Aries Fiction – MJ Porter

Today, I’m delighted to be reviewing The Last True Templar by Boyd + Beth Morrison #blogtour #histfic #thriller

Here’s the blurb

The thrilling new historical adventure from New York Times bestselling author Boyd Morrison and expert medievalist Beth Morrison. Fox and Willa find themselves on a dangerous quest for the treasure of the Templar Knights.

A Perilous Quest. A Deadly Legacy.

Italy, 1351. English companions, knight Gerard Fox and the resourceful Willa, have come through a death-defying journey across war-torn Europe. Now looking towards a future together, they must first find a way to reconcile with their difficult pasts.

In a small village between Florence and Siena, Fox and Willa are caught up in a deadly ambush. After rescuing Luciana, the target of the attack, they take refuge in her opulent villa and learn her heartbreaking story – a tale of loss, deception, and a burning desire for freedom.

Soon, Fox and Willa are involved in a perilous quest to save Luciana’s family legacy. To do so, they will have to solve a mystery that points the way to the fabled lost treasure of the Knights Templar.

Buy link

Amazon https://geni.us/TLTTBlogTour

My Review

The Last True Templar is a thrilling journey through fourteenth-century Italy, taking our two heroes to Siena, Florence and Venice (and somewhere else, but spoilers) as they attempt to assist Luciana in her bid to finally solve the mystery of her father’s last letter, sent to her over forty years ago, and which it’s believed, will lead to the lost Templar treasure.

And they’re not alone, for as with all good thrillers, there is another side to this story, and someone else wants to get their hands on the Templar treasure just as much as they do: Luciana’s ruthless husband.

This is an Italy in recovery following the devastation of the Black Death, where few, it seems, have been left unscathed. Ironically, two Englishmen, Gerard and Armstrong, are most involved in the hustle and bustle of the quest, with the aid of some quick-witted and intelligent women.

This story is well-grounded in the historical architecture of the time, as our characters race to solve clues, riding from city to city, some loyal to Luciana’s husband and some to Luciana, all needing to look at or visit various important buildings – many of the well-known ones still being built, or heavily renovated. There is intrigue aplenty. Those characters trying to stop Gerard, Willa, and Luciana are ruthless and ambitious, and all this while Gerard and Willa are trying to determine their future.

Throughout the narrative, there’s quite a bit of to-ing and fro-ing in time. I’d prefer the flashbacks to occur before the characters reveal what happened, as they are somewhat irrelevant.

This is book 2 in the series – I haven’t read book 1 – I don’t necessarily think you need to read the first book to enjoy this one, as we’re given snippets of what’s happened before, but this is very much an isolated ‘quest’. And I did enjoy it. The Last True Templar is very much in the mould of a Dan Brown thriller, only set in the distant past, with an eye to what the cityscapes would have looked like in 1351, and with three feisty women to ensure the narrative never gets bogged down in more purely violent bouts between our two sides.

A rollercoaster of a journey, it’s sure to appeal to fans of historical fiction, historical mysteries and old-fashioned action and adventure stories- (as well as to fans of The Curse of Oak Island:))

About the author

Boyd Morrison is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of twelve thrillers, including six with Clive Cussler. His first novel, The Ark, was an Indie Next Notable pick and was translated into over a dozen languages. He has a PhD in industrial engineering from Virginia Tech.

Beth Morrison is Senior Curator of Manuscripts at the J. Paul Getty Museum. She has curated major exhibitions including ‘Imagining the Past in France, 1250-1500’, and ‘Book of Beasts: The Bestiary in the Medieval World’. She has a PhD in the History of Art from Cornell University.

Connect with the authors

Twitter: @BoydMorrison

Instagram: @BoydMorrisonWriter

Facebook: Boyd Morrison Writer

Website: https://boydmorrison.com/

Twitter: @BethMorrisonPhd

Instagram: @BethMorrisonWriter

Facebook: Beth Morrison

Aries/Head of Zeus

Twitter: @AriesFiction

Facebook: Aries Fiction

Instagram: @headofzeus

TikTok: @headofzeus

Website: http://www.headofzeus.com

It’s publication day for Queuing for the Queen by Swéta Rana #newrelease #blogtour

Here’s the blurb

‘Beautifully sensitive, quietly reflective, this absorbing tale about a group of strangers brought together following the death of Queen Elizabeth II is an absolute triumph.’ LoveReading debut of the month

One queue. 250,000 people. Twenty-four life-changing hours.

A young boy wearing a cereal box crown, impatiently dragging his mother behind him.

