by: K.M. Warfield
Series: Heroes of Avoch
Genre: Fantasy
Release Date: November 7, 2023
Publisher: Creative James Media
An ancient relic. Two solitary quests. A chance to prove one’s worth. After an intense battle against the malicious Goddess, Lolc Aon, and freeing the Fallen citizens of Byd Cudd, Jinaari and Thia are presented with new challenges while in the public eye. Even though Thia has been granted nearly unlimited healing power through the God Keroys, many still doubt her because of her Fallen lineage. Jinaari does his best to support her, but his lessons are cut short after his sister is kidnapped. Faced with life altering obstacles, will Jinaari keep his vow to protect Thia even from afar? Can Thia learn to trust herself and win over the public? Or will it be too late?
Many thanks to Read Your Writes Book Review for hosting me today!
'Shield and Scepter' is the second book in my low fantasy Heroes of Avoch series. Avoch is a kingdom, with a turbulent past. At one time, there were multiple kingdoms. Each had their own laws, faiths, and lands. There were treaties made, and broken, within a matter of hours. The warfare got to the point when the Gods decided to intervene.
Rather than watch their followers slaughter each other, they formed an alliance. Three relics were made by artisans in different areas. Once they were complete, the leaders of each kingdom would gather. The relics would choose who would bear the burden of rule over the rest. As there were three symbols, there would be three rulers. The Gods didn't care what race, gender, or age someone was. What mattered would be if they had the courage to put what was best for Avoch ahead of personal gain.
One of the Gods looked into the future and saw that none of her followers would be granted a relic. Lolc Aon's own pride was great, and she felt slighted by her family. So, she intercepted the scepter as it travelled to Tanisal. Once she had possession of the relic, she had her army slaughter everyone in the caravan before fleeing underground.
Time passed, the scepter was lost, and those who held the remaining relics sought to consolidate power. A marriage was made, binding the two families into a single branch. One that would dominate Avoch for centuries.
Avoch itself is a fairly typical medieval world in most respects. Travel is by horse, foot, or ship for the most part. Everyone is born with the capacity to do magic, but not everyone is equal in the number of stores they can draw from to cast spells. Those who live on the surface have a marked distrust toward any followers of Lolc Aon. That race is called the Fallen, and have an unsavory reputation of slavery.
So, when a priestess of Keroys starts moving in the world. One who is half Fallen, but has access to more magic than many have seen in over a century.... Let's just say it's a good thing she's connected with people who see beyond who her mother was.
K. M. Warfield
Author - Heroes of Avoch trilogy
She/Her
Lukas shook his head, “When he warned me, I thought he was joking.”
“Who warned you? About what?”
“Althir, before he left. Told me that keeping an eye on you was going to be harder than what he was going to do. Until tonight, I thought he was exaggerating.”
“She’s the Daughter of Keroys, Lukas. Where she goes, and when she chooses to, is not something she needs to explain to you. It’s not Garret’s Mark she bears.” Caelynn said from the staircase. “Jinaari has reasons to keep her safe. I’m willing to bet him asking you to keep an eye on her didn’t include restricting her movements to the point of suffocation.”
Thia cringed inwardly at the tone of her friend’s voice. So much anger and pain was hidden beneath her words.
“She’s right. You don’t owe me an explanation, though I’m glad to hear this wasn’t a problem with any of my men. Go upstairs, rest if she lets you. I’ll talk with you tomorrow. If we can be honest with each other,” he gave her a direct look, “then perhaps I can keep my word to Jinaari without restricting you beyond what you’re comfortable with.”
Glancing toward the stairs, she caught sight of Caelynn as she disappeared. “I’d like that, Lukas. Things should be back to normal by then.”
“For your sake,” he said, “I hope so. I like you, Thia. So do my men. We’d be here even if Althir hadn’t asked us to be. We all got scared when you disappeared, but that one,” he glanced over his shoulder toward the staircase, “she was ready to burn Almair to the ground to find you.”
“Who warned you? About what?”
“Althir, before he left. Told me that keeping an eye on you was going to be harder than what he was going to do. Until tonight, I thought he was exaggerating.”
“She’s the Daughter of Keroys, Lukas. Where she goes, and when she chooses to, is not something she needs to explain to you. It’s not Garret’s Mark she bears.” Caelynn said from the staircase. “Jinaari has reasons to keep her safe. I’m willing to bet him asking you to keep an eye on her didn’t include restricting her movements to the point of suffocation.”
Thia cringed inwardly at the tone of her friend’s voice. So much anger and pain was hidden beneath her words.
“She’s right. You don’t owe me an explanation, though I’m glad to hear this wasn’t a problem with any of my men. Go upstairs, rest if she lets you. I’ll talk with you tomorrow. If we can be honest with each other,” he gave her a direct look, “then perhaps I can keep my word to Jinaari without restricting you beyond what you’re comfortable with.”
Glancing toward the stairs, she caught sight of Caelynn as she disappeared. “I’d like that, Lukas. Things should be back to normal by then.”
“For your sake,” he said, “I hope so. I like you, Thia. So do my men. We’d be here even if Althir hadn’t asked us to be. We all got scared when you disappeared, but that one,” he glanced over his shoulder toward the staircase, “she was ready to burn Almair to the ground to find you.”
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Born in the late 1960's, K. M. has lived most of her live in the Pacific NW. While she's always been creative, she didn't turn towards writing until 2008. Writing under the pen name of KateMarie Collins, she released several titles. In 2019, the decision was made to forge a new path with her books. The Heroes of Avoch series, along with a new pen name, is the end result.
When she's not writing, she loves playing Dungeons & Dragons with friends, watching movies, and cuddling up with her cat. K. M. resides with her family in what she likes to refer to as 'Seattle Suburbia'.
Places to find K.M. Warfield:
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The cover looks great. The excerpt and blurb sound really interesting.
ReplyDeleteWhat is your favorite space to do your writing?
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for letting me stop by today!
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome. Thank you so much for doing the guest post.
DeleteLooks like a interesting book.
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