He broke her nose when they were children. Now he’s telling her to be his wife. Telling her, not asking her.
“His smile? She would force that smile off his mouth, with her sword if necessary. “
Borghild doesn’t have much but she has her honor. The only way to keep it is to challenge Eivind, the new jarl, to a holmgang.
Eivind is home from his long trip abroad. He’s laid claim to the throne, now he needs his childhood friend to marry him. Borghild is as proud as he remembered.
A challenge? Let the battle begin.
This was the blurb from my new short story The Challenge – a Viking Romance.
It’s a part of the great Historical Romance Anthology Kissing and other Scandalous Pastimes. Kissing and other Scandalous Pastimes has ten wonderful historical romances. All the proceeds go to breast cancer research.
New Historical Romance anthology
You can read all about Borghild and Eivind in my new short story The Challenge in the historical romance anthology Kissing and other Scandalous Pastimes. It was published yesterday and, apart from my Viking romance, it has wonderful stories about dukes, Indian princes, and love through the times.
“How much time do you need to prepare to fight your future husband?”
Vikings are fascinating
I’ve been fascinated by Vikings since I was a kid. When I grew up in Scandinavia there was always another excavation site, another Viking festival, and a new piece of information uncovered about the proud men and women who roamed these lands 1000 years ago.
What fascinates me the most is how men and women had equally strong roles back then. Both men and women fought–men, probably, more than women–and women carried the keys to the family treasures.
Women could hold important positions. They could also get a divorce–and keep their fortunes when divorced–if their husbands were violent, if he was gone for too long or if he didn’t satisfy her in bed. Actually, the two latter were connected because “being gone for too long” meant “not being there to satisfy her in bed.”
“The gods made us as a pair, never to be separated”
Read more about Vikings on my blog
Read this blog for more random tidbits about Vikings–and modern-day Scandinavians.
Did you know that Vikings had sick pay? Do you know how to curse like a Viking? Did you think Vikings were dirty? No, Vikings were actually pretty clean with a weekly day for washing.
“You want to marry me for my cock?”
Buy Kissing and other Scandalous Pastimes now!
All the images are by the lovely Anna Volkin <3
I love it, it’s awesome, just started reading, but I got sidetracked 🙂
Good luck!
Thank you! <3
Just for the record : The real Thyra Dane(both), married to Gorm, son of (Hartha)cnut, king of Denmark was actually the grand daughter of King Alfred the great. Her actual mother (known as the Lady of Mercia) is one of the few women about whom we actually know, that she led and commanded an army into battle. (Sorry, I can’t go to my reference books at present – I don’t exactly remember the spellings.)
Thyra Danebod was the daughter of a Jutland King or Jarl named Harald Klakk, according to Icelandic Saga writer Snorre Sturlasson. Danish historian Saxo Grammaticus claimed she was the daughter of “Æthelred of England”, which probably was Ethelred of Wessex, but historians don’t find that claim to be very credible.
She was an interesting person no matter what her parentage was, though.