Gina Rae Mitchell

Skull’s Vengeance (Curse of Clansmen and Kings Book 4) by Linnea Tanner | Excerpt ~ Author Note ~ $50 Amazon/BN Gift Card

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Book Details

Skull's Vengeance by Linnea Tanner
Series: Curse of Clansmen and Kings #4
Published by Apollo Raven Publisher on 08/12/2022
Genres: Fiction, Historical Fantasy
Format: eBook, Paperback
Pages: 402

A Celtic warrior queen must ultimately sacrifice what is most precious to her to vanquish her half-brother and reclaim the throne.

AS FORETOLD BY HER FATHER in a vision, Catrin has become a battle-hardened warrior after her trials in Rome’s legion and gladiatorial games. To fulfill her destiny, Catrin must return to Britannia and pull the cursed dagger out of the serpent’s stone. Only then can she unleash the magic of the Druids to destroy her evil half-brother, the powerful sorcerer, King Marrock. Always two steps ahead and seemingly unstoppable, Marrock uses his power to summon destructive natural forces to crush any rival who tries to stop him.

To have the slightest chance of beating Marrock, Catrin must forge alliances with former enemies, but she needs someone she can trust. Seeking military aid from Marcellus, her secret Roman husband, is her only option, which rekindles their burning passion for one another. But Marcellus must play a deadly game in the political firestorm of the Julio-Claudian dynasty to support Catrin’s cause.

In order to destroy King Marrock and take back her kingdom. Catrin must align herself with a Dark Druidess, but she could ultimately lose her heart and soul for the price of the kingdom.

Can she strike vengeance against Marrock with a secret weapon from the Otherworld?

 

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Excerpt from Skull’s Vengeance

PROLOGUE

White Cliffs in Southeast Britannia,
Eve of Samhain, 31 October, 26 AD

Three human skulls hung over King Marrock’s stallion, dangling from a rope like ornaments. Feeling as invincible as a god, he rode to the precipice of the sheer cliffs and listened to the roar of the waves crashing below. Yet, the raven soaring overhead chilled him to the bone—an omen he was but mortal and could plunge to his death.

He embraced the warmth of Boudicca, his younger half sister, who sat astride his horse in front of him. A toddler full of mirth, she was a healer who could connect to the souls of the dead.

Whereas their mother accused him, also known as Blood Wolf, of being a soulless murderer.

On this eve of Samhain, Marrock knew the souls of the dead freely roamed among the living. He spotted his deadliest assassin, Gawain, searching for the wraith on the emerald hilltop. Gawain had a blue, triangular tattoo of a dagger’s blade on his forehead and deadly weapons underneath his black cloak—the royal insignia of the red dragon stitched to the front panel.

For Marrock, the Otherworldly dragon, with its leathery wings and fiery breath, symbolized perpetual power. It was said that where dragons trod, mystic energy flowed. The untamed beast guarded the portal into the Otherworld.

He yearned for the dragon’s mystic power—the power to summon forces from the earth’s molten underbelly to immolate his rivals.

Gawain pointed to a pile of rocks. “The sheepherder saw the wraith over there,” he said in his deep, gravelly voice.

Marrock handed Boudicca to him and then dismounted, pulling the rope of skulls off his horse and draping it over his shoulders. His family’s skulls served as a warning to anyone who threatened his sovereignty.

Until now, he had only been able to summon the deadly powers from the skulls of his stepmother and bastard sister; their souls were encased in the bone crowns. The soul of his father, King Amren, still eluded Marrock, even after he had sliced off his father’s head. If his father’s soul was indeed wandering the hilltop, he would imprison it in the largest empty skull he had.

Then, he would be able to unleash the collective forces from all three souls.

Glancing all around, he could not see his father’s ghostly figure in the thickening fog. Boudicca’s gleeful giggle roused his attention. He watched her waddle toward a mound of stones and place her tiny hands on the stacked rocks.

“Pa. Pa. Am,” she squealed with delight.

Marrock cast a glance at Gawain. “Did the sheepherder see the wraith disappear into those rocks?”

Gawain nodded. “Indeed, I believe so.”

Marrock transferred the roped skulls from his shoulders to the grassy ground and looked at Gawain. “Help me remove the rocks so I can see what is underneath.”

Gawain joined Marrock in the task of removing the white stones one by one. They inspected each rock for any defect before setting it aside.

Boudicca, mimicking the men, picked up flint pebbles and dropped them on the chalky ground.

After a while, they uncovered the gemstone handle of a dagger; its blade was embedded in a coil-shaped serpent stone. Marrock recognized the jewel-studded dagger as once belonging to his father. Intrigued, he gripped the handle with both hands and strained to pull it out, his muscles aching and his face dripping with sweat from the effort.

Suddenly, to his shock, the hilt turned sizzling hot. He jerked his hands away and inspected the blisters that had formed on his reddened palms. Hearing Boudicca’s gleeful babble, he looked down just as she gripped the dagger’s handle.

“Pa. Pa. Am,” she trilled.

To Marrock’s surprise, Boudicca’s hands did not burn.

A prickling sensation noosed around his neck as he recalled the original curse cast by his mother just before his father had executed her.

The gods demand that the scales be balanced for the life you take. If you deny my soul’s journey to the Otherworld by beheading me, I curse you to the same fate as mine. I prophesy your future queen will beget a daughter who will rise as a raven and join your son, Blood Wolf, and a mighty empire will overtake your kingdom and execute my curse.

King Amren had etched the words of the curse on the dagger’s blade using the Roman alphabet with the belief he could thwart the dark prophecy.

Marrock shuddered.

Does my father’s soul live in the dagger? Has he come back to exact vengeance on me?

Excerpt provided by the author/publisher for use in this post.

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 Linnea Tanner’s inspiration for Writing Skull’s Vengeance (Book 4) in the Curse of Clansmen and Kings Series

The first time I saw the statue of the Celtic warrior queen, Boudicca, and her daughters in a chariot, alongside the Thames River in London, I was intrigued that she united the Britons in a rebellion against the Romans in AD 61. And she almost expelled them! Roman historians describe her as a powerful druidess who sacrificed some of her victims to the war goddess, Andraste. Although the Celtic society was becoming more paternalistic, women were still held in high regard and could rule.

The legacy of warrior queens in ancient Britannia and in Irish mythology inspired the primary protagonist, Catrin, in the Curse of Clansmen and Kings series. The first three books in the series describe the trials Catrin must overcome to prepare her to be a warrior queen and overthrow her evil half-brother, Marrock.

In Skull’s Vengeance (Book 4), she takes the next step in her journey—embracing the mantle of a warrior queen and gathering an army. The fantastical element that Catrin and her evil half-brother, Marrock, can summon dark forces from souls trapped in their severed heads to wield as a weapon is expanded in this book. The druids believed the soul does not perish but instead passes from one body to another. The skull was the temple of the immortal soul. There is a mystical significance of a Celtic warrior striking off an opponent’s head in battle, particularly in single combat. To possess an enemy’s head was to possess his or her powers.

During the time period in Skull’s Vengeance, the Antonius family legacy was cursed by the act of damnatio memoriae (condemnation of memory) that erased public records of Marcus Antonius (Mark Antony) and his son, Iullus Antonius. Both fell on their swords in disgrace because of their treasonous liaisons with powerful women—Mark Antony with Cleopatra and Iullus Antonius with Augustus Caesar’s only daughter, Julia. There is little known about Iullus’s son, Lucius, except that he was exiled to Gaul as a young man, most likely as a condition to escape his father’s fate.

A burning question that I wanted to answer in Skull’s Vengeance is how the tragic family legacy would impact Lucius Antonius. How would he react if his son, Marcellus, went down the same fateful path as his forefathers?

Unlike the previous books in the series, Skull’s Vengeance delves into the political firestorm of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. As I researched the Roman political backdrop during the time period when the book takes place (27 – 28 A.D.), I became fascinated with Lucius Aelius Sejanus, head of the Praetorian Guard who over-reached to gain power from Emperor Tiberius through murder, conspiracy, and betrayal. Though Tiberius had been an able general and diplomat, his final years as emperor were tyrannical. Roman historians wrote about his sexual perversity and child molestation. At the height of Sejanus’s political power as a consul in 31 A.D., Tiberius unexpectedly had him arrested and mercilessly executed.

Also inspired by my research is the character, Antonia Minor, who was the youngest daughter of Mark Antony and Octavia, sister-in-law of Tiberius, and half-sister to Iullus Antonius. As a confidant to Tiberius, Antonia Minor played a role in the downfall of Sejanus. She feared her grandson, Caligula, would meet the fate as his older brothers whom Sejanus had imprisoned. Antonia Minor helps Marcellus navigate the political waters to meet directly with Tiberius.

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Full Tour Schedule:

December 26: Momma Says: To Read or Not to Read
December 26: The Faerie Review
December 27: fundinmental
December 28: Gina Rae Mitchell
December 28: Rogue’s Angels
December 29: B-gina Review
December 30: Lisa Haselton’s Reviews and Interviews
December 30: Guatemala Paula Loves to Read

January 2: Beyond Romance
January 3: Lady Hawkeye
January 3: FUONLYKNEW
January 4: The Avid Reader
January 5: Dawn’s Reading Nook
January 5: Hope. Dreams. Life… Love
January 6: Kit ‘N Kabookle
January 9: Candlelight Reading
January 9: Joanne Guidoccio

January 10: Write. Read. Live.
January 10: Literary Gold
January 11: Lynn’s Romance Enthusiasm
January 12: Author Deb Bailey
January 13: Sybrina’s Book Blog
January 13: Ilovebooksandstuffblog

January 16: All the Ups and Downs
January 17: Fabulous and Brunette
January 17: Sandra’s Book Club
January 18: Westveil Publishing
January 19: Straight From the Library
January 19: Jazzy Book Reviews
January 20: Long and Short Reviews

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