Pagan Death
By Sam Taw
Three lying wives. Two fated slaves. One
murdered leader.
It's 700BC and healer of the Dumnonii, Meliora, is devastated. Her favourite nephew is dead, poisoned by one of their own.
It’s a shameful way to kill a Chieftain, leaving Aebba the Wild to roam the Between Worlds until he is avenged. She knows the priests at the midsummer gathering will not allow him to pass into the Summerlands until the killer is brought to justice. With three manipulative widows pushing their sons forward to replace him, life in camp is fraught with danger. When a second body is discovered, Meliora knows that she could be next.
A neighbouring tribe have their sights set on plundering the Dumnoni tin mines. Against all vows of peace, they plan an attack for when they are at their most vulnerable. Can Meliora and her kin make it back from Stonehenge in time to defend their land and people?
Can she unmask the killer before they silence her for good?
Excerpt
“There may be something
Meliora can do yet. Don’t give up hope.” Cryda sobbed.
I shook my head,
stepping back a pace. “I am sorry, Cryda. He is gone. There is nothing to be
done for him.”
For a moment, I thought
I saw a glimmer of shock in Eseld’s eyes, but I was mistaken, for the first
words from her mouth were, “And now Paega is to be Chieftain.” Pride swelled
within her. It filled her chest and spilled from her venomous face.
I reached over and
pulled Aebba’s chin until his mouth opened. A black stain trailed down his face
to his neck. There were red spots inside his mouth and a rash on his throat.
Taking a deep sniff, I could smell unripe fruit, slightly bitter. I was rapidly
forming an opinion on the manner in which he died. If it is what I think, he
suffered a frightening ordeal, lasting many hours.
It begins with wide eyes
and a mild rash, until unsteadiness takes hold. In the final stages, the
pounding headache is joined by hallucinations and loss of voice, before
breathing becomes impossible. If Aebba was lucky, the last stage came quickly,
with fitting until the heart fails.
I turned to the grieving
widows and looked at each of them in turn. With anger boiling inside, I said to
them, “Aebba was
murdered.”
Grab
your copy now and immerse yourself in Late Bronze Age skirmishes and bloody
rituals in the first of this tense and brutal historical thriller series.
Sam Taw
Sam Taw is the pen name for fiction author Sam Nash. Sam is
committed to delivering novels in two distinct genres, historical thrillers and
a unique blend of science fiction and international espionage stories.
She lives in a small market town in the south of Leicestershire, close to where she grew up, but one day dreams of owning a woodland on the Cornish coast.
She lives in a small market town in the south of Leicestershire, close to where she grew up, but one day dreams of owning a woodland on the Cornish coast.
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See you on your next coffee break!
Take Care,
Mary Anne xxx