November 2011

For the second of our November 2011 e-book reviews, E-Bookmuncher is delighted to share the hot-blooded Saxon tale  ‘Ragnar the Murderer’ by Lily Byrne.

Ragnar the Murderer by Lily Byrne

‘Ragnar the Murderer’ was published on 6th July 2011 by Night Publishing .

A tale of love and treachery.

It is a time of uneasy truce, of two races living side-by-side, inter-marrying even, but forever on the look out for treachery among their neighbors.

They meet, they bathe together and they consort. Life is short, fun is likely to be brief, and opportunity has to be seized wherever it can be found without unleashing long-held rivalries and carnage.

Then the youthful Dane, Ragnar, falls in love with Aelfwyn the Angle who is already promised by duty to one of her own village.

Ragnar and Aelfwyn’s passionate love affair is a secret which will never be hidden for long, but theirs is not the only secret around.

When Ragnar finds himself charged with murder, he and Aelfwyn are forcibly parted. But is Ragnar really a cold-blooded, cynical killer or is there a more sinister plot being played out? (description taken from Amazon).

E-bookmuncher’s views on ‘Ragnar the Murderer’

The title, ‘Ragnar the Murderer’, and its cover image are highly effective in their purpose -  ’to stop potential readers in their tracks as they browse the virtual bookshelves’ – no mean feat in the face of fierce competition and something that authors need to be acutely aware of when publishing their work through Amazon, Smashwords and the other virtual bookstores. I think Lily has judged this really well.

The cover and title clearly tell us that we are dealing with a tale of Saxon love and treachery,  in itself a refreshing change, providing the perfect backdrop for the steaminess and base human instinct that lie therein. I particularly liked the introduction, helping as it did to set the reader’s mind before the first chapter – a good touch.

Lily has successfully managed to weave in a tale of unbridled passion with a murder, and more than a liberal sprinkling of treachery – Saxon style. The reader is never allowed to forget the setting for the story, with just the right touches of detail. This is of great credit to Lily and serves to enhance the sensations of lust and debauchery as well as reminding us of the strict codes of conduct and honour that existed amongst the Norse clans.

The characterisation worked well for all the main protagonists – they felt authentic for the era in which the book was set. I didn’t get that feeling, as you sometimes do with non-contemporary novels, that a character will whip out their mobile phone and start tweeting about their latest love conquest, or that their chariot will fly past a red telephone box as they hurtle into battle.

Lily’s writing style is light and fluid making this a pleasurable book to read in a couple of sessions, ideal perhaps for a plane journey or a few hours by the pool. The plot isn’t complicated – clearly quite intentional, allowing the book to be entertaining without pretending to be something that it isn’t. 

Whilst I don’t normally tend to read romantic novels, however raunchy, I  enjoyed this one for its historical setting and suggest it would appeal to a wide cross-section of readers, young adults and upwards.

E-bookmuncher would recommend ’Ragnar the Murderer’ as deserving of a  a place on your Kindle, Nook or other reading device, and certainly worth the small investment required to purchase it…. I wonder if Amazon are up to a barter session, I have some chickens to offload….

Click here to contact Lily Byrne.

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 For the first of our two November 2011 e-book reviews, E-Bookmuncher is delighted to share the highly imaginative ‘Edge of Extinction’ by Kristen Stone.

Edge of Extinction - by Kristen Stone