A friendly man in a khaki raincoat, talking about his beloved Leeds United to anyone who will listen.

An elderly woman who has lived her life alongside the Queen, and is just hoping she’ll make it to the end of the queue to say goodbye.

And among them, a British Indian mother and daughter, driven apart by their differences, embarking on a pilgrimage which neither of them yet know will change their lives forever.

Full of secrets and surprises, this uplifting novel celebrates not only the remarkable woman who defined an era and a country, but also the diverse and unique people she served for so long.

Purchase Links

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Queuing-Queen-highly-anticipated-inspired/dp/1035900181/

https://www.amazon.com/Queuing-Queen-highly-anticipated-inspired/dp/1035900181/

Kobo – the ebook is currently only 99p

https://www.kobo.com/gb/en/ebook/queuing-for-the-queen

Meet the author

Swéta Rana was born into a Gujarati family in Birmingham, and now lives in south London. She studied Philosophy and Theology at Oxford before doing a Master’s in Publishing at UCL. After working briefly in editorial at Orion, she moved into designing and managing commercial websites.

Swéta has enjoyed writing ever since she was a child, always taking any opportunity she can to write fiction pieces, film reviews, or articles on Indian culture. Queuing for the Queen is her first novel.

In her spare time, Swéta takes Hindi language classes, sings soprano in a chamber choir, and volunteers for a mental health charity.

Connect with Swéta

https://twitter.com/s_rana_

https://swetarana.com/

Today I’m delighted to host the Forest of Foes by Matthew Hardy #blogtour #ForestOfFoes

Here’s the blurb:

AD 652. Beobrand has been ordered to lead a group of pilgrims to the holy city of Rome. Chief among them is Wilfrid, a novice of the church with some surprisingly important connections. Taking only Cynan and some of his best men, Beobrand hopes to make the journey through Frankia quickly and return to Northumbria without delay, though the road is long and perilous.

But where Beobrand treads, menace is never far behind. The lands of the Merovingian kings are rife with intrigue. The queen of Frankia is unpopular and her ambitious schemes, though benevolent, have made her powerful enemies. Soon Wilfrid, and Beobrand, are caught up in sinister plots against the royal house.

After interrupting a brutal ambush in a forest, Beobrand and his trusted gesithas find their lives on the line. Dark forces will stop at nothing to seize control of the Frankish throne, and Beobrand is thrown into a deadly race for survival through foreign lands where he cannot be sure who is friend and who is foe.

The only certainty is that if he is to save his men, thwart the plots, and unmask his enemies, blood will flow.

My Review

Forest of Foes by Matthew Harffy is the 9th book in the Bernicia Chronicles. I’ve read nearly all of the books to date, but I know I’ve missed one or two out, and in this book, there are a few scenes where that comes home to roost – but not enough that I didn’t get a general idea and neither did it distract from the rest of the story.

Forest of Foes starts with a really exciting fight scene, in which Beobrand and Cynan are thrust into the heart of a skirmish. This very much sets the scene for the rest of the book, with a great deal of added political intrigue until our hero finally manages to exact revenge at the end of the book.

This book takes our characters to Merovingian France, and as readers of the series will know this isn’t Beobrand’s first trip there. As such, we meet new and old characters as Beobrand endeavours to fulfil his promise to Queen Eanflæd that he’ll get the monks Wilfrid and Baducing to Roma. Sadly, Beobrand hasn’t quite factored in the weather or the strong will of Wilfrid, or indeed the conniving members of the nobility in Merovingian France, or indeed, the queen, Bathilde.

Forest of Foes is an entertaining addition to the Bernicia Chronicles. I enjoyed the split narrative between Beobrand and Cynan, although it is a little unevenly done. There are also occasions where Wilfrid is our narrator, perhaps pointing to future developments for this character, who, historically, is a bit of a wildfire. Time will tell. The beginning of the book is particularly exciting, and the ending is satisfying. I enjoyed my trip to Merovingian France. The characters there are well drawn, and the peril to Beobrand is genuine and resolved particularly well.

I’m intrigued to see just how much trouble Beobrand and Cynan can get into as they finally resume their journey towards Roma, which I think they probably need to do quite quickly because there are forewarnings of trouble back home. We all know (I hope) that war is coming.

Meet the author

Matthew Harffy lived in Northumberland as a child and the area had a great impact on him. The rugged terrain, ruined castles and rocky coastline made it easy to imagine the past. Decades later, a documentary about Northumbria’s Golden Age sowed the kernel of an idea for a series of historical fiction novels. The first of them is the action-packed tale of vengeance and coming of age, THE SERPENT SWORD.

