Taste of Treason
Authors: April Taylor
Taste of Treason
By April Taylor
Book two of The Tudor Enigma
Blood
,
frogs and a deadly threat to the firstborn...
Luke Ballard, Dominus Elemancer and Privy Inquirer into Divers Mischiefs and Grievances, has grown his magical powers since his last encounter with the Sunderers, dark sorcerers who will stop at nothing—including partnering with England’s mortal enemies—to destroy the throne. But is he skilled enough to protect his own and prevent tragedy from reaching the royal family?
The continuation of Tudor rule and the future of England’s true religion rest with King Henry IX’s new bride, Queen Madeline of Scotland. Pregnant with a possible heir, she’s nearly killed—twice—in incidents that bizarrely mimic the Plagues of Egypt. And she is not alone. All of Hampton Court, it seems, has been surrounded by a dark cloud of otherworldly danger.
Fearful for his wife and unborn child, King Henry can only turn to one man.
101,500 words
Dear Reader,
Happy October! I think I’ve mentioned this before, but I love
October. Not only is it the month in which my daughter was born (ten years
ago!!) but I love the weather, the scents and the activities of October.
Everything about the month combines to something fun and transporting for me. Of
course, I’m sure not everyone feels the same about this fall month, but I’m
happy to say we have a great collection of fiction releases to help aid all of
you with fun escapes.
In the spirit of the somewhat paranormal mood of the month,
I’ll start with paranormal and fantasy genres. R.L. Naquin returns with an
installment in her quirky, fun, romantic urban fantasy Monster Haven series.
With Aegises dying all over the world, the only safe place for Zoey is the
protection of home—but hiding doesn’t come naturally for Zoey, and she’ll have
to act fast to prevent a zombie apocalypse in
Demons in My Driveway
.
And in Dana Marie Bell’s paranormal romance
Of Shadows and Ash
, when
evil attacks from the shadows, dryad Ashton Ward will be the only one who can
save his beloved witchdoctor from eternal darkness.
Matt Sheehan brings back the ever-lovable Helmut and his
sidekick in urban fantasy
Helmut Goes Abroad
. Another round of magic,
fistfights and one-liners with the best, most handsome, and of course humble
detective Helmut Haase and his apothetic sidekick Shamus O’Sheagan.
Futurisic romance
In the Void
by Sheryl Nantus gives
us romance set in space—and a brothel spaceship. Answering a distress call can
spell the end of the
Bonnie Belle
and everyone aboard...
A dragonshifter intent on executing a high-stakes art heist
is forced to juggle a wedding, a family and a pesky attraction to her target’s
head of security in paranormal romance
’Til Dragons Do Us Part
by
Lorenda Christensen. April Taylor’s alternate history fantasy
Taste of
Treason
, the second in her Tudor Enigma series, also releases this
month. Master Elemancer Luke Ballard has grown his magical powers since his last
encounter with the dark sorcerers who will stop at nothing to destroy the
English throne. But is he skilled enough to both protect his own and prevent
tragedy from reaching the royal family?
Moving on to contemporary romance releases in October, the
last man that handywoman Georgia Lennox expects to break through her
tough-as-nails, ugly-duckling exterior is John Montgomery the Third, the
millionaire philanthropist she’s worked for in
Because I Can
by Tamara
Morgan.
In military contemporary romance
His Road Home
by
Anna Richland, a false engagement story gives injured Special Forces Sergeant
Rey Cruz a surprise gift: love.
Pitch Imperfect
by Elise Alden is a
contemporary romance in which the last thing celebrity singer Anjuli Carver
wanted was to be dependent on her ex-fiancé to restore her dilapidated manor.
Will he rebuild her crumbling walls or demolish her defenses with his sexy
pursuit?
Male/male romance
Stand By You
by A.M. Arthur is the
story of a broken soul who finds solace and safety in the company of a gentle
janitor—as well as an unexpected chance at real love.
Last this month, we’re pleased to welcome co-authors Eileen
Griffin and Nikka Michaels with
In the Raw
, part one of a male/male
romance duology about culinary students Ethan Martin and James Lassiter. When
they find themselves competing for the same scholarship they also discover
they’re competing for something more important—love. Look for part two,
In
the Fire
, next month, in November 2014.
Coming in November 2014: Carina Press and I both celebrate an
anniversary. And we have books from a number of powerhouse authors including
Josh Lanyon, Shannon Stacey, Lauren Dane and so many more!
Here’s wishing you a wonderful month of books you love,
remember and recommend.
Happy reading!
~Angela James
Executive Editor, Carina Press
Dedication
To Dad
Sorry I couldn’t use the leather gun idea. Perhaps one day...
Acknowledgments
The making of a book is so much more than an author pounding away on the keyboard. The initial result is like newly mixed bread dough, pale but not yet fulfilling its promise. To get to the finished loaf, you need a great cook. Thanks to my great cook, editor Kerri Buckley at Carina Press. And I must mention Kingo Ng, Assistant Product Manager, and his team, who design The Tudor Enigma’s incredible book covers.
Thanks go to Marlene Stringer of the Stringer Literary Agency, who loved Luke at first reading and has championed him ever since.
I couldn’t do this without Nicky Griffiths, my beta reader; the ever enthusiastic members of Hornsea Writers; the warders at Hampton Court Palace; Alison Weir and Alison Sim for their amazing books on the Tudor period and Claire Ridgway of the Anne Boleyn Files (
http://www.theanneboleynfiles.com
).
