The Druids of Destiny Series Series by Shanna Murchison

Book 1 of The Druids of Destiny Shanna Murchison Northern Wales, 1145 Angharad of Meriel seeks to escape from an enforced marriage to a vicious neighboring landlord. Instead of gaining her freedom, she is taken captive by Rhys, the Silver Wolf. Rhys, a powerful Welsh warrior, is determined to avenge his family and end the rebellion which has broken out against Owain, the prince of Merionedd, led by the prince's own brother Cadwalader... moreBook 1 of The Druids of Destiny Shanna Murchison Northern Wales, 1145 Angharad of Meriel seeks to escape from an enforced marriage to a vicious neighboring landlord. Instead of gaining her freedom, she is taken captive by Rhys, the Silver Wolf. Rhys, a powerful Welsh warrior, is determined to avenge his family and end the rebellion which has broken out against Owain, the prince of Merionedd, led by the prince's own brother Cadwalader. Angharad can see that the tide of her destiny has turned, and she must choose sides in the war to come. She determines to live by her sword with Rhys' rapidly dwindling band of increasingly desperate warriors. When Cadwalader takes the ultimate gamble and invites Danish mercenaries from Dublin to invade Wales, Angharad and Rhys discover the druidic powers within them that they have always possessed but tried to suppress. Only their daring to trust to love and their remarkable supernatural abilities can prevent their whole world from being destroyed. As Cadwalader's Viking band bring nothing but death and destruction, all Rhys and Angharad have to cling to is their tempestuous love. Will it too prove to be another casualty of war? An excerpt from Tide of Destiny: "Please, Sir, we haven't time! The woods are crawling with Emlyn's warriors and robbers and-" "Aye, the brigand called The Silver Wolf," he said with a sneer, his strange cold eyes never leaving her face. "Was that rambling piece of lunacy the best tale you could come up with? I've never heard such a parcel of nonsense." Angharad took in his less than immaculate dark clothing, and decided to keep the man talking in the hope that she could give him the slip. He wasn't one of Emlyn's men, nor a Black Boar, but that didn't mean he was any less of a threat. She couldn't afford any delay on her urgent quest to help Prince Owain. And didn't dare risk testing his loyalty as a potential ally by telling him the whole truth. Yet still, he seemed intelligent, not completely lawless... "I assure you, every word of those stories was recounted to me by Prince Cadwalader himself at dinner last night," she said, her eyes never leaving his handsome face as she gauged his response to her name-dropping. Angharad never saw a man change so rapidly. He grabbed her shoulder hard, fury etched in every line of his finely boned cheeks and broad jaw. "Cadwalader's here?" he growled, the words coming from deep in his belly causing her own to quiver. "Where?" Angharad had tried to keep command of the situation with the raven-haired man through bluster and bravado, but the sudden shift in his emotions truly terrified her. She stared up into his odd blue eyes, so like quicksilver, changing from one strange hue to the next in the span of a blink. Silver. "Oh my God," she gasped, staring up into his face. His lips thinned to a bitter smile. "Not quite. But I'm said to be the very Devil when crossed." He grabbed her bridle and shoved his stallion closer, trapping her against a tree trunk with his mount and own huge body. "So if you value your soul, Madam, tell me who you are and why you're spying on me, or not even the good Lord will be able to save you." The Tide Of Destiny by Shanna Murchison Word Count: 115,000 380 8.5 x 11 pages Setting: Northern Wales, 1145 Rating: Sensual Also by Shanna Murchison The Druids of Destiny Series Tide of Destiny, Book 1 of The Druids of Destiny Isle of Destiny, Book 2 of The Druids of Destiny Shore of Destiny, Book 3 of The Druids of Destiny The Wizard Woman (Ireland, 1179) The Druid's Woman (a novella, Ireland 1179) less

