1347. Bruised and bloodied by an epic battle at Cr?cy, six soldiers of fortune known as the Essex Dogs pick through the wreckage of the fighting – and their own lives. Now a new siege is beginning, and the Dogs are sent to attack the soaring walls of Calais. King Edward has vowed no Englishman will leave France til this city falls. To get home, they must survive a merciless winter in a lawless camp deadlier than any battlefield. Obsessed with tracking down the vanished Captain, Loveday struggles to control his own men. Romford is haunted by the reappearance of a horrific figure from his past. And Scotsman is spiralling into a pit of drink, violence and self-pity. The Dogs are being torn apart – but this war is far from over. It won’t be long before they lose more of their own.