Matthew has worked in the IT industry, where he spent all day writing and editing, just not the words that most interested him. Prior to that he worked in Spain as an English teacher and translator. Matthew lives in Wiltshire, England, with his wife and their two daughters.

Purchase link:

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3U5eD43

Follow Matthew Harffy

Twitter: @MatthewHarffy

Instagram: @beobrand

Website: matthewharffy.com

Follow Aries

Twitter: @AriesFiction

Facebook: Aries Fiction

Website: http://www.headofzeus.com

I’m excited to be taking part in The Wolf of Kings series by Richard Cullen blog tour #Oathbound #ShieldBreaker #TheWolfOfKings

OATH BOUND:

The champion of a dead king has nothing left to lose… And nothing more to fear.

Hastings, 1066. Styrkar the Dane stumbles wounded and delirious from the corpse-strewn battlefield of Senlac Hill. He has watched his king butchered at the hands of foreign knights, seen his countrymen defeated in battle, and he will not stop until there is a reckoning.

Styrkar embarks on a bloody quest to avenge his dead master, becoming an outlaw in the wilds and earning a fearsome reputation.

When a Breton knight seeks to track down this fugitive and make his own name, he can little envisage the task he has set himself. For Styrkar, the Red Wolf, last surviving housecarl to King Harold Godwinson, will carve the story of his vengeance in Frankish flesh… or die in the attempt.

My Review for Oathbound

Oathbound starts with a vivid and well-sketched scene in the immediate aftermath of the battle of Hastings. From there, we’re taken back in time, to Styrkar’s childhood in Denmark, and told how he came to England – an important detail as Styrkar is a Dane, housecarl to the half-Danish Harold Godwinson, and he should never have come to England’s shores. But it is to Harold Godwinson that Styrkar is oath bound at the battle of Hastings.

The following tale is well told, as we follow Styrkar in the aftermath of the English defeat at the battle of Hastings. It’s not long until he is butting heads with the Franks from Normandy, and making himself both a powerful enemy, and a less than friendly ally.

I’m intrigued by how this story will develop in book 2. Styrkar is a complex character, thrust into a world where nothing is at it was, and he’s not above fighting for what he feels is right, but equally, sometimes he just wants to fight and doesn’t consider the consequences. With the build-up for book 2 an important part of the ending to book 1, it’s very clear that our main character (I’m not sure he’s a hero) is really going to be placed in a compromising position throughout Shield Breaker.

Oath Bound is a fascinating start to a new series exploring England after the Norman Conquest, pitting Norman/Frank against a Danish/Saxon, essentially two men for whom England isn’t their home, and yet who must make their lives there, all the same.

And here’s the blurb for the sequel…..

SHIELD BREAKER:

Styrkar the warrior sails to dangerous lands in this thrilling new historical adventure from Richard Cullen. The sequel to Oath Bound, longlisted for the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize 2022.

England, 1068: a land gripped in the iron fist of Frankish invaders. But the Conqueror does not sit easily on his fledgling throne. Rebellion is rife, and the flames of uprising have been ignited in every corner of the kingdom.

Thrown back into this crucible is Styrkar the Dane, former housecarl of the slain King Harold. Forced to travel to Ireland by his deadliest enemy, he must risk the fates of his brothers-in-arms in order to protect the one thing he loves.

So begins a journey that will take Styrkar to the royal court of Dublin, and the frigid climes of the north of England, for loyalty, love and vengeance. He will be tested, beaten and broken, but can any man keep the Red Wolf chained for long?

Meet the Author

Richard Cullen originally hails from Leeds in the heartland of Yorkshire. Oath Bound, his debut historical adventure novel, was longlisted for the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize 2022. As well as being a writer of historical adventure, he has also written a number of epic fantasy series as R.S. Ford. If you’d like to learn more about Richard’s books, and read free exclusive content, you can visit his website at follow him on Twitter at, or join him on Instagram.

Pre-order link

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3OmPNtx

Follow Richard Cullen

Twitter: @rich4ord

Instagram: @thewordhog

Website: wordhog.co.uk

Follow Aries

Twitter: @AriesFiction

Facebook: Aries Fiction

Website: http://www.headofzeus.com

Don’t forget to check out the review blog tour for Oathbound and Shieldbreaker with all of the fabulous hosts.

It’s my turn on the new release blog tour for The Capsarius by Simon Turney #AriesFiction #BlogTour

Here’s the blurb:

Warrior and combat medic, Titus Cervianus, must lead a legion and quell the uprisings in Egypt in a new Roman adventure from Simon Turney.
Egypt. 25 BC.

