From the publisher:
The House of Bernicia, with its seat at the formidable Bamberg Castle, is led by the stern yet just Queen Janessara. The Bernicians are renowned for their formidable shield walls and disciplined armies, forged in the crucible of countless battles against invading forces. Queen Janessara, an aging warrior with a heart of iron, seeks to maintain peace and protect her people through strength and strategic alliances. Her son, Prince Oswald, a young and valiant warrior, stands ready to prove himself worthy of his mother’s legacy. To the west lies the Kingdom of Deira, a fertile land of green pastures and bustling towns. Ruled by the ambitious and charismatic King Edwin, the Deirans are a people of commerce and diplomacy, thriving on trade and the wealth of their bountiful lands. King Edwin, a master of political manoeuvring, dreams of uniting Northumbria under his banner, believing that only a unified kingdom can withstand the threats from beyond its borders. His daughter, Princess Ealhflæd, is a skilled diplomat and strategist, determined to see her father’s vision come to fruition. In the dense and ancient forests of the Eoforwicscir, the Pictish tribes hold sway. Led by the fierce chieftain, Cael the Wolf, these tribes are a people of the wild, masters of guerrilla warfare and the ancient druidic arts. The Picts, though fragmented and fiercely independent, are united by their reverence for the old ways and their desire to remain free from the rule of Saxon kings. Chieftain Cael, a warrior of unmatched prowess, seeks to protect his people and their sacred lands from encroachment, even as he navigates the treacherous waters of alliance and enmity. As the spectre of a greater threat looms on the horizon - an impending invasion by the Norsemen, fierce seafarers from the icy north – looking to reclaim the land won by their ancestors. The Norse, led by the fearsome Jarl Sigurd the Blood-Eagle, bring with them a storm of steel and fire, their longships cutting through the waves with deadly intent.