Widow (novella)

Lady Rayne’s life at the convent awaits… if the ominous Black Shuck lets her pass. WIDOW, a novella, begins this series of full-length stories at a time when legend of this ghostly hound haunts the English countryside.

Lady Rayne has few options as a young widow. Either her father will marry her off to a wealthy nobleman—no matter how old and disagreeable he may be, or she will become a nun like her aunt at Grimsford Abbey. The choice is easy: her interest in writing is not supported in the dark halls of her father’s home. Rayne eagerly anticipates becoming a scribe and learning the art of illumination and book making. But first she must travel along the treacherous roads of East Anglia.

Far from the confines of Norwich, Rayne hears fables of an enormous ghostly hound called the Black Shuck. She tries to ignore them until she finds herself staring into its expressive brown eyes. With every heartbeat, her chances of reaching Grimsford Abbey disappear. If only she could live to tell the tale.

The legends are wrong—mythological creatures are real, but they’re not what you've always been told. Get lost in history with these strong female leads and their sexy alpha shifters to discover the truth behind the myths. 

Along the unforgiving coast of Snæland, Ásta’s ancestral farm is plagued with bad luck. The kinless maiden’s turf walls continue to be found damaged with claw marks, reviving old memories of the wolf attack that left her scarred, and she begins to fear the whispers are true—that Fenrir, son of Loki and king of the wolves, has come to claim her.

Torin often leaves his uncle’s farm in the southern hills to track and ensnare valuable gyrfalcons. His secret ability to turn into raptors means his falconry skills are unparalleled, earning him precious silver. If the memory of his sister's death didn’t haunt him daily, pushing him to numb his senses with drink, Torin might have married by now—as his uncle often reminds him. But the time has finally come to find a wife and settle down.

With bad luck biting at their heels, the scars from their past may seal their fate and put them in an early grave. 

It’s Leif’s eighth summer going viking with his father on their ship the Kraken—and he’s had enough. For as long as Leif can remember, his father has claimed to be a descendant of Ægir, god of the sea, and has exploited their shape changing ability—all this to amass enough gold to gain entrance into the ocean god’s halls. Leif hopes that time’s drawing near so he can free himself from Ragna’s domineering shadow.

On the green hills of Éire, Eilish is content learning traditional folk cures from her father until a Finn-Gall raid disturbs the peace. Desperate to protect Eilish from harm, her father cuts her hair and disguises her in his old clothing before she’s ripped from the only home she’s ever known. Sold as a thrall in Duiblinn, she must hide out as a young man on a ship full of barbarians.

Now Eilish, who fears she’ll become Ægir’s next sacrifice, and Leif, who isn’t prepared to stand up against his father’s powerful wrath, must face the tides of change—no matter how ominous they may seem. 

On the western highlands of Scotland, a springtime storm pummels the coast while Kristie’s brother is out fishing. When he fails to return home, Kristie turns away from her list of chores to search the loch in an effort to ease her pregnant sister-in-law’s fears. Instead of finding Domnall, she discovers a naked and battered man washed up on shore and worries he could be a thieving reiver or worse—an Englishman.

When the handsome outsider wakes, he is unable to remember who he is or how he came to be there. Although the feisty and melancholy Kristie isn't keen on him remaining, her young neighbor, Jock, takes to the playful stranger and names Creag after the rocky crags where the loch meets the sea. Not long after the lad speaks of selkies, magical seals who shed their skins to live as humans, Creag dreams he is swimming deep beneath the waves.

Kristie is desperate to keep the farm running for her missing brother while Creag's sleep is filled with strange visions--glimpses that may reveal secrets to his past, but he may soon wish they were only a dream. 

Since childhood, headstrong Morgan Hausle has dreamed of becoming a blacksmith but has accepted it was all it could be—a dream—for who would ever teach a woman? Her ever-optimistic father, Tybalt, takes her on his travels, mining the scenic heights of the Austrian Alps in search of valuable gems and ore. But when thieves steal their horse and valuables, Tybalt is injured, and they are left stranded and hungry.

Emich Schmidt, a lonely blacksmith with unparalleled skills, lives a solitary life—but not without reason. If his family secrets were revealed, it would be his downfall. Tales of dragons inhabiting Drachenberg, the picturesque mountainside where his ancestral home was built, are what keep people away. And that is how he likes it. However, during his monthly visit to the village for provisions, a talkative miner and his fair-haired daughter threaten Emich’s quiet lifestyle when he begrudgingly offers them assistance.

Fearful of the warnings about Drachenberg, Morgen cannot shake the feeling she is being watched while Emich questions if he can keep his dangerous secrets despite her constant curiosity. While their personalities clash, unmistakable truths come clear—in this world all beasts have a weakness—and every spark catches flame.