Titus Cervianus and the Twenty Second Deiotariana have been sent to deal with uprisings and chaos in Egypt. Yet the Twenty Second is no ordinary legion. Founded as the private royal army of one of Rome’s most devoted allies, the king of Galatia, their ways are not the same as the other legions, a factor that sets them apart and causes friction with their fellow soldiers.

Cervianus is no ordinary soldier, either. A former surgeon from the city of Ancyra, he’s now a capsarius – a combat medic. Cervianus is a pragmatist, a scientist, and truly unpopular with his legion.

Marching into the unknown, Cervianus will find unexpected allies in a local cavalryman and a troublesome lunatic. Both will be of critical importance as the young medic marches into the searing sands of the south, finding forbidden temples, dark assassins, vicious crocodiles, and worst of all, the warrior queen of Kush…

Amazon Link:

Review

I really enjoyed The Capsarius. I’ve read some of Simon Turney’s Roman fiction in the past, but this book, without its focus on Roman Rome, is a little different, and very enjoyable.

I didn’t read this book quickly – rather I enjoyed it slowly, taking delight in reading a small amount each day over an extended period. It’s a story rich with detail, as our main character, The Capsarius, travels through a land he is clearly excited to visit, being so very strange to his birth lands, and yet one he understands is filled with danger. The heat, the lack of water, and the need to stay close to the great river Nile, bring into play some very dangerous enemies, the crocodiles of the delta.

The Capsarius is not your usual Roman warrior. He’s a skilled and widely read individual, keen to hold on to the ideals he has as a medic in the Roman army, even though he’s pitted against just about everyone in the legion, and his superiors really don’t seem to like him a great deal – not that it worries him. He’s a man of reason, and yet one who’s thrust into a strange land, with even stranger gods, and gods who seem to speak to him. The interplay between the reasoned man forced to question his beliefs because of the pervading Egyptian religion is skillfully drawn.

This is a slow burn, which rewards the reader with two really quite different battle scenes in the second half of the book when our Roman hero finally encounters his elusive enemy, and I’m already looking forward to book 2.

A wonderful read – with just the right amount of humour and peril – set in a wonderfully drawn land of intrigue and danger.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my review copy, and for inviting me onto the new release blog tour.

Meet the author

Simon Turney is from Yorkshire and, having spent much of his childhood visiting historic sites, fell in love with the Roman heritage of the region. His fascination with the ancient world snowballed from there with great interest in Rome, Egypt, Greece and Byzantium. His works include the Marius’ Mules and Praetorian series, the Tales of the Empire and The Damned Emperor series, and the Rise of Emperors books with Gordon Doherty.

Follow Simon
Twitter: @SJATurney
Instagram: @simonturney_aka_sjaturney

Website: http://simonturney.com/

Don’t forget to stop by the other reviewers on The Capsarius new release blog tour.

headofzeus.com | @AriesFiction

Not convinced yet? Do check out my other reviews for Simon Turney’s Roman era books. Commodus, Sons of Rome, Masters of Rome, Emperors of Rome.

I’m sharing my review for Gods of Rome, the final book in the Rise of Emperors Trilogy by Gordon Doherty and Simon Turney #bookreview #histfic

Cor, I’ve loved all three of these books. But before I get to the nitty gritty of the review for book 3, here’s the blurb:

For one to rule, the other must die.

312 AD is a year of horrific and brutal warfare. Constantine’s northern army is a small force, plagued by religious rivalries, but seemingly unstoppable as they invade Maxentius’ Italian heartlands. These relentless clashes, incidents of treachery and twists of fortune see Maxentius’ armies driven back to Rome.

Constantine has his prize in sight, yet his army is diminished and on the verge of revolt. Maxentius meanwhile works to calm a restive and dissenting Roman populace. When the two forces clash in the Battle of the Milvian Bridge, there are factors at work beyond their control and soon they are left with carnage.

There is only one way Constantine and Maxentius’ rivalry will end. With one on a bloodied sword and the other the sole ruler of Rome . . .

Cover image for Gods of Rome by Doherty and Turney, published by Aries

My Review

Gods of Rome is a stunning climax to the Rise of Emperors trilogy. The reader has followed the lives of Maxentius and Constantine in the two previous books, through their childhood friendship and adult rivalries, which have resulted in them being firm enemies. In this non-stop and thrilling climax, there is all to play for, and don’t Doherty and Turney manage to ramp up the tension to unbearable heights.

