ITSELF’
Nicholas Eames, author of KINGS OF THE WYLD

‘Refreshing and entertaining, like a cross between Nicholas Eames and Joe Abercrombie; THE BLACK HAWKS is simply a joy to read’
Peter McLean, author of PRIEST OF BONES

‘Wragg captures the classic fantasy spirit of adventure and exploration, wraps it with stabbed backs and cannibals and gifts it to you on a bed of action’
Ed McDonald, author of BLACKWING

‘Everyone loves a good mercenary tale, but THE BLACK HAWKS offers more besides: a protagonist who's refreshingly rubbish at fighting, a supporting cast who'd be fascinating if they were just standing around in a supermarket, and an author who knows when to dodge cliches, and when to jump in and splash like a kid in a puddle’
Nate Crowley, author of 100 BEST VIDEO GAMES (THAT NEVER EXISTED)

‘Check out THE BLACK HAWKS – it’s full of fun characters, mercenary antics, twists, turns, and contains my favourite fantasy lemon’
Peter Newman, Gemmell Award-winning author of THE VAGRANT and THE DEATHLESS

‘A remarkably assured debut…I can’t wait to see what happens next’
Anna Stephens, author of GODBLIND

An raunchy, incredibly fun read!

Are memorable crews of morally questionably people your thing? Do you love wonderfully painted high fantasy scenery accentuated by language foul enough to make milk curdle? Read The Black Hawks- this one's a keeper.

Great story!

Loved the story, but the rise and fall of the narrator’s voice made it difficult to listen to. I kept having to turn up the volume in places, then immediately turn it down in others. He was fantastic aside from that.

Doesn't try to reinvent the wheel, just fun!

Some pretty witty banter that Colin Mace breathes even more life into! I'm not sure how much I would have liked it as a paperback, but I am very happy with my purchase.

Very very good, only one thing held the story back

First let’s go over all of the good things this book offered
The narrator did an absolutely wonderful job portraying this characters and capturing all of the tiny audible mannerisms and nuances that really immerse you into the novel.
The characters, the environment, the plot, the dialogue are ALL top tier. This authors World building is top tier as well. Very well rounded and cohesive.

The only thing that I feel may be a bit of a deterrent and what knocked off that fifth star is that it took WAYYYY too long for the book to pick up and get going. I got about half way through book until I felt engaged, then had to relisten to the first half cuz I felt lost.

I have come to love this book now, I love all of the characters and have already purchased the 2nd installment.

Awesome book, a little quiet

Really, really enjoyed this book, my only qualm is that Colin mace has a deep voice and some of the lower parts could be tough to hear, depending on how I was listening.

pretty good story but volume changes on the audio

sometimes I couldn't hear what the voice actor was saying and other times it was way too loud

Fun listen after The First Law

Audio issues weren't bad. Good characters. Easy story to follow. Worth a credit. Not as good as Abercrombie and Pacey, but I'm looking forward to a sequel.

Not Bad

I enjoyed this audiobook well enough, as the performance was good and the storyline okay.

I enjoyed the journey the company took together, but the story on either end of the traveling parts felt slapped together to me. The last few chapters did feel dull despite obviously being intended to be dramatic.

The chemistry the members of the company have with each other is the best part, and any part where they weren’t together as a group for a while felt dull by comparison.

Unlikeable Hero

I saw comparisons to Joe Abercrombie... Nope. I wanted to punch the hero. Confusing story.

Guy Ritchie vibes in the dialogue.

I like the succinct writing style and the jokes land well. Where some authors shy away from profanity, this one elevates it to an art form.