Prydain Series by A.J. Adams

He stuck the knife in the ground and stripped off his leathers. The tunic came off, revealing a long, lean, muscled torso, covered in tattoos. Snakes ran up and down his arms, his pecs and his shoulders. A skull blazed on his chest. Then he was pushing apart my legs, settling between my thighs, leaning over me. He smelled of smoke, leather and musk. It was terrifying, like being at the mercy of an animal.Falsely accused, Wynne is determined to clear her name... moreHe stuck the knife in the ground and stripped off his leathers. The tunic came off, revealing a long, lean, muscled torso, covered in tattoos. Snakes ran up and down his arms, his pecs and his shoulders. A skull blazed on his chest. Then he was pushing apart my legs, settling between my thighs, leaning over me. He smelled of smoke, leather and musk. It was terrifying, like being at the mercy of an animal.Falsely accused, Wynne is determined to clear her name. However, a trip to petition the Steward at Brighthelme turns disastrous when the Beasts, fearsome warriors from the frozen north, raze the city. When Wynne is carried away, she’s determined to regain her freedom but Rune, her captor, has other ideas. Beast is set in Prydain, an imaginary place that combines Anglo-Saxon England with Medieval England, the Teutonic Kingdom and the Viking Age. Note: this story contains kidnapping, dub-con and graphic violence. It is a standalone novel; no cliff-hangers. less

“We caught a Beast! A real live poxy Beast!” Bastards. Calling us beasts while they cheat, steal, and lie. I got kicked in the ribs, a whip laid about my shoulders, and all the time they were screaming. “Hang him!” “Beat him!” “Kill the Beast!” Then I saw her. She was standing there, staring right into my eyes. For a moment, I thought I was looking at a Valkyrie, one of Valhalla’s shield maidens. She had hair the colour of ice, and eyes as blue as the sky... more“We caught a Beast! A real live poxy Beast!” Bastards. Calling us beasts while they cheat, steal, and lie. I got kicked in the ribs, a whip laid about my shoulders, and all the time they were screaming. “Hang him!” “Beat him!” “Kill the Beast!” Then I saw her. She was standing there, staring right into my eyes. For a moment, I thought I was looking at a Valkyrie, one of Valhalla’s shield maidens. She had hair the colour of ice, and eyes as blue as the sky. Tall, willowy, and silent, she looked unworldly. There was a wolf at her side, too. I blinked, expecting her to vanish, but it wasn’t a vision. She was real. The knowledge hit me with a punch that sucked the breath out of me. She was one of us, a Skraeling of Thule. She leaned on the wolf, controlling it with a touch of her hand. “Lady Freyja always advises counsel before action.” A Skraeling woman who invoked our goddess yet who was a traitor. I was filled with sudden hate, poisoned by the thought of one of our own people contaminated by foul betrayal. If the will were a weapon, she would have fallen on the spot. Instead, the world blurred again. I think I passed out for a few moments because when I opened my eyes, he was there. The Patriarch. A cheat, a liar and all-round scum bucket He certainly hates us Skraeling. “Glorious Ullr will bring us wise counsel. And tomorrow we will flog the Beast to cleanse him of his sins, and then we will burn him alive!”He’s a vicious Beast, violent and dangerous. Bliss knows she ought to walk away. After all, she has a dark and dangerous secret to preserve. When she can’t leave him to burn, her rescue tumbles them both into danger, adventure and romance. less