Ethan Bale

Ethan Bale is the pen name of American author and former defence journalist Clifford Beal. He spent around thirty years covering aerospace, military technology and international affairs in Washington and London before turning to historical fiction. His longstanding interest in the Renaissance and early modern Europe was reinforced by his participation in medieval combat tournaments, experience that informs the battles and physical detail in his novels.

Bale is best known for the Swords of the White Rose trilogy, which follows the veteran knight Sir John Hawker during the final stages of the Wars of the Roses and the rise of Henry Tudor. Beginning with Hawker and the King’s Jewel, and continuing with The Lost Prince and The Knight’s Redemption, the series combines military adventure, espionage and political intrigue with journeys through England and Renaissance Europe. His fiction explores divided loyalties, survival and the consequences of supporting the losing side in a period of dynastic upheaval.