Books like 'Ragnarok'
Readers who enjoyed Ragnarok by A.S. Byatt also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
historical fantasy military, war & conflict 20th century europe scandinavia myths historical-fiction literary-fiction retellings
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The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 91 ratingsBarcelona, 1945: A city slowly heals from its war wounds, and Daniel, an antiquarian book dealer's son who mourns the loss of his mother, finds solace in a mysterious book entitled The Shadow of the Wind, by one Julian Carax. But when he sets out to find the author's other works, he makes a shocking discovery: someone has been systematically destroying every copy of every book Carax has written...Categorized as:
classics coming-of-age europe historical-fiction literary-fiction magical-realism war 20th-century -
![The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien]()
The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 71 ratingsAn alternate cover edition can be found here and hereA great modern classic and the prelude to The Lord of the Rings. Bilbo Baggins is a hobbit who enjoys a comfortable, unambitious life, rarely traveling any farther than his pantry or cellar. But his contentment is disturbed when the wizard Gandalf and a company of dwarves arrive on his doorstep one day to whisk him away on an adventure...Categorized as:
classics literary-fiction medieval myths spirituality war 20th-century action-adventure -
![The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien]()
The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 83 ratingsAn alternate cover edition can be found here and hereA great modern classic and the prelude to The Lord of the Rings. Bilbo Baggins is a hobbit who enjoys a comfortable, unambitious life, rarely traveling any farther than his pantry or cellar. But his contentment is disturbed when the wizard Gandalf and a company of dwarves arrive on his doorstep one day to whisk him away on an adventure...Categorized as:
classics literary-fiction medieval myths spirituality war 20th-century action-adventure -
![Dead Eagles by Phil Ward]()
Dead Eagles by Phil Ward
Rated: 4.47 of 5 stars · 15 ratingsIn this sequel to Those Who Dare, U.S.Major John Randal, Commander of Strategic Raiding Forces is back, leading a crew of British Commandos, Royal Marines and Royal Navy raiders on bigger and bolder missions to foil Hitler's Third Reich. Off the Gold Coast colony in Africa, the Germans are operating a naval intelligence ring that gathers information about British convoys in the southern sea-lane... -
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![Echo by Pam Muñoz Ryan]()
Echo by Pam Muñoz Ryan
Rated: 4.32 of 5 stars · 28 ratingsAn impassioned, uplifting, and virtuosic tour de force from a treasured storyteller!Lost and alone in a forbidden forest, Otto meets three mysterious sisters and suddenly finds himself entwined in a puzzling quest involving a prophecy, a promise, and a harmonica...Categorized as:
coming-of-age fairy-tale historical-fiction magical-realism war ww2 20th-century action-adventure -
![Gates of Fire by Steven Pressfield]()
Gates of Fire by Steven Pressfield
Rated: 4.39 of 5 stars · 41 ratingsAt Thermopylae, a rocky mountain pass in northern Greece, the feared and admired Spartan soldiers stood three hundred strong. Theirs was a suicide mission, to hold the pass against the invading millions of the mighty Persian army.Day after bloody day they withstood the terrible onslaught, buying time for the Greeks to rally their forces... -
![Excalibur by Bernard Cornwell]()
Excalibur by Bernard Cornwell
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 38 ratingsIn The Winter King and Enemy of God Bernard Cornwell demonstrated his astonishing ability to make the oft-told legend of King Arthur fresh and new for our time. Now, in this riveting final volume of The Warlord Chronicles, Cornwell tells the unforgettable tale of Arthur's final struggles against the Saxons and his last attempts to triumph over a ruined marriage and ravaged dreams...Categorized as:
europe historical-fiction magical-realism medieval myths retellings war 20th-century -
![Signal Moon by Kate Quinn]()
Signal Moon by Kate Quinn
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsA short story about an impossible connection across two centuries that could make the difference between peace or war.Yorkshire, 1943. Lily Baines, a bright young debutante increasingly ground down by an endless war, has traded in her white gloves for a set of headphones. It’s her job to intercept enemy naval communications and send them to Bletchley Park for decryption... -
![Enemy of God by Bernard Cornwell]()
Enemy of God by Bernard Cornwell
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 39 ratingsThe balance of King Arthur's unified kingdom is threatened by Merlin's quest for the last of Britain's 13 Treasures; by the conflict between the ancient religion and the new Christianity; and by Britain's war with the Saxons. A master storyteller continues his retelling of the Arthurian legend...Categorized as:
europe historical-fiction medieval myths retellings war 20th-century action-adventure -
![Falls the Shadow by Sharon Kay Penman]()
Falls the Shadow by Sharon Kay Penman