The Isle of Destiny Book Two of The Druids of Destiny Series Northern Wales, Ireland, 1146 Caradoc the Black Hawk rescues novice nun Morgaine from a murderous band of cutthroats. Caradoc tries to return the beautiful young woman safely to her convent, but her enemies have burnt it to the ground, leaving her completely at Caradoc's mercy... moreThe Isle of Destiny Book Two of The Druids of Destiny Series Northern Wales, Ireland, 1146 Caradoc the Black Hawk rescues novice nun Morgaine from a murderous band of cutthroats. Caradoc tries to return the beautiful young woman safely to her convent, but her enemies have burnt it to the ground, leaving her completely at Caradoc's mercy. Demanding answers from the lovely but mysterious woman who sets him on fire, the scarred and battle-hardened warrior is shocked to discover his companion is none other than the legendary Morgaine of Yns Draiocht, said to be descended from both King Arthur and the great wizard Merlin. Caradoc believes that Morgaine is being used as nothing more than a pawn in her neighboring lord Yestin's bid for power over the magical island of Yns Draiocht, the most sacred of all druid strongholds. Morgaine's father Gawain is being held to ransom by Yestin's Viking allies in Dublin. Morgaine is willing to trade herself for her father, but Caradoc refuses to allow her to make the bargain. He knows they will keep Morgaine a prisoner forever, and destroy all that she as a druid is sworn to protect. Despite his being half-blind as a result of his deliberate maiming at the hands of rogue royal prince Cadwalader, Caradoc is determined to rescue Morgaine's father and remove Yestin's threat to the druid isle forever. As he travels to Dublin to rescue her father, and finds himself falling in love with Morgaine, he is willing to make any sacrifice to keep her safe, and stop Cadwalader from overrunning all of northern Wales. Morgaine is stunned at the depth of her feelings for the handsome but badly scarred Caradoc. She determines to trust him with her life and love, and teaches him how to use the power she can sense within him to control the four elements. Their torrid passion and deepening love give both the strength and confidence to do battle with the forces of darkness. But the mystical forces underlying Yns Draiocht are nothing if not seductive. Will Caradoc uses his new found magics for good or evil? And can this practical man of the world ever believe in magic, or that he is worthy of the love of so powerful a princess? Chapter One Merionedd North Wales, June 1145 Morgaine bit her trembling lower lip and told herself not to be such a goose. She gathered her reins more firmly in her hands and tried to keep her eyes on the road. There was no need to feel so restless and uneasy. There was nothing sinful in feeling glad to be going home. Nor would anything happen to her on the journey there. She had several stout male companions, and three of the good sisters to accompany her. Anglesey wasn't that far away. She would see her beloved sea again, and her father-- She heard a hiss through the air and felt a sharp thump and vibration under her. Her horse trembled and screamed. The dusty earth hurtled up to meet her. Morgaine fell hard on both her elbows and lay winded as the dreadful swishing sounds continued. Arrows. The clash of steel on steel joined the deadly susurration. Sister Arwenna cried out sharply. Father Rhodri gave one surprised grunt before the blood began to cascade down the front of his black robe. Panic froze Morgaine for an instant as she watched the horrifying tableau unfold before her: Sister Winifred, stabbed in the side, her final breath a long groan. Sister Elyn, kicking at the man trying to drag her out of the saddle while her horse neighed and reared. "No!" Morgaine mouthed, still struggling for breath. But no one could hear her... Word Count=118,000, approx 385 8.5 x 11" pages Rating: Very sensual less

The Shore of Destiny Book 3 of The Druids of Destiny Shanna Murchison Ireland, 1147 Bowen the Golden Bear is a Viking Berserker, blessed of the great war god Odin, and one of the most ferocious warriors ever to serve the great Norse Lord Horvath of Dublin. Horvath asks Bowen a personal favor, to rescue his niece Aislinn from her treacherous Irish clan, who seek to remove her as its head... moreThe Shore of Destiny Book 3 of The Druids of Destiny Shanna Murchison Ireland, 1147 Bowen the Golden Bear is a Viking Berserker, blessed of the great war god Odin, and one of the most ferocious warriors ever to serve the great Norse Lord Horvath of Dublin. Horvath asks Bowen a personal favor, to rescue his niece Aislinn from her treacherous Irish clan, who seek to remove her as its head. Bowen uses his skills as a warrior and druid to make short work of the traitors, but terrifies the O'Neill clan in the process. His insistence upon marrying Aislinn, the beautiful woman he has worshipped from afar for many years, causes the feisty woman to openly defy him and thwart his wishes at every turn. Aislinn has gone from daughter to dynastic bride to war trophy in only three short years. Her first marriage was dreadful; how much worse will it be to be wed to a pagan savage? But Bowen's love for her sons and gentleness despite him being a powerful warrior soon begin to wear down her resistance to her stunningly handsome new husband. She learns of his original Welsh family, and his shadowy past. The more she discovers, the more she begins to wonder if Bowen is truly her destiny and the answer to all her prayers. Does she dare give in to the sensual thrall he has woven around her? Bowen is beset on all sides, battling with Aislinn and his enemies within his castle gates, and coping with treachery outside as well as more ambitions Vikings and the neighboring Irish clans come to see if his lovely new home Ardara is ripe for plunder. Bowen is determined to protect his beloved wife and new family no matter what the cost, even if it means turning his back on his druidic powers and laying down his life to save hers. Will Aislinn ever be able to accept the supernatural side of her husband Bowen's abilities, or will she too betray him? West Coast of Ireland, March 1146, The Feast of St Patrick Aislinn stood on the battlements and stared in horror at the sea below her. This couldn't be happening. Never in all her twenty-three years... But it was. The dragon ships were even now beaching below her ramparts. Though only possessing six oars each side, the first one looked the most lethal she had ever seen. It was filled with the harbingers of doom. Not the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, she thought hysterically, but eleven naked screaming men wielding swords and axes, and two bears. No, one bear. A bear so golden and beautiful that she was sure she had to be imagining things, such was the contrast between it and its huge black companion. The second was as ebony as a raven's wing apart from some bald patches on its chest and legs and-- God above, it wasn't a bear, it was a man. How could she have missed the huge-- She blenched in shock and fear as he suddenly stopped his run along the sandy strand to look up at her. Straight at her. And she to her shame gazed down at him. Stared her fill. And then stared even more. The hot blush scalded her cheeks as she gaped at the man, who was completely naked save for his dark bearskin cloak and soft black leather boots. But she just couldn't seem to tear her eyes away from him. Nor did it seem could his be parted from her. But if he was going to lead his men he certainly couldn't do it from twenty yards back, Bowen scolded himself, and ran on. He had just been so astonished to see Aislinn again after all this time. After all the weeks of dreaming of this moment, ever since he had started to prepare for this expedition, and then had to row half way around Ireland to get here. He had worried the whole way about her safety. If she would even still be alive when he finally got here... Setting: Ireland, 1147 Word Count=128,000 Rating: Sensual Also by Shanna Murchison The Druid's Woman The Wizard Woman The Druids of Destiny Series The Tide of Destiny The Isle of Destiny The Shore of Destiny less