The support of my family and my friends is paramount as is the company of a certain blind golden retriever who comes and sits on my feet when he thinks a walk is due.
And finally, thank you to all the composers whose music keeps me company in this solitary profession.
Contents
Chapter One
They arrived unannounced, appearing through the mist of early morning. Luke, on the far side of the river, stopped gathering hyssop and rue to watch the royal barge ship its oars.
He stiffened when he saw Queen Anne Boleyn pause for a moment, her head twisting in his direction as if she sensed his presence. Even from this distance, he recognized the tension in her posture and could not prevent a flicker of apprehension from curling across his shoulders and down his spine. The Queen Mother seldom ventured beyond the confines of Hampton Court Palace, so Luke knew her visit to London must have been vital. He glanced down into Joss’s golden eyes and stroked her silky fur.
“Here comes more trouble, girl, as if we didn’t have enough. We’d better get home and prepare.”
Given the reports coming out of London, the arrival of the royal family should not have been a surprise. The sweating sickness was back, its rampaging hand snuffing life out of peasant and noble with equal delight, the main reason for the depleted state of Luke’s supply of hyssop. The sickness had not only caused consternation among the people but had provided the enemies of the Tudor dynasty with fodder for their theories and conspiracies. They assiduously spread the information that it was a disease unknown in England until Henry VII took the throne from Plantagenet Richard. No remedy potent enough to render it harmless could be formulated, and Luke often wondered if his few successes were down to luck and nothing to do with his medicinal skills.
In ministering to the people in local villages, Luke had noticed that the first sign those stricken suffered was a feeling of dread. He had been assiduous in sending out the message that anyone experiencing this sensation must immediately take to their beds and send for him or one of his colleagues. Of those who heeded this advice, more than half survived. Of those who did not, almost two-thirds died. If the illness progressed to cold shivers, followed by hot shivers, death was almost certain.
People died in the streets where they dropped. Some suffered agonies for almost two days, the lucky ones for less than twelve hours until that final mercy of unconsciousness and death. Thus far, the Outer Green where Luke had his apothecary shop had lost only one of the workers in the Scalding House. In the cramped living conditions of the surrounding settlements, the toll had been much higher.
Henry IX and his new Queen, Madeleine of Scotland, had been holding court at Whitehall for the past three months, the King hosting delegations from various European courts. Many had come great distances to convey good wishes on his nuptials and stayed on to celebrate the news of the queen’s pregnancy.
Henry was known to enjoy merriment and jousting but there had been whispers at Hampton Court that he risked his health and that of his Queen and unborn child to stay so close to where the epidemic raged unchecked. Mayhap that had been the purpose of the Queen Mother’s visit. To remind her son that nothing was more important than Madeleine’s health and the safe delivery of his son and heir. Approaching her fifth month of pregnancy, Madeleine had become fretful, according to rumors that reached Luke via Twelvetrees, the garrulous baker who delivered to the palace kitchens.
Thus the sight of the royal barge was no shock to Luke. Nor was the fact that the Queen Mother had been persuasive enough to cause Henry and Madeleine to accompany her. Doubtless the rest of the royal household would descend on the palace in the next few days. No, the arrival of the royal family was not a surprise. The tautness of Anne’s bearing was. He caught sight of Gwenette Paige, attendant and confidante of the Queen Mother. She, too, appeared preoccupied and did not even glance at him. Something deadly must be afoot. Something, he would hazard, that needed his elemancy skills.
Few knew that Luke, outwardly the self-effacing Outer Green apothecary, was an elemancer; a magician who, helped by his greyspring dog, harnessed the elements to create magic for the good of all. Anne Boleyn did, for she, too, was an elemancer, although as a woman—albeit a queen—she was regarded as inferior. It had been at her insistence a year previously that Luke had investigated a plot to kill the King, instigated by evil sunderers, the sworn enemies of elemancers. He had succeeded, but only just, and in the process a young acolyte elemancer had died, something for which he still castigated himself.
That experience and a desire for revenge had fueled his determination to move beyond the level of journeyman elemancer, and by dint of hard work and persistence, Luke had attained the level of Dominus. The King, who, had he known of Luke’s talents would have had him executed for witchcraft, instead conferred upon the unwilling apothecary the title of Privy Inquirer into Divers Mischiefs and Grievances. His was to be a secret role, known to very few. He would work only on those matters that touched the royal family and the safety of the realm, and he would work in obscurity. Luke had no problems with the concept of obscurity. He craved it as did all elemancers, sensible of the risks they ran practicing magic, albeit white magic. The role of elemancers was to remain inconspicuous whilst working for cosmic balance.
Luke attempted to tune into the Queen Mother’s thoughts, but an imperious shake of her head made him instantly withdraw. Not, though, before he had sensed disquiet and trepidation beneath her rigid stance. It appeared probable his talents might once more be required. If so, the enemy had returned. Sunderers, those of the
malus nocte
, the elemancers’ bitterest foe. And just as elemancers were openly attended by their greysprings, sunderers kept foul creatures to aid their dark magic. Umbrans could assume any shape their masters desired. Sunderers desired nothing more than the pursuit of power through strife and division. That their existence was virtually unknown was a tribute to the diligence with which elemancers guarded the populace. Elemancers only sought to maintain the balance of the universe by thwarting their foes, defeating but not destroying them. As Luke’s studies had taught him, any sunderer who failed was dealt with by his own kind. His mind ranged over the possibilities of what peril could be about to wing its way towards him.