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 34 ratingsThis is Simon de Montfort's story—and the story of King Henry III, as weak and changeable as Montfort was brash and unbending. It is a saga of two opposing wills that would later clash in a storm of violence and betrayal, a story straight from the pages of history that brings the world of the thirteenth century completely, provocatively, and magnificently alive... -
![The Hollow Hills by Mary Stewart]()
The Hollow Hills by Mary Stewart
Rated: 4.26 of 5 stars · 27 ratingsKeeping watch over the young Arthur Pendragon, the prince and prophet Merlin Ambrosius is haunted by dreams of the magical sword Caliburn, which has been hidden for centuries. When Uther Pendragon is killed in battle, the time of destiny is at hand, and Arthur must claim the fabled sword to become the true High King of Britain...Categorized as:
classics coming-of-age historical-fiction literary-fiction medieval myths retellings war -
![The Journeyer by Gary Jennings]()
The Journeyer by Gary Jennings
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsMarco Polo was nicknamed "Marco of the millions" because his Venetian countrymen took the grandiose stories of his travels to be exaggerated, if not outright lies. As he lay dying, his priest, family, and friends offered him a last chance to confess his mendacity, and Marco, it is said, replied "I have not told the half of what I saw and did... -
![The Lions of Al-Rassan by Guy Gavriel Kay]()
The Lions of Al-Rassan by Guy Gavriel Kay
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 39 ratingsThe ruling Asharites of Al-Rassan have come from the desert sands, but over centuries, seduced by the sensuous pleasures of their new land, their stern piety has eroded. The Asharite empire has splintered into decadent city-states led by warring petty kings... -
![Here Be Dragons by Sharon Kay Penman]()
Here Be Dragons by Sharon Kay Penman
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 39 ratingsThirteenth-century Wales is a divided country, ever at the mercy of England's ruthless, power-hungry King John. Then Llewelyn, Prince of North Wales, secures an uneasy truce with England by marrying the English king's beloved, illegitimate daughter, Joanna. Reluctant to wed her father's bitter enemy, Joanna slowly grows to love her charismatic and courageous husband who dreams of uniting Wales...Categorized as:
classics europe historical-fiction literary-fiction medieval war 20th-century action-adventure -
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![Lovely War by Julie Berry]()
Lovely War by Julie Berry
Rated: 4.26 of 5 stars · 43 ratingsIt's 1917, and World War I is at its zenith when Hazel and James first catch sight of each other at a London party. She's a shy and talented pianist; he's a newly minted soldier with dreams of becoming an architect. When they fall in love, it's immediate and deep--and cut short when James is shipped off to the killing fields.Aubrey Edwards is also headed toward the trenches... -
![In the Land of Armadillos: Stories by Helen Maryles Shankman]()
In the Land of Armadillos: Stories by Helen Maryles Shankman
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsA debut collection of linked stories from a two-time Pushcart Prize nominee, set in a German-occupied town in Poland, where tales of myth and folklore meet the real-life monsters of the Nazi invasion.1942. With the Nazi Party at the height of its power, the occupying army empties Poland’s towns and cities of their Jewish populations...Categorized as:
historical-fiction literary-fiction magical-realism war ww2 20th-century 21st-century adult -
![The High King by Lloyd Alexander]()
The High King by Lloyd Alexander
Rated: 4.23 of 5 stars · 49 ratingsWhen the sword of Dyrnwyn, the most powerful weapon inthe kingdom of Prydain, falls into the hands of Arawn-Death-Lord, Taran, Assistant Pig-Keeper, and Prince Gwydion raise an army to march against Arawn's terrible cohorts. After a winter expedition filled with danger, Taran's army arrives at Mount Dragon, Arawn's stronghold... -
![The Last Enchantment by Mary Stewart]()
The Last Enchantment by Mary Stewart
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 25 ratingsArthur Pendragon is King! Unchallenged on the battlefield, he melds the country together in a time of promise. But sinister powers plot to destroy Camelot, and when the witch-queen Morgause -- Arthur's own half sister -- ensnares him in an incestuous liaison, a fatal web of love, betrayal, and bloody vengeance is woven...Categorized as:
classics historical-fiction literary-fiction medieval myths retellings war 20th-century -
![Aztec by Gary Jennings]()
Aztec by Gary Jennings
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 25 ratingsAztec is the extraordinary story of the last and greatest native civilization of North America...Categorized as:
classics historical-fiction literary-fiction myths religion spirituality war 20th-century -
![The Crystal Cave by Mary Stewart]()
The Crystal Cave by Mary Stewart
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 32 ratingsFifth century Britain is a country of chaos and division after the Roman withdrawal. This is the world of young Merlin, the illegitimate child of a South Wales princess who will not reveal to her son his father's true identity. Yet Merlin is an extraordinary child, aware at the earliest age that he possesses a great natural gift - the Sight...Categorized as:
classics coming-of-age historical-fiction magical-realism medieval myths retellings war -
![River God: A Novel of Ancient Egypt by Wilbur Smith]()
River God: A Novel of Ancient Egypt by Wilbur Smith
Rated: 4.18 of 5 stars · 28 ratingsTanus is the fair-haired young lion of a warrior whom the gods have decreed will lead Egypt's army in a bold attempt to reunite the Kingdom's shattered halves...Categorized as:
classics historical-fiction literary-fiction myths religion spirituality war 20th-century -
![The Winter King by Bernard Cornwell]()
The Winter King by Bernard Cornwell
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 46 ratingsUther, the High King, has died, leaving the infant Mordred as his only heir. His uncle, the loyal and gifted warlord Arthur, now rules as caretaker for a country which has fallen into chaos - threats emerge from within the British kingdoms while vicious Saxon armies stand ready to invade... -
![The island of missing trees by Elif Shafak, Rūta Razmaitė]()
The island of missing trees by Elif Shafak, Rūta Razmaitė
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 57 ratingsA rich, magical new book on belonging and identity, love and trauma, nature and renewal, from the Booker shortlisted author of 10 Minutes 38 Seconds in This Strange World. Two teenagers, a Greek Cypriot and a Turkish Cypriot, meet at a taverna on the island they both call home... -
![The Ballad of the White Horse by G.K. Chesterton]()
The Ballad of the White Horse by G.K. Chesterton
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsThe Ballad of the White Horse is one of the last great epic poems in the English language. On the one hand it describes King Alfred's battle against the Danes in 878. On the other hand it is a timeless allegory about the ongoing battle between Christianity and the forces of nihilistic heathenism... -
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![The Most Precious of Cargoes by Jean-Claude Grumberg]()
The Most Precious of Cargoes by Jean-Claude Grumberg
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsSet during the height of World War II, a powerful and unsettling tale about a woodcutter and his wife, who finds a mysterious parcel thrown from a passing train.Once upon a time in an enormous forest lived a woodcutter and his wife. The woodcutter is very poor and a war rages around them, making it difficult for them to put food on the table. Yet every night, his wife prays for a child... -
![The World That We Knew by Alice Hoffman]()
The World That We Knew by Alice Hoffman
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 39 ratingsIn Berlin in 1941 during humanity's darkest hour, three unforgettable young women must act with courage and love to survive, from the New York Times bestselling author of The Dovekeepers and The Marriage of Opposites Alice Hoffman. In Berlin, at the time when the world changed, Hanni Kohn knows she must send her twelve-year-old daughter away to save her from the Nazi regime...Categorized as:
coming-of-age historical-fiction literary-fiction magical-realism myths religion spirituality war -
![The She-Wolf by Maurice Druon]()
The She-Wolf by Maurice Druon
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratings‘This was the original game of thrones’ George R.R. MartinCharles IV is now king of France and his sister is Edward II of England’s Queen. Having been imprisoned by Edward as leader of the rebellious English barons, Roger Mortimer escapes to France, where he joins the war against the English Aquitaine...Categorized as:
classics historical-fiction literary-fiction medieval war 20th-century action-adventure adult -
![A Single Swallow by Zhang Ling]()
A Single Swallow by Zhang Ling
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThe eagerly awaited English translation of award-winning author Zhang Ling’s epic and intimate novel about the devastation of war, forgiveness, redemption, and the enduring power of love.On the day of the historic 1945 Jewel Voice Broadcast—in which Emperor Hirohito announced Japan’s surrender to the Allied forces, bringing an end to World War II—three men, flush with jubilation, made a pact... -
![Martin the Warrior by Brian Jacques]()
Martin the Warrior by Brian Jacques
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 45 ratingsFinally, the long awaited tale of Martin, the Warrior mouse of RedwallAs a child, Martin was brought to the stronghold of Badrang the Tyrant, forced into enslavement behind its massive walls. But he was strong. He was brave... -
![The Deer and the Cauldron: The First Book by Jin Yong]()
The Deer and the Cauldron: The First Book by Jin Yong
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsOn the Dragon Throne of China sits the young Manchu Emperor Kang Xi. Back in 1644, his great-uncle Dorgon broke through the Great Wall from Manchuria in the north-east and took the Imperial capital, Peking. Now twenty years later, the Manchus are quelling the last sparks of Chinese resistance, hounding down members of the underground movement known as the Triad Secret Society...Categorized as:
classics historical-fiction literary-fiction war 20th-century action-adventure adult ancient-china -
![The Mahabharata by Jean-Claude Carrière]()
The Mahabharata by Jean-Claude Carrière
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsA unique dramatization of India's greatest epic poem, fifteen times longer than the Bible, The Mahabharata has played to enthralled audiences throughout Europe, the Far East and America. Regarded as the culmination of Peter Brook's extraordinary research into the possibilities of theatre, the production has been hailed as the 'theatrical event of this century' (Sunday Times)... -
![The Secret Book of Flora Lea by Patti Callahan Henry]()
The Secret Book of Flora Lea by Patti Callahan Henry
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWhen a woman discovers a rare book that has connections to her past, long-held secrets about her missing sister and their childhood spent in the English countryside during World War II are revealed.In the war-torn London of 1939, fourteen-year-old Hazel and five-year-old Flora are evacuated to a rural village to escape the horrors of the Second World War... -
![Island of Ghosts by Gillian Bradshaw]()
Island of Ghosts by Gillian Bradshaw
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsAriantes is a Sarmatian, a barbarian warrior-prince, uprooted from his home and customs and thrust into the honorless lands of the Romans. The victims of a wartime pact struck with the emperor Marcus Aurelius to ensure the future of Sarmatia, Ariantes and his troop of accomplished horsemen are sent to Hadrian's Wall...Categorized as:
historical-fiction spirituality war 20th-century action-adventure adult ancient-civilization book -
![Seven Summer Nights by Harper Fox]()
Seven Summer Nights by Harper Fox
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsIt’s 1946, and the dust of World War Two has just begun to settle. When famous archaeologist Rufus Denby returns to London, his life and reputation are as devastated as the city around him.He’s used to the most glamorous of excavations, but can’t turn down the offer of a job in rural Sussex. It’s a refuge, and the only means left to him of scraping a living... -
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![The Midnight Guardians by Ross Montgomery]()
The Midnight Guardians by Ross Montgomery
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsWhen Col's childhood imaginary friends come to life, he discovers a world where myths and legends are real. Accompanied by his guardians - a six-foot tiger, a badger in a waistcoat and a miniature knight - Col must race to Blitz-bombed London to save his sister.But there are darker forces at work, even than the Nazi bombings... -
![Day of War by Cliff Graham]()
Day of War by Cliff Graham
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsIn ancient Israel, at the crossroads of the great trading routes, a man named Benaiah is searching for a fresh start in life. He has joined a band of soldiers led by a warlord named David, seeking to bury the past that refuses to leave him. Their ragged army is disgruntled and full of reckless men. Some are loyal to David, but others are only with him for the promise of captured wealth...Categorized as:
historical-fiction religion spirituality war ww2 20th-century action-adventure adult -
![If I Should Die Before I Wake by Han Nolan]()
If I Should Die Before I Wake by Han Nolan
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 19 ratingsHilary hates Jews. As part of a neo-Nazi gang in her town, she's finally found a sense of belonging. But when she's critically injured in an accident, everything changes.Somehow, in her mind, she has become Chana, a Jewish girl fighting for her own life in the ghettos and concentration camps of World War II... -
![The Game of Kings by Dorothy Dunnett]()
The Game of Kings by Dorothy Dunnett
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 33 ratingsDunnett introduces her irresistible hero Francis Crawford of Lymond, a scapegrace nobleman of elastic morals and dangerous talents whose tongue is as sharp as his rapier. In 1547 Lymond is returning to his native Scotland, which is threatened by an English invasion. Accused of treason, Lymond leads a band of outlaws in a desperate race to redeem his reputation and save his land...Categorized as:
classics europe historical-fiction literary-fiction medieval war 20th-century action-adventure -
![Max in the Land of Lies: A Tale of World War II by Adam Gidwitz]()
Max in the Land of Lies: A Tale of World War II by Adam Gidwitz
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsMax Bretzfeld's dangerous mission begins when he returns home to Berlin as a British spy in the much-anticipated second book in Adam Gidwitz's duology that began with Max in the House of Spies.Max was on a mission. Well, two missions. One mission his British spymasters knew about: infiltrating the Funkhaus, the center of Nazi radio and propaganda. The other, they did not: finding his parents...Categorized as:
historical-fiction ww2 magical-realism war middle-grade fantasy fiction action-adventure -
![The Passion by Jeanette Winterson]()
The Passion by Jeanette Winterson
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 38 ratingsJeanette Winterson’s novels have established her as one of the most important young writers in world literature. The Passion is perhaps her most highly acclaimed work, a modern classic that confirms her special claim on the novel...Categorized as:
classics historical-fiction literary-fiction magical-realism war 20th-century adult audiobook -
![The Martyr's Song by Ted Dekker]()
The Martyr's Song by Ted Dekker
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 27 ratingsWhat would you die for?That's the question suddenly thrust upon a small band of women and children in Bosnia at the close of World War II. When a group of bitter soldiers stumble upon their peaceful village, they suddenly face an insidious evil...and the ultimate test.It is then, in the midst of chaos and pain that the Martyr's Song is first heard...Categorized as:
historical-fiction religion spirituality war ww2 20th-century action-adventure audiobook -
![Flanders by Patricia Anthony]()
Flanders by Patricia Anthony
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratings"A harrowing and beautiful novel, demonstrating — again — that Patricia Anthony is one of our great writers." — Publishers WeeklyIn this gritty look at World War I's trench warfare, a young American sharpshooter ventures into no man's land each night to be ready by daybreak for the grim business of slaying record numbers of enemies...Categorized as:
historical-fiction literary-fiction magical-realism war 20th-century adult book female-author -
![The Mind's Eye by K.C. Finn]()
The Mind's Eye by K.C. Finn
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsA girl with a telepathic gift finds a boy clinging to his last hope during the war-torn climate of Europe, 1940. At fifteen, Kit Cavendish is one the oldest evacuees to escape London at the start of the Second World War due to a long term illness that sees her stuck in a wheelchair most of the time...Categorized as:
coming-of-age historical-fiction war ww2 20th-century action-adventure book disability -
![The Beast's Garden by Kate Forsyth]()
The Beast's Garden by Kate Forsyth
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsIt's August 1939 in Germany, and Ava's world is in turmoil. To save her father, she must marry a young Nazi officer, Leo von Löwenstein, who works for Hitler's spy chief in Berlin. However, she hates and fears the brutal Nazi regime, and finds herself compelled to stand against it.Ava joins an underground resistance movement that seeks to help victims survive the horrors of the German war machine... -
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![The Watchmaker's Daughter by Dianne Haley]()
The Watchmaker's Daughter by Dianne Haley
Rated: 4.08 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsHiding the worn piece of paper among her father’s watch deliveries, her eyes fill with tears at the memory of her brave friend walking towards the Nazi soldiers, and the sharp sound of gun fire. Her friend sacrificed herself so that she could deliver this message... -
![Nora & Kettle by Lauren Nicolle Taylor]()
Nora & Kettle by Lauren Nicolle Taylor
Rated: 4.07 of 5 stars · 14 ratings"What if Peter Pan was a homeless kid just trying to survive, and Wendy flew away for a really good reason?"Seventeen-year-old Kettle has had his share of adversity... -
![Tuscan Rose by Belinda Alexandra]()
Tuscan Rose by Belinda Alexandra
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsFrom an international bestselling author comes a richly woven tale of passion, longing, witchcraft, and magic set in Italy during World War II.A magical, richly woven World War II– era saga filled with passion, secrets, beauty, and horror from internationally acclaimed bestselling author Belinda Alexandra. FLORENCE, 1914...Categorized as:
historical-fiction literary-fiction war ww2 20th-century action-adventure adult audiobook -
![The Dollmaker of Krakow by R.M. Romero]()
The Dollmaker of Krakow by R.M. Romero
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsIn the land of dolls, there is magic.In the land of humans, there is war.Everywhere there is pain.But together there is hope. Karolina is a living doll whose king and queen have been overthrown. But when a strange wind spirits her away from the Land of the Dolls, she finds herself in Krakow, Poland, in the company of the Dollmaker, a man with an unusual power and a marked past... -
![The Circus Train by Amita Parikh]()
The Circus Train by Amita Parikh
Rated: 4.04 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsAt the World of Wonders, Europe's most magnificent travelling circus, every moment is full of magic, and nothing is as it seems--especially for the people who put on the show Lena Papadopoulos has never quite found her place within the circus, even as the daughter of the extraordinary headlining illusionist, Theo... -
![Shards of a Broken Crown by Raymond E. Feist]()
Shards of a Broken Crown by Raymond E. Feist
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 40 ratingsThe terrible Emerald Queen is vanquished…but the war in Midkemia is not yet won, as the remarkable Raymond E. Feist concludes his magnificent Serpentwar Saga with Shards of a Broken Crown—a spellbinding tale of magic, conflict, and treachery that sees the rise of a new threat from the ashes of defeat, an evil poised to strike mercilessly at realm triumphant but weakened by war...
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