BOOK INFORMATION
TITLE – Raging Sea: Reckonings
SERIES – The Dragon’s Dove Chronicles, book 3.1
AUTHOR – Kim Iverson Headlee
GENRE – Epic Historical Fantasy
PUBLICATION DATE – 11/23/2015
LENGTH (Pages/# Words) – 104 pages/20K words
PUBLISHER – Pendragon Cove Press
COVER ARTIST – Natasha Brown
Link to cover: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOtCkFmjKsWQG2XZKCBkh-NmNce8mD87BDO-pwoCczbZffyPc8x59bpxCD7G5_z1pEZ20pvhgkl8BEa0gkDDjbL7B96uFFd8kFKymBnR7e6YnCcSIT3dGiM4nBzhrc27paY0tSzZXhTA4j/s1600/RagingSea-Reckongings.jpg
Synopsis:
Those who aspire to greatness must first learn servanthood.
Stripped of kin, clan, country, and even his identity for having failed the
most important woman in his life and her infant son, Angusel begins the arduous
task of rebuilding his life and reclaiming his honor. The path he treads is
fraught with uncomfortable revelations, unexpected reconciliations… and
unavoidable reckonings.
EXCERPT 1 (PG)
He stood on the bluff, staring at the gray-green sea churning against the
Manx beach a score of paces below. The Sasunach funeral pyre at his back
enveloped him with its draconic heat and eye-stinging smoke and gut-wrenching
stench. As dizziness washed over him, the sandy ground felt as insubstantial as
the cloud-laced sky. Hand to sweating temple, he tossed off the surreal
sensation with a shake.
Earth, sky, fire, water… as if he were a god imprisoned at the convergence
of the elements.
He snorted.
He was no god.
No longer did anyone address him by his given name, which meant “raging
sea.” Even on the official duty roster he was listed as Optio Aonar, a junior
officer not of command rank. No matronymic, no clan, no country; physically,
emotionally, spiritually alone.
EXCERPT 2 (PG-13)
Gull gave Angusel a measuring stare, glanced at the skies—which had
remained calm, and the temperature was behaving itself for once—and reached a
decision. “Elian, the wood can keep. Our wee lion cub needs a woman. So do I,
truth be told.” He picked up his sword.
Over Angusel’s embarrassed, “What!”
soared Elian’s hearty laughter. “I suppose you know just the place,” said the
centurion with a grin.
“Of course. Don’t you?” Gull shot back. When he got no response, he
continued, “How long has it been for ye, auld boar?”
Elian’s grin soured. He pivoted on his wooden leg and stomped inside the
cottage. Without looking back he said, “None of your cac-licking business. Take
him, then. Just don’t be all day about it.” The words faded with distance until
the last few were almost inaudible.
Purchase link (Kindle
Unlimited only; this is a worldwide link that opens to the Amazon product page
in or nearest to the visitor’s country): http://getBook.at/Raging_Sea_Reckonings_by_KIH_Kindle
- author short bio - 100
words or less.
Kim Headlee lives on a farm in southwestern Virginia with her family, cats,
goats, Great Pyrenees goat guards, and assorted wildlife. People and creatures
come and go, but the cave and the 250-year-old house ruins—the latter having
been occupied as recently as the mid-twentieth century—seem to be sticking
around for a while yet. She has been an award-winning novelist since 1999 (Dawnflight 1st edition,
Sonnet Books, Simon & Schuster) and has been studying the Arthurian Legends
for nigh on half a century.
- author links - no more
than 5
AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE (Worldwide link) – http://Author.to/Kim_Headlee_Amazon_page
FACEBOOK – https://www.facebook.com/KimIversonHeadlee
TWITTER – https://twitter.com/KimHeadlee
GOOGLE+ – https://plus.google.com/+KimHeadlee
Questions for Angusel, the
main character in RAGING SEA: RECKONINGS by Kim Headlee:
1. Nickname
For having failed the most
important person in my life, and her infant son, I am no longer known by my
birth name, Angusel. I now call myself Aonar a Dubh Loch, which in your tongue
means “Alone from the Black Lake.” It is a fitting name for the condition of my
soul.
