October 12, 2019

"Looks like the start of another fantastic series of books from Mr Bennett." - Sean O

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Tempus, of course, is the loyal companion of Anna, as told in the Heir to the Crown Series. Fang, on the other hand, is a name you might not know unless you read Albreda’s origin story, Mercerian Tales: The Call of Magic.

The origins of Tempus are, perhaps, the easiest to explain. In the original RPG (Role Playing Game), the character of Anna was a child. As such, she didn’t have any fighting ability, a major problem in a game that often involved combat. To compensate for this, I wanted to give her an NPC (Non-Player Character) to help protect her. I’ve always had dogs, so my mind naturally thought of one as a follower.

Tempus, however, would advance in experience like the players did, rather than remain ‘just a dog’ as in most games. He had to be intimidating enough to threaten her enemies, yet pleasant enough for her to befriend him. I searched the internet for pictures of dogs, finally settling on the look of an English Mastiff. These are already relatively large dogs, but I wanted something even bigger, and so the concept of a Kurathian Mastiff was borne. By the way, if you want to know how Tempus got his name, I suggest you read Mercerian Tales: Stories of the Past, in particular, the story called A Dog's Tale. It closely follows what I had in mind back in the early days for this particular pooch.

Fang, on the other hand, is a very different character. We first meet him when Abreda finds herself in the Whitewood, befriended by a pack of wolves, but he becomes more involved in the plot as the story progresses. It was important to me that he be a wild animal, with habits and behaviours that one would expect of such a creature. He is also a companion to Albreda, never a pet.

Fang has his own life to live, though he does spend a lot of time with Albreda from a fairly young age. I can’t, of course, give away all my storylines, but it is quite possible that Fang might re-emerge at some point in the very near future!

By the way, the wolf pack that Albreda is friends with in the current storyline are all descendants of Fang and his mate.

What about you, do you like the idea of animal companions, or have a favourite pet of your own? I would love to hear about your pets!

I am excited to share that Burden of the Crown, and 64 other Indie Author's books and I have been chosen by Barnes & Noble to be in their handpicked list of favourites for October and November!

Please check out this great list of new and soon to be released books here, and remember to grab your copy of the sixth book in the Heir to the Crown series!

The function of the followers of Saint Ansgar is mainly unknown to those outside of the Church. Within the Church hierarchy, Ansgarites act as an investigatory group, ensuring that the other adherents of their religion do not stray from the path of righteousness. To some, they are considered a secret police, while to others, they are a blessing, but to truly understand their role, you have to learn about the man himself.

Saint Ansgar, as he is now known, was originally a mercenary who travelled the shores of the Shimmering Sea, seeking out employment opportunities. Eventually, he found himself in Herani, where he became acquainted with (Saint) Augustine. Under his tutelage, Ansgar came to believe in the possibility of peace with the Orcs of the region, a concept that led to the cooperative effort of six of the most influential people in the Holy City.

What is often not told, however, is the resistance to this peace effort. Lord Jaramel, the High Lord of Herani, collected a significant amount of his income from those making the pilgrimage. These funds were meant to pay for protection, but in reality, the regent was pocketing most of the coins himself.

When he heard that a group of his local protectors were heading out into the wilderness to attempt a negotiation with the Orcs, he sent men of his own to infiltrate and sabotage the effort. Ansgar discovered the ruse and unmasked the traitors, paving the way for a successful meeting.

Since that time, his followers have watched for enemies of the Church that try to bring the organization down from the inside.

Congrats to Kevin H who won last week's giveaway.  It appears that the most popular things for me to do on Facebook Live are to read from my books, answer questions and talk about my characters.

Remember, you don't have to guess the right answer to be entered into the FREE giveaway, and the winner gets to choose their eBook. This week, Daisy wants is determined to find out who reads Paul's dedications!

Embers is coming along nicely, and the first draft should be completed by the end of next week. The last few chapters always seem to flow quickly as storylines converge. I don’t know whether that’s due to planning, or the fact that I have fun tying up the loose ends.

For those that are familiar with Heir to the Crown, Embers has a few references that you might recognize. Events on the Continent are progressing even as the quest to retake the throne of Merceria is underway.

The Frozen Flame series, of which Embers is the second book, has a larger storyline and elements from the first book, Ashes, are expanded upon in the second. Even as our heroes are travelling the lands of the Continent, events are unfolding elsewhere.

One of the secondary characters in Embers is Sister Cordelia, a Temple Knight of Saint Agnes. Her back story is a reminder that history is always unfolding, and is a reference to another series that I will be writing in the future.

As usual, I’m overflowing with ideas. After Embers is complete, I shall move onto Defender of the Crown, though I may take a week or so to write out a quick story involving Brother Cyric. If you don’t know who he is, you need to read Ashes.

Until next time, here is a little bit more of Burden of the Crown, just for you!
Happy reading!

Excerpt from Burden of the Crown:

Gerald opened the door just a little, enough to peer through at the assembled guests.

"How does it look?" asked Anna.

"Crowded," he observed. "You're the one that wanted commoners invited, and they're packing them in as tightly as they can."

"It's important," she replied. "They need to know that I'm doing things differently."

"I think they got the message," said Gerald, "I only hope things don't go sideways. Crowds can turn suddenly, without warning. I'd hate to see what would happen if this lot got upset."

"They won't," promised Anna, "and I'm counting on them to keep the nobles in their place."

He turned from the door to look at her in surprise. "You what?"

"The nobles secretly fear the mob. They won't try a power play if the commoners are here."

"It's a gamble," he said, "but I suppose you're right.

Check out these featured books that are free, discounted, or new releases. The authors are returning the favour by sharing my books with their readers.

While you wait for the release of my next book, here are some great stories for your TBR pile!

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