I’m no expert on Roman history, and certainly not on the period leading up to AD312, but the authors manage to convey the chaos of the ruling elite without ever getting bogged down in the minutiae of all the internal power struggles. It’s a light touch that I certainly appreciate. The focus is on Constantine and Maxentius, and the men and women who stand at their side. And this is a particular strength of the book. It would be quite easy to forget about the men’s wives as the book focuses so much on warfare but Fausta and Valeria are given their own storylines, standing firm beside their men, even if they don’t always approve of what they’re doing, and not above some treachery themselves.

Maxentius and Constantine are two very different characters, grappling for the same thing, and the reader never tires of their internal monologues as they goad themselves onwards.

From about 50% through the book, I had to force myself not to turn to the back to read the historical notes, and to find out what ‘truth’ this story was based on.

I have adored this trilogy of books. It is my type of historical fiction – people who lived and breathed, brought to life and made to live their lives as opposed to authors focusing on the inevitability of what would happen, and presenting it as a fait accompli.

I can only hope that Simon Turney and Gordon Doherty are able to collaborate once more. After all, they have a lot of Roman era history they could delve into. (Hint, hint, nudge, nudge).

About the authors

Simon Turney is the author of the Marius’ Mules and Praetorian series, as well as The Damned Emperor series for Orion and Tales of the Empire series for Canelo. He is based in Yorkshire.

Gordon Doherty is the author of the Legionary and Strategos series, and wrote the Assassin’s Creed tie-in novel Odyssey. He is based in Scotland.

Purchase link

Follow Simon

Website: http://simonturney.com/

Follow Gordon

Website: https://www.gordondoherty.co.uk/

Follow Aries

Website: http://www.headofzeus.com

Extract from Gods of Rome

1
CONSTANTINE
The Cottian Alpes, 27th January 312 ad

We moved through the mountains like winter wolves. The ferocious blizzard sped southwards with us, carried on the famous bora winds, singing a dire song. For days we marched through that driving snow, seeing nothing but great white-clad peaks either side of us; rugged, inhospitable highlands which in these frozen months soldiers were not meant to cross. All around me the gale screamed, boots crunched endlessly through the successively deeper drifts of white, men’s teeth chattered violently, mules brayed, exhausted. It felt at times as if we were wandering, snow-blind, to our deaths, but I knew what lay ahead… so close now.

I called upon my chosen men and a handful of their best soldiers – a group of thirty – and we roved ahead of the army like advance scouts. The blizzard raked through my bear cloak, the snow rattling like slingshot against my gemmed ridge helm and bronze scales as I scoured the valley route. Yet I refused to blink. When the speeding hail of white slowed and the murky grey ahead thinned a little, I saw them: a pair of stone and timber watchtowers, northern faces plastered in snow. Gateposts watching this passage between two realms. I dropped to my haunches behind the brow of a snowdrift and my chosen men hunkered down with me. I gazed over the drift’s brow, regarding the narrow gap between the towers and the valley route beyond, on through the winter-veined mountains. Thinking of the land that lay beyond these heights, my frozen lips moved soundlessly.

Italia…

Land of Roman forefathers. Home of the man I had once considered my friend… but that territory was rightfully mine. Mine! My surging anger scattered when I spotted movement atop one of the two towers: a freezing Maxentian scout blowing into his hands, oblivious to our presence. Then the blizzard fell treacherously slack, and the speeding veil of white cleared for a trice. I saw his ice-crusted eyebrows rise as he leaned forward, peering into the momentary clarity, right at us. His eyes bulged, mouth agog.

‘He is here!’ he screamed to be heard over the sudden return of the storm’s wrath. ‘Constantine is h—’

With a wet punch, an arrow whacked into the man’s chest and shuddered there. He spasmed then folded over the edge of the timber parapet and fell like a sack of gravel, crunching into a pillowy snowdrift at the turret’s foot. I glanced to my right, seeing my archer nock and draw again, shifting his bow to the heights of the other tower, his eyes narrowing within the shadow of his helm brow. He loosed, but the dark-skinned sentry up there ducked behind the parapet, screaming and tolling a warning bell. At once, three more Maxentians spilled from the door at the base of that rightmost tower, rushing south towards a simple, snow-topped stable twenty paces away, in the lee of a rocky overhang. This was one of the few gateways through the mountains – albeit the least favoured and most treacherous – and it was guarded by just five men? Instantly, suspicion and elation clashed like swords in my mind. We had no time to rake over the facts. These watchmen could not be allowed to ride south and warn the legions of Italia. They had to die.