2. Job
I am a soldier in the Dragon
Legion of Brydein, an officer of optio rank. This is the lowest rank in the
officer corps and carries no command authority. This rank is bestowed upon
couriers and spies. As an optio attached to the Fifth Turma of the Manx Cohort,
I have been called upon to perform both types of service.
3. Level of schooling, or
self-taught
For the better part of two
years, as a condition of my being held hostage by the Pendragon to ensure that
my mother would not again attack the Pendragon’s people, I studied with the
monks on the Isle of Maun. In spite of my hostage status—and the fact that the
monks’ lessons were not the favorite part of my day—I now look back upon that
time with wistful longing.
4. Birthdate
I was born under the sign of
the Lion, in the month known by the Romans as Junius—or June, as you would
say—in the year known by Christian reckoning as 479. My people do not bother to
label the passage of years, nor do they bother with the remembrance of birth
days.
5. Birthplace
The place of my birth—an
earth-and-timber fortress named Senaudon atop a high stone promontory—is now
covered by a massive stone construction called Stirling Castle in what is now
Scotland. It grieves me that the invaders I fought so hard to repel have lent
their name to this land, and that my people, the Caledonians—or Picts, as the
Romans insisted upon naming us—are all but lost in the mists of time.
6. Currently residing in...
Because I was gravely
wounded in my last battle, the renowned healer Prioress Niniane has granted me
permission to heal under her care at Rushen Priory on the Isle of Maun.
7. Favorite type of pet
If by “pet” you mean an
animal of which I am fond, I possess a deep affinity for my warhorse Stonn. He
has saved my life in battle countless times. I also like cats, and they me,
though there is no one special cat in my life at this time.
8. Favorite place to visit
There is a large rock just
off the Manx shoreline near the priory where I go to escape the pressures of my
life, and just sit and think. At high tide, it’s completely surrounded by
water, and it makes me feel at one with the “raging sea” that is my namesake.
9. Significant other
Gyan, the most significant
woman in my life, I can never be with in any romantic sense, for she is married
to Arthur, the man she loves with all her heart, and he her. I would sooner
take my own life than cause any harm to befall their relationship. Recently I
met another woman, Eileann, who was kind to me beyond all reason or
expectation, even though I am an outcast among our people. Eileann is as
beautiful and gentle a soul as any I have ever known, and I consider it an
honor simply to know her. Whether she and I are destined to be together
someday, only the gods know.
10. Most important goal
The one thing I yearn for
with all my soul is to reclaim my place as a warrior at Gyan’s side. Since the
moment I met her, all I’ve ever wanted was to be her champion and protector.
That honor was stripped from me when I failed to save the life of Gyan’s infant
son, a failure that shall haunt me for the rest of my days.
11. Worst fear or nightmare
My worst fear is that I
shall never earn Gyan’s forgiveness, for without it, I can never achieve my
most important goal.
12. Favorite food
With my food choices being
dictated by what rations of meat and ale are offered to soldiers in the Dragon
Legion, I do not give thought what might be my favorite… though a hot, juicy
slice of roast pork does sound tempting just now.
13. Wealthy, poor, or
somewhere in between?
Before the failure that
caused me to be stripped of kin, clan, country, and purpose, I was Àrd-Oighre
h’Albainaich Chaledon—that is to say, the Exalted Heir of Clan Alban, a prince
among my people, with all the wealth and privileges that title entailed. Now, I
own nothing more than the clothes on my back and the armor and weapons stored
in the armory on my behalf.
14. Secret desire or fantasy
I dare not speak it, lest
Arthur overhear. He would eat my heart for breakfast, and then use the rest of
me for target practice. I believe that my heart is of more use to him—and
her—where it is.
15. What would you do if you
won the lottery?
What is a “lottery?” For me
and everyone I know, the casting of lots is not something that is won, for the
consequence usually entails having to perform an unpleasant duty, such as
mucking the stables.
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