"A magnum opus. . . .a fascinating and highly instructive journey to be taken on."-- "Speculum"

"If Nelson expects a lot of her readers, it's because she has so much to offer. This is by any measure a superb book. Charlemagne . . . has finally found an equally great modern biographer."-- "Literary Review"

"In crafting her new biography of the tremendous king, the British historian Janet L. Nelson has trawled well-traveled waterways and obscure rivulets alike to fish out the historical figure as he acted and thought."-- "New Criterion"

"Helen Castor's endorsement-'a masterclass in the practice of history'--is as good a description of this brilliant new biography as we are likely to get"-- "The Spectator"

"An immense achievement--brilliantly learned and profoundly wise, it is as revelatory about the practice of history as it is about the great man himself."-- "History Extra"

"Recommended."-- "CHOICE"

"In her impressive new biography, Janet L Nelson meticulously sifts all the available evidence [on Charlemagne]. At the start she notes (a little terrifyingly) that some 7,000 charters survive from his reign. You can believe she has looked at every single one, so thorough and expansive is this work of scholarship. . . . Nelson uses literary sources adroitly, supplementing more prosaic charter and annalistic evidence with moving poetry."-- "Daily Telegraph"

"Janet Nelson has succeeded in delivering 'a new life' of Charles. Her long-awaited biography invites us to understand the man in ways that are original and penetrating."-- "Financial Times"

"Janet Nelson assembles an astonishingly rich picture from the most unrewarding of texts. The way she puzzles out probable facts and motivations, based on a complete reading of the existing texts, is a joy to witness. She draws on and shows off the clever work of earlier historians, while giving short shrift to their more biased assumptions. The narrative voice emerges as that of a patient, inquisitive, incisive and helpful master detective, with funny asides, a beautiful style and sensible politics."-- "Times Literary Supplement"

"King and Emperor takes on the compelling suspense of good detective work as well as good history. . . . Janet L. Nelson comes as close as one can to approaching this extraordinary man."-- "Wall Street Journal"

"Janet L. Nelson's meticulous biography of Charlemagne is as magisterial as the man himself."-- "American Conservative"

"There have been countless studies of Charlemagne in many languages . . . but few have been as ambitiously biographical as Nelson's. Historians of early medieval Europe are trained to interpret scattered clues and fragments, however, and Nelson is one of the very best."-- "London Review of Books"

"Experts . . . will hail this as a major work"-- "Sunday Telegraph"

"A deeply learned and humane portrait . . . Nelson's King and Emperor brings alive the age of Charlemagne, the ruler usually associated with the first effort after the fall of Rome to unite Europe under a single rule. This 'new life' is a bold book. . . . Each chapter is a masterclass in tracing specific bodies of evidence back to the persons or incidents from which they arose. . . . King and Emperor is a masterpiece of historical writing and a robust step toward filling the gap in our historical imagination left by the passing of Rome."--Peter Brown, "New York Review of Books"

"Every bit the masterpiece. . . . One would expect from this true master of the historian's craft."-- "